I've noticed that we get tons of phone calls from so-called SEO companies and on-line promoters who are apparently clicking our ads in Overture in order to get to our phone number on our web site. During certain times of the year (like last month, pre-Memorial day, end of school), every single phone call of this nature we got was about promoting us with keywords containing the term "bikini" or "prom." Our clicks for both these terms in Overture skyrocketed but the conversions didn't change at all from the previous month.

While it's possible that the clicks are just the result of more shopping and fewer conversions, I find it somewhat disturbing to think that advertisers out there who know we advertise with Google and Overture are clicking our paid links simply to get our contact information, then calling me and expecting me to welcome them, like they're my secret weapon in online advertising, when they've already cost me who-knows-how much by clicking on my ads and not making a purchase.