Truth 19. Search marketing as a metric

As marketers, we like to think of the entire process of search engine marketing, particularly the impressions and clicks we see from search, as a form of advertising or media. Clearly, for many aspects of our campaigns, this is true. However, the truth is far more complex than most people believe, due to the unique nature of SEM. In many cases, for many of our keywords, the search engine inventory (how many searches occur), the click-through rate on listings, and the resulting conversion rates are as much the result of non-search online and offline marketing efforts as they are products of spontaneous activity engaged in by searchers uninfluenced by external factors.

What online and offline factors ...

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