In many ways, driving traffic to your website is the name of the game. After all, more visitors can lead to increased engagement, and with any luck, additional conversions. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategies can improve your numbers over time, but what if you need more immediate results?
The good news is that Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising can help you speed things along. When used correctly, PPC ads can be an effective way to drive traffic to your website. Plus, they can increase conversions and provide a boost to your bottom line.
In this post, we’ll start by introducing PPC advertising, discussing its benefits, and talking about why it’s a useful strategy for website owners. Then we’ll offer some advice for getting started with this style of advertising on your WordPress site. Let’s get to work!
An Introduction to PPC Advertising
PPC is a form of online advertising where you pay each time one of your ads is clicked on. In fact, you’ve likely seen lots of PPC ads in your Google search results:
In the above example, the first few results of this search are PPC ads. The “Ad” label next to an entry’s URL lets you know that it isn’t a normal organic search result. On other platforms (such as Facebook), you will often see the word “sponsored”, indicating that someone is paying for clicks on a particular post or another type of ad.
Once you start looking for PPC ads, you’ll see that they are everywhere. This is because they are incredibly effective at driving traffic and sales. Not only do these ads offer exposure for your brand on major platforms, they also enable you to target specific audiences and demographics with your ads.
What’s more, you only pay when your ads are clicked on. The people who actually engage with your ads are your most likely prospects, so this is an excellent way to improve Return on Investment (ROI).
Through careful use of PPC advertising, you can develop a strategy to boost your organic traffic and improve key metrics. All that remains is understanding how to get your first PPC campaign off the ground.
How to Get Started With PPC Advertising on Your WordPress Site (4 Key Tips)
Although PPC advertising can be an effective technique for driving traffic and sales, it does take careful planning to implement it correctly. In other words, if you jump in without a solid strategy, you may not get the results you’re looking for.
Fortunately, we’ve put some tips together to help you make PPC ads work for your brand. Let’s begin with the basics!
1. Choose the Right PPC Platform
If you’re thinking of trying out a PPC ad, but you’re not sure where to start, there are several platforms you can choose from. The largest and most popular options are Google Ads, Facebook, and YouTube:
Google Ads may be the best platform to start with. After all, Google handles the majority of the web’s search queries. You can use it to target a massive audience, and it’s also very beginner-friendly. However, it does come with some steep competition, and can get expensive.
Another powerful platform for PPC ads is Facebook:
This solution is a little different, in that you have the ability to get very specific with your targeting. You can use the platform’s tools to target the exact demographics that are likely to be interested in your product or service. Facebook will then insert your ad into users’ social media feeds as a ‘sponsored’ post.
This can be another way to build up your audience and to get people clicking on your ads and visiting your site. It is somewhat limited in its reach, however, and ads tend to lose steam fairly quickly.
Finally, it’s important to remember that online video is a powerful medium that attracts a lot of traffic. With YouTube, you can display your PPC ad as a pop-up in front of viewers. You simply set a daily budget, and you only pay if someone watches your entire video:
The obvious drawback to the method is the cost, time, and skill required to make a video ad. For this reason, unless you have the budget for it, you may want to start with a different platform. Still, YouTube offers you the potential to reach a huge and very engaged audience, so it’s a key option to keep in mind.
2. Select Effective Keywords
Keywords are crucial to the success of your PPC ads. They are what you will use to target your audience. If you don’t plan ahead carefully, your ads could be shown to people with no interest in your business, leading to very little ROI.
To find relevant keywords, you’ll need to start thinking about what users are typing into search engines in order to find your website. In other words, how can you make sure your business is placed as the best solution for whatever someone is looking for?
Once you’ve brainstormed some possible keywords, you can use a tool like Google Keyword Planner to assess which ones are likely to get the most views. You can also see how much it will cost to use that keyword if you are planning to create a Google ad:
The goal is to find high-volume, low-competition keywords for your ad. This means you want keywords with a lot of searches but without a lot of existing ads from competitors.
3. Optimize Your Ads’ Performance
Of course, designing your ad and placing it on a platform is only half the battle. With that done, it’s time to monitor its performance and continually adapt it for maximum ROI.
First, you can track your conversions. Every major platform offers performance results, giving you statistics you can use to assess your ads’ success. For example, of the clicks you received, how many followed your sales funnel and actually made a purchase?
After you’ve taken a look at how your ads are performing, you can re-analyze your keywords. Which ones are getting the most clicks, and which ones are not? Consider dropping the ineffective ones, and focusing on the most lucrative keywords:
In addition, you may want to look at metrics for your website, using a tool such as Google Analytics. For instance, if your bounce rate is high, it may be an indication that you’re attracting the wrong audience. You may also want to consider A/B testing your ads, to determine the most effective strategies over time.
4. Consider Getting Some Expert Help
PPC is certainly a strategy you can handle entirely in-house. However, it can be time-consuming, and it’s often hard to narrow in on the most effective strategies without years of experience.
For that reason, you may want to consider hiring a PPC advertising agency to do some of the work for you. These companies can create strong ads, monitor their performance, and adjust them for the best results possible:
Using an agency can enable you to focus on other parts of your business, such as creating great content and making sales. It’s an added expense, but one that can earn itself out over the long term.
Conclusion
PPC advertising can be one of the most efficient ways to drive traffic to your website. When implemented correctly, not only can your ads have a high ROI, but they can also enable you to target the perfect niche audience for your brand.
In this piece, we’ve discussed four tips to help you get started with PPC advertising. You’ll want to:
- Choose the right PPC platform.
- Select effective keywords.
- Optimize your ads’ performance.
- Consider getting some expert help.
Do you have a question about PPC advertising for your WordPress site? Ask away in the comments section below!
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