The Search Monitor Releases Proprietary Tools Which Monitor Competitive Advertising & Trademark Violations

July 1, 2008; 03:06 AM

Pittsburgh, PA (PRWEB) July 1, 2008 -- The Search Monitor ("TSM"), an online monitoring service that tracks competitive advertiser activity on paid search, blogs, news, and web sites, announces the product release of three new automated monitoring utilities: Competitor Monitor, Trademark Monitor, and Affiliate Monitor.

With this launch, interactive agencies, SEM and SEO marketers, affiliate managers, and legal compliance teams gain critical insight into search marketing strategies, affiliate activities, trademark infringement, and brand buzz. The Search Monitor offers important information that can only be gained by careful 24x7 automated monitoring, and surfaces the information in 3 easy to use reporting sections:

1.   Competitor Monitor gives insights into competitive bidding strategies, competitor market share and visibility, ranking on sponsored search, ad copy strategies, and promotions like free shipping, trials, or sales.
2.   Trademark Monitor eases the tasks associated with reputation management by auto-detecting advertisers sponsoring branded keywords, use of trademarks and slogans in ad copy and display urls, and brand buzz on blogs, news, and web sites.
3.   Affiliate Monitor simplifies oversight of affiliate programs by auto-identification of affiliates using sponsored search to detect violations of rank requirements, keyword restrictions, ad copy requirements or restrictions, and landing page copy requirements or restrictions.

Search engine marketing has become a critical component for advertisers. According to the Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization (SEMPO), North American advertisers spent $12.2 billion on SEM in 2007 and that figure is estimated to more than double to reach $25.2 billion by 2011. The Search Monitor was developed to provide the tools necessary to optimize the sizable investments being made in this medium and to protect brands from competitive threats.

"There is a big problem in the industry known as 'Piggybacking' which is when smaller advertisers use the trademarks or slogans of bigger advertisers in ad copy or display urls to lure consumers into clicking on their ads", says Shaun Martinec, a TSM founder. "For our larger brand clients, we have discovered as many as 1 in 10 competitors engaging in this practice.    We were quite alarmed to learn that some violators are parked domains, phishing, and spyware sites. With The Search Monitor, our clients are able to catch these activities and react quickly."

Another advantage of having a monitoring tool such as The Search Monitor is that marketers and agencies can glean insights into competitive online advertising campaigns including ad copy, promotional offers and ad placement strategies. This has proven to be invaluable information to many of the clients already using The Search Monitor. "When we started using The Search Monitor, we envisioned it as a nice add-on. We were surprised when it rose to a critical component of our offerings - it is now a Must Have " says Troy Lerner of The Booyah Agency.

About The Search Monitor
The Search Monitor is comprised of a team of SEM enthusiasts who uncovered a need in the market for external automated monitoring of competitive activities on paid search, web sites, blogs, social media, and press coverage. Automated monitoring greatly reduces the number of hours and effort required to manage affiliates and competitors infringing on brands and misrepresenting products across the web. Further, automated monitoring reveals competitive marketing strategies that enable advertisers to benchmark their own performance, optimize ad budgets, detect successful ad copy combinations, and receive advance awareness of special offers like free shipping and sales dominating their verticals. The Search Monitor is offered as a web based subscription service. To learn more please visit The Search Monitor.

About The Booyah Agency
Based in Colorado, The Booyah Agency is a full-service Online Marketing & Advertising team packaged in a boutique firm. Armed with a funny name, these former big-agency veterans drive strategy and deliver results more quickly and affordably than the big guys. We're experts in fundamentals and best practices with a passion for discovering the newest techniques that keep our clients ahead. Clients include Mapquest, Vitamin Shoppe, Crispin Porter + Bogusky, Gaiam, Tower Records and Little Tikes.

For Further Press Information Contact:
Laura Nolte
Green Theory Interactive
T: 678-916-0473
E:laura(at)greentheoryinteractive.com