What is paid search?
Pay per click marketing (PPC) allows you to place ads in search engines and other partner networks and only pay when someone clicks your ad. It’s one of the most immediately measurable and controllable digital-marketing channels, driving qualified traffic to your site the moment users search for your products or services.
How PPC Works
- Choose a Platform
The two biggest search-engine PPC platforms are Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising (Bing Ads). Both let you bid on keywords your customers are searching for and display text, shopping or display ads in search results or across their partner sites. - Keyword Research
Identify the terms your audience uses when they’re looking to buy. Balance search volume, competition and user intent. Group related keywords into themed Ad Groups to keep relevancy high. - Ad Creation
Craft concise, benefit-led headlines and descriptions. Include strong Calls to Action (“Buy Now,” “Get a Quote,” “Book Today”) and leverage ad extensions (sitelinks, call buttons, structured snippets) to increase visibility and click-through rate. - Bidding & Budget
Set a daily or monthly budget. Choose a bidding strategy—manual CPC for maximum control, or automated options like Target CPA (Cost-Per-Acquisition) or Target ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) to optimise towards your specific goals. - Quality Score & Ad Rank
Search engines assign a Quality Score based on your ad’s relevance to the keyword, expected click-through rate, and the landing page experience. A higher Quality Score boosts your ad’s position and lowers your cost-per-click. - Targeting Options
Fine-tune who sees your ads with geographic, device, time-of-day, and audience-based targeting. Layer in demographic or in-market segments to reach the users most likely to convert. - Tracking & Optimisation
Implement conversion tracking (form fills, phone calls, purchases). Review performance metrics—clicks, cost, conversions, CPA, CTR—and refine your campaigns by:- Adding negative keywords to filter out irrelevant searches
- Testing different ad copy (A/B testing headlines and descriptions)
- Adjusting bids by device, location or audience segment
- Optimising landing pages for speed, relevance and clear calls to action
Benefits of PPC Marketing
- Immediate Visibility: Your ads can appear at the top of search results within hours of launch.
- Complete Control: You decide exactly which keywords to target, how much to pay per click, and when your ads run.
- Transparent ROI: See exactly which keywords and ads drive sales, leads or sign-ups—and optimise spend in real time.
- Scalable Growth: As you identify high-performing terms and creative, you can scale budgets confidently to maximise revenue.
Ready to drive targeted traffic and measurable results with PPC? Contact us today to discuss a tailored Google Ads or Bing Ads strategy for your business.
