Which is the good bid management software which can help us to do cross search engine management ? Please advise ! Thanks !
I would recommend http://www.atlassolutions.com/services_search.aspx. It is probably the most robust bit of software out there. You might also want to take a look at http://www.makemetop.co.uk/ Hope this helps
has anyone else tried keywordmax, i used it for about two months and had lots of trouble but I am not sure if i just had a bad experience?
[NOTE: I'm with an SEM firm, Efficient Frontier, so my opinion may be biased.] As more and more advertisers start to take search seriously and thus the need for SEM partners, there's generally more noise in the marketplace and less vendor experience on the part of the buyer. One major, major point that I'd like to impart upon anyone considering SEM solutions, then, is to read the fine print. For example, Aquantive's AtlasOnePoint might appear on the surface to be a passable SEM solution: it's available as a self-service ASP model which advertisers and agencies like, and works across all major search engines. Beautiful, splendid. Spend a little time reading their Atlas Search product brochure, however, and one biiig deal-breaker emerges: They admit it doesn’t work in opaque marketplaces. Check out the ** on page 3 of the product brochure (wherein on the right column they describe Campaign Optimizer, their ROI-based automated management feature) and the associated disclaimer at the bottom of page 3, which reads: “Automated campaign optimization does not apply to engines with opaque bid landscapes.†Given that 100% of the U.S. search market is now opaque (and 80%+ of the int'l market), that, folks, is all you should need to flush them out of the SEM consideration water. [Because virtually all SEM's are rules-based solutions, you should apply AOP’s admission to others as well.] Virtually all self-service bid management systems are incapable of actually doing any keyword management. All they'll do is put in place the max CPC you tell it to, which is a far cry from doing the actual modeling of historical and actual impression/click/cost/revenue/margin necessary to both manage and optimize (meaning, 'get more for every $ spend').
Sheesh, what would one use Atlas for then? I actually just started working with Atlas (inherited, I didn't suggest it) and noticed that same thing over this past weekend. Unless I'm missing something it's little more than a glorified reporting interface?
As relevance is becoming an important factor in CPCs, I wouldn't waste your time/money on bid management software - regardless of whether you have a large or small client. 80% of you conversions will come from 20% of your keywords (I'd be tempted to say even less actually). We manage them in the interface - its just as effective. Spend your time into improving your creative instead.