Pay-Per-Click Basics

A lot goes into building a successful PPC (Pay-Per-Click) campaign. From researching and selecting the right keywords to arranging those keywords into well-organized campaigns and ad groups, to setting up PPC landing pages that are optimized for conversions, every step of the process counts. Whether you have already decided that PPC is the right way to build your brand or you’re still wondering if PPC is right for you, we have compiled all of the most frequently asked questions to help you better understand and create your first PPC campaign.

What is PPC?

PPC stands for pay-per-click, and it’s how Google Ads is commonly referred to due to the type of advertising. Simply put, Google Ads is Google’s online advertising platform. When a patient conducts a search in Google they receive three types of results, organic search results, local map listings and PPC. The PPC results include a little “AD” tag next to them, which indicate they are Google Ads advertisements.

Why would I want to create a PPC Campaign?

While PPC should not replace your SEO, a successful website will use PPC to enhance or aid their SEO efforts. When PPC is done right, the practice has defined a clear goal to gain leads; keyword supplementation, social awareness, or promotion targeting. The associated fee becomes trivial to meet the goal because the visit is worth more than what you pay for it. In other words, if a practice pays $5 for a click, but the click results in a $500 patient interaction, then you’ve made a hefty profit!

How do I build a successful campaign?

Google rewards good performance. The better your ads, the greater your click-through rates and the lower your costs. Begin by focusing on your business need; Why are you creating this campaign? How much are you willing to spend? Do you have a promotion to offer? Your budget will be designed around these simple questions to create relevant, intelligently targeted ads.

Can I create a campaign and leave it?

The key to success when using any marketing platform (SEO, Social or PPC) for your website is to monitor and manage them regularly to make sure they continue to be effective. Once you’ve created your new campaigns, examine the keywords and landing pages regularly to learn from the data and make quality improvements.

How can I appear at the top of Google’s AD list?

Your ad’s placement is primarily based on how relevant it is to what the person searches for, your bid in relation to competitors, and a few other factors. That’s why when deciding on the keywords for your campaign, you should focus on the ones that are most pertinent to your business needs. You may offer several services, but if they are already ranking well in your organic search results, you will want to focus your advertisement on a service that isn’t ranking as well instead.

If you’d like to learn more about creating a PPC campaign, feel free to reach out to the SEO team. Once we assess your website against Google’s recommendations and requirements, we can provide you with a budget range based on what we think your needs are. You can adjust this assessment until you find the right budget, goal and ads for your marketing needs. The main goal with Google Ads is retention. We direct your ads to relevant content on your website per the keywords in your campaign to make sure the right people find you and ultimately, choose you.

—Rebekah McBride, SEO Specialist II, Sesame Communications