The Revolution Search Marketing Report sponsored by Yahoo!: Web search focus will build brands

Increasingly, search marketers are looking at the use of search for

branding purposes and to drive purchases offline - using a more holistic
approach.

For example, if you are a low-cost airline embarking on a big budget TV
campaign, can you be sure people will remember the web site flashed up
at the end of your ad?

Research we recently carried out in France indicates that consumers
often remember the ad but forget the web address - more than eight out
of 10 users will turn to a search engine for more information.

So, if your web site is not listed high in the search results for 'cheap
flight', imagine the number of customers you could be missing out on -
it could even have a negative effect on your brand. Our research found
that almost half of users thought negatively of a brand when they could
not find the advertiser's web site through search after seeing its ad
offline.

Looking to the future, Yahoo! Search Marketing will continue to provide
sponsored listings that are qualified and relevant to users - as well as
develop innovative products and services to help businesses realise
their full potential.

Search products throughout the industry will focus on enhancing the
user's search experience and increasing the relevancy of listings.
Products and technologies will also continue to improve the quantity and
quality of leads for businesses that use search marketing, as well as
make campaign execution simpler for these marketers.

Matching technologies will continue to be a focus for development, as
well as product development within the two key areas of local and mobile
search.