If you’re operating a startup company, you may have heard of Pay-per-click or PPC advertising as an effective tool to market your products and/or services. PPC is an internet marketing model in which advertisers pay a fee for every click on their ads. It is a way for a business to buy traffic for their websites, rather than earn them organically or without play, like in the case of Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
Because of this marketing trend, companies that help smaller businesses have an effective PPC ad are on the rise. In Denver and other places, PPC advertising services are offered by digital marketing agencies. With their expertise on the table, your small business can reach new heights through PPC ads.
How Does It Work?
Advertisers pay for ad placement in search engines, websites, and social media platforms. They pay a fee each time an ad of theirs is clicked.
Every time there is a slot for an ad in a search engine, for example, an auction will take place for a certain keyword. Several factors including bid amount and the ad’s quality decide who takes the top spot in the search engine results page (SERP).
The auction will begin once a user searches for something using a search engine. Advertisers will be eager to show ads related to the user’s search query, and they will bid on the keywords, where the auction will be based upon. The ads that win the auction will be awarded a high ranking in the SERP.
Making an Effective PPC Ad
Using vague keywords may not put your website on a top spot of a SERP, especially now that users are more specific in their searches. The more details they put in a search, the better the results they get. You’d want to be able to relate your business to what your market searches for, so the more specific you can get, the better.
Vague keywords may have a lot of competition, which isn’t feasible for your business. In typical scenarios, the higher you bid on a keyword, the higher your ranking in SERPs will be. Your keywords should also make an impact on the users. The limited number of characters shouldn’t stop you from making compelling ad write-ups. Professional copywriters specialize in this field.
The landing pages, normally your business website, should also be as alluring as your ad. It should align with the user’s intent powerfully, otherwise, the purpose of your ad gets defeated. Remember that PPC buys traffic for your website, so if your website is off-putting and the ad is merely a click-bait, then your PPC won’t be effective.
Why It’s Ideal for Small Businesses
PPC ads can be cost-effective for small business, as long as you know how to target the right keywords. The technique is to focus on the keywords that users type in when they are ready to buy the product or are looking for information. As pointed out earlier, the more specific the keyword is, the better. Broad matches can get you paying for unqualified clicks and drain your budget.
PPC also gives you the opportunity to improve your content whenever necessary. You can always test out the relevance of your content to what users search for, and make adjustments as needed.
Numbers, rather than opinions and emotions, are also a good basis for budgeting in small businesses. Numeric data from ad platforms combined with an analysis effectively measures which market segments are the most valuable. Budget can be focused on those, and not on underperforming ones.
Ultimately, the effectiveness of a PPC ad will depend on how relevant your ad and content are to the user’s search queries. Keywords, ad copy, landing pages, and PPC managers work together to help your business achieve the best results. With progressive research, analysis, and tests, your business will thrive through PPC advertising.