The Search Engine Marketing marketplace has become like a boisterous carnival, overcrowded with people trying to elbow in on the excitement, but inevitably a place where many end up feeling hoodwinked and fleeced.

Despite the hype, it really is a big business. It swelled to $11.5 billion in 2008 on the fingertips of millions of walletready consumers researching products and services. The rise of broadband household usage and its “always on” capabilities have given consumers yet another opportunity to shave a few seconds off their busy days by turning to the computer to search for a business phone number or address. Today, five times as many people use search engines on a regular basis than they use the yellow pages to find a local business.

The economy has accelerated this mediamorphosis. Advertisers – especially the Small and Medium-Size Businesses (SMBs) are glomming to search advertising. The harsh economic environment has caused them to re-evaluate longstanding practices of relying on Yellow Pages, newspapers, radio and Direct Mail to reach consumers (...)