Today, I was able to preview ClickEquations, a PPC Tool developed by Commerce360 to be used by agencies and companies managing search campaigns with budgets of at least $10k per month. The tool focuses on providing advanced reporting and analytical functionality to a PPC campaign. It features a web based interface along with integrated Excel functionality that is backwards compatible if you’re company or agency doesn’t have the latest version of Excel.
From what I was able to see, the tool provides three traits that are very important to a search marketer. First, and most importantly, it tracks everything to a keyword level. There are many PPC management and analytics tools that don’t have this level of reporting so this is always the first feature I look for when analyzing any type of PPC software. Secondly, it’s fast. During the presentation, Craig said that ClickEquations was pulling the data from their servers and the load times for each report seemed to be very quick. There is lots of data that needs to be pulled when running different reports for paid search campaigns that can be very labor intensive on the servers. Having software that is programmed to create custom reports and aggregate the data in a fast and efficient way is a big plus. Third is the detail. ClickEquations is able to provide very detailed data and Commerce360 has taken the time to add in other features that can be useful such as additional metrics, custom reporting and other features that make it, from an initial viewpoint, look better and more advanced than other PPC tools.
The tool also has some other added benefits such as professional looking reports, extensive integration with Excel (this is a big plus too) and an easy to use web interface. The interaction between Excel and the database looks like an analysts dream come true. The software allows you to quickly grab different sets of data into a custom report and quickly updates data as you change filters. I could see this feature quickly becoming one of my favorites if I were to use the tool.
There are some drawbacks to this peice of software though. When thinking from the perspective of a potential agency looking for PPC software, the biggest drawback I see is that the tool lacks PPC any type of PPC management. Currently, I manage my campaigns manually. If I were to use a bid management tool, I’d continue to manage my top terms manually while setting up my tail terms with the tool. It seems as though most agencies and paid search managers look for PPC tools that will take care of the bid management for them so until this tool adds these types of features, it may not receive the praise it otherwise deserves. Another drawback is that each URL must be manually tagged with tracking codes. This isn’t a difficult process, but manually adding tags allows for the possibility of errors being made an incorrect tags being assigned or left off. Another shortcoming is the current lack of a policy regarding privacy of data. It seems more of an oversight, and therefore leads me to beleive it would be a non-issue with this company, but a company’s data, specifically conversion data is very sensitive. Knowing and seeing how some companies operate, it’s always good to know who has access to your data and how it is protected. Finally, there isn’t any real-time click/conversrion data to be seen anywhere. Most PPC tools don’t offer this feature and the only one I’m certain that has it is Did-it’s Maestro, but having real time data gives you the ability to make up to the minute decisions with your campaigns. You can immediately know how your campaigns are performing for the day and are able to spot problems faster than by looking at engine data or waiting the next day to see conversion data.
Overall, I liked what I saw with ClickEquations. I’ve had the chance to preview and use several tools ranging from free tools to large enterprise level tools to proprietary in-house tools. ClickEquations currently lacks PPC management and implementation abilities, but their reporting abilities - their main focus with this launch - are top notch. I’d have to play with the software more to truely see if it can live up to the demo that I’ve seen, but it certainly looks to be a great product.
For the initial release, there are two levels advertisers can sign up for. One is an AdWords Edition and the second is the full featured edition. The Adwords only edition is a bit more limited, but still has a lot of functionality while the full version has added features such as support for the 3 majors, search query reporting, 13 month data retention and can be used for an unlimited number of keywords/spend.
There is also a free six month trial offer currently available for the Adwords Edition with a limited spots available for the full edition. Fill out an invitation request for more info.
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Thanks for the comments! Very nice summary from a quick demo. From my biased viewpoint you picked up on what we’re most proud of in terms of the features demoed - really complete data, fast interface, and reporting flexibility. Glad those came through.
I would like to respond and clarify some of the points you mention.
1) There will be an integrated ability to edit/manage campaigns in the released software - those features just weren’t shown in the pre-release demo today.
2) Tagging is supported at 3-levels. A-No tags at all and we just get the data available via the engine APIs. B-If the Conversion Tags on Google and Yahoo are enabled we get their conversion data with no additional tagging required. C-ClickEquations tags on site and in target URLS, which provides most complete data including full search query reporting and SKU-level sales information. Users can use any one of these levels initially and migrate upward as they gain the desire and ability to tag.
3) Privacy and security of data is/will be fully maintained, and a full privacy/security policy is be available. The question to which I didn’t have a ‘policy’ answer ready was regarding our employees access to data and as I mentioned there are obvious maintenance and support reasons why some on staff will have access, but didn’t have a formal ‘policy’ description of that aspect. From an architectural, technical, and general privacy/security policy standpoint we are following at least all industry standards and will provide more details prior to official announcement and release.
I hope these shed some more light on areas I didn’t fully get clear earlier. If not, let me know and we can expand further.
Thanks again for a great write up. - Craig
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