In the online world, businesses are constantly fighting for visibility. Most businesses want to find a way to reach their customers on the Internet and to stand out from other businesses fighting for their attention. To reach potential customers on Google, the most popular search engine across the web, many businesses use paid search, or pay per click (PPC) ads. For these ads, businesses bid on specific keywords, and when a user types in that keyword, the ad will immediately appear at the top of the search results before the organic results. Paid search ads grant businesses automatic visibility for target keywords. Here are some of the top reasons why businesses use paid search as part of their marketing strategy.

1. Supplementing Organic Traffic

If you’re already implementing an SEO strategy, you might think paid search isn’t for you. However, nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, paid search and SEO work very well together. Organic traffic yields results from questions, informational searches, general inquiries, and more. Traffic coming to your site from a paid search ad, however, is typically traffic with a high intent on making a purchase. To maximize all types of traffic to your site and gain the purchase-driven traffic, you should combine paid search with your SEO strategy.

2. Pushing a Specific Product or Service

Paid search ads are a great way to generate immediate traffic. As soon as the ad is established, it’s immediately at the top of Google’s search results and ready to start generating traffic for your site. You can also turn off these ads at any time. For these reasons, paid search ads are a great way to push a specific product or service immediately. If you have an item that is overstocked, you can use paid search to push the item and move more product. If you have a seasonal product or service, you can run the ads at the appropriate time of year or even at certain times of day. If you’re looking to promote a specific time or service at a specific time, paid search is the best way to do it.

3. Immediate Traffic

SEO is a slow-moving process. Especially if you’re starting from scratch, it can take months to achieve strong rankings on Google. However, paid search ads are immediately placed on the top of the first page of search engine results. Because Google is the most popular search engine, visibility on the first page of its search results guarantees a very large reach across the web. SEO is a valuable strategy to build traffic over time, but to generate immediate traffic, either in the mean time or to push a seasonal service or product, paid search is a good option.

4. Targeting Your Efforts

One of the advantages to paid search ads is that you can target them to your desired audience. In order to establish your ad, you will choose a specific keyword based on what your desired audience will be searching for. You can also target your ads to specific locations. If your business is local, you might only want your ad visible in your local area. If you have a national seasonal business, such as garden supplies, you might want your ads visible earlier in the southern part of the country than the north, because it gets warm earlier. There are many different reasons why you might target your ads, but the ability to do so ensures that the right people will see your ads.

5. Scheduling Your Ads

In addition to the ability to target your ads, you also have the ability to schedule your ads. You can select specific days of the week for your ads to run if you find that some days are more profitable than others. You can also turn ads on and off at certain times of day if you find that you are generating the most traffic at specific time periods. Additionally, if your ad brings users to a landing page with live chat, you might only want those ads visible at times when you’re sure the live chat will be manned. Making your ads visible at specific times of day can help you maximize your traffic and the amount you spend on your ads.

6. Reporting and Tracking

One of the best parts about running paid search ads is that you can easily track their success. Google AdWords provides data that will help you evaluate the success of your chosen keywords, the times of day you run your ads, your ad copy, and more. With the help of the reporting tools, you can even run A/B tests that will help identify the most successful components of your ad. When you find the most successful keywords to generate traffic, you can use the information to inform your organic strategy as well. In addition to the success of your ads, you can even track every dollar that you spend to make sure you’re getting the maximum ROI. With Google AdWords, you will have the data you need to make the most successful ads for your business.

ImageWorks, LLC | CT Paid Search Agency

Don’t miss out on the most comprehensive paid search audit in the industry!

Find out what you are doing wrong, where the missed opportunities are, and most importantly, if your paid search programs are working for you so that you can lower cost and increase your conversion rates.  The SEM team at ImageWorks will examine important key metrics and let you know what our highest priorities would be to get your campaigns in the best of health. If you don’t have the necessary resources, we offer flexible management solutions and pricing models to meet your needs.

Call 860-454-0582 and ask for sales to schedule your free audit today.