Pay-per-click advertising has taken the web by storm and for good reason. You have seen thousands of these ads on the right side of a Google or Yahoo! search; the ads scream for you to click on them for more information. It may seem like you ignore them, but statistically they are one of the best and cheapest ways to advertise on the web.
These internet ads help you deliver a short promotional message to your target market. As the name says, they click on your ad and you pay. Sometimes you pay a lot. The key is setting up a good ad that drives the right traffic to your site. Here are a few thoughts on doing pay-per-click advertising the right way, which maximizes the hits and minimizes the expenses.
Write simple ads that attract the web surfer while telling them what you promoting. The big three (Google, Yahoo! and MSN) have different rules for the ad creation, but the mission is the same. Write clear simple copy that compels your reader to click for more information. Use of key words is critical, so be sure to include them in your ad copy. Remember that your ad readers are doing web searches and have keywords on the brain. Also, these keywords are what matches your ad with their search. Don’t try to trick the reader into clicking; likely they won’t buy what you are selling and all this does is cost you money.
When a web visitor clicks on your ad, they want to go where they can get more information, or they just want to buy. Your website may not be the best destination. If you sell many products or if your website is complex, you may want to consider a simple landing page that gives the visitor what they want. Visitors are very impatient and won’t waste time searching though your site for what they need. It is a two or three click world.
Not all ads work the first time, so be sure to test and tweak them. I recommend short duration ads to start, which is the beauty of the internet and pay-per-click advertising. Ads are easy to create. It can take just a few minutes to create them, if your ad copy is ready to go. Once the ad is approved, which is generally in three to four days with Google and Yahoo!, your ads will get immediate feedback.
The ads cost real money and it pays to have your ad in a prominent place at the top of the listed ads. A general rule of thumb is to stay in the top 25% of the listed ads since most clicks occur in this quartile. Below the top 25% is no man’s land and the ads are not worth the money. Note that the ad prices are set in an auction environment and are quite variable. Experiment with key words and descriptive phrases. Avoid lengthy or complex descriptions since they will just be overlooked.
John Bradley Jackson
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