What is PPC advertising? It is one of the core digital marketing models used for digital advertising. PPC refers to Pay-Per-Click, and just like its name, a business is required to pay when someone clicks on their ads. If you are also running a business, then these ads can provide you with a plethora of benefits. However, a good understanding of this advertising model will be required to experience those benefits. In this article, we will guide you through PPC advertising, its types, benefits, and more.
Understanding The Different Types of PPC Ads
In order to have a complete understanding of what is PPC advertising, you must also grasp the concept of how this advertising model works. These ads work by targeting specific keywords and appearing at the top of search results. Therefore, when a user enters the relevant keywords, these ads appear on top and can help to generate instant clicks. However, these ads are tagged as “sponsored” results.
Mentioned below are a few types of PPC ads:
Search Ads: These ads appear on top of the Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs) when a user enters a relevant keyword.
Display Ads: These types of ads are images or banners that appear on other websites your audience is browsing.
Shopping Ads: These ads display your product images, pricing, and links directly on platforms like Google Shopping.
Social Media Ads: These ads are displayed on social media platforms, such as Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Remarketing Ads: These types of ads are used to re-engage with the audience who previously visited your website but did not take any action.
What Are PPC Platforms?
PPC platforms refer to advertising systems that allow a business to display paid advertisements across multiple digital spaces, such as search engines, social media, and e-commerce sites. Each platform provides a unique set of features and benefits, along with different groups of audiences. Below, we have listed the key PPC platforms to ensure that you choose the best one for your business.
Google Ads: This is the largest and most widely used PPC platform. This allows a business to feature its ads on Google Search, YouTube, Google Display Network, and more.
Microsoft Ads: Formerly referred to as Bing Ads, this platform allows to display ads on search engines like Bing and Yahoo. The biggest advantage of this platform is that it generally has a lower CPC than Google.
Meta Ads: This includes Facebook and Instagram, and is the ideal platform for audience-based targeting.
LinkedIn Ads: LinkedIn is a professional social networking platform, and by running LinkedIn Ads, you will be able to target industry professionals.
Amazon Ads: As the name suggests, these ads will be displayed on Amazon. These ads are best for e-commerce businesses that want to quickly promote their products to high-intent buyers.
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How Does PPC Advertising Work?
PPC (Pay-Per-Click) advertising follows an auction-based system where a business needs to bid on specific keywords to make their ad appear at the top of search results. However, do note that winning an ad placement is not just about who made the biggest bid, as there are several other factors that will determine your ad position. Below, we have shared a clear breakdown of how PPC advertising works.
Keywords Bidding: You can choose products that are related to your products or services and set a maximum amount. By doing so, whenever a user searches for the same keyword, the system will trigger an action to determine which ad should appear.
Bid Amount: Your bid amount will play a central role in the auction. The higher your bid is, the more likely it will be for your ad to appear on top, overtaking your competitors.
Quality Score: This is the score that the platform assigns to your ad. This score also influences your ad ratings. In order to attain an optimal quality score, you will need to ensure clear CTAs, ad relevance, and landing page experience.
Also, check out our other article on Improve Your PPC Campaign Performance: A Complete Checklist
Why Does Your Business Need PPC Advertising?
Now that you have a good understanding of what is PPC advertising and its types, let’s take a look at some key reasons why your business needs it.
1. Instant Visibility
Unlike long-term strategies, such as SEO, PPC campaigns do not require you to wait for days to see your business at the top of the results. This means that you will be able to quickly reach your audience and drive conversion. Immediate visibility of ads can provide you with a number of benefits, including:
Quick Market Entry: This is especially beneficial if you are running a new business or are shifting to a different market, for example, from selling mobiles to laptops. PPC campaigns can provide you with a fast entry point, allowing you to compete with already established players.
Brand Awareness: Even if the users do not click on your ads, they will notice your business at the top of search results. PPC campaigns can provide a massive boost of 80% in improving your brand awareness. This will help you establish brand awareness and recognition, as well as increase the chances of converting the audience in the near future.
Competitive Advantage: Your business is unlikely to rank at the top in under a fortnight, especially in highly competitive industries. However, PPC services can rank your business at the top results, though temporarily.
2. Highly Targeted Audience
By understanding what is PPC advertising, you will be able to open the door to a multitude of benefits, and the most notable benefit is reaching the right audience. PPC advertising allows you to choose specific demographics, location, interests, and a number of other factors. This can help ensure that your ads are being displayed to the right group of audience.
Moreover, PPC advertising also includes negative keywords. By implementing them, you will be able to control the cost by preventing your ads from being displayed on irrelevant searches.
3. Measurable Results
The next benefit you can get by understanding what is PPC advertising is the ability to measure your campaign’s results. PPC platforms allow you to track multiple factors, such as clicks and conversions. As a result of this, you will be able to keep track of your campaign’s performance and will be able to refine it for better results. Mentioned below are some key metrics that can be tracked in PPC advertising.
- Cost per click (CPC).
- Conversions.
- Impressions.
- Leads.
- Sales.
- ROI.
4. Complements SEO
The campaigns of PPC can provide immediate traffic, whereas SEO helps with long-term visibility. By using both these practices together, you can effectively achieve both your short-term and long-term goals. This can be done by using PPC for new segments and waiting for search engines to index your website organically. However, in addition to the knowledge of what is PPC advertising, a good grasp of the concepts of SEO will also be required.
5. Allows For A/B Testing
One of the major advantages of having a complete understanding of what is PPC advertising is that it allows you to compare different ad versions to see which one is better. A/B testing is a fundamental practice that all PPC platforms allow for. As a result of this, you can effectively test different strategies and find one that offers the best results.
Drive Business Growth With PPC Advertising
To sum up what is PPC advertising, it is a paid method of advertising in digital marketing. These ads can provide a plethora of benefits, such as instant visibility and higher conversion rates. While PPC ads can be a game-changer for your business, running them is not exactly a walk in the park. This is because there are multiple factors to consider, such as finding the right audience and proactively monitoring the performance of the campaign. However, you do not need to shoulder this technical burden yourself, as you leave it to the best PPC company in Gurgaon while you sit back and enjoy the higher number of sales in your business.
FAQs
Is PPC better than SEO?
Neither is inherently the better practice. However, if you want quick visibility and sales, then PPC will be the better choice. If you want to achieve long-term goals organically, then SEO is the way to go.
Is PPC good for small businesses?
Absolutely, PPC can allow small businesses to run targeted campaigns for a better ROI.
How much time will it take to launch a PPC campaign?
A PPC campaign can be launched within a few minutes, given you have already made the necessary permissions, such as audience targeting and keyword research. In case you have not done this, then the amount of time can vary as per the size and complexity of the campaign.
How can I improve the quality score of my PPC campaigns?
In order to improve the quality score of your PPC campaigns, you will need to focus on three key areas, which are:
Boosting the expected click-through rate.
Increasing ad relevance by tightly grouping the keywords.
Improving the landing page experience.
How long do PPC campaigns last?
PPC campaigns do not have a fixed duration. This means that they can be either ongoing or short-term depending on your goal, budget, and strategy.
Ved is a skilled Digital Marketing Expert known for building data-driven strategies that boost brand visibility and lead generation. With hands-on experience in SEO, PPC, and content marketing, he helps businesses scale their online presence and achieve measurable growth. His analytical approach and constant learning mindset make him a go-to expert for modern marketing challenges.
