IN THIS ISSUE:
• Pay-Per-Click Advertising
• Maximize Your PPC Ads with the Right Keywords

Pay-Per-Click Advertising
Optimize Search Results, Drive Targeted Traffic

Pay-per-click (PPC) or Paid Search Marketing is a form of online advertising where you can attract traffic to your website or landing page via ads hosted on a search engine. Google, Yahoo, MSN or any other search engine you choose to advertise with will display your PPC ad when a keyword query matches your keyword list, or when a content site displays relevant content.

Such ads are called sponsored links or sponsored ads. They typically appear adjacent to or above organic results on search engine results pages, or anywhere a web developer chooses to place them on a content site.

How does PPC benefit your online marketing initiatives?

• Immediate Results. Your ad will be visible on the search results page as soon as your PPC campaign with a search engine goes live.
  
• Cost Control. As an advertiser, you only pay when someone clicks on your ad, not each time it shows up. You can control your spending on each PPC campaign. This is one way to ensure that your marketing plan for different categories of your products or services achieves targeted results. Not to mention, it is an inexpensive and easy way to get search traffic.
• Geographically Targeted. You have the ability to select a particular area or region as the target market by adjusting your PPC campaign settings accordingly.
• Seasonal / Time-specific Marketing Approach. You can actually define ad scheduling; choosing to run your campaign only on the precise days and in fact during the hours you want.

Effective keyword research will ensure that your PPC ads appear on the top slot in the sponsored links of any search engine results page. While having 10 or 20 well-chosen keywords may bring most of the traffic, it does not cover all possible niches.

Here are some tips to make sure you use the best keyword phrases for PPC ads:

• Use free keyword research tools. There are special tools on the web that help you find great keywords. Some of the free keyword research tools that work well are Google Keyword Tool, Wordtracker, Metacrawler, Keyword Discovery, Yahoo Search Marketing and SEO Book Keyword Research Tool.
• See who is competing for the best keywords. Go to a search engine like Google and do a search for the keywords in your niche. See which other businesses are already dominating that space. If you realize that a search term is far too competitive and may drain your entire PPC ad budget, expand your search term into a long-tail keyword. Keep in mind relevance and the relationship of the word to your business.
  
• Search engine keyword phrases. Combine the best keywords and create search terms. Use different combinations, and use plurals as well as singulars. Make sure the terms are closely related, so you’ll get the desired results. Group top level keywords with other related search terms.
• Refine your list. From your shortlist remove any keywords that are not relevant to your website or keywords that you don't have enough content to support. Remember it is always possible to go back and add content and keywords later as well.
• Use compound, separated, hyphenated, and merged keywords. Users often search trying multiple variations of words and spellings looking for the right fit. To be sure you are not missing out on any terms or phrases research compound, separated, hyphenated, and merged keywords. Example, ‘lifesize’, ‘life-size’ and ‘life size’.
• You can even bid on your own / your company name. Enter a business / brand name into a search engine window. You’ll be surprised at how many organizations other than the one you searched for will show up with PPC ads! Your brand name should be your space on the Internet, so don’t let a competitor get in there by bidding a few cents on a keyword.

Make sure your PPC campaign stays as effective and efficient as possible by tracking keyword and keyphrase successes (and losses); which ads bring in the most traffic (and which don’t) and conversion rates. Contact your local WSI Consultant to manage your PPC advertising so you use your budget wisely and get the best results (traffic and conversion).