What is Search Advertising?

Search advertising shows ads in search results for keywords or on search partner sites. The user has already expressed intent via a query—this distinguishes search from display and social reach campaigns.

How it works

Buyers set keywords (exact, phrase, broad), negative keywords, bids, and ad copy. Auctions set position and CPC. Clicks land on a landing page or through a tracker. In Google Ads this is the Search Network; in Yandex it is a Direct search campaign.

Role in performance and arbitrage

Used in finance, insurance, B2B lead gen, crypto (where allowed), and e-commerce on brand and commercial keywords. Hot keywords convert well but competition raises CPC. Buyers track CPL, CPA, approval rate, and ROI; brand bidding is often forbidden in offer terms.

Metrics

CTR — ad copy quality and keyword relevance.
Impression share — share of auctions won at current budget.
Quality Score / relevance — affects CPC and position.
Post-click CR and bounce rate — landing match to query.

Limitations

Strict moderation and policy on finance, health, and gambling. Limits on landing pages and claims. Search scale is capped by query volume. Without proper tracking and postbacks, ad-account conversion optimization diverges from affiliate network data.