Since my childhood in rural Wisconsin, when I once convinced my younger brother to try to dig to China, a lot has changed. China's population is estimated at 1.3 billion, and while the economy's growth is expected to slow by 1% this year, it still sits at an enviable 10.7%. This growth helps swell the middle class, disposable income and, ultimately, Internet usage. Just last week, China's Xinhua News Agency reported that the nation has 221 million Internet users.
Click fraud prevention solutions provider Click Forensics has released industry pay-per-click fraud figures for the first quarter of 2008. The Click Fraud Index, based on reports from the Click Fraud Network, found that click fraud rates have dropped to 16.3% and fraud rates for content networks dropped to 27.8%.
Yahoo reported first quarter financial results Tuesday, reporting revenues of $1.9 billion, a 9% year-over-year increase. "[These results] are all the more remarkable when you take into account the recent economic environment and the uncertainty stemming from Microsoft's unsolicited proposal," said Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang in a conference call on April 22.
In order to help users filter through the clutter of the Internet, several new search engines have paired technology with human guides to provide better, more relevant search results. "The key is really to filter out the bad information and leverage the power of the medium to let the great information rise to the top," said Unity Stokes, co-founder/ president of OrganizedWisdom.com, a human-powered health search engine.
Cam Balzer, VP of emerging media, DoubleClick Performics April 28, 2008
Paid search experts manage microtargeted, highly dynamic campaigns and understand the art and science of optimizing performance media. They know how to work the levers and dials of pay-per-click marketing, including keyword selection, ad copy, landing pages, bid and budget management, to generate strong ROI on every media dollar.
The DMNews Essential Guide to Search Engine Marketing
Robert Murray, president, iProspect April 28, 2008
Call it "social networking" or "social search" or "Web 2.0." Whatever you call it, the bottom line is that it's all about the influence of online communities on your brands, products or services. Given the power of this medium, marketers need guidance on moving forward. To succeed in this space, there are certain rules you need to be aware of and follow carefully.
