Pay Per Click Campaign Management

A simple definition of Pay Per Click (PPC) is the placement of an ad on a search engine(such as Google, Yahoo) results page or web pages that appear for specified keywords or key phrases. For example, if you search for "Plasma HDTV" on Google or Yahoo, you are going to see sponsored listing on the right hand side as well as on the top of the result page. These ads are placed by advertisers who pay a pre-determined price (or bid amount) whenever a visitor clicks on their ads. That�s why they are termed "Pay Per Click" because advertisers only pay when the visitor clicks on their ads.

Exact cost of PPC can vary based on the competitiveness of the keyword(s) and the search demand for these keyword(s). Some of the keywords could have an outrageous bid amount. For example, a keyword such as "Mesothelioma" can cost you north of $100 per click.

A PPC ad usually consists of a heading, a short summary and the URL that is also known as "Landing Page". Remember, URL displayed in the add could be different than the landing page URL. Some PPC Search Engines strictly control and monitor the titles and descriptions you can use in your ad while others allowed more flexibility. For example, Google would not allow you to use absolute word such as "Best" or the "Greatest" because these are not certified results but rather considered opinion of the advertiser.

In some cases, once you have devised your PPC ad, decide on the amount you are willing to bid and your ads will appear within minutes. Some PPC Search Engines use manual approval process that could take take couple of days for your ad to get approved and start displaying. So unlike organic SEO, PPC marketing can generally provide you immediate results. Major Search Engines such as Google, Yahoo and MSN also do keywords reviews to make sure that your keywords are appropriate and relevant for your web site content.

Running a Profitable Campaign

Your main consideration in running a successful PPC campaign is your Return On Investment (ROI). The ROI is calculated by working out how much you are making on the click-through (and purchases) from your PPC visitors minus the amount you are spending on advertising. If your ROI is low or worse still, negative, you have to tweak your ads to increase traffic or opt for less expensive keywords. If you have chosen particularly competitive keywords and paid a premium for those keywords, you may have to consider keywords that are less competitive.

One of the components in determining your position in the Search Engine listings is driven by the bid price you have paid. Obviously, the more you are willing to pay "Per Click" the higher up in the Search Engine rankings you'll be. The trade-off is that you need to have a high ROI to make the cost of your keyword bids worth it. Most PPC Search Engines automate the bidding process so you only pay a certain maximum amount required to get you to the top of the Search Engine listings. However, it is imperative that you follow your own PPC campaigns to ensure you aren't being out-bid or that the PPC Search Engines decline your ads. You also need to be aware that bidding amount can change from day to day for the same keyword. It depends on the search volume for that keyword as well as the advertisers bidding for that particular keyword.

Once you have mastered the basics of running a PPC campaign and have discovered the various tools and software available to help you run a profitable campaign, you will be in a position to fine tune your campaigns. Although PPC marketing is an effective and instantaneous way of generating targeted traffic to your web site, it doesn't work for everyone. Factors like the competition in your category, the cost per bid, the number of actual click-through you are getting and your return on investment (ROI) must all be factored into your results. But when you consider that the only alternative is to wait for your site to be organically listed and ranked by the major Search Engines, which could take anywhere from two weeks to years or more, running a PPC campaign is certainly a more viable option.