I expect search marketing to continue to get more competitive. More of your competitors will be spending their ad budgets on Google AdWords and other pay-per-click marketing. I manage campaigns in several markets and I see many of them having new competitors and higher ad costs due to competition.

Some product or service categories are overrun with competitors, many who have been refining their campaigns and website for years. It is hard for a newcomer to compete, but a unique niche is often the key to success. This would be true in any type of marketing, not just Google AdWords. The difference with Google AdWords and other internet advertising is – we can measure the performance and you cannot just “hope it’s working” or that results are better than poor tracking indicates.

You need a niche, a unique product or service, some reason to choose your business over others. Why do customers buy from you instead of others? What makes you different? If half of all the businesses in your product category were to wipped out tomorrow, why should your’s remain? Maybe there is a unique marketing message in the answer. The better you understand your customers, the easier it is to identify.

When I interview my search marketing clients, I learn as much as I can about their uniqueness, who their best clients are, and why they buy. With that knowledge I can identify keywords and create ad copy that focuses on this niche – and thereby reduce competition! Why spend money to directly compete against the other guys when you have a niche they don’t? Google likes relevancy and therefore niches. When you have a focused message, you tend to get a higher “click thru rate” in Google AdWords.