Should I Bid On My Brand Name?

This question comes up often when working on customers paid search accounts. Before answering, I have two questions to ask:

1. When you search for your brand name, or variations of your name, are other people bidding on it?

2. When you search for your brand name, or variations of your name, does your site come up in the natural search results in the number one position?

If nobody is bidding on your name and you are in the number one position, then it is really up to you. I would recommend doing it anyway, but not a definite yes. It will be very cheap for you to bid on your name, a few cents a click, and you will own more of the page.

Own more of the page definition: You search for your name and 10 listings appear on the search results page and one of the listings is your site. You now buy a paid search ad and bid on your name. The results will have 11 listings, 10 natural search listings and one paid search listing. Out of the 11 listings, you will own 2 listings (above the fold) while everyone else only has one listing.

Now if you answered yes to either 1 or 2 (or worst case scenario yes to both), yes you should definitely bid on your name. When potential customers search for your name, they are looking for your specific product or service. These will be your highest converting customers. If others are bidding on your name or you are not listed number one for your name, your competition has the edge. It is very easy to lose that customer to a competitor when they see paid search ads describing huge discounts, free shipping, etc…. You need to own as much of that page as possible.

You may also be able contact the engines and have their ads removed for violating paid search trademark infringement guidelines. These guidelines are set by the engines, not the courts. As of today, I do not believe any engine will prevent a competitor from bidding on your name, the trademark infringement may arise when they use your name in the text of their ad. For example, I can bid on the term coca cola in Google, but I can not create an ad that states “Buy Coca Cola here, free shipping.” Each engine has it own trademark policies and each one is slightly different from the other.