If you’ve recently been frustrated after spending a great deal of time and money on an ad campaign with little or no results, then perhaps you should consider learning more about viable alternatives to your existing methods.
From this post, you will learn the various method for advertisement including Pay Per Click (PPC) campaign. You will also find various advantages of PPC over other alternatives.
In a time where print ads are too expensive, e-mail campaigns are being called SPAM, Internet surfers have become immune to flashing banner ads, and people are flocking to the “National Do-not Call” Website, you think to yourself… “There just has to be a better way to advertise.”
“There just has to be a better way to advertise.”
Advertisers headed for the Internet in search of a new, exciting and cost-effective way to advertise their product online.
In doing so, they stumbled upon just that; Search. They realized through search technology, there was no longer a need to push an ad onto an audience; rather an audience could actively search for companies and the products they offer.
With search engines as the latest trend, advertisers trying to get noticed among millions of competitors are left with the burning question…
“How do I get my site to the top of the list?”
Table of Contents
3 Most Popular methods to Advertise The Product:
There are three popular methods online marketers have been using to find the answer and to get the traffic to their website where they sell their product…
- Paid Inclusion
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
- Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising
An advertiser who uses paid inclusion pays the search engine to include their site information, or listing, amongst search results. Though the advertiser is guaranteed to be included, he/she cannot guarantee a listing’s rank.
Search engine optimization is based on the idea of optimizing a site in order to appeal to search engine spiders. The spider reads the coding to determine correlating keywords and appropriate site rank. However, because the spider’s way of reading the code is always changing, the guarantee for placement is unstable.
PPC advertising is ideal for the advertiser who knows little or nothing about coding and is not willing to pay an SEO company to “optimize” a site without guaranteed results.
Why Should You Choose PPC over other Marketing Ways?
Before getting into the advantages of PPC, you should know why you should go for it.
1. You Get What You Pay for.
PPC advertising does not rely on spiders, specialized coding, or paying for a ranking that is not guaranteed like paid inclusion.
When talking about PPC, the old phrase “you get what you pay for” can perfectly describe the model.
An advertiser selects his/her own keywords and then bids on them.
This guarantees the desired placement among search results and elevates this model above other forms of search engine marketing.
2. PPC ads are Courteous to the Internet User.
However, it is not only this guaranteed placement that attracts advertisers to the PPC model—compared to other online media, PPC ads are much more courteous to the Internet user.
It’s easy to get caught up with traditional online methods, however, it is important to realize that eventually, these campaigns lose their ability to attract an audience.
3. No More Spam Marketing.
Unlike SPAM or flashy banner ads, the Internet user better perceives PPC ads because they are not as intrusive.
SPAM is a nuisance because it clutters email inboxes by trying to sell unrequested products to consumers. Banner ads, aside from being a negative distraction, increase the amount of time a page takes to load. The online survey showed that 53% of consumers were annoyed by banner advertisements.
Since PPC advertising is not based on the same principles as banner ads or SPAM, it is a more effective method of online advertising.
4. Highly Targeting for Online Marketing.
In order for a PPC ad to appear, an Internet user must solicit it by entering a keyword or phrase to perform a search. Because a user is specifically looking for a product or service, the ad is highly targeted.
Realistically, would a person search for something if they were not interested in the product, service or topic? Last year, DoubleClick, Inc. reported that 41% of online buyers found the Web site they used to research a purchase through a search site.
Advantages of PPC for advertisers (User Benefits)
Not only do Internet users realize the added convenience of PPC ads, PPCs advertisers also experience a number of advantages over other advertising methods.
5. A PPC campaign can cost much less than other ad campaigns.
It is helpful to those on a limited budget.
To begin with, a PPC campaign’s upfront costs are dramatically lower than a handful of other traditional methods. Unlike banner ads or print ads, for example, there are no design or printing costs, which can result in saving several hundred or thousands of dollars.
Instead, most PPCs only require an initial deposit that counts towards actual visits to an advertiser’s Web site.
6. PPC campaigns are click based, not impression based.
Rather than paying a flat rate to have an ad appear in a magazine or on a Web site “x” amount of times, advertisers associate keywords with their Web site and assign bid values to determine the cost of each targeted visitor.
When an Internet user searches a particular keyword and relevant search results, or advertiser listings, are displayed. And a click is performed (directing the user to a particular advertiser’s Website) – only then is the amount deducted from that advertiser’s deposit.
Through keyword bidding, advertisers can customize the cost per visitor. This allows them to pay more or less depending on what type of audience is desired.
For example,
If an advertiser wants to list his/her online flower shop, s/he may decide to use the keyword “flowers,” which is very general, and the keyword “red anthuriums,” which is extremely targeted.
Knowing that the word “flowers” will be searched more than “red anthuriums” the advertiser may want to assign it a higher bid value, placing his/her listing on the top of the search results list.
However, that all depends on whether or not the advertiser wishes to attract the more general or more specific audience.
For many advertisers, the cost is not always the determining factor in choosing an ad campaign. The amount of time needed to execute a campaign is equally important to its profit and success.
7. Managing a PPC campaign requires very little time from the advertiser.
This makes an easy and productive way to promote a product or service.
A good PPC will provide the advertiser with multiple online tools to help cut back the time spent on campaign management. Through the use of specialized research tools, which offer statistical information on searches and keywords, an advertiser can eliminate the time spent researching the groundwork for a campaign.
In addition to preliminary research, the amount of time it takes to monitor and track a campaign after its launch can cost the advertiser more time than willing to spend.
8. Many PPCs have reporting features, which monitor various aspects of a campaign.
Contrary to other ad campaigns, PPC advertisers can view statistics immediately and make necessary changes to the campaign. If after a few days, the campaign is not performing as expected, it can be tweaked, unlike print or banner, which requires a whole new design and creation.
This allows the advertiser to be in complete control throughout the ad campaign.
So, what would you do?
What is required for an advertiser looking to use PPC?
The first thing is to find a PPC search engine with an audience that best matches your product and/or service. Create an account.
The Internet has an audience that consists of practically every demographic. Therefore, with the proper PPC and keyword list, an advertiser can attract a targeted audience easily.
A PPCs audience is composed of Internet traffic from its partnering Web sites. Partnering Web sites incorporate a PPCs advertiser database into their existing Web content in order to provide visitors with search capabilities.
Some PPCs are more geared towards the general Internet population. And they partner with everyday search portals. Others compliment this market by also partnering with industry-specific Web sites.
After initiating a campaign, an advertiser can use the resources provided by the PPC to create effective keywords and listings. Once completed, the campaign is launched and the ad is dispersed, gaining exposure throughout the net.
Conclusion…
Ultimately, PPC advertising can offer an effective alternative for advertisers looking to leverage off the Internet. And there are many advantages of PPC.
E-mail campaigns that are borderline SPAM. The banner ads are flashy and bothersome. Even traditional print media is very expensive. Unlike all of them, PPC ads are cost-effective and targeted.
Related Read:
- 5 Aspects where Business can Improve (Technology to Grow the Business)
- 3 Top Most Factors to Consider In Writing (Professional Tips)
- 8 ways to Stand Out on Social Media (to gain more sales and Conversions for Your Business)
For advertisers on a tight budget or pressed for time, PPC can offer quality leads. One can also get the high conversions quickly and effortlessly.
Thanks, your articles are consistently resourceful for learning Marketing. Very helpful.