So
you want to run a Pay-per-Click Campaign?
So you want to run a Pay-per-Click Campaign?
According to Google, all it takes is $5.00 and a credit card and
you can begin to run your own Pay per Click campaign. What they
neglect to tell you is that you need to learn an entire new language
to understand how to manage Google Ad Words.
When I first had the idea to write this article, I had thought
of creating a handy desktop guide to explain Google acronyms for
PPC - Sort of a “Google for Dummies.” (There actually
is such a book under that title available, imagine that!)
Somehow listing a whole page of letters and definitions didn’t
seem like it would make for very interesting reading. So I decided
to address some of the most common definitions and discuss the overall
mechanics of a Google campaign. I recently passed the Google Certified
Specialist Exam, which was quite a feat given I failed it the first
three times! After he heard that, a friend of mine asked “Is
the test that hard?” I responded by saying, “Are you
asking is the test that hard, or are you really saying are you that
dumb!”
Truth be told, the test is hard, and so is managing an Ad Words
campaign. Unless playing around with words, budgets and bids is
your passion, stay away from trying to do it yourself and hire a
professional.
In the meantime, let’s talk about what you do get started
in case you want to jump in yourself. (Do you have your credit card
ready and at least a $5.00 limit??) In the spirit of the “Dummies”
book we will start at the very beginning to show where to find Ad
Words. (Definition-Google’s Name for their Pay per Click Program).
Go to www.google.com and below the search bar you will see a link
that says “Advertising Programs,” click that and be
ready to enter the University of Google.
It is here you will find a plethora of information, everything
you wanted to know and more about Google’s advertising programs.
You have the choice to attend Ad Word “U” or Ad Sense
“U”.
Today we will focus on Ad Words, and as warned previously do not
be mis-lead by the simplistic line that says…Apply Online:
Create ads and start managing your account – it takes just
minutes. Learn more. Once you pass through the learn more link,
be ready for what I refer to as a “Masters Program for Keywords.”
Here you have a choice; you can begin the education process and
watch the demo or peruse the FAQ section. I advise that you grab
a Starbucks before you look at the FAQ’s. Google will give
you the top five questions:
Top 5 Questions
* What
are keyword-matching options?
* How
much does Ad Words cost?
* Why
can't I see my ad?
* When do you bill?
* What is contextual advertising?
After you have carefully studied these, Google graciously offers
26 additional topics to explore in their help center. You can even
join a Google Group that posts numerous conversation threads from
armchair Google Marketers all over the world! In case you are getting
a little tired of just sitting at your computer, or have a long
trip planned soon, there is a printable version of the entire FAQ
for Google Ad Words…it’s only 180 pages. (I wonder how
many pages the “Infrequently Asked Questions is?)
Three non-fat Mocha Grande Lattes later (it was so much easier
learning how to speak Starbucks than Google) you are pretty confident
you’ve got a handle on all the basic definitions. In fact
you can recite in your sleep the difference between CPC, (Cost per
Click), CTR (Click through Rate), CPM (Cost per Marketing), CPA
(Cost per Acquisition). You thoroughly understand what broad, phrase,
specific and negative match for keywords is. You are now becoming
an expert playing with the keyword toolbox, traffic estimator and
adword discounter.
As you dive into writing your first campaign, the terms and conditions
and copyright laws are swimming around your head. You’ve got
a plan for your display URL, your destination URL, and you think
your conversion tracking code is set up properly. You anxiously
await your first click-through, only to find when you login to your
Ad Words account, half of your keywords gave been disabled. Google
tells you that you need to optimize your keywords, or raise the
minimum bid to make them active again!
It’s somewhere over the next few days, when you have accumulated
thousands of impressions, minimal click-throughs, and zero conversions,
that you come to the conclusion this is not as easy as it sounds!
The daily management of PPC can be all encompassing and seems like
it might be a full-time job. You decide it is best to call in a
professional and be rid of this burden of daily PPC management.
Exhilarated by all the free time you’ve just created for yourself,
you decide to stop on the way home and pick up a book, “So
you want to learn Search Engine Optimization?”
About the Author Patricia Brusha is
the co-founder of http://www.acoupleofchicks.com, an Internet Marketing,
Distribution Company. She has spent 26 years working in the Hospitality
Industry in the United States and Canada in the fields of Sales,
Marketing, Internet Distribution and Revenue Management.
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