6 replies to this topic

[Vertster]

It appears Overture may be broad matching by default. On Yahoo! we just saw a conversion on a phrase that wasn't even close to any we are bidding on, except it contained some of the same words. We have not rolled ANY of our phrases over to broad match yet on this account either.

I took the nearest phrases and plugged them all into the suggestion keyword tool, and came out with seperate terms. I think this means its not a matchdriver result. Looks like the problems Overture had with the new feature roll-out are not over with yet!

Anyone else seen this?

[Jill]

I don't use Overture, but I believe they've been broad matching by default for a very long time now, haven't they? At least 6 months, if not more.

Jill

[Haystack]

Hi Vertster, I haven't noticed that. It seems like things are defaulting to Standard matching for me.

Jill, Overture has recently upgraded their system to offer more wildcarding features similar to what Google's had for the past 18 months. You can now set your ads to match to the phrase (done with quotes on Google) or with broad matching (no quotes or brackets).

Overture has done some of their own matching by dropping the need for prepositions and viewing singular and plural terms as the same. Additionally, their Match Driver feature tries to figure out additional terms where your ad might be relevant. This has led to some strange matches. One example I've seen is web marketing ads appearing under the search "minneapolis traffic" on Yahoo's sponsored search results (generally a term used by people looking for driving highway traffic reports - not SEO work). This apparently happens because the two words are used within the Overture ad. Unfortunately, this 'feature' can't be turned off.

[Vertster]

I thought at first it must be a matchdriver situation. But that does not appear to be the case here. Its rather intriguing...

The phrase we bid on is "bulimia treatment center" and the phrase we show up on is "centers for bulimia." If you query their keyword tool, you will see there is one company that did bid for "center for bulimia." Only one though. How we ended up in the number two spot in the SERPS? I would have to say they have broad matched us over, even though it is not turned on for that phrase. Us and a whole bunch of others...

[AussieWebmaster]

That latest system upgrade has screwed around with a lot of things. I have been catching broad matches prior to that so do not know exactly when they open the gates.
Only way to check is to go back through the log or tracking codes depending on what system you use.

[Haystack]

Only way to check is to go back through the log or tracking codes depending on what system you use.

Good point, Aussie. By checking the tracking code in your logs you should be able to see which of your ads was matched to that term. It sounds like your situation could be caused by a broad match or Match Driver. Since you have broad matching turned off, I'd imagine it's Match Driver but they may be experiencing a few technical difficulties in their transition.

[Jill]

Shows what I know...or in this case...don't know!