Paid Search Marketing can be summed up as bidding to have ads for your business show up in search engines when phrases related to your product, service or business are typed into the search box. If your ad is clicked on, you pay a fee to the search engine. If it isn’t clicked on, you pay nothing. [This is a very simplistic explanation of PPC - there are some other variables used, and there are options to set up your ad in a Pay Per Impression model, but for the most part this explanation works.]

Anywhere from 15% to 30% of clicks on a search engine results page are on the paid ads. It will vary by industry and product, as well as intent of the user (informational searches vs transactional searches), but there is definitely traffic to be captured within Paid Search Marketing.

So what are the benefits of Paid Search?

• Immediacy: You can get your ad to show up towards the top of the search engines within minutes.
• Works for small or large budgets: Since you control bids and budgets you can always plan ahead.
• Return on investment: You can set up the campaign so that you make sure you are getting a positive ROI. And if you find that it is not working for you, the option to pause the campaign is always there. No long term commitment.
• Measurements: As a marketer finding good analytics for marketing campaigns is always tough. PPC campaigns offer some of the most in depth measurements you will find, so you will know if a campaign is working.
• Reach: You can have your ad show up for users on both computers and those surfing the web on mobile devices.
• Variety of ad types: As you experiment with different paid search options, you’ll find that you can expand beyond text ads into image ads and even multimedia ads.
• No website, no problem: If you don’t have a website, having your business come up for within organic search is almost impossible. But with a PPC campaign you can develop ads and link them to listings you may have on directory websites.
• Geo Targeting: You can target your ads to specific cities, zip codes, states or countries that you serve. That way you are not spending money for clicks from users who are outside your service area.

So when would a PPC program be something to look into for your business? I would argue that you should test a PPC program out for your business:

• if you have not done so before – start with a small budget to see if you can capture a positive ROI
• if you have a new product or service – while waiting for your SEO to kick in, invest in some PPC to get some immediate traffic
• if you only need to target a specific region – geo taregting allows you to spend resources in just the markets you want to advertise in
• if you are in a highly competitive market and going after high organic rankings may take time, money and resources that you don’t have
• if you are running a time sensitive special or promotion where the results of organic SEO would come after the deadline

Since you control the cost of the bids and can cap your budget, you can always test an ad campaign out to see if it increases business and the ROI is worth it, or tweak the campaign to improve it. And of course, if you need any help setting up a campaign or maintaining one, Mannix Marketing will be happy to offer assistance.

Have you had any experiences with PPC campaigns? Are you willing to give it another try? Why or why not? Let us know.

We think this is great for search engine users – providing a greater pool for which to pull relevant results is fantastic. The drawback? Website owners and marketers may find it difficult to keep pace with this change, having to keep finding ways to include rich media on their website in order to be at the top of the SERPs. Recently we came across another significant bump in the road for website marketers when it comes to Universal Search – its impact on PPC advertising.

Yes – we said that Universal Search has an impact in PPC. How can that be?

It has to do with the way that the ‘rich media’ appears on the page. When a SERP has rich media within its results, visitors are more likely to disregard the PPC ads surrounding the results and head right for the videos, photos or articles. Take a look at the below SERP. You see that there are photos at the top of the rankings, followed by a few organic listings. Then there are screen captures from a few videos and underneath that there are links to news articles on the subject. Much more than your ordinary organic and sponsored listings.

For searchers this is great – the enhanced results page hold more relevant information than they once had (just as Personal Search has helped searchers get better results). As a paid search advertiser however, the lower click through rates (CTRs) can affect website traffic, leading to a lower click-through rate and fewer conversions.

Is Universal Search Affecting Your PPC Campaigns?

The best defense is a good offense – stay ahead of the game and start thinking of ways to include rich media within your site. Test new PPC ads to see if you can improve your positioning and CTRs so that when Universal Search starts appearing on the pages with your ads, they remain highly visible and relevant.

Universal Search Isn’t a Bad Thing – It’s Just a Different Thing

We truly believe the search experience is enhanced when there are more options than just text links. As a marketer, is that you need to keep an eye on the SERPs, as well as any PPC programs you have set up. If the keywords you are targeting start bringing up photos and other rich media with their searches, be prepared to act so that you minimize any dip in CTRs and conversions.

Have you run up against Universal Search with your PPC program, or have you made adjustments to your advertising program? Have you made adjustments to your program or site that worked out? We want to hear what your thoughts are – let us know!

Driving traffic to your site
There are several basic ways of getting visitors to your new site. The first is through the search engines. Having a high ranking is the name of the game here. Generally, people searching for something will click on one of the top listings that come up. Getting your site highly ranked in the search engines takes time and can be an investment, but it is worth it in the long run! Search Engine Optimization involves targeting specific keywords that you would like to be found on the search engines. Since there is no single cookie cutter approach it’s best to contact someone who can come up with a specific plan for your site.

Advertising your business through traditional means (print, radio and TV) has been around a long time and there is a good reason for it, because it works! Internet advertising is the new “kid on the block” but it has one huge benefit: your ad is up 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for anyone to see, when they are avidly looking for something! Compare that to a TV, radio commercial or print ad. Plus, its highly trackable. You can get stats from how many people clicked to how many impressions your ad got.  I will use our regional city guides such as Saratoga.com and Albany.com as examples because that’s what I have the most knowledge about, but there are tons of other sites that are similar. Buying an ad or listing on one of these sites can be a smart choice. Our sites get a large amount of traffic and being on a site like this can be great exposure. The biggest key is they do the search engine optimization work for you. Saratoga.com for instance has articles, news, blogs for both tourists and locals which all help get its high ranking.

Pay Per Click Advertising. These are those simple text ads you see on search engine results pages. The ads shown are shown because they are related to the search term being used by the internet user. So if you are an apple pie maker, you may want to have an ad showing up when people type in ‘apple pies,’ ‘apply pie ingredients’ or ‘apple desserts.’ The great thing is that you pay only when a user clicks on your ad – hence the name “pay per click.” One great benefit is you can set your budget per day from anywhere from a few dollars a day to sky’s the limit. All the major search engines offer a PPC solution for your business.

Email Newsletters
Want to get the word out on your new site to your existing customers? Have some other news you want to share with your customers? Well, one of the easiest and most inexpensive ways to reach them is an Email Newsletter. They require no stamps, no trips to the post office and no printing. You just need to create an HTML file with news, specials, discounts or any other information you want to send to your customers. To do an email Newsletter you will need an existing email list of recipients who signed up with the intention of receiving emails. If you don’t have a list yet, start one today and before you know it you’ll have cultivated a qualified list of leads you can contact on a regular basis.

If you think maintaining a list and executing an email campaign is a daunting task, don’t worry. There are many great all in one solutions that you can email from as well as maintain your email lists. These services also offer stats on how many opened the email, how many clicked, etc. Cost generally runs around $20 per 1000 emails for sending a Newsletter. Compare that to sending something through the snail-mail.

Here are some popular companies for Email Newsletters:

• Vertical Response
• Constant Contact
• iContact
• Streamsend

Site Stats
When your site is setup, most companies provide statistical tracking on your site. Website owners should check their stats regularly (no less than once a month) and see what pages users are visiting or what pages people are leaving on. These stats can give you clues on what pages you need to work on since things are always changing. Are users leaving halfway through a signup process? Perhaps there are too many questions, or they are asking more information than people are comfortable with giving away. If you notice low overall traffic, are you getting your website and business name out there enough? If not, it may be time to try some of the above ideas.

Standing out in the crowded field on the internet can be tough but by pursuing some of this suggestions, you can make your website successful and profitable.

Curious? Of course you are. Read on.

Recently, my pastor was giving a sermon on how churches need to change their methods - not their message. In other words, they should convey the same morals and principles that have been around for thousands of years, but avoid using ancient approaches to reach today’s ever-changing society. And you can probably point out a number of churches that do this very well. Most now have websites where they provide information about the church, post announcements and upload audio files of their sermons for download. Many have blogs and podcasts, email newsletters, you name it.

My point? We can learn something from this!

Are you keeping up with your target market? Is it time to change your methods? Really consider this. I hear so many say “we’re entering a new technology age,” but the truth is – we’ve already entered this new age… and the door has slammed swiftly behind us!

Take me, for example. I’m not only computer literate… but actually quite computer dependent. I saw a truck on the Northway this morning, and it had a 1-800 number on the back. I thought to myself, “I will have to Google that number when I get to work.” Then I paused for a moment and had to laugh. The only use I have for a phone number is to Google it?! Are you keeping up with people like me? What happens when your business’s phone number is Googled?

In this day and age, people expect to find information about your business online. Think of your website as a sort of online brochure – an opportunity to really showcase what you have and seal the deal. What if someone asks for your “brochure” and Google tells them you don’t have one… so instead offers brochures from 2 of your top competitors?! What an opportunity you are missing out on if you don’t have Web presence.

Learn more about keeping up with your competition online.

So having a website is a given. What else is there?

Only you know your target market, and if it is a true niche, you will have to find the best ways to relate to them. But if you want my honest opinion, every business should have a website that is optimized for the search engines (even if it’s DIY SEO), advertise monthly or seasonal specials online and get listed in local guides — at minimum.

Other avenues to pursue would be maintaining an online blog, adding valuable content to your site, writing ezine articles, adding videos, sending announcements and specials through monthly email newsletter campaigns, creating a YouTube channel, participating in social media sites, adding a press or media section to your site for your press releases, grabbing attention through display advertising, getting increased visibility with Google PPC advertising, and the list goes on. Consider the way you look for and act on information, and try to use that as your guiding force to help you adapt your methods to your target audience.

“But my target market is old fashioned…”

Truth be told, not everyone is computer / Internet savvy, but a large part of the market already consists of Internet gurus — and many computer junkies (like me) — that means in a few short years everyone will be. Will you be ready? Are you ready now?

No matter if you are a religious person or not, take some great advice from my pastor, and change your methods of presenting your age-old message to keep up with your target audience!

Want some more in-depth advice on this? Feel free to give us a call here at Mannix Marketing 800-928-9154*, and we’ll be happy to go over a personalized Internet marketing plan with you.

*Or go ahead and Google our phone number!