MSN Search Launching Own Paid Search Division?
MSN Search made public their new MSN Search Beta two months ago, which showcases their own search engine technology. Rumors were floating around that the new MSN Search would launch at the beginning of the New Year. It’s the 5th of January now and no word from MSN on a specific launch date, but KeywordRanking’s Andy Beal scooped some news this morning that MSN may be also launching their own paid search division.
Currently MSN Search runs Overture ads in the sponsored links section of their search results and has a contract running with Overture until 2006. However, if you have enough yearly budget, one can buy directly from MSN for a bit of a better PPC price. MSN then blocks out its own serving of the Overture ad and replaces it with a direct buy MSN Search sponsored link.
But is MSN planning on dumping Overture and launching their own paid search advertising network/interface? The emails which Andy received from MSN would lead one to believe so! Here’s a snippet:
Position: Search Marketing Specialist
General Description:Do you have pay for performance (P4P) Search experience and want to be part of the next revolution in online advertising? Do you want to help grow a high-performance organization by using cutting-edge technology and help customers get the most out of their advertising efforts? If so, then MSN’s Client Service Organization may have the perfect opportunity for you.
We are looking for a highly motivated Search Marketing Specialist to provide world-class service to our advertisers and partners. In this role, you would be able to leverage your internet and customer service experience by working closely with Sales and Clients to develop, execute, and optimize search campaigns. You will be joining a team that is focused on results, works together to solve problems, and is committed to developing people.
Core Responsibilities:
Work with Sales, Clients, and other MSN employees (Search Marketing Analysts) to provide search campaign management. This would include:
* Setting up accounts and campaigns
* Building and managing keyword lists
* Coordinating creative upload and editorial review
* Establishing targeting parameters
* Forecasting budgets
* Deliver on industry-leading SLA’s for campaign management activities.
* Help Sales, Clients and Search Marketing Analysts optimize keywords, manage bids, and improve creative.
* Use proprietary tools and internal resources to highlight significant trends.
* Provide strategic insight through regular reports.
* Support Sales team produce response to proposals for new business.
* Ensure fiscal responsibility by proactively monitoring budgets and QA’ing contracts and invoices.
* Gather industry research for search engine strategy development and positioning.
Andy has emails from all three positions listed on his blog, more to come on MSN Paid Search news.
