Online advertising is a great way to generate interest and revenue for your small business, and pay per click (PPC) advertising is one tool you can use. PPC advertising has grown in popularity right along with internet use in general. If you want to implement a PPC campaign for your small business, you should be aware of the pros and cons of using PPC advertising.
The Pros of PPC Advertising
Advertising with PPC has many positive aspects. It is very easy to develop and implement a good PPC campaign. In a matter of hours, you can create a simple ad and start posting on a variety of websites. PPC ads are typically moderate in size, and it is easy to find sponsors that will allow you to post on their sites. Of course, the most popular venue for PPC ads is Google, where your ad will appear when users type in related search terms.
PPC ads are also a good investment because you only have to pay for them when a potential customer takes action and clicks your advertisement. You might spend thousands on a newspaper ad that is ignored by readers. It is impossible to tell just how many people looked at a traditional ad like this. However, PPC ads are easy to track, and you can tell who is looking at your ads. This makes it easier to get feedback and tailor your ads to the tastes of customers.
The Cons of PPC Advertising
There are some best practices and techniques when it comes to PPC advertising. It is a proven fact that people rarely look at advertisements on the left side of the computer screen. This means that you will not only have to focus on getting your PPC ads on the right sites, but you need to worry about getting them displayed in optimum positions.
Another con of PPC advertising is that every click counts; you will have to pay out of pocket each and every time someone clicks on your ad, regardless of if it generates a sale or not. If you develop an eye-catching PPC campaign, you might end up paying through the nose if users are simply clicking because of the novelty rather that with a genuine interest in what you are advertising.
Weighing Your Options
Now that you understand the pros and cons of PPC advertising, you can make an educated decision about how a PPC campaign may fit into your grand marketing scheme. It is clear that PPC ads can be effective, but you must focus on developing an appropriate strategy for your overall PPC campaign. Partnering with the right organizations to host your PPC ads is critical when implementing a campaign. You will also want to use tracking information to determine if the clicks that you are paying for are in fact generating enough revenue to make a PPC campaign profitable. This is why Return-on-Investment (ROI) is such a major part of determining the success of a PPC campaign.
It may take some experimenting, trial and error to get your PPC ads in the right places so that the right consumers have access to them. Don’t be afraid to adjust your PPC advertising approach to generate real results for your small business.
