Is Smarter AdWords Right for Your Business?

• One way to answer the question is return on Ad investment (ROI). If your Smarter AdWords Ads return far more business than they cost, then Smarter AdWords might be right for you.
• If your Smarter AdWords's ROI exceeds that of your other advertising then Smarter AdWords may be right for you.
• Determining both of the above requires you to have a Smarter AdWords Account. Fortunately, the cost of Smarter AdWords Ads is low enough so gathering data on your ROI need not cost a great deal.
• Your Account will automatically provide you with the cost per Click-thru to your Listing. The hard part will probably be determining your return from Smarter AdWords Ads and from other advertising.
• The standard strategy applies here, too. Ask customers how they heard about you. Put a special offer in your Listing that appears nowhere else. Keep data on replies. Once you gather enough data, use the results to help you decide where and how to invest in advertising.
• Possibly the most accurate (albeit limited) way to evaluate whether Smarter AdWords is right for you is to create two Accounts:
  • Create a Google AdWords Account
  • Create a Smarter AdWords Account
  Run similar Ads in both Accounts. Once both Accounts have functioned for three months or so, compare their Click-thru costs. If the average Click-thru cost of Google AdWords is lower than Smarter AdWords' then perhaps Google AdWords is your best bet. Depending on your costs, you might keep both Accounts and set monthly cost limits based on their relative worth to you. Unfortunately, this method does not tell you your ROI, but it might be as best as you can do to decide between two similar services. Another issue is demographics. SMARTERyellowpages.com serves mostly Prospects in the San Francisco Bay Area. Google serves a much larger demographic.