Your Guide to PPC advertising in 2023

PPC advertising is a type of paid digital advertising aimed at increasing web traffic among a specified target audience. This guide covers everything you need to know about PPC in 2023, including how it works from planning to execution.

What is PPC in Digital Marketing?

PPC advertising is part of digital marketing, with campaigns run across websites, search engines and social media. PPC advertising may include display ads, video ads, text ads and more.

What does PPC stand for

PPC stands for pay-per-click, a form of advertising where the advertiser pays for each click they receive. This means that with PPC, the advertiser is only charged when a user clicks the advertisement through to their website. This allows advertisers to focus on specific audiences that are more likely to be interested in their products or services.

How can PPC help your business

It is important for businesses to engage in digital marketing to remain competitive. PPC can be integrated into any business’ overall digital marketing strategy to increase conversions. PPC allows businesses to target specific audiences based on demographics and interests, increasing ad relevance through personalisation.

How effective is PPC advertising

Therefore, PPC can be highly effective in driving web traffic to generate leads or sales. Because PPC targets users who click through to the website, there is more interest and a higher conversion rate. This means that PPC advertising is more effective in generating a monetary return from potential customers due to its structure. However, it may be less effective for other awareness driven goals, measured by impressions or views.

How does PPC bidding work

Advertisers can set a maximum bid amount for their advertising keywords, based on their budget. PPC advertising involves bidding in an auction, determining which ad is displayed to the user. However, the bid amount is not the only factor that determines the ad shown. The platform used for the ad compares quality, relevance and maximum bid amount when determining which ad to display. The advertiser whose ad is shown will then be charged for each user that visits their website through the ad. This amount is known as the cost-per-click (CPC), which is not necessarily the same as the maximum bid.

PPC keywords

In PPC, advertisers can choose both keywords to bid on and negative keywords to exclude.

What are negative keywords in PPC

Negative keywords in PPC can be specified so that an ad is excluded from search results for those particular keywords. Negative keywords enhance PPC efficiency by filtering out irrelevant search queries, minimising irrelevant clicks, which would cost the advertiser more.

How to run a PPC campaign

To run a successful PPC campaign, careful planning, execution, and management is necessary with regular adjustments. This allows advertisers to better achieve their key goals and desired ROI in PPC advertising.

How to plan a PPC campaign

First, identify the desired platform for the PPC campaign, which may impact the overall strategy and advertising goals. Next, outline the campaign’s goals, which may include increasing web traffic, improving lead generation or increasing brand awareness. From this, identify the target audience and conduct keyword research to develop a targeting strategy. Then, write ad copy based on these keywords, with a clear call to action that aligns with your goals. Finally, set your maximum bid and campaign budget, which can be customised for your business. It is important to optimise your PPC campaign with regular monitoring and adjustments to successfully meet the campaign’s goals. This can be done with analytics tools to measure performance, return on ad spend and identify issues for further optimisation.

How to calculate PPC budget

PPC can be cost-effective for businesses if managed effectively and the target audience is well-defined. PPC advertising costs also vary depending on the industry, target audience, location and search volume. Advertisers only pay for actual clicks on their ads, rather than paying for ad space upfront. Therefore, to calculate the PPC budget, find out the expected CPC for the particular keyword. From here, estimate the desired number of click-throughs and multiply it by the CPC for an approximate budget.

How much does it cost to manage a PPC campaign

The cost of managing a PPC campaign varies depending on its scale, the campaign goals and the timeline. The cost of managing a smaller and simpler PPC campaign is likely lower than a larger, more detailed campaign. This is because smaller PPC campaigns tend to have more general goals and fewer keywords. In comparison, larger PPC campaigns spanning multiple platforms require more expertise and resources to manage and optimise over time. Overall, PPC campaign management costs may range from an average of a few hundred to thousands of dollars each month.

How to learn PPC

Looking to learn PPC advertising in 2023? Vertical Institute’s Digital Marketing course covers PPC, keywords, paid advertising and everything you need to know to run a campaign.

Join Vertical Institute’s Digital Marketing Course now and receive a robust portfolio of your own projects upon completion. Get a recognised digital marketing certification with hands-on projects and expert guidance from experienced professionals at Vertical Institute. Advance your digital marketing skills online, and become an accredited expert in just 4 weeks with Vertical Institute’s comprehensive program.

About Vertical Institute

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