BidRank

Overview

Keyword Wizard.

BidRank makes it easy to set up your bid file using the Keyword Wizard. This tool downloads the entire list of keywords from the account and search engine that you specify. You may then use this pick list to select the keywords that you wish to manage. Upon finishing the wizard each keyword is correctly set up to manage using the default target rank and bid max that you specified. Select Save from the File menu to make sure that your new bid file is preserved for future use. Remember that BidRank is a desktop application and this bid file is where all of your bidding rules settings are stored.

Advanced Automation.

Not only can you specify how often you want BidRank to check and change bids, but the advanced features allow you to specify a Primary and Secondary set of Target Ranks and Bid Maximums based on time of day and/or day of week. Basically the Primary settings are used when inside the times that you have specified and the Secondary settings take effect when outside of those times.

For example: You may have customer demographics that tell you that your best ROI (return on investment) is realized during the evening hours of 4:00 PM to 9:00 PM. Perhaps your best shoppers are those that log on from home after work. You would set BidRank's primary automation to be in effect Monday through Friday from 4:00 PM to 9:00 PM with a target rank of number 1. The secondary target rank could be set to 15. This will allow you to be #1 during your best click through conversion period while saving you money at #15 during poor ROI periods.

Gap Surfing.

Most people think of bid management as something that keeps you at a certain rank while under a specified bid maximum. Those that use Gap Surfing have realized that it can keep them at the most cost-effective rank within a specified range of ranks. Gap Surfing scans the specified range of ranks and calculates the gaps between them. Once the largest gap is determined, Gap Surfing will place your keyword at the bottom of the largest gap giving you the highest rank available for the minimum increase in cost per click.

For example: You may have a keyword for which you have determined that being anywhere in the top three generates your desired ROI. Perhaps this keyword is listed on the PPC Search Engine's partner sites if it is within the top three positions. The bidding scenario could be as follows:

#1 $0.78 www.abc.com

#2 $0.47 www.pdq.com

#3 $0.25 www.xyz.com

The gap between #1 and #2 is $0.31, while the gap between #2 and #3 is $0.22. The largest gap is between #1 and #2 therefore Gap Surfing will place your bid at the #2 position for $0.48 as follows.

#1 $0.78 www.abc.com

#2 $0.48 www.yours.com

#3 $0.47 www.pdq.com

Gap Surfing also has a "Min Gap" setting so that you can determine when you just want to be #1. The default is $0.01 which means that if each bid is only one penny from the other, Gap Surfing will place your bid in the #1 position.