Have you ever wondered what all the fuss over Google Adwords is about? We broke down the five benefits of PPC that set paid search advertising apart.
1. Fast Results
It only costs a few hundred bucks to run an ad in the newspaper, but if you’re in a business slump, you probably don’t want to wait around for a few weeks to see who happens to stumble across your ad while searching for their weekly horoscope. First thing’s first–put the investment you’ve made in your company’s website to work. If you want to advertise your website to people who are looking to hire someone now, one way to do that is to make your ads go live instantly. The sooner you get a phone call, the sooner you can get out of that slump and grow your business.
2. Measurable Data
Any reliable, time-tested form of advertising should be able to provide you with some sort of metric about how they are helping you get business. With Adwords, these metrics are already digitized and built-in–no extra testing necessary. Businesses who run Adwords have access to a plethora of performance data via tools like Google Analytics and the Application Programming Interface (API). The more you can use these tools to your advantage, the more competitive your ads will be.
3. Custom Optimization
Instant access to performance data means you’ll be able to see when your adgroups aren’t giving you the success you’re looking for. You can–and should–be making adaptations to your keywords and ad groups as the campaign continues to run and collect data that shows you which part of your campaign is making you the most money. Unlike print or media, your changes go live as soon as you want them to go live, and you enjoy all the benefits of a dynamic ad strategy.
4. Highly Targeted
I’ve said that you can advertise however you want. Along those same lines, you can advertise to anyone you want. If you only work with other businesses and not with the average consumer, a good keyword focus and a strong negative keyword list can ensure that your ad comes up to the high-brow audience you’re looking to capture–and not the seventeen-year-old writing a paper.
If you don’t think that the person looking to use your product or service is looking on Google, think again: 95% of all business happens on the front page of Google, and it’s all about thinking about how your client wants to find you. Even if people aren’t using Google as the only way to make their buying decision, they might do a quick search to see what is out there. Showing them your ad reminds them to keep you in the running as a potential business partner.
5. Level Playing Field
If you’re in an industry that is dominated by a few big-name companies, chances are you aren’t going to be able to compete with their marketing budget overall. But for a few hours out of every day, with the right budget and the right campaign structure, you can compete. If you bid high enough and set up your campaign correctly, you can get your ad right up among the top in the industry–no fancy labels, no designer logos, and no gimmicks. Google Adwords ad copy regulations don’t allow users to include gimmicks or any overly-flashy ads. This is your opportunity to land that client!
Paid search is just one way to advertise online, but the advantages are there. The key is to know what you can expect to get out of your campaign and use your resources wisely. If you’re unsure about AdWords, ask our Google-certified experts how PPC Management can help you optimize your strategy.
