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PPC Advertising Basics

September 29th, 2008 Posted in Business and Finance
by Brian Basch

Pay per click advertising (PPC) is a fantastic way to send visitors to your website. PPC web advertisement campaigns are the new way to reach your target audience online. When used correctly, and there are tricks to the trade, PPC methods trigger sales and improve traffic to your site.

PPC advertising campaigns start with a list of keywords or phrases that relate to your product or service. It’s important to do more than just optimize for these words, however. You’ll need a quality keyword strategy to be sure that you’ll get the right audience, and that you’ll end with a sale. This is the part of PPC advertising that’s the most tricky, and that makes it the most effective in the long run. Proper targeting allows you to rule out people who aren’t interested in your products, and reach only the ones who will buy.

To begin your campaign, you have to bid for Keywords. Desirable keywords can come at a high price, but it’s not always the case of the most expensive keywords giving you the best results, so keep reading. The higher your bid, the higher you’ll be ranked for a given keyword or phrase. Higher-ranked ads appear earlier on a search page and it’s no secret that the first few ads get the most clicks. But remember it’s not just about traffic to your site, as every visitor that comes to your site as a result of clicking on your ad costs you money. So, you need to think about what is going to convert those sales, too.

Track how your keywords are doing and oversee what is happening with your investment. Advertising ranges from a cent per click to over a dollar, so the amount you pay for your advertising depends on the search engine and, of course, the popularity of your keyword. Using a tool that will help you understand which words lead to clicks and how many of those clicks are making a sale is a great idea.

Constructing a good ad that is relevant to your site can help to give you a high ranking on some search engines, especially Google. Google has its own quality scoring system that aims to eliminate ads that are bogus or waste people’s time by promising something they can’t deliver. Other factors to consider include ad frequency, as some search engines allow you to run ads only on weekends or at times you specify.

Consider you ads carefully, as failure to achieve a high placement, or failing to make your webpage attractive to visitors, are common reasons for failed PPC ad campaigns. So, be very certain that your landing page and your ad go well together. Ads should be relevant to the keywords you’re using, as well as eye-catching.

It’s a good idea to test your ads by seeing how high they place on the search engine’s page. Often just one word stands between you and the sort of sales you want. You can test this by using variations on keywords. Google alternates ads for its clients so they can test the success of different variations.

For small to middle sized business owners, PPC advertising is a great way to spread the word and make money. A good plan and an organized campaign are the road to success. Do things right, and you’ll be able to target your ideal customer, and get many more sales.

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