Paid search or SEM is used for referring to the tasks that help Internet search engines such as Google to find a website and then rank it. For organizations who want to promote themselves and attract audiences or customers, the benefit of appearing as early as possible in search engine results is exponential. The higher is a website the ranking, the greater is the likelihood of potential audiences clicking on it and bringing revenue. When marketing one’s business, an organization can choose between search engine optimization (SEO) and paid search marketing (pay per click – PPC), with the latter being discussed further in the memo.
PPC is a form of SEM that involves paying to ensure that a search engine displays the promotions of a company in or alongside search results. Both small and large businesses use PPC to expand marketing attempts and broaden the target audience. For instance, with the help of the Google AdWords program, it is possible to display an advertisement of a company at the top of the right side of the search result’s page (Duermyer, 2018). Usually, the placement of an ad depends on its quality and the keywords used. Also, Google will ‘feed’ the ads of an organization that paid for clicks to websites that are running its Adsense program. Facebook ads represent another type of PPC marketing and work by showing up on the feeds of the website’s users, and these advertisements are often based on their interests and preferences. In PPC advertisements, companies pay every time some clicks on the offer. It is different from organic search in that companies are paying to have their website offers displayed higher in the search results.
To build one’s business, PPC marketing can be implemented in such a way that it is well-designed and runs smoothly. Paid search ads can bring many more customers to a website compared to traditional forms of digital advertising (Duermyer, 2018). This shows that customers do not mind being advertised in case if the services or products that are being promoted fit their demands or needs. Since many people use search engines for the purpose of looking for something to buy, the advertisements placed by Google or other search engines and paid for by companies make them more inclined to spend money on those items that are being marketed. In addition, current PPC ads are targeted to consumer needs through tracking their search history and showing advertisements that fit the interests of the searcher, which leads to greater conversion rates for companies.
It is also important to note that PPC is likely to build strong connections between companies and online platforms, which is an important part of a business partnership. Google, for example, not only rewards the highest bidders but also distinguishes companies that develop high-quality advertisements that are popular with search engine users. This means that it is in the interest of companies to be creative in developing ads for search engines in order to get rewarded by their partner and attract the desired audience. Therefore, it is recommended for the organization to consider implementing paid search marketing into existing advertisement efforts due to the great potential of capturing the desired audience of customers inclined to purchase a product marketed to them.
Reference
Duermyer, R. (2018). SEM: Search engine marketing explained.