PPC is a common term in the marketing world, but what does it actually mean? PPC stands for pay-per-click. PPC is a method that marketers use to promote their businesses on search engines. The most common platforms are Google Ads and Bing Ads. Both display ads to your target audience to help promote interest in your company and what it has to offer. This guide will take you through PPC and what it can do for your business.
Benefits
Using PPC to promote your business will help in many different ways. This platform allows you to target specific consumers based on their interests and what they are searching for. Ads will help to increase views and your company’s exposure. Increased exposure leads directly to more product sales.
PPC is also a great help to new businesses. The platform allows your company to appear on the first page of search results. This would not normally be possible due to competition and how new the company is. Appearing on the first page of search results relates directly to more clicks on your company website.
Platforms
When it comes to PPC, there are many different choices. However, it is difficult to know which will be best for your business. The first and most well-known is Google. As the biggest search engine, Google is a great choice. Google allows a business to use its ads platform to present itself to a wide array of consumers and other businesses. Google Ads is a great option but can become quite costly as competition is extremely high.
Another great option is Bing. This platform serves the same purpose as Google Ads do but with a few more drawbacks. Bing draws in roughly twelve billion searches a day. This may sound like an immense number, but compared to Google, it is nothing. Bing offers the same basic functionality as Google Ads but with a less intuitive UI and fewer consumers to target. However, due to a smaller search size per day, ads on Bing are far less competitive and generally cost far less than their Google Ads counterparts.
Third, we have Facebook, the most well-known social media platform in the world. Facebook offers a great tool for targeting ads to consumers, but it also does come with its drawbacks. Facebook is less likely to draw in real leads than generate interest for your business. This is why it is not as commonly used as Google Ads. However, targeting on Facebook is the best option out of all platforms. Due to their extremely well developed AI, businesses can target consumers based on virtually anything they can think of. Facebook offers many options when it comes to targeting, and it also offers a great retargeting platform. One major advantage of Facebook over any other platform is that ads can be displayed natively. Ads will be shown in a user’s timeline and will look as if they are another post from a friend. This is great for drawing interest as consumers are more likely to interact with your ad if it does not interfere with their user experience.
Terms to Know
When it comes to PPC, there are so many words and phrases that get thrown around, but what do they actually mean? First, we have SEM or search engine marketing. This term is used to cover all that is done for both search engine optimization and paid advertising. SEM is a generalized term to explain all of your efforts for search engine marketing, both paid and organic.
The next is CPC or cost per click. CPC is the amount of money paid for one click on your advertisement. This metric is one to follow closely as it shows the performance of your ad and how well it does over time.
Third is the campaign. Your campaign is the overall purpose of your advertisement. Your goal can be anything from increasing sales, increasing awareness, to hiring more employees. It is important to know the purpose of your campaign before you begin to ensure that you are targeting the correct audience and spending your budget wisely.
Finally, we have the landing page. The landing page is where you will send consumers to after they click on your ad. Your landing page is one of the most important parts of any PPC campaign. Your landing page has to be enticing enough for consumers to make a purchase or complete the goal for your campaign. Following landing page best practices like a short load time and straightforward content will lead to a successful PPC campaign.
Our Thoughts
PPC is a difficult term to understand and may be intimidating to some. It is integral to stay focused on your goal and work towards achieving it. Google is a great option for PPC campaigns with its many users, but it can become costly fast. Different platforms serve different purposes for advertising, and it is essential to know what you would like your campaign to accomplish. Facebook is great for awareness, but not the best option for quality leads.
SEM is something that is difficult for any business and takes a long time to complete and understand. Let the experts help with your SEM and all of your marketing needs. Schedule a consultation today.