Pay per click advertising is a digital marketing model in which marketers pay each time online users click on their ad. In this method, advertisers bid on the value they deem for a click based on factors like keywords, platforms and conversion potential of users so as to appear along with the search results in SERPs (Search Engine Result Pages). The search engines like Google then determine the placement of the ads in their SERPs through a process of ad auction where they factor in relevance and validity of the ad along with the bid amount. 

The most important search engine platforms that feature PPC ads are Google (includes YouTube advertising), Bing (Microsoft ads with search partner sites that include Yahoo) and Amazon. The major types of PPC ads that appear on these platforms are text ads, display ads and shopping ads. Text ads are the most common ones and they consist of copywriting ad. These ads are surfaced when keywords of the PPC ads are searched in search engine platforms by users. Then, there are display ads which are in the format of images, videos or motion graphic. Shopping ads contain a display image of the product, its price and other details. These ads use product data and are typically triggered when users search queries in search engines.  All ads must comply with size, character limit and content requirements specific to each platform that offers PPC ad placement. The type of PPC ads bought by a business should be informed by the goals and marketing strategy best suited for them. 

Benefits

• Speed-to-market: Unlike traditional organic SEO, PPC ads can bring in targeted traffic to your site as they are easier and quicker to implement.

• Better Reach: Using PPC tool allows you to establish brand recognition for your business through additional traffic that is sent to your website thus expanding your online visibility.

• Highly-targeted Website Traffic: PPC Advertisements requires creating different adverts for particular keywords and demographics. This can increase the quality of website traffic dramatically.

• Testing Capabilities: By enabling low-risk testing for keywords, PPC enables you to determine whether it is worth optimizing a complete site or not. It is also good for A/B testing thus providing you the authority to direct traffic to pages of your choice. This would help you determine the pages that convert at a higher rate.

• Maximize Return on Your Investment: Since, you pay for the ads only when they are clicked, managing cost and tracking conversions becomes easier. As compared to other marketing tactics, PPC Advertisements can help businesses increase their revenue stream while allowing them to track results accurately and correctly.

PPC ads are great at fulfilling general marketing goals like promoting brand awareness, boosting sales and generating leads, but its greatest advantage is in its precision. These ads operate on relevance and keyword specificity and elimination through the use of negative keywords, help advertisers to target suitable users and enhance conversion rate. The fact that PPC ads can drive website traffic at a very fast pace and offer effective conversion tracking and performance data swiftly are added advantages.  So, whether you are a small business or a large entity, Pay per click advertising can offer real results for your business. Used along with a sound organic SEO strategy, PPC advertising can help businesses gain a wider audience reach by increasing their online exposure.