Introduction
Digital marketing consists of many efficient techniques that will help your business gain customers through online means. Besides search engine optimisation (SEO), you can rely on pay-per-click (PPC) marketing strategies to generate leads and raise awareness.
“PPC” is a term that you will hear a lot in the digital marketing industry for many good reasons. One of them is that PPC marketing allows you to obtain a high return on investment (ROI) by investing in valuable keywords and ads. Not to mention, PPC marketing is perfect for small businesses since it can help you generate profits quicker and more effectively than other digital marketing methods.
Furthermore, PPC is a perfect marketing strategy for beginners. Whether you are promoting a small business or large enterprise, you can count on your PPC ads to provide you with fast and efficient results; unlike SEO, which relies heavily on long-term marketing strategies to reach your target.’
In short, if you need to gain leads and earn profits in an instant, PPC marketing is your go-to plan for quickly producing positive results. However, there many factors to consider when it comes to PPC marketing, including the cost of paid search ads and high-value keywords.
But before we dive straight into the costs and expenses of PPC marketing, let’s take a look at the meaning behind it and its importance for businesses first.
Part I – What Is Pay-per-click Marketing?
Pay-per-click or PPC is a model of search engine marketing (SEM) in which you will have to pay every time a person clicks on your ad. Earn enough clicks, and you can improve your web visibility and achieve higher search engine rankings in no time. Not surprisingly, producing such results may take quite an amount of money if you want to expand the reach of your paid ads.
When it comes to SEM and PPC marketing, Google Ads is the go-to platform that will help you reach your goals with ease. You can use the advertising Google’s Ad Auction system to bid on keywords that will display your ads.
For example, imagine owning a digital marketing or SEM agency. To kickstart your PPC campaign and promote your services, bid on relevant keywords. Examples of such keywords include:
- SEM services
- Search engine marketing services
- Search engine marketing
- Digital marketing
Whenever users search for the mentioned keywords on Google, your ads will show up on search engine results pages (SERPs). Bidding on relevant keywords to your business and services is crucial for success. Use a keyword tool for both SEO and SEM to discover which keywords will help you generate the most leads and traffic. It will also help you know which keywords offer better results at a more affordable price.
Know More: How To Create A Successful SEM Campaign?
The amount of money you need to set aside for your PPC marketing campaign will depend on the target audience, relevance, and platform of your preferred keywords. Also, unlike SEO, it is difficult to manage a PPC campaign without setting a costly budget plan. You can sometimes create an effective SEO campaign with a low budget, but you cannot say the same for PPC marketing.
You need to create a budget plan and invest in high-value keywords to get a successful ROI. Not all PPC campaigns are expensive, but you have to invest a reasonable amount of money if you wish to get the best results out of your paid ads. After all, the goal of SEM is to earn profits by making huge investments.
SEO and PPC are two sides of the same coin. SEO offers long-term growth, while SEM gives you quicker results. In the end, you need both if you want to get the best results out of your digital marketing campaigns.
The Cost Of PPC Marketing
The truth is, the cost of PPC marketing and SEM in Singapore depends on your keywords and target audience. Sometimes, you could spend little money on your PPC campaign and achieve an excellent ROI. On the other hand, you might have to increase your budget if you want your ads to reach more people.
In conclusion, Google Ads is the sole determiner of your budget plan for launching a PPC campaign. Analyse the ad auction to know how much you will have to bid on select keywords. Your budget could range from $10 to $70, with a monthly cost of $1000 to $1000. But in the end, Google will determine the price of PPC marketing for your business.
The Importance Of PPC Marketing
The cost of PPC marketing has discouraged some people from investing in paid advertising. It is unfortunate because PPC marketing offers some of the best strategies for gaining leads and raising awareness. The price may seem a little expensive sometimes, but the results are worth everything once you see your sales are climbing up the ladder in no time.
PPC marketing is ideal for small businesses and online stores since it allows you to attract new customers in an instant. Your paid ads can appear on many SERPs as they attract countless customers and earn enough clicks to drive conversions.
With the help of a successful PPC campaign, you can get more exposure and establish credibility. Not to mention, your paid ads can reach the right audience, helping your business raise awareness as a result.
However, an effective PPC campaign may not be enough for your business. To expand your reach and generate leads even further, combine your SEM strategies with other marketing campaigns such as social media marketing, content marketing, SEO, and many more. Doing so will help you define your target market to ensure your PPC campaign is on the right track.
Part II – The Pros And Cons Of PPC Marketing
There is no such thing as a perfect digital marketing strategy. However, there is always an ideal marketing strategy for specific situations, depending on your needs and goals.
For instance, SEO can help you grow a stable online presence, but it will take a lot of time before you produce significant results. You could also say the same for PPC marketing. It may help you generate leads, drive traffic, and attract new customers, but the cost of your paid ads may be too expensive for your budget.
Before you decide to invest in a PPC campaign, consider the pros and cons of PPC to come up with better digital marketing strategies that will align with your goals.
The Pros of PPC Marketing
1. Cost-effective
PPC marketing is one of the most cost-effective strategies that offer a high ROI, even when compared to SEO. You may have to invest a lot of money in your paid ads, but the rewards are worth the price. You can drive sales, generate leads, and reach your target audience, all with the help of a cost-effective PPC campaign.
2. Quick Results
Many small businesses implement paid search campaigns to generate quick results. It helps them gather more potential customers in succession without having to spend a lot of wasted cash along the way. Perhaps you could do the same to enhance the effectiveness of your SEO and earn more clicks for your website?
The quick response of a PPC campaign is the reason why many companies invest in SEM, especially small businesses. Bid on the right keywords, and your paid ads can reach your target audience, helping you raise awareness to attract potential customers.
3. Experimentation
Unlike other digital marketing strategies, PPC offers freedom of experimentation that allows you to measure and control your performance. That way, you can experiment with your paid ads and improve your results by coming up with better SEM strategies for your campaign.
Also, the more people your ads can reach, the better your chances of targeting the right people. The purpose of a PPC campaign is to boost sales and generate leads. Fortunately, your ads can reach the right audience if you bid on relevant keywords. Use the most out of your SEM strategies to increase your conversion rate, so your paid ads appear on more SERPs and earn clicks.
4. Pay Only When Necessary
Digital marketing tactics like SEO require a fixed budget to reach specific goals and audiences. However, for PPC marketing, you only need to pay whenever someone clicks on your ads.
You may have to set aside a large amount of money, just in case your ads reach more people than expected. Nonetheless, compared to most digital marketing strategies, PPC offers the most room for opportunities when it comes to adjusting your budget.
5. Versatility
As mentioned earlier, it would be an excellent idea to combine your PPC campaign with other digital marketing strategies under SEO and SEM. Since Google Ads is the most commonly used platform for PPC and SEM in general, you can incorporate other digital channels into your campaign.
For example, PPC and social media marketing go well together. Your paid ads can reach more people and drive them to your website. On the other hand, having a social media page on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter will help you maintain a growing customer base outside your SEM campaign. As a result, both your PPC and social media marketing campaigns create a cycle that generates followers from various digital channels to help your online presence grow.
The Cons of PPC Marketing
1. Difficult For Beginners
No doubt that PPC marketing is simple enough for beginners. However, making the most out of your paid ads can prove to be challenging if you do not possess enough knowledge or skills in SEM. You may have to hire an SEM agency or outsource your services to a professional if you want to get the best results out of your campaign.
2. Time-consuming
Sure, your PPC campaign can generate leads and raise awareness more quickly than any other digital marketing strategy. On the downside, preparing such a campaign can be time-consuming. You need to optimise and improve your paid ads to get better results.
Fortunately, once you have gathered enough information about your target audience, optimising your paid ads will be less challenging as time goes on. Familiarise yourself with the ins and outs of SEM so you can boost your search engine rankings more quickly than any other digital marketing strategy.
3. Fierce Competition
The reason why PPC marketing can be expensive is that other people are trying to bid on high-value keywords that will help boost their businesses and drive sales. Unfortunately, you need to do the same if you want to generate traffic and earn the most clicks by bidding on relevant keywords.
Here at Google Ads, it’s like you are at war with numerous other agencies that have the same goal as yours. If you want to reach your goals, ensure your SEM strategies are targeting the right audience.
The good news, if you have a niche audience, you have a less threatening competition, which is one less problem to consider for your PPC campaign. Not only that, but you can also bid on more affordable keywords since not many other people are trying to compete against you.
4. No Guarantee
There is no sure-fire way your paid ads will generate leads unless they reach the right audience. Also, you have to consider your competitors and how much they are willing to bid against you. For such reasons, there is no guarantee whether your PPC campaign will become successful or not.
Furthermore, the number of clicks per ad is not an indicator of your campaign’s success. Like SEO and social media marketing, the success of your PPC campaign depends on how capable your ads are of generating conversions. After all, a click on your ad is just the first step. Make sure your campaign is successful by attracting prospects and converting them into customers.
5. Expensive
Most of all, PPC marketing can be expensive if your ads are not converting users into customers. Even if many people are clicking on your ads, that does not mean they are your customers yet.
Design a high-quality website and deliver consistent content to earn trust. Focus on growing a reputable online presence with SEO to make sure your paid ads are capable of converting clicks into customers.
Part III – Hiring An SEM Agency: Yes Or No?
After knowing the fundamentals of PPC and SEM, you have two choices: to create a campaign on your own or hire an SEM agency in Singapore.
You can start a PPC campaign all by yourself, but you may exert too much effort only to receive a lack of positive results. Plus, creating paid ads and bidding on relevant keywords may be simple enough, even for beginners, but you might find it challenging once your competition grows larger in numbers.
Know More: 5 SEM Mistakes (And How To Avoid Them)
On the other hand, hiring an SEM agency may be the wiser choice. You have someone to help you come up with better ads so you can generate leads and increase your conversion rate. Also, with an SEM agency, you have access to better resources. Not to mention, you can know more about SEM as well and curate your own set of skills to your advantage.
In the end, hiring or outsourcing your SEM services to a digital marketing agency in Singapore might be the better choice. Not only will you gain additional insight into SEM, but you can save money by investing in the right keywords with the help of a marketer.
Here are a few more reasons why hiring an SEM agency is a wise choice.
Why Should You Hire An SEM Agency?
1. Drive Sales
Earning clicks and driving traffic to your website is just the tip of the iceberg. When it comes to PPC and SEM, the goal is to gain leads and drive sales. To do so, you need to make sure your ads are producing a tremendous impact on your customers by delivering high-quality content just for them.
Fortunately, you can request help from an SEM agency that will make sure your paid ads are driving sales. Your hired professionals will conduct many efficient marketing solutions to ensure the success of your PPC campaign, such as:
- Incorporate various bidding strategies
- Monitor your paid search campaign
- Identify relevant keywords
- Suggest better digital marketing strategies
2. No Training Required
Who says you need expert knowledge of SEM to hire a professional? When it comes to outsourcing your SEM services, years of training and skills in digital marketing are not required. After all, the reason for hiring an SEM agency to accomplish your task is that you lack the expertise needed to do so by yourself.
3. Use Different Ad Types
PPC marketing offers a lot of rooms for experimentation. Use it to your advantage so your paid ads can earn clicks and increase conversion rates. Fortunately, you can outsource your SEM needs to a digital marketing agency that can tackle various types of PPC marketing, such as remarketing, display advertising, search advertising, and social media advertising.
Know More: Types of SEM Services (And What You Need To Know About Them)
4. Various Digital Marketing Services
The best part about hiring an SEM agency is that you are not limited to SEM only. Why limit yourself to SEM when you can access a plethora of digital marketing services, such as SEO, social media marketing, content marketing, and many more?
Attract more customers by combining several digital marketing strategies to expand your reach. With SEO, SEM, PPC, and a wide range of other services at your disposal, you have a better chance of reaching your goals.
5. In-depth Reporting
Marketing your business is one thing, but monitoring your performance is another. Hire an SEM agency to get extra pairs of hands and eyes to help you survey your campaign. In doing so, you can request an in-depth report of your PPC campaign so you can remain updated at all times.
4 Factors To Consider When Hiring An SEM Agency
When deciding between hiring an SEM agency and doing it all by yourself, always consider what is best for your goals. But if you choose to outsource your SEM services, there are many factors to consider that will help you pick the right SEO company in Singapore for your business.
Some of these factors include:
1. PORTFOLIO – A company’s portfolio will show you everything you need to know about its employees’ skills and expertise. Check if the SEM agency has a proven track record to know if their employees are worth trusting.
2. A VARIETY OF SERVICES – Make sure your preferred SEM agency offers a variety of digital marketing services if you want to expand your horizons and reach more potential customers. You can conduct several marketing campaigns if the company presents a wide variety of services, not just SEM.
3. REPUTATION – Credibility is not just exclusive to years of experience. When considering the reputation of a digital marketing agency, you can include other factors, such as awards, track records, clientele, and many more.
4. COST OF SERVICES – Most of all, when it comes to hiring a digital marketing company, you need to know how much their services cost. Find a company that offers digital marketing services priced within your budget range to make the most out of your money.
Conclusion
SEM, SEO, social media marketing—all of these are hard to accomplish by yourself. Conducting a digital marketing strategy alone is possible, but it can only bring you so far without going beyond your expectations. To maximise the potential of your PPC campaign, consider working with an SEM agency in Singapore.
With a digital marketing agency to guide you through your journey, your campaign is guaranteed to provide you with positive results. You can access better resources, cooperate with well-trained professionals, and seek guidance from an experienced marketer.
You are one step closer to success if you have someone by your side to help your digital marketing campaign succeed! Look for a company that has the same goals as yours, so you can come up with better strategies to promote your brand and maintain a reputable online presence.
If you’re willing to work with skilled marketers in the digital marketing industry, feel free to call OOm anytime at +65 6391 0930.
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