Yahoo has launched the new Panama system today, its new and improved sponsored search advertising that it hopes will have people including advertisers, users and investors alike saying Yahoo!
The system is a direct shot over the bow of Google and the two systems not only function in much the same manner, but offer many of the same tools and as such the comparisons will be inevitable. But what really matters to advertisers is conversions and sales and in the end the same things matter to Yahoo! as well.
In reality, the Panama system is new and improved with major modifications including Fast Ad Activation, Ad Testing, Campaign Scheduling, Geo-Targeting and Quality Index much, much less of a chore. For Canadians geo-targeting should prove a boon in providing increased efficiencies in marketing and advertising spends; increased conversions; and a significant time savings. Two primary tools required in past: cherry-picking and hope, both requiring human intervention, seem to have been relegated to the past which is for the best as that's where they most certainly belong.
An additional benefit is the that Yahoo! Panama system automatically defaults to advanced matching providing a broader keyword scope from the outset.
To the best of our understanding the Canadian Yahoo! Panama roll out is still in beta. Worry not as Search Engine People has become accredited under the Ambassador Program, among the first Canadian search engine marketing companies to have done so.
Yahoo! Panama, to paraphrase Martha Stewart appears to be a very good thing but only time will tell for certain.
~ The (SEP) Guy