In today’s Information Age, building a healthy and profitable online presence can be a difficult task. Whether you’re running a small business or a startup, you need to take advantage of both paid and organic advertising opportunities on the internet. Small companies can surely employ paid advertising as an effective way to drive quality leads. This simple guide on PPC management will show you how paid advertising can help you generate quick results in terms of leads and revenue.
What is PPC management?
Pay-per-click is an online advertising model in which an advertiser pays Google every time someone clicks on their ad. In other words, it’s a way of buying visits to your website. For example, if you bid on the keyword ‘commercial cleaning company’, your ad will appear on the top of SERPs whenever someone searches cleaning services in your area.
The success of your PPC efforts depends on several factors: ad copy, the quality of keywords, landing page, maximum bid amount, etc. Every time a user clicks on your ad and visits your website, you pay a small fee to Google (or whichever ad network you’re advertising on).
As a small business owner, you need to produce quick leads and make sales in a time-efficient manner to improve your chances of survival in a competitive marketplace. Paid advertising is an ideal solution in situations where getting quick results is a prime concern.
Google Ads, formerly known as Google AdWords, is the most popular PPC advertising platform. While Google provides several targeting options, most businesses implement the wrong strategies. When you launch a PPC campaign without research and professional knowledge, you’re likely to end up watching your money go down the drain. Here is a simple guide on PPC management which should help you design successful paid advertising campaigns:
Find the right keywords
Keyword research is a basic step that leads to higher PPC ROI. It’s vital to choose and bid on keywords that are most likely to drive quality leads and conversions. Efforts towards understanding your customers will help you predict which terms your prospects are typing into search engines to find your products and services. There are keyword research tools that will assist you to finalize a list of your important keywords.
Related: 15 Best Keyword Research Tools For SEO
Take advantage of strategic audience targeting
As a small business, you can’t afford to pay for clicks coming from irrelevant visitors or people who are not interested in your products or services. Google and other advertising channels allow you to target a specific audience based on their age, physical location, preferences, gender, etc. You should be more accurate when selecting who should view your ads. It’s also important to choose the right paid advertising channels. Bing Ads, Google ads, display network, and social media are popular platforms where you can run paid ad campaigns.
Related: 5 Easy Ways to Improve Your PPC Campaigns with Audiences
Know your competition
You’re probably aware of your competitors both offline and online. If not, just Google the keywords you’re bidding on to get an idea on who your competition is. It is easy to customize your ads when you know what you’re up against. However, don’t imitate your competitors if you want to stand out.
Don’t forget to optimize your campaigns
A sound account structure is essential to achieve maximum PPC performance. It’s important to consider how many keywords you’re using in each ad group and how many ads are in each ad group. PPC management is a continuous process that demands optimization and improvements. Watch out for opportunities to optimize your PPC campaigns.
Test
Digital advertising is a non-stop process; there’s always room for improvement. Therefore, it’s necessary to continuously track the performance of your ads. Google Ads offers built-in features that allow you to split-test two or more ads against one another. Moreover, keep the ads that perform well and discard the ones that don’t.
PPC can be a great way to generate leads if you know how to do it right. If you don’t have the time, tools or experience to create and manage your paid advertising campaigns, contact a proven and experienced digital advertising company.
Reach First helps SMBs and large organizations experience real growth through our Advanced Marketing Program (AMP). Schedule a free consultation with us today to discuss your digital marketing needs!