Considering Overture

For Keyword 'Company Name'

[Bonus]

Hi to all that frequent this particular forum, I am particularly new to pay per click advertising myself.

Overture's recently become a more serious consideration for me as several 'barely-related' sites are starting to appear in search results above us for our company name, on multiple engines. Although all our company sites swallow up the whole top10 of normal results, the idea of these other listings above us concern me due to the fact is is not always clearly obvious (to a searcher) that the site isn't related to our company.

So, to cut a long story short, does anyone have any experience of making a highest bid on Overture for their company name to help ensure most people click through to the company site they are really looking for? I am a little nervous to start, in case searchers tend to click the paid listing instead of our free listing, hence incurring us extra, possibly unnecessary, cost.

[msgraph]

Looks like you have run into some of the same problems as these guys:

[webmasterworld.com...]

I never had to bid on a company name so I don't have much experience in it. If the sites bidding on your company are violating your trademark I would notify Overture about it.

If they are not violating anything, are the bids fairly high-priced? Is it a name that draws a lot of clicks where you would be paying more than for what you receive back?

[john316]

If you own the trademark, maybe you could offer to license it to Overture for their advertising delivery system. Maybe let them share in the profit they gain from using your asset.

[Bonus]

Thanks for that link msgraph, I've been watching it with interest. I think I will sit back now and wait and see how this issue develops before making any decision either way.

[traveldog]

I think this coulod be termed passing off in UK law. If the probelsm on UKOverture it maybe worth putting a call into the Advertising Standards Authority [asa.org.uk]

or / and the [admark.org.uk...]

If its there thing they'll do the leg work for you?

[shorten url for asa]

(edited by: Mike_Mackin at 6:11 pm (utc) on Feb. 6, 2002)

[seoboy]

well, i made some observations on this exact issue several months back. worth revisiting, if you're interested in the issue:

[webmasterworld.com...]

as with everything, it boils down to $.