Pay-Per-Click (PPC)

Pay-per-click is also referred to as cost-per-click. It is a method of placing ads within search engine result pages (SERPs) that link to your website. The process typically works as follows:

• Account Setup
  There are only a few top-tier PPC services. Google AdWords, Yahoo Search Marketing and, arguably, Microsoft AdCenter. Many companies have had a lot of success with Google alone. We suggest you start here if you're going it alone. Depending on the nature of your business, however, we may recommend alternate programs, such as Facebook ads.
• Displaying Ads
  When a web user performs a search that matches your criteria, your ad will be displayed. The order in which it displays depends on the PPC competition, typically the amount that is being "bid" for the keyword and how well everyone's ads are performing. Ads that perform well will be given preferential treatment, as will ads with higher bid amounts.
• Click and pay
  When a web user clicks on your ad, you pay. This can be anywhere from $0.10 to $10 or more. The thinking is that you have captured a very targeted web user who is looking for what your'e selling right now; so they're primed to buy. This is arguably the most valuable type of traffic to your website.

There are many ways you can lose your shirt through a poorly setup and run PPC account, so be careful. If you're going to dip your toes in and spend less than a few hundred dollars a month, the do-it-yourself model has minimal risk. But if you're serious about investing resources into PPC, you need to work with the professionals: And that's us.

The Apis Difference

The value of working with Apis is in our processes. The following outlines how we setup and run Google AdWords campaigns:

• Keyphrase research
  This is where we work together to discover the best keywords for your campaign. Typically we will use Google's keyword utility to uncover an initial list of terms, which you can then review in order to finalize. We will also determine the negative keywords for your campaign; these are terms for which your ads will NOT display.
• Conversion tracking
  We will work with you to determine what sorts of 'conversions' we can track. The simplest form is a visit; i.e. someone clicks on your ad and visits your site. There may be other opportunities, such as 'newsletter sign-ups', visits to a special section of your website, a form submission, or an online sale. We can specify these different conversion types within AdWords.
• Google Analytics integration
  We will create or integrate your AdWords campaign to a Google Analytics account. This will integrate the two programs, providing you with much more value and ease of analysis.
• Campaign creation
  We will determine the organization of your campaign in terms of budget, keywords, Ad Groups and geographic regions. We will write all your initial ads and set all your initial click budgets.
• On-Going monitoring
  This is where the real value of having Apis manage your account comes into play. We regularly monitor and adjust your campaign to get you the most out of your specified budget:
• Minimize cost-per-click
• Maximize visits
• Maximize conversions
• Maximize the more valuable conversion types

We will provide you with a monthly report that outlines what we did in the month, how your campaign performed, how that performance compares to previous months, and what we plan on doing next month.

A lot of companies have a traditional 'ad agency' model for charging for their services. They will take a percentage of your total ad spend. We think this is unfair and does not reflect the value of the service. So at Apis, our PPC setup and management fees are fixed: They're set up front, and they won't vary as your budget increases. If you're spending $1,000 per month or $100,000 per month, our job is the same; maximize your return. We don't scale up our effort as you scale up your budget; we're always working at 100%.

Ready to start? Want more info? Contact us today.