Pay-Per-Click, or PPC, is a system of marketing where ads are inserted into a user’s online experience and an advertiser pays every time that ad is clicked. In some PPC scenarios, that amount is a flat rate set out in advance. However, the most common format, including that used by Google, is for the advertiser to bid on certain “keywords”, with ads shown on an auction basis. The highest bidder’s ad is shown first, followed by the next highest and so forth. Google’s PPC programs are called AdSense and AdWords. AdWords ads are displayed during a user’s search, while AdSense ads are displayed on an actual website. For the purposes of this article, we will be focusing primarily on AdWords accounts. Publishing an AdWords ad is easy. One must set up a Google account, then set up an AdWords account. One must then write an ad, following certain guidelines, and choose one or more “keywords” for the ad. “Keywords” are specific words or phrases that describe what kinds of searches an advertiser wishes to target. For instance, “pizza delivery in San Diego” is an example of a keyword phrase that a pizzeria in San Diego may wish to target. An advertiser then bids on their chosen keyword(s), enters a payment method and sets an advertising budget, and publishes their ad, and voila! Their ad is now “live”. This couldn’t be easier process.

However, easy and effective are not the same thing. “Just because someone can quickly and easily buy a basketball doesn’t mean they can play like Kobe Bryant,” Tim, a  PPC account manager with The Click Experts, recently pointed out to me. Having a professional company like The Click Experts manage your Adwords account is important for several reasons, he continued. For one, choosing keywords correctly is very important. If they are too vague, an advertiser risks diluting their advertising money targeting unqualified clients. On the other hand, If they are too specific, an advertisers risks not having them displayed to those users they may be wishing to target. In addition, choosing the keywords carefully can minimize advertising costs while maximizing exposure. Since Google works on a bidding process, keywords are very subject to the vagaries of an open market. Popular keywords are more expensive, with some top words fetching over $50 per click. Choosing a specific keyword, however, can allow an advertiser to carefully target the audience for their ads without having to pay a fortune, since bids can also be as low as $0.10. Knowing how to choose a keyword, and how to correctly arrive at an appropriate bid for that keyword, can mean the difference between paying out a significant portion of the budget for unwanted clicks or making sure as many clicks as possible are made by qualified customers looking for exactly what an advertiser is offering.

Another key reason for having a professional like Tim manage your account is because Google is constantly making small and subtle, or occasionally even large, changes to its policies regarding PPC accounts. One important area Tim highlighted for me was the use of synonyms. When Google first starting in the PPC business, ads were only displayed on searches exactly matching to an advertiser’s chosen keywords. However, in a bid to generate more revenue and (one hopes) help advertisers target more qualified customers, Google changed its policy and began matching ads to synonyms of the keywords. In fact, says Tim, Google often changes its policy regarding the use of synonyms, with the general trend toward more and more permissive use. This can lead to more dilution and waste of advertising dollars. By actively managing an account, professionals like the team at The Click Experts can ensure an advertiser’s budget is being judiciously spent on clicks by users who are actually being actively targeted. In fact, in many cases, depending on an advertiser’s budget and they keywords targeted, The Click Experts can save the advertiser more money in wasted clicks than the account management actually costs.

Clearly, a manged PPC account should be seriously considered by every business desiring to develop and maintain an online presence. PPC, especially when combined with professional website development, effective content management, and a correctly targeted and executed SEO campaign, can deliver a steady stream of qualified, reliable customers who can bolster the revenue stream of a business. Why not see for yourself? Contact us today for a free quote and see what The Click Experts can do for you!

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