SanDiego_Art - 12:26 am on Jul 15, 2008 (gmt 0)

There are several software solutions which accomplish this task. They range from enterprise-level solutions (Omniture, Atlas, Marin, etc.) down to >$100 solutions. Some agencies (SEM/SEO/PPC) have invested in (developed) their own as they may have more specific needs in reporting, bidding strategies, etc. than are offered in the boxed-solutions.

Interesting though... Why pay people to do it 5 days of the week, if it works perfectly fine on the weekends?

Don't get caught up too much in what technology someone is using, its more about what they do with that technology to reach your goals. Someone using Excel, might be a better optimizer than an automated solution...