Montenegro Premier Properties

Simply Clicks has been appointed to handle the website optimisation and pay per click search marketing of Montenegro Premier Properties. The business specialises as an agent for investment and holiday properties for the small republic based on the Adriatic.

Who’s hijacking your search engine marketing?

Yesterday Travel Mole raised the issue of competitors or trading partners utilising brand names or other IPR in their search marketing activity. Simply Clicks responded to the feature as follows:

I compliment Peter Matthews on his timely and relevant research. Perhaps the report is presented as shocking news - but it isn’t. I have recently completed a search engine marketing assignment for a luxury hotel chain headquartered in Venice. We found a number of examples of competitor sites both:

1. Outbidding the brand owner for keywords in pay per click auctions
2. Utilising keywords that could be considered IPR material in their meta tag data

As outlined in the Travel Mole article this practise raises a number of critical issues

· Who owns the IPR and how far do their rights extend in the online arena?

· Who has permission to use the property – either express or implied?

· Does that permission extend to bidding for and using that property in titles and descriptions used in “pay per click” campaigns?

· Does that permission extend to using the property in meta tag data on websites – either titles, descriptions or keywords and then using that copy in content?

· Are competitor sites abusing or misusing the permission?

o Particularly misrepresenting their sites in any way by pretending to be somebody they’re not?

· Does the extension of granting of usage rights, either explicitly or through custom and practice, make commercial sense? That is, why would you allow an agent or merchant to outbid you in a pay per click auction or outrank you in an organic search for your own brand name?

Brand owners need to grasp this issue rapidly. The internet is emerging as the dominant travel distribution channel. Would you allow someone to “borrow” your brand name in other circumstances?

David Burdon – Simply Clicks UK Search Engine Marketing Specialists

Search Engine Marketing - Luxury Hotel in Venice

I have just completed a search engine marketing training assignment in Venice, Italy, working alongside Cyndy and Chiara of Starwood Hotels. I had the privilege of staying at the Hotel Danieli a luxury hotel close to St. Marks's Square - Piazza San Marco.