WARREN, R.I. and BOSTON, Oct. 1, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- MarketingSherpa, a research firm publishing case studies and benchmark data for marketing professionals, today released the fourth annual edition of its Search Marketing Benchmark Guide, http://www.sherpastore.com/Search-Marketing-Benchmark-2008.html. The guide reveals the latest findings of MarketingSherpa's extensive survey in June and July 2007 of 2,475 marketers who conduct or supervise search marketing for their own companies.
Among the highlights found in the 273-page guide:
- The search marketing industry is still expanding rapidly - as much as 31% in the United States and 39% globally for 2007. This year-over-year growth will slow in time. Still, search budgets are increasing by double-digit percentages for many marketers, although there is feedback that many of those increases are in anticipation of rising prices, not a desire to extend their search engine marketing (SEM) reach.
- The allure to bring SEM in-house is growing stronger for many marketers, although the number of organizations getting outside help actually increased over the past 12 months. However, it is becoming more common to use outsourced assistance as part, not all, of the overall SEM effort.
- More emphasis on natural search has put pressure on many marketers to improve their own sites, while smaller companies are feeling the pinch in paid search/keyword price inflation. Click fraud is still a concern, but marketers don't seem as worried about it this year. That is probably more a function of media attention (or the lack thereof compared to last year) rather than any real change in the phenomenon itself.
"The fourth annual edition of MarketingSherpa's Search Marketing Benchmark Guide 2007-2008 has been completely and comprehensively re-researched and rewritten," said Stefan Tornquist, Research Director, MarketingSherpa Inc. "If you have an older edition, put it away and start working from this new edition -- the search industry has changed over the past 12 months. Inside, you'll find a 360-degree comprehensive view of what works (and what doesn't) in search marketing today."
To purchase copies of this Guide, please visit: http://www.SherpaStore.com
About MarketingSherpa, Inc.
Headquartered in Warren, R.I., MarketingSherpa (www.marketingsherpa.com) is a research firm publishing practical case studies and benchmark guides for its 237,000 weekly readers in the marketing profession. Topics covered include practical how-to and exclusive data and proven tactics in business-to-business marketing, ecommerce marketing, email marketing, search marketing, telemarketing, media relations, landing page design, marketing measurement and online subscription marketing. The firm also operates three annual Summits attended by thousands of marketers. Founded in March 2000, the firm has been a member of the MECLABS family of research firms since November 2006.
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