What Is Pay-per-Click? How Does It Work?

There's a plethora of information available when trying to decide which marketing campaign to choose. Whether you're thinking about SEO, pay-per-click advertising (PPC), or email marketing, there are many options to choose from. That means you’ll want to think about each one, what it is, and how it will affect your business. Additionally, you don't necessarily have to run the marketing campaign yourself, you could hire a PPC agency to run advertisements or a content marketing agency to improve your SEO.

This article will cover the ins and outs of PPC marketing. First, we'll dive into what it is, how it works, and some of the benefits to your business. Then, we'll discuss some of the most frequently asked questions about pay-per-click advertising.

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What Is Pay-per-Click?

Pay-per-click is a type of online advertising where businesses pay a fee each time an ad is clicked. It's a way to get your website in front of people searching for products or services like yours. For instance, Google Ads is one of the most popular forms of PPC advertising. Have you seen the websites at the top of a Google search that say "ad"? Those are PPC ads, and businesses run them for various reasons.

Primarily, they're trying to obtain traffic with a high likelihood of some conversion. For example, an e-commerce company might choose to run PPC ads on Google. Let's say the online store is selling supplements, like protein powder. When someone searches for specific keywords related to the product, their ad will pop up first. As a result, the website will gain traffic a percentage of the time and the customer will see something that matches their search, so it's a win-win.

How Does Pay-per-Click Work?

With PPC, you create ads and then bid on keywords related to your products or services. When someone searches for one of your keywords, your ad may appear next to the search results. You only pay when someone clicks on your ad. Let's go back to the example above. When you're selling supplements like protein powder, you're likely bidding for keywords like "best supplements" or "best protein powder." A percentage of people will click on your site, and you'll pay the amount you bid. The amount you pay per click is determined by how much you bid on the keyword and how relevant your ad and website are to the person searching.

Many different platforms offer pay-per-click advertising, including Google Ads and Facebook Ads. They all work slightly differently, so it's essential to research each one before deciding which platform to use for your PPC campaign. However, the concept of bidding on keywords and paying only when someone clicks on your ad is the same across all platforms.

What Are the Benefits of Pay-per-Click?

High-quality, relevant traffic: One of the primary benefits of using PPC is that you can target people who are already interested in what you're offering. Unlike other types of marketing, such as SEO and email marketing, PPC gives you visibility right away. It's a quick way to get your website or product in front of potential customers without waiting months or years for organic results.

Flexibility: Another benefit is how flexible pay-per-click can be. You can adjust bids and create new campaigns on the go, which means you don't need to make long-term commitments to this strategy. If one campaign isn't working, you can easily pause it and start another more effective campaign.

Improved ROI (return on investment): With PPC, you're in control of your budget. You can set a daily or monthly limit so you don't overspend. Additionally, you can track conversions, making it easy to see how much money you're making from each click. This level of transparency is vital to justify your spending and ensure that your campaigns are delivering a positive ROI. Finally, a localized PPC campaign will provide the highest ROI because of localized intent.

What Are Some Frequently Asked Questions About Pay-per-Click?

Now that we've covered some basics about pay-per-click, let's look at a few frequently asked questions about this type of advertising.

      1. How Much Does Pay-per-Click Cost?

The amount you spend on pay-per-click will depend on various factors, including the platform you use, the competitiveness of your industry, and the keywords you bid on. Generally, an adequate PPC ad budget should range from $500 to $10,000+ per month, depending on the size of your business and budget. Additionally, if you're considering hiring a PPC agency, there are other costs to consider. However, expect to see higher ROIs and quicker results when hiring a proficient agency.

      2. How Do I Get Started With a PPC Campaign?

To get started with PPC, you'll first need to create an account on the platform of your choice (for example, Google Ads or Facebook Ads). Then, choose a small group of keywords related to what you're advertising and start testing. After that, you can adjust bids and create new ads as needed. Be sure to track conversions to know how much money each click is worth. This will help you determine whether your budget is sufficient and whether your campaigns are delivering good results.

      3. What Are Some Tips for Improving My Pay-per-Click Results?

The best way to improve your PPC results is by continually optimizing your campaigns based on performance data. That includes pausing underperforming keywords or ads and increasing budgets for high performers. Essentially, you want to base decisions about PPC ads on previous data, especially if you haven't done it before. That's why hiring a PPC agency is so effective. They've likely helped businesses just like yours, so they know the best practices for optimization. A final tip would be to keep your ad copy relevant and engaging, as this will help improve your click-through rate (CTR), a crucial metric for success with pay-per-click.

Takeaways

PPC is an effective way to quickly get high-quality, relevant traffic to your website or product. And, because you're only paying for clicks, it can be a cost-effective way to generate leads and sales. Additionally, PPC is flexible and easy to track, making it optimal for lower-end budgets that need relevant traffic.