Pay-per-click, for those who are unfamiliar with the phrase, refers to an Internet advertising method in which advertisers pay a website owner a certain amount when their advertisement is selected (clicked). There are advantages to this type of advertising in that the advertiser does not pay for a general shot-gun approach in which their ads are spread throughout the Internet to be randomly chosen by individuals looking for topics.
Efficacy of Pay-per-Click
This is an effective advertising technique to be used judiciously along with other types of advertising techniques. An advantage of pay-per-click is that it can lure traffic to your website immediately. Through bidding adequate amounts on specified keywords, an advertiser can arrange to have customers see their listings first on a search engine – leading those customers to choose their website immediately when searching. Because of this trait, pay-per-click is a fast method of advertising because the advertiser can see results immediately.
Uses of Pay-per-Click
Inevitably the cost of pay-per-click increases because bidding for particular keywords becomes expensive for a number of reasons. You should use this type of advertising judiciously as a part of your advertising portfolio.
Use it to advertise if you have a product that can be purchased as soon as individuals arrive at your website. An excellent example of this type of business is an online store, or as it’s called, e-commerce. With an online store, you’re assured that most selections of your website are purposeful and can generate revenue. Therefore, investing to increase the number of clicks is cost-effective.
Another use of pay-per-click is to create excitement on the Internet about a product you wish to emphasize on a short-term basis. With pay-per-click, immediate response to customer’s reactions is possible and a short-term sales campaign can pay off in the long run.
Making It Pay
Keeping statistical records of the times when visitors to your website do the following:
• Complete a sales inquiry
• Downloads information
• Makes a purchase
In advertising terms, this is called making a conversion. These statistics keep track of what is valuable to you and your firm.
How Does the Average Business Do Pay-per-Click?
Obviously, when individuals and companies begin an online presence, they do not contemplate all the facets of advertising, even though advertising is a necessary part of a start-up budget. The Internet and search engines have made advertising more sophisticated and complicated. The best way of handling this type of advertising is to hire experts, either in-house or firms that specialize in advertising.
The details of keeping track of conversion rates, determining the cost of pay-per-click advertising, examining its effects upon your markets, and determining if your focus works is best done by a professional in advertising who is familiar with the ins and outs of the Internet and the specialized marketing tools necessary to promote your merchandise.
A professional can help you avoid being caught up in a bidding war over particular keywords, boosting the costs of your pay-per-click campaign well beyond profitability. Furthermore, this professional can help you avoid “junk” or useless access that add to statistics, but do not add to the bottom line.
