What is Search Engine Marketing or Paid Search management?

by Deepak Kumar Thakur Digital Marketer

Pay-per-click (PPC) marketing is a complex digital marketing process. It provides a significant opportunity for marketers to grow their user base with the help of conversion metrics. But without a smart strategy careful tactics of PPC management. It can cause major headaches and extravagant spending. Pay-Per-click marketing is an advertising channel in which marketers don’t pay for impression or purely for ad placement. The bidding amount in PPC may affect the placement of an ad, but the marketer only pays when an advertisement is clicked or interacted by the person/user witnessing the ad. The most common Pay-Per-Click advertising format appears on search engine results pages for the searched query. Advertisers/marketers have the opportunity to place their brand, product, or service on the front and in the center, in the form of an ad.

Paid Search Management Services:

Text Ads: Text advertisements are composed of a copy written by the subject matter expert or by the advertiser. Format and character limits depend on the platform advertiser is using. Text ads are usually triggered/served through the Search Network- when a user searches on search engines like Google or Bing for certain specific keyword added within your advertising campaign.

Display Ads: Display advertising is typically delivered in a format of an image or graphic interchange format. Platforms offering display advertising have size and content requirements marketers must comply with when working on their visual creative. Display ads show up and are available on placement for all websites (registered on platform as publisher) across the internet. Ads are contextually placed on all the websites where the target audience from the market visits.

Shopping Ads: Shopping ads are typically delivered after the user submits a search query through the search engine marketing or shopping engine. Shopping ads usually have an image of the product, price of the product, and pertinent specifications like size, color, dimensions, etc.

Major Pay-Per-Click Platforms which provides PPC services:

There are many platforms offering text ad, display ad, and shopping ad via PPC placement but there are three core platforms you shouldn’t ignore:

Google Ads: Google is a PPC advertising platform. Offering pay-per-click advertising during search engine marketing on their search partner sites along with image and video advertising on Display Network. Advertising on google's video platform is also available through the Google Ads platform.

Microsoft Advertising: Microsoft Advertising formally known as Bing ads is Microsoft’s Pay-Per-Click marketing platform. This platform allows pay-per-click advertising on its Search Network (Bing.com) and searches partner sites (including Yahoo.com) also native advertising on Microsoft-owned web properties (such as MSN).

Amazon Advertising: Platform is growing rapidly as a Pay-Per-Click platform for e-commerce retailers/sellers. Amazon empowers marketers to create display ads and shopping ads primarily focused campaigns that promote products on Amazon’s environment.

Cons of Pay-Per-Click Marketing or advertising?

There are multiple advantages of PPC, the advertising model does have some potential pitfalls all the marketers and advertisers should consider.

Cost: Depending on competition and the industry your business belongs to, if paid search management is not proper can be very expensive. Ad placements can cost over $100 per click (Don’t worry, this isn’t common, but proper PPC management is required or one can hire someone providing PPC service.)

Waste: Because of the technical nature of PPC platforms, if not properly managed, wasted ad spend is common. Advertisers will end wasting a lot of hard-earned money due to a lack of technical knowledge.

Volume: PPC marketing on Search Network, depends on search volume. If the campaign keyword related to your service has less volume the amount of traffic will decrease significantly.