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An Overview Of Pay Per Click Search Engine Fundamentals
By Kirk Bannerman
Forbes magazine has reported that pay per click ad sales are expected
to increase to at least $8 billion by 2008. The three fundamental
core elements that form the basis of a successful pay per click
advertising program are constant monitoring, analysis, and refinement.
Pay per click search engines offer a way to buy your way to the
top of search results for any term you wish. With proper management,
and a clear focus, pay per click search engines can offer some of
the most well targeted and economical advertising on the Internet.
Pay per click advertising works through a bidding process, and
the ads appear prominently on the results pages of search engines
such as Google and Yahoo. The highest bidder for a particular word
or phrase receives top placement, and depending on the engine, the
top three to five bidders also generally also receive placement
on the first page of unpaid search results. Fundamental questions
to be addressed when formulating a pay per click search engine strategy
should include the following:
When is the top pay per click bid necessary for highest conversion,
and when will bidding for a second or third place position create
a more attractive return on investment (ROI)? How can you keep your
PPC bids from cannibalizing your search efforts on other (non pay
per click) search engines? What percentage of your pay per click
budget should go to each search engine? Does either Google Adwords
or Overture work better for your particular product or service?
Or, perhaps neither one is appropriate from a return on investment
(ROI) perspective.
It is of critical importance to focus sharply on identifying the
search terms that convert most frequently for your particular site,
eliminating those that don't perform, and most importantly, calculating
and maximizing your return on investment. The cost structure of
pay per click is action-driven and each time a user clicks your
ad, the pay per click engine deducts the amount of your current
bid from your account. Pay per click offers a high level of assurance
that your ad is reaching the proper target. Pay per click campaigns,
however, are not perfect.
Without CONSTANT monitoring, you sometimes risk incurring advertising
costs that can spiral out of control, focusing on terms that don't
convert well for your product or services, or falling way down in
position during a bidding war. PPC advertising can be a great help
to a site's success, but only with very close supervision and a
thorough knowledge of the unique characteristics of each PPC search
engine.
Kirk Bannerman operates his own successful home based business
and also coaches others seeking to start their own home based business.
For more information visit his website at
Proven
Work At Home Business for more details
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