MSN adCenter, Microsoft's paid search advertising platform, is out of beta. Will it pose a serious threat to Google AdSense? Those who think not offer a variety of reasons.
1. Google's marketshare is enormous--over 60% of search volume. MSN trails far behind with about 11.6% of the search volume.
2. He who starts first wins. AdWords has a proven track record and a loyal customer base. Advertisers will not be quick to abandon ship.
3. Having enormous resources and focus,Google continues to develop AdWords features. No matter how aggressively Microsoft improves adCenter, they are chasing a moving target.
4. Although it has some innovative features, adCenter's back end is clumsy and buggy. This translates into highter management costs for adCenter PPC campaigns--a seriously liability in PPC, when every dollar counts.
Despite all this, some are more optimistic about adCenter's chances.
1. Microsoft is no slouch when it comes to spending money and developing new products. Even if adCenter is not running smoothly today, it soon will.
2. adCenter offers exceptionally robust demographic and behavioral targeting. Advertisers can direct ads to an audience based on geographic location, gender, and/or time of day or week. In theory, this assures higher conversion rates. In practice (see above link), it appears to be happening.
3. At the moment, adCenter keywords are less expensive than on AdWords, because fewer advertisers are bidding. While that dynamic will change as adCenter develops volume, right now advertisers have a pocketbook incentive to try it. If relatively high conversion rates hold, adCenter will establish its own loyal customer base.
There's no two ways to look at one thing. Regardless of the outcome, all this heavyweight competition will give online advertisers better options and tools. The future is bright for PPC.
