Simplesearch and Rocketlinks

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by Steve Tice

Introducing SimpleSearch, and apparently a site that needs no introduction, RocketLinks.

As we have explored the pay-for-position segment, we have taken a look at FindWhat, Goto, 7Search, and Kanoodle. Now we are going to shine the spotlight on two additional sites, SimpleSearch and RocketLinks.

To begin with, let's look at RocketLinks.com. When you pull up the RocketLinks site, you quickly understand that this is a site that has fully embraced the pay for position concept. While the other sites allow you to bid on a specific search term, and maybe they throw in a banner ad, RocketLinks says, why stop at search terms? They have sections for bid on the main page of the site, and they have recently introduced a method of allowing you to bid on banner ads that run throughout the site. While I would like to see this refined (we will discuss that in a moment), I say kudos to them for embracing this concept and running with it.

As for listing sites, again, this could use some refinement. Their keyword addition section feels awkward to me. It's great if you want each search term to have it's own site description. But one thing I learned a long time ago was that it's easier to have a universal site description, title, and starting point. The biggest reason is that as you start utilizing more and more pay-for-position sites, to make a change requires an ever-increasing amount of time. By using a carbon copy you only have to worry about keywords, and where they rank. Rocketlinks edit section requires you to make adjustments on a word by word basis. Lets say you currently serve the US, and wanted to now include Canada in your site descriptions. You would have to type in each current keyword, make the adjustment, save it, and then repeat the step over and over. On the plus side, they show as many as 20 of your keywords at a time, and allow you to change your bids on as many of the 20 as you like before moving on to the next grouping.

So in all, RocketLinks gives you the broadest choice of bidding choices and venues. Additionally, according to Top9.com's report, RocketLinks ranked 26th of all search engines. This places them ahead of dmoz, NorthernLight, and FindWhat. I should point out, however, that I have received only 4 click-throughs during the past month, while holding the top or second spot in terms such as real estate and real estate agent.

Next up is SimpleSearch. Well, this may not be the most professional sounding of assessments, but this site is .Cute. They have a cute character, which I have seen tailored towards holidays. At Easter there was an Easter egg, and on Mothers Day he was holding flowers and a Mothers Day card. The graphics are quite good, and they work with the color scheme, so congrats go out to the SimpleSearch graphic design team. As far as a pay-for-position search engine goes, it seems generally good. I am getting some traffic from them so it has not been a waste of my marketing dollars. They have a review process like Goto does, where they review new sites or keywords before adding them to the site. I am an "I want it now" person, so who cares that it may make for more relevant searches, I still had to wait several days. You submit keywords in much the same way you do at FindWhat, with a top level description first, and then a form allowing you to add up to 25 keywords at a time. As for bids, again kudos, a screen of 20 keywords you can bid on before moving on to the next group. My biggest complaint, which I have been informed is soon to be corrected, is the lack of a click through reports section. So right now, your only gauge of traffic is to watch your deposit dwindle, or pay attention to your referrer logs.

Both of these sites might make a nice addition to your marketing campaign. Considering that RocketLinks asks for a $25 initial deposit, and SimpleSearch asks for a $20 initial deposit, can you really afford not to try them out?

The information contained within this article is derived from my personal experiences and observations.