PPC Paid Search

What is Paid Search?

Almost everyone who has access to the internet has encountered paid search. If you use Google to look up whatever you look up then a paid search ad has appeared in your search engine results page(SERPs).

These ads are pay-per-click, meaning you the business are paying for your ad to appear on google and each time a visitor clicks on your ad you pay a fee.

How it works

1. Choose your location for your ad. What country, zip code or city do you want your ad to show?
2. Choose the right keywords. Example, "woman's shoes". These need to be as generic as possible to widen your reach.

Why digital marketers should implement paid search

The benefits of paid search allow you as a marketer to advertise your offering to a enormous amount of people every second constantly. Tens of thousands of people search on Google every second of the day. In 2017, an estimated $92.4 billion was spent on paid search globally, and that number is compounding exponentially every year.

Paid search allows very targeted ads which results in a more effective clickthrough rate compared to SEO marketing. When a user enters one of your keywords you chose for your paid search, your ad appears instantly. As compared to SEO, it may take months for your website to get the same amount of traffic. An effective paid search ad can be created and running on Google Ads in just a few hours.

Paid search is also cost effective. With pay-per-click you are only paying for the amount of clicks. You do not have to pay for your ad impressions

Google Ads vs. Bing Ads

Both Google and Bing are great web browsers. They both offer pay-per-click ads and have a huge number of visitors every day. Lets talk about the differences between the two.

1. Bing is owned by Microsoft which owns AOL and Yahoo. A pay-per-click ad will appear on all three browsers when making an ad for Bing. Google on the other hand only has Googles browser but the amount of visitors they have is tremendous.

1. The advertising budget for Bing is cheaper then Google. Google has a lot bigger volume and there is more competition for add bidding. Bing on the other hand has less ad competition. Bing ads get more for their dollar. The price comparison is about $2000 for Google ads and $400-$700 for Bing.
2. One of Bings distinct advantages is its ability to target specific mobile devices. It can target specific audiences based on their type of mobile and the type of OS. Google Ads is limited when it comes to mobile ads. Bing also allows the option to only show ads on mobile and not desktop.

How can a University increase their outreach with paid search?

Now more then ever Universities are starting to look to digital marketing to attract more possible students and grow their following. Covid-19 had moved all classes online and changed the way a college operates dramatically. Campus tours were not allowed in-person and it was very difficult for prospective students to be able to get a feel for the college they wanted to spend 4 years or more in. MBA programs also have to change how they find new students.

Introducing Paid search! Paid search is a huge opportunity for MBA programs to get out in the web and attract more people. With paid search a hypothetical college MBA program in the PNW could search for undergraduates who have a degree in, for example, digital marketing.

To have an effective paid search ad for an MBA program it is important to use specific key words that represent that program. For example, if a student is looking for a digital marketing MBA program that focuses on SEO, then a targeted key word should be "SEO MBA program". The example below shows Kellogg Digital Marketing as a pay-per-click ad with "SEO" in the title.

The landing page of your MBA ad should provide the right information rather then too much info. Focus on what a visitor would want to know. For example, showcase where your MBA graduates have started their careers. This will build trust with the potential student because they now know that your program has quality education that can get you a high paying job. Have a video or list of the type of knowledge that you have to offer to make it enticing to the audience. Show the campus and popular things the current students are doing. Most importantly have an option on the landing page that requests information from the visitor. For example, Syracuse Universities landing page is very simple. Its starts out with an interactive option to ask questions inorder to keep you engaged on the site.

Once you answer your work experience then it asks more questions, and finally asks for your name and email address. That was the goal of the interactive questions to get your information so they can send you more info about their MBA program.

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