Search arbitrage from zero

Start here if you have never heard the words feed, RSOC or RPC. Six lessons take you from "what is this business?" to a clear picture of who is involved, how one click turns into money, where the model came from, and whether it is legal and legitimate.

beginner · 6 lessons · 42 minutes

1. 01

   What is search arbitrage?

   Search arbitrage means buying cheap visitors and earning more from the search ads they click. Here is the idea in plain English, with no jargon assumed.

   6 min
2. 02

   The spread: buying low, selling high

   The one number that decides everything: what a visitor costs versus what a visitor earns. Learn CPC, RPC, RPV and ROI with simple worked maths.

   7 min
3. 03

   Who is who in the chain

   Advertiser, search engine, feed provider, arbitrageur, traffic source and user: meet the six players and learn who pays whom.

   7 min
4. 04

   One click, start to finish

   Follow a single visitor from a social ad to an advertiser's website, and see exactly where money, data and risk change hands.

   7 min
5. 05

   A short history of search arbitrage

   From GoTo.com's first paid clicks in 1998 to parked domains, metasearch, native-to-search and today's RSOC era: how the business got here.

   8 min
6. 06

   Is search arbitrage legal and legit?

   Yes, it is legal, and yes, it has a mixed reputation. Here is where the line sits between a compliant business, a policy breach and outright fraud.

   7 min

Test yourself: Search arbitrage from zero: the quiz