Digital advertising can produce great results for your business, especially when it comes
to pay-per-click ads. No, not paper click. Pay-per-click, or PPC.
With the right strategy, you can see an increase in leads, calls, sales, or whatever it is
you want from your PPC campaigns.
If you outsource your digital advertising to an agency, or even a freelancer, you can
expect to work with someone who considers themselves a PPC specialist. But what do PPC
specialists do to ensure you get a positive return on investment from your campaigns?
I’ll tell you! But really quickly, let me explain what I mean when I say PPC.
What is PPC marketing?
PPC, which I’ve established stands for pay-per-click, is basically a description of how you pay
for your digital ads.
As it says in the name, you pay every time someone clicks on your ad.
When someone is talking about PPC ads, they’re probably referring to the text-based ads you
see in search engines. But PPC isn’t just limited to Google or Bing.
You can run PPC ads on platforms like Amazon, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
So now that you’re familiar with PPC, I’ll tell you more about what PPC specialists do
for businesses. What does a PPC specialist do for businesses?
I’m going to cover five larger PPC specialist tasks, but truth be told, I’m only just
scratching the surface of everything a PPC specialist does to create and optimize successful
ad campaigns. So without further ado, here are five major tasks a PPC specialist handles.
Build a PPC strategy based on your business needs
Before a PPC expert launches your campaign, they will get to know your business, your
industry, and your goals.
This will help them put together an initial strategy focused on getting the best return
on investment for your business.
Maybe you want to increase purchases of a certain product on your site. The PPC expert
will take that information into consideration when creating your strategy so everything
they do aligns with your goals and your brand. Research keywords and audiences for ad targeting
This is another important step a PPC specialist will take before launching your campaign.
The type of research will depend on where you want to launch your ads.
If you want to run a search ad campaign on Google, for example, the main focus would
be on keyword research since these ads show up, in part, because someone searches for
a certain keyword.
If you want to run an ad on Facebook, the focus would not be on keyword research but
on audience targeting, so your PPC expert will take extra time to understand who is
most likely to interact with your business’s ads.
Your PPC specialist’s research will also help determine things like ad copy, ad design,
and landing page design, so it’s a step that shouldn’t be overlooked.
Create ad copy and design multimedia elements for ads
With their research and your goals in mind, a PPC specialist will put together the copy
and other creative elements of your ads.
Of course, a text-based ad will have different requirements than a boosted social media post
or a sponsored product ad on Amazon, but no matter what, your ad creative should align
with your brand and goals.
And landing page design is just as important as your ad design. You don’t want someone
to click on an ad for silverware and land on a generic kitchen product page.
Your PPC specialist may be capable of handling the design on their own, or they may need
to work with a designer for the best results. Either way, they’ll make sure all of these
elements work together to create a cohesive experience so people engage with your ads.
Manage bids to maximize return on ad spend PPC ads operate through an auction.
This means the cost-per-click, or CPC, can fluctuate based on factors like competition,
ad placement, time of day, and more.
While this allows you to be flexible with your budget, bidding too much or not bidding
enough can hurt your ad campaigns.
You may be able to take advantage of automated bidding based on your goals, but your PPC
specialist will manage your bids and budget to make sure they’re enough to get you the
results you need for a positive return on your ad spend.
For example, if fewer people click on your ads during the evening, your PPC specialist
can lower your bid during those times so you’re not wasting any of your budget.
Track campaign performance and report updates Tracking PPC campaign performance is a crucial
part of what PPC specialists do.
The beauty of digital advertising is that you can make changes based on your incoming
data after a campaign goes live.
As I mentioned before, if your bid isn’t quite enough to get an edge over your competitors,
your PPC specialist can make adjustments.
Maybe your search ad isn’t targeting the right keywords. A PPC specialist can change
that, too.
The answers are all in the data.
Speaking of data, throughout this whole process, your PPC specialist should take time to communicate
your campaign’s performance with you. They’re spending your money, after all.
Whether it’s on a weekly or monthly basis, you should receive reports explaining how
your campaign is performing, and any other necessary information you need to make informed
marketing decisions.
If the PPC specialist you’ve hired doesn’t do this, or skips any of the other things
I’ve discussed, it may be time to look elsewhere for a PPC expert (or partner with an experienced
PPC agency like WebFX.)
Seriously, if you’re looking to improve the ROI of your PPC ads, don’t hesitate
to reach out to our team.
And as always, subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell for the latest in digital
marketing.
Thanks for watching!