Although the degree of increase varies among industry resources, a recent survey conducted by the Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization (SEMPO) indicated an average 26% increase in bid prices in 2004.

Statistics aside, all indications show an upward trend in keyword bid prices which means fewer results in 2005 from the same dollar spent on pay-per-click marketing in 2004.

What Has Caused the Increase?

The simple answer is that pay-per-click marketing has proven to be a tremendous measurable and controllable strategy for generating targeted website visitors among small, medium and large enterprises. As demand for pay-per-click marketing flood the keyword supply of top-tiered pay-per-click search engines and as enterprises compete for top ad placement, the bid prices increase accordingly.

Also, the competitive nature inherent with a bid auction or even with Google Adwords