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Overture, now part of the Yahoo Search Network, was the originator of the use of PPC, or Pay-Per-Click advertising. Overture predicted that the web was quickly maturing into the fastest and easiest way for shopping and that very quickly online promotion was going to reach record breaking numbers.

For an online shopper to choose one web site instead of another, that web site has to be in the Top 20. Yahoo built a service that takes potential surfers to any advertisers website,resulting in increased visitor counts and higher sales. Yahoo's Pay-Per-Click program puts your company's text link ad right in front of potential buyers as they search the 'net. Using search phrases that describe the goods or services they are shopping for, Internet surfers see very relevant ads on the same page as the results of their search. Internet advertisers don't pay for displaying their ad until a surfer actually clicks on it, hence the term "Pay-Per-Click". That click, by the way, can cost as little as a nickle, or much, much higher. But it delivers potential buyers right to an advertisers online store.

Any company or online Clickbank member can boost their websites targeted traffic using Yahoo's Pay-Per-Click services. If you are responsible for a multi-million dollar online ad budget or just recently built a 5 page affiliate site, you can begin using Yahoo's PPC services today. The rise in traffic and visitors that you will get simply equates to more customers experiencing your pages and your service. Even a small percentage of conversions, combined with a large amount of traffic can equate to a large amount of online income for you.

Acquiring a steady, substantial input of visitors should be the goal of every company-big or small. Both new and return visitors are the life blood of any business that wants a share of the billions being spent online.

While Pay-Per-Click may have started with Overture, today Yahoo uses many of the same ingredients as Google's Pay-Per-Click service, Google Adwords. They are similar in their use of keyword and keyphrase searching to determine which ads will show in the results. When a potential buyer types in a keyword or keyword phrase to search for an item, the search engine gives the results over several pages. On the right side of the results pages, and sometimes near the top, you will see the adverts of advertisers that have placed "bids" on specific keywords and keyword phrases.

As an example, lets say you have a discount automobile parts website. You would choose keywords that trigger your advertisement show when potential surfers type phrases such as foreign automobile spark plugs. Don't forget that any individual word or phrase can cause your ad to be shown. You'll probably want to stay away from general search terms such as Corvette unless you're Wal-Mart and have a Coca-Cola sized advertising budget.

The higher the bid, the higher the ad will display on the results pages.

Generally, ads that are seen first are clicked more, however more isn't always a success. If an advertiser isn't converting a minimum percentage of clicks into sales, a few popular search terms can run up a very large bill-very very quickly.

To come as close as possible to guaranteeing a successful PPC campaign requires work. But Pay-Per-Click has taken the pressure off of needing a first or second page "natural" search ranking, at least immediately. Some of the time you would have spent with writing articles should now be used for monitoring your results.

Using a discount automobile parts website as an example again, we can learn that the catch-all search term tires and wheels brings back 51,200,000 results. It's far too general of a term. But by getting more specific, for example Toyota tires and wheels Portland Oregon, not only are the results cut down by over 90%, but the number of advertisers shrinks as well-lowering the cost per click substantially.

Performing even the most rudimentary keyword homework can decrease the number of yourrivals, step-up your exposure, dilute the prospect for false or blind clicks, and save your company loads of cash. The solutions you can achieve by doing real research and investigation will be even more striking.

Real examination, actual testing of your ads and their click-thru rates and the discovering of hidden "gems"- niche keywords with little competition, may sound arduous and time consuming, but the tools obtainable today make it a breeze. Here is one resource for free keyword tools, no-cost software and links to dozens of additional sites with ongoing give-aways and free utilities. And finally, with all the talk and buzz surrounding Google these days, why the furtherance of Yahoo's Search Solutions? I've never suggested not using Googles services; still, it's easy to do what everyone else is doing. But with so much competition for online spending, it is now necessary to try and seperate yourself from your competition. Yahoo/Overture is a great place to start. Companies small and large have used Yahoo! Search since the late 90's and have prospered.

While Yahoo cannot match the sheer volume of Google searches, that also means a few less competitors and a few cents less per keyword. And it appears to be the case that when you're Number Two, you try harder, as Yahoo's customer service team is bending over backwards for your business.

When you add those up, it equals more than just good sense. It equals dollars and good sense.