Small businesses tend to rely on marketing strategies that are free or very low cost, especially when they’re first starting out. This can be a great way to save money in the early days of your business while still gaining exposure. But there is also a lot to be gained by investing even a little into your marketing and advertising. The benefits of PPC for your business could be massive, and it doesn’t have to cost a fortune.
PPC or pay-per-click is a form of online advertising that allows you to only pay when someone converts. In this case, you pay when someone clicks the link in your search ad which takes them to your website. Let’s look at some of the benefits of PPC for your small business…
Gain brand exposure
For new businesses, exposure is everything. Running PPC ads on Google will mean more people see your brand name and website. Even if they don’t click, this is still exposure. Plus, they’ll make a connection between your brand and the search term they entered, so they’ll start to recognise what your brand is about.
It’s cost-effective
PPC is perfect for small businesses that don’t have a huge marketing budget. As mentioned above, you only pay when someone converts. This means you’re not wasting money on people who see your ad but have no interest in it.
You’re also in control of the cost because you decide how much you’re willing to pay per click. The more competitive keywords you bid on, the more you’d have to pay to win that bid. So, choosing more niche keywords that are highly relevant to your business could win you that spot without a big cost.
Gets you seen in search results
Getting to page one of Google organically can be extremely difficult. It takes a comprehensive SEO strategy and a reputation that you simply can’t build overnight. PPC advertising with Google Adwords can act as a shortcut to the front page. If you win a bid for a keyword, then users entering the same search terms will see you above the organic search results, giving you great exposure and making conversions more likely.
You can monitor your results
The problem with placing an ad in a magazine or on a billboard is that you don’t know how many people have seen it. Digital advertising has the advantage here, with lots of metrics available to monitor your campaign’s results.
PPC makes it easy to measure the performance of your campaign, showing metrics like clicks, conversions, and cost per click or cost per conversion. This allows you to assess the effectiveness of your campaign and make changes whenever necessary.
Target the right audience
Like Facebook advertising, Google Adwords gives you a wide range of targeting options. You can decide who sees your ads based on demographics, online activity, location, device, and more. You can also decide what time of day your ads will be shown. Say you’re selling products aimed at teenagers. You’d probably rule out weekdays between 9am-3pm when they’re at school.
Add all this data to the keywords or phrases you’re targeting, and you’ll be reaching a highly specific user; one that is likely to be interested in your brand and what you are selling. Get your targeting right to really make your PPC strategy more effective.
Are you ready to experience the benefits of PPC for your business? We can help you get started with Google Adwords or even run your campaigns for you. Get in touch to find out more about our PPC services.