Online Comparison Engines in PPC Advertising

As we mentioned, PPC does not only apply to search engine advertising. We have seen that adverts can be placed on content sites. PPC can also refer to display advertising, where advertisers pay only for each click through to their site, as opposed to each impression of the banner. PPC is also used by many online comparison engines.

You have probably come across online comparison engines when searching for a particular product. Popular comparison engines include:

NexTag (www.nextag.com)
PriceRunner (www.pricerunner.com)
Kelkoo (www.kelkoo.co.uk)
Pangora (www.pangora.com)
Jump (www.jump.co.za)

These engines contract with retailers. The retailers supply the engine with a product feed (XML or CSV) which contains the following information:

• Product name
  
• Product price
  
• Prodcut URL
  
• Product serial number
  
• Product image
  
• Product description
  
• Product keywords

When a user searches for a product on one of the comparison engines, the engine will list all retailers who offer that product. When the engines contract the retailers, they also agree on how much the retailer is willing to pay for each click from the comparison engine through to the retailer’s web site. The minimum CPC will vary from category to category (consumer electronics, for example, could have a higher CPC than baby clothes).

When results are shown, priority is given to those retailers who are willing to pay a higher CPC. However, the user has the option of sorting results by price, alphabetically, etc.

 Online comparison engines form an important part of the online marketing mix for an online retailer. As well as comparing products from different retailers, they also offer users the chance to review products, as well as retailers. Many users prefer to start their product search on a comparison engine, as they can see a variety of prices for the same product in one place.

So, what can you do to market your site more effectively through online comparison engines?

Measure conversion from the clicks you get from the comparison engine. You’re paying for the traffic; make sure it’s worthwhile.

Optimise the product feed you supply:

• Make sure it’s up to date!
  
• Product names should be clear.
  
• Each product must have a unique URL.
  
• Make sure you are able to describe your product succinctly.
  

Make sure your price is right:

• Don’t overpay for clicks.
  
• Ensure your pricing and customer service are competitive: you don’t have much space to entice the user to click through to you!