Paid Search Spending Pops

The near future of online ad spending in the US—or at least the largest portion of it—continues to look good despite turmoil in some other ad media and the economy at large.

More than eight out of 10 marketers who spent at least $50,000 per month on paid search said they planned to maintain or increase their spending during the next 12 months, according to a Marin Software-sponsored study conducted by JupiterResearch.

More than 90% of the big spenders also said they would spend as much as 22% more if they had better campaign management tools.

Presumably, Marin, which sells paid search management applications, commissioned the survey to demonstrate the benefits of search engine marketing (SEM) software, but the data on spending plans lines up with overall search spending trends.

eMarketer estimates that paid search spending will not only rise in 2009, but double between 2009 and 2013, when it will approach $24 billion.

"Even if the economic crisis levels off this prediction, made in August 2008, the accountability of paid search makes it more valuable than most other forms of advertising, online or offline," said David Hallerman, senior analyst at eMarketer. "When companies cut ad budgets, the spending that continues needs to be more focused than in flush times. User searches create ad focus, telling the advertiser that the person is interested in X product or service at that exact moment."