Paramount and Dreamworks are in the middle of their promotional campaign for their newest ani-movie, "Monsters versus Aliens" - you might have already seen the trailers on tv.

To support this ad campaign they've built a neat Flash-based site with plenty of movies and online games - it must have cost a fortune. A shame then that people might never see it!

The tv adverts end with the message "search for MVA". I think that this is a nice touch, as it recognises that few people will remember long URLs, while the majority of people can search with Google. Given the resources to hand, and the amount of money at stake, you'd think that Paramount would have been equally insightful with their online marketing campaign, having all of the the elements in place long before the television promotion begins to make sure that people can easily find this expensive website.

Searching for "MVA" on Google, however, brings up a paid-for listing, a sponsored link - complete with a meaningless title, stilted and uninviting copy, and an unintelligible URL - nothing that would encourage anyone to click on the link.

Even worse, however, is the fact that the Monsters versus Aliens website hasn't been optimised for the keyword "MVA" - so the site doesn't even appear in the organic search terms!

Having just finished a Google Adword campaign as part of a re-branding and promotion for one of our clients, the failings of Paramount's attempt really hits home. Pay-per-click advertising is an important tool for the promotion of your website, but it's just one option - when used it needs to be done correctly, not half-heartedly, and as part of a wider, on-brand, and co-ordinated marketing campaign.