Paid search saw a comeback in 2010, according to the latest U.S. search market report from SearchIgnite. The performance marketing firm says paid search spend increased 18.5 percent in 2010, […]

Paid search saw a comeback in 2010, according to the latest U.S. search market report from SearchIgnite. The performance marketing firm says paid search spend increased 18.5 percent in 2010, and this bodes well for search marketing in 2011.

The paid search market saw significant gains in Q4 2010. According to SearchIgnite, search spend demonstrated a 35.3 percent year-over-year increase during the fourth quarter of last year.

This was matched by positive metrics; clicks, impressions and click-through rates showed annual growth of 20.6 percent, 2.3 percent and 17.9 percent, respectively, in Q4 2010.

Marketers planning paid search campaigns for this year may consider that most companies are advertising on Google. SearchIgnite data suggests Google is the clear market leader. Between Q3 2010 and Q4 2010, the company increased its share of paid search spend by 3 percent, reaching 82.6 percent. Bing-Yahoo, on the other hand, dropped to 17.4 percent. This may be the best way for marketers to reach a broad audience, as Brafton recently reported that Google is the search leader.

Nonetheless, Brafton has reported that Bing and Yahoo are gaining ground in paid search and that marketers who failed to optimize for Bing-Yahoo paid the price last year.

If brands do opt to focus on Google for their paid search campaigns, they should take note of new AdWords options and URL displays from the company. Brafton covered Google's recent announcement that it is updating its negative keyword management and displaying ad domain URLs in lowercase letters to maximize campaign effectiveness.

Katherine Griwert is Brafton's Marketing Director. She's practiced content marketing, SEO and social marketing for over five years, and her enthusiasm for new media has even deeper roots. Katherine holds a degree in American Studies from Boston College, and her writing is featured in a number of web publications.