Ten tips for a succesful pay-per-click (PPC) campaign

1. Understand the "space." Specifically, understand where your ads will show up (on Google, AOL, Yahoo, etc.), and *why* they show up. They're triggered by keywords typed by people doing a search, but they aren't search results, they're ads. You need to know which major partners are included in the "networks" of the major PPC's - Google, Overture, FindWhat and LookSmart. Opt out of traffic you don't understand.

2. Budget appropriately. Many businesses project unrealistic response rates for their initial batch of targeted clicks. Ten or twenty clicks won't cut it. Most websites are hungry for clicks and need hundreds or thousands of highly targeted visitors per day to produce any response worth measuring. A good rule of thumb for a targeted retail offer is a ratio of clicks to sales conversions of between 0.5% and 2%, but this may vary wildly by industry, by keyword, etc.

3. Use phrase-matching options in your pay-per-click account. Mastering phrase matches, broad (wild card) matches and exact matches will help you show the ad to more or fewer visitors depending on the situation, and will improve your targeting--wherever possible.

4. Don't buy clicks from a company you can't get any background on. The $50 you send to an unknown company may not be much to you, but it could be helping an unethical company stay in business.

5. Be careful with bids (or don't "ego-bid"). A #1 position on the page may look impressive, but it can be very costly, increasing the number of "compulsive" clicks at a higher cost-per-click. Try #2, #3, even #5 or #9 on competitive keywords. This cheaper cost-per-click will in turn allow you to keep your daily budget under your cap so you don't have a "stop and start" experience.

6. Copywriting is important, but not in the way you think. Enticing copy is nice, but if all you're doing is enticing uninterested prospects, you're paying for wasted clicks. Instead, target by matching copy more closely to keywords (write many different ads), and remove ambiguity from your ads. Be clear.

7. Send visitors to a tailored landing page. Test various landing pages for response rates. Don't send visitors to a home page or menu page with many options. Don't send them straight to the "order now" page, either. People are hungry for information.

8. Respond to editorial disapprovals. If you don't understand an editorial decision, ask politely for an explanation, and argue your case if necessary. Did I mention politely?

9. Get comfortable with reporting interfaces. Google and Overture offer a wealth of summary information about different aspects of your campaign, such as average cost-per-click, ad positions, clickthrough rates, etc. broken down by keyword. Important - don't freak out over day-to-day fluctuations. Stats are more reliable when interpreted on a weekly or monthly basis. Check daily stats to satisfy your curiosity, but don't overreact.

10. Above all, track your conversions using a software package or in-house solution. It's easier than it sounds, and unless you know which keywords and which ads are converting to sales, you're flying blind and wasting money. Remember, a conversion does not have to be a sale. Many businesses measure their "cost per action" instead. Actions can include registrations, free downloads, catalog requests, application forms, quote requests, newsletter subscriptions, etc.

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There are, of course, plenty of others out there, but that's all we have time for this edition. We'll bring you more in the future, including a more in-depth look at each one

The above article is an extract from an excellent e-book on PPC strategies: Andrew Goodman's 21 Ways to Maximize Profits on Google AdWords

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