Increase Leads with These PPC Marketing Strategies

If done right, pay-per-click ads can get positive results for your business quickly. This is the primary reason business owners need to have consistent, PPC advertising campaigns running all of the time. 

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is key to climbing to the top of the search engines, but it takes some time. But, by launching pay-per-click ad campaigns on search engines and social media, your website can also appear on the top of Google. 

Of course, this comes with a price, but the vast majority of business owners who go this route find that it's worth it. The best strategy is to do both, especially if the budget permits.

Are you looking for your next PPC agency partner? Listen to our colleague, Jason, to learn about our approach & process for your next PPC campaign.

Pay-Per-Click Campaigns Require Expertise 

Anyone who thinks that pay-per-click is cheap and easy would be wrong. The days of paying 50 cents per click are long gone. Avoid falling for marketing hype that guarantees a deluge of buying customers for pennies on the dollar. You can't simply bid on your keywords, and then sit back and expect thousands of dollars in sales to roll in the next day.

If you want to make money on pay-per-click, you need to know what you're doing. Sadly, most small businesses don't have the time to develop expertise in this. That’s why many small business owners work with a Chicago PPC agency; Chicago is known as a tech hub of savvy, internet marketing agencies. Spending money with a good, professional Chicago PPC agency can get you the results that you want.

Create a Great Landing Page

While your website's home page is chock full of important information, it may not be right for a PPC campaign. This is particularly true if your goal is to advertise a sale or special offer. This makes a persuasive landing page very important. 

Writing great copy for your landing page comes down to the following points:

• Know your audience
• Speak directly to your audience, in their words
• Begin with the most important things the audience needs to know
• Concentrate your copy on the product benefits, not their features
• Use an easy-to-read format with large text and lots of white space
• End with a strong call-to-action

Keep in mind, your short, 90 character Google PPC ad is simply a teaser to get people to click through to your landing page. Your landing page is where your audience will find your main sales pitch. Make sure it's easy-to-read, fast loading, and has really great sales copy. And a Chicago PPC agency can create just the right copy for your company and your brand.

Be Willing to Spend on a Pay-Per-Click Campaign

The unfortunate truth is, some highly-competitive keywords can cost you $25 or $50 per click. 

However, most keywords cost around $1 on Google. But still, those clicks can add up quite quickly. The average cost for small businesses on Google AdWords is $9,000 to $10,000 per month. That totals a hefty $100,000 to $120,000 per year. 

But that amount is nothing compared to what the big box stores spend. Well-known big box stores and online retail giants spend upwards of $50 million on PPC ads every year.

Fortunately, there are ways to get more for your pay-per-click budget. That's where a Chicago PPC agency can help. They have expertise in tactics like geo-targeting, ad scheduling, and device targeting. They can also help you to narrowly define your audience. By scheduling your ads at the perfect times, in the perfect locations, to a perfect audience, PPC can have a great ROI.

Frequent Testing is Key

Testing is another reason to work with a professional PPC agency. They have the means to analyze the data to help optimize both your ads and your landing page.

Every aspect of your PPC campaign should continually be tested. For example, there might be a cheaper keyword that could get the same, or even better, results. A few tweaks on the landing page may also increase organic traffic. 

A/B Testing is One Way to Refine a PPC Campaign 

A/B testing involves launching two separate versions of an ad and an associated landing page. Generally, A/B tests run for about two weeks.

After the test run, either A or B might be a clear winner. However, it's often a combination of both A and B elements that will end up as the final ad and landing page. You'll need analytical tools to assess the results.

The elements that can be tested include:

• Headlines
• The calls to action
• Location of the calls to action
• Images
• Sales copy
• Colors
• Forms

Both A and B need to be run simultaneously with the same keywords to get an accurate result. Once again, specific tools are needed to accurately analyze the results. 

Success Could Be Just a Click Away 

While launching a successful PPC ad campaign is not as easy as it looks, it can be one of the most affordable and effective advertising strategies. Like anything else, it takes knowledge and expertise to get the best results. 

Before you start throwing around advertising dollars: 

• Know your audience demographics
• Understand their needs and desires
• Find the right keywords
• Write compelling ad copy
• Create an easy-to-read, fast-loading landing page
• Buy clicks

As you can see, all of this might require the expertise of a reputable, Chicago PPC agency. While you will need to invest in a professional PPC campaign, the return on investment can be massive.