The insurance category fetches the highest cost-per-click (CPC) rates in Google AdWords pay-per-click (PPC) advertising: nearly $50 per click, according to new keyword research data from search marketing software provider WordStream Inc. more

Ad rates on the nation's most popular social network are climbing: Median cost-per-clicks (CPCs) on Facebook grew 22% in the second quarter of 2011 over the previous quarter, according to report by Efficient Frontier and Context Optional. Meanwhile, search spending increased 8% in the second quarter over 2Q10 levels. more

Mobile is expected to be the most influential advertising medium over the next three to five years, followed by social media, according to a new report by The Creative Group and the American Advertising Federation (AAF). more

Global ad expenditure is now forecast to grow 4.1% in 2011, reaching $471 billion, the same as the peak level of spending in 2008, according to projections by ZenithOptimedia. The expected growth is just 0.1 percentage point (PP) below the 4.2% projected three months earlier. more

"Most online retailers have little insight into the performance of their transactional emails, from basic deliverability characteristics to more sophisticated behavioral data once the emails have been sent," writes Emily Keye at the Bronto blog. That is a surprising fact when you consider transactional emails enjoy astounding open rates—up to 75% ... more

SEO experts have spent the last decade preaching a gospel of optimized page-level elements and inbound links. "Those things are still important today," Jonathan Lawoyin writes in an article at MarketingProfs, "but getting real SEO results these days requires not only a technically optimized website and relevant inbound links but ... more

Mobile ads served to Apple's iOS deliver higher click-through rate (CTR) than those served to other smartphone operating systems, outperforming ads served to Google Android phones by more than 2.5 times, according to a study by MediaMind. Timing also plays a role, with overall mobile ad performance reaching its peak ... more

If you have a website that gets a good deal of traffic but generates no money, placing ads on your site may be the key to success. Learn how ad type, placement, and location can boost your website revenue. more

Online video viewing continues to grow—particularly such categories as full-length movies and TV shows—according to a study by Yahoo Insights: 57% of users now watch online video on any given day, up 14 percentage points from the 43% who did so in 2009. more

"Negative keywords can … refine your keyword list and filter out unwanted traffic for your paid-search campaigns," writes Jill Solomon in an article at MarketingProfs. "Excluding specific words or phrases that aren't relevant to your product or service can help you reach your ideal prospects, reduce your cost per click ... more

Google Sites, driven primarily by video viewing at YouTube.com, comprised the top-ranked online video content property in May 2011, delivering some 2.1 billion viewing sessions and the highest amount of time spent per viewer (311 minutes on average), crossing the 5-hour mark for the first time, according to data from ... more

When searching for local business information, consumers consult between two and three (2.2) media sources on average with Yellow Pages (Internet and print) and search engines among the most popular, surpassing other media sources such as store circulars, promotional emails, and social networks, according to a study by the Local ... more

Although only 22% of local merchants say they have used Facebook Ads, nearly two-thirds of those who have done so (64.9%) say they would use the service again, according to a report by MerchantCircle. Meanwhile, 65.7% of surveyed local merchants say they use Facebook for marketing. more

This is the decade for geotargeted local advertising and bringing the global presence to the local user. Though it may seem daunting, getting local can be a simple and rewarding process if you follow these seven steps. more

In a rapidly changing media landscape, social media has retained its value to consumers as a source of entertainment, whereas television and movies have lost significant share, according to a study by Edelman. more

As shoppers become smarter and more informed—using online channels to evaluate options, socialize about brands, and find the best deals— they are becoming less impulsive when making purchase decisions, according to a new survey from Yahoo. more

Business professionals working in the legal, retail, and software industries are most likely to take action—such as download a whitepaper, start a free trial, or make a purchase—after clicking on an ad, according to a study by Bizo. Those working in certain job functions, such as operations, legal, and sales, ... more

"White hat search engine optimization (SEO) principles that apply to B2B online marketing also apply to B2C, but B2B is otherwise a different animal," writes Nick Stamoulis in an article at MarketingProfs. In other words, SEO is simply not the same strategy for B2B as it is for B2C. And to ... more

Email and search marketing still have the greatest influence on consumers' online buying behaviors, whereas social media, though it generates awareness, is rarely associated with direct revenue, according to a study by Forrester Research and GSI Commerce. more

Nearly 1.1 trillion display ad impressions were delivered to US Internet users in the first quarter of 2011; among them, Facebook accounted for 346 billion—31.2% of the total display market—nearly twice the level delivered one year earlier, according to data from comScore Ad Metrix. more

Ad agency executives say online video is an increasingly powerful tool to reach audiences and, largely because of video's targeting capabilities, fully six in ten say online video ads are more effective than (30%) or as effective as (31%) ads delivered via television, according to a survey from BrightRoll. more

"Trigger emails have thrust their way into the online marketing consciousness with a confident swagger and the promise of a brighter future for all," writes Mark Brownlow at Email Marketing Reports. "The positive press has its justification: trigger emails seem to solve the main challenges faced by the modern email ... more

Social media advertising revenues are forecast to reach $8.3 billion in 2015, up from an estimated $2.1 billion in 2010—a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 31.6%, according to BIA/Kelsey's US Local Media Annual Forecast. more

After several years of making cuts, B2B marketing leaders are increasing their budgets 6.7% in 2011 over 2010 levels, with tech-services companies driving much of the expansion, according to a report by Forrester Research. more

Yahoo Sites comprised the top-ranked Web property in March 2011 with 179.5 million visitors, followed by Google Sites with 176.8 million and Microsoft Sites with 176.4 million, according to comScore Media Metrix service. FoxNews.com (ranked No. 41) joined the top 50 ranking for the first time in March, as did ... more