Last week, I posted a blog post about the impact of Google Instant on Google AdWords. My conclusion was that thus far, there weren't any real major changes for my clients. Impressions, clicks, and CTR seemed to reflect seasonal norms.
This morning, I was over on Search Engine Land reading an article by George Michie - "Google Instant: The Impact on Paid Search". It was a well written article, and George came to essentially the same conclusion that I did. While it still bears watching, the Google Instant effect on AdWords has thus far been minimal.
Michie's Findings
Michie mentions that his customer base is primarily retail - whereas my customers are mostly service providers. Yet the results were very similar. He notes that there was a slight jump in impressions and clicks immediately after the introduction of Google Instant on September 8th - but that both settled down to anticipated norms shortly thereafter. Another interesting finding is that conversion rates may have actually improved with the introduction of Google Instant.
How Does This Help Me Market My Denver Small Business?
Unless your Denver small businesses is getting all of the high quality referrals it can handle, you should probably be advertising online using Google AdWords. You need to at least explore it as an option to add to your marketing aresenal.
The problem with utilizing a powerful tool like Google AdWords is that you need to be aware of any changes (which seem to arrive almost daily) and adjust your advertising campaign accordingly. The introduction of Google Instant had the potential to have a major impact on Google AdWords - and as a Denver small business owner who advertises using AdWords. So far, Google Instant doesn't seem to have drastically changed how AdWords campaigns need to be structured.