Yahoo! has launched an exciting new paid search product called Rich Ads in Search, or RAIS.  RAIS is a program where an advertiser can “buy” the top placement in the Yahoo! SERPS for their branded terms.  This hard-mapping top placement features an advanced ad which may include deep links, an image or even video.

While this is considered to be a paid search product, the “payment” factor works a little differently.  Instead of setting max and min bids for your keywords, an advertiser would pay a monthly subscription fee for the placement.   At the time of this being written, the current subscription fee is at a minimum $20K-$25K to upwards of $60K per month.  We have seen Yahoo! alter these numbers since RAIS was first offered to a handful of clients, so it is likely these may change again in the future.

With the product in beta, targeting is only offered to the U.S. and there are no filters you can apply to it the same way you can with traditional sponsored search.   An advertiser is able to run in RAIS and also continue to bid on their branded terms in sponsored search at the same time.

Yahoo! Rich Ads Still in Beta

Because Rich Ads in Search is still in beta, it is important to keep in mind that as time goes on, Yahoo! will most likely alter and enhance how it operates and how users and advertisers alike are able to interact with the ads.   Initial reports from Yahoo! state one test advertiser in January 2009 saw a 395% lift in CTR and a 20% lift in CVR.  Another report from Yahoo! states a different advertiser saw a 15% increase in CTR and a 20% increase in conversions over their traditional search results.

Rich Ads in Search are showing signs of being a great addition to an advertiser’s search engine marketing initiatives.  It is a strong vehicle for clients to own the search space for their brand and be front of mind to searchers.  The utility for business objectives is virtually endless; brand pushes, promotions, awareness, reputation management, etc.  If the estimated revenue projections outweigh the cost and align the cost per conversion with client goals, Rich Ads in Search is a space an advertiser should be exploring.  Yahoo! is giving us a clear glimpse into the future of paid search and search engine marketing in general.  Users are searching differently, the digital space is changing, and what people want to see when they are looking is evolving.  It’s obvious from the results; searchers want to see a little more.  We can send a big Thank You to Yahoo! for this learning.