Pros

Cons

• Boasts a reach of 70+% of all Internet users through distribution partners like Lycos, InfoSpace Network (Dogpile.com, Excite.com, MetaCrawler.com and Webcrawler), CNET, Cox Interactive, Apple's Sherlock and LookSmart.com
• LookSmart offers two targeting options: keyword targeting, where you bid for placement on keywords, and inclusion targeting, where your listings automatically show up for all searches where they are.
• Generally much lower bids than on Overture.com (25-40% less)
• Advanced campaign management tools: tracking, reporting, keyword selection
• Factors in a listing's click-through-rate (CTR) to calculate its position in search results. Your CPC can decrease if your add converts well.
• Strong customer service
• API is offered to larger advertisers & SEM's which provides seamless reporting & ease of use for large scale keyword campaigns.
• No charge to add or update listings or keywords
• Publicly traded on NASDAQ: LOOK

• For inclusion targeting, flat cost per click of .15 - if you cannot justify a click-thru cost this high you are out of luck
• Minmum bid for keyword targeting of $0.10
• $15 minimum monthly spend

Recommendation

"Recommended" - Based on a distribution network that cannot be ignored through distribution partners like Lycos, InfoSpace Network (Dogpile.com, Excite.com, MetaCrawler.com and Webcrawler), CNET, Cox Interactive, Apple's Sherlock and LookSmart.com.

If your site is in a competitive sector - one that traditionally has a high cost per click and you can get your site to rank well within Looksmart's algo - You are set!!! You will be getting a click-thru that could cost $2.50 with other service providers for only $ .15 -- This is a steal for traffic from quite a list of distribution partners, but most importantly it levels the playing field for the little guy.

On the flip side - if your site just cannot seem to list well within Looksmart's SERPs or cannot justify a cost per click of $ .15 - To Bad!!! You are out of luck.

Looksmart's system is simple - you decide how many clicks you want to pay for and only pay for the clicks you receive, which makes budgeting simple.

Looksmart also offers opportunities to submit multiple URLs per account for larger advertising clients.

Want to list your site with LookSmart?