Whether you are an online entrepreneur, Internet business, or affiliate marketer, you can’t afford to ignore pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. PPC advertising is a highly effective way to drive targeted visitors to your blog, website or sales page, where you can persuade them to buy your products and services. Though pay-per-click advertising costs money, it has four important advantages:

1. you can set up your PPC campaign quickly and easily,
2. you can target prospects with precision,
3. you can get results almost immediately and
4. you can tweak your keywords, ad text, and other elements to maximizetheir effectiveness.

You can choose among Google AdWords, Yahoo Search Marketing, Facebook Self-Serve Advertising, and MSN Adcenter (Bing) for your PPC ads. However, most online marketers prefer Google AdWords for their PPC ad campaign.

How to set up your PPC campaign:

The first step is to activate your account at AdWords (http://www.adwords.google.com). Then create an ad for your product and choose relevant keywords (specific words or phrases related to your business). Once you complete the process, your ad is displayed next to search results whenever anyone types your chosen keywords in Google search pages. One big advantage of PPC marketing is that you pay AdWords only when someone clicks your ad.

The price per click for your ad is determined by competitive bidding of the search terms that you choose. Popular search terms such as insurance, weight-loss andstop smoking cost several dollars for the top three positions on the search results page. However, as explained later in this article, you can choose long tail keywords, which are less expensive.

In addition to its price per click, Google charges a one-time non-refundable AdWords activation fee of five dollars after you create your account.

Google AdWords does not have a minimum spending requirement so you are free to decide the budget of your PPC campaign. For example, you can set a maximum daily budget of ten dollars and a maximum cost of ten cents for each click on your ad. Also, you are free to change them at any time.

To get full value for your investment in your AdWords PPC campaign, make use of the following 12 techniques:

1. Read the AdWords guide:

Before you place your ad in AdWords, be sure to read the Getting Started Guide in the AdWords website (http://www.google.com/adwords/beginnersguide/en-US), which has a wealth of useful information for all online marketers.

2. Create a list of relevant keywords and key phrases for your product:

Use the AdWords Keyword Suggestion Tool to see an extensive list of relevant keywords for your products (http://www.adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal). Choose keywords that people interested in your products are likely to use. For instance, if you want to market an e-book on how to stop smoking, include keywords such as stop smoking, quit smoking, andgive up smoking.

3. Use long tail phrases:

These are phrases that may not be searched very often but are more likely to be used by people who are willing to buy. For example, a long tail keyword phrase such as natural ways to stop smoking without losing weight will attract a smaller target group. However, they are more likely to buy your product.

4. Create attractive well-written ads:

Your ads should highlight the key features of your product and your promotional offers, if any.

5. Include the price of your product in your ads:

Users who see the price of your product and still click your ad are more likely to buy your product. If they think the price is too high, they won’t click your ad and you will save yourself the cost of that click.

6. Use a strong call-to-action:

A call-to-action encourages users to click on your ad and ensures they understand what you expect them to do when they reach your landing page. So, use specific phrases such as buy, purchase, call today, order, or sign up.

7. Include the best performing keyword in your ad, preferably in the title of your ad:Whenever users type that keyword and see your ad, the keyword phrase will appear in bold font within your ad on Google. This will draw their attention to your ad and show them that your ad relates to their search.

8. Choose the best URL for your ads:

Add the URL of the specific page in the website that has the information or product described in your ads. If people who click your ad do not find your product at the website, they are likely to leave the website and click some other ad.

9. Test multiple ads:

Experiment with different offers and call-to-action phrases. Google AdWords automatically rotates ads within your ad group and displays the better-performing ad more often.

10. Don’t allow your ads to be displayed in Google’s Content Network partner sites:

Clicks from these websites are usually of a lower quality than those from search results because they come from people who are browsing that website, not people who are actively searching for your product. So, these clicks will result in fewer sales but will cost you just the same.

11. Fine-tune your AdWords PPC campaign and try to boost its profitability:

Monitor the amount of money you are spending, and compare it with the amount you are earning in sales. Remove keywords that aren’t getting enough clicks and replace them with other keywords. Raise or reduce your maximum cost per click and check the effect on the performance of your ads.

12. Use negative keywords:

If there are keywords that may cause your ads to be displayed but are not related to your product, be sure to put them in as negative keywords. You can do this by simply putting a negative sign in front of those keywords and phrases. This will ensure that anyone using such a keyword will not have your ad displayed to them. For example, if your product is about how to stop smoking, exclude smoking chimneys and other sources of smoke!

Once you select the right keywords and create well-written ads, your PPC campaign will attract a steady stream of visitors to your blog, website or affiliate site. All you need to do is track the conversion rate of your ads and use the above 12 ways to amplify the effectiveness of your AdWords PPC campaign.

How can a bid-managed Pay-Per-Click advertising campaign improve website sales and lower your cost-per-acquisition? Learn from Neutralize (*\*) the UK’s most experienced search engine marketing agency in this introductory presentation.

Find More Pay Per Click Advertising Articles