Putting Keywords to Use: PPC Ads

When it comes to marketing a business online, you hear the term “keywords” thrown around an awful lot.  What are keywords? In a nutshell, they’re certain terms or phrases that happen to be especially relevant to a company’s services.  They are the words most likely to be implemented when someone fires up a search engine. You probably knew that.

What you may not know is exactly why they’re so vital to building a website.  That’s a complicated topic, with enough material for several blog entries.  For now, let’s focus on just one important role keywords play:  They make digital advertising possible.

“If you build it, they will come” doesn’t fly on the internet.  Too many people design a website, launch it, and wonder why their visit statistics are non-existent.  For every service that exists, there are hundreds of sites clamoring to provide it, and some are savvy enough to use keyword-based advertising.

Many search engines use a system called Pay Per Click (PPC), where businesses will pay a set amount for each visit the engine generates.  Advertisers bid for the use of specific ad-keywords, so the more relevant ones may be more expensive.

For example, if you were to look online for a mass mailing service, you might search for “mailing.”  That particular keyword costs the company more than, say, “postage.”  However, if the search engine fails to channel any business their way, the company owes them nothing.  Basing the cost on performance makes PPC a very popular advertising model.

Other websites can opt into PPC ads, displaying them on their own pages for a percentage of the profits.  Keywords affect which ads are shown, often pulling up other results for relevant keywords.  In theory, you could search for “mailing”, click through to a site, and find other partner ads for “postage”.

All very convenient, right?  None of it would be possible without the use of keywords.  Unfortunately, most do-it-yourself-ers don’t know how to utilize these terms to their best advantage.  SEO businesses are out there, and they can help, if you know how to search.

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 18th, 2010 at 8:26 am and is filed under Internet marketing, Marketing Tips, Search Engine Optimization. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.