Pay-Per-Click Advertising Explained

Pay-Per-Click Advertising Explained – Google, Yahoo! and Microsoft

If you’ve ever searched on Google, Yahoo! or Microsoft, you’re probably aware of pay-per-click advertising (PPC advertising). With PPC advertising, search engine companies, such as Google, display advertising related to the search term entered (with Google, these ads are displayed on the right hand side of the search results page, and often sometimes at the top of the search results). If a user clicks on the ad, the advertiser is charged a small fee (perhaps a quarter) and is then re-directed to the advertiser’s website. If the ad is not clicked on, no fee is charged.

PPC have common components across the search engines – ad creation, keyword determination, and budget limits. Other features are available with some search engines, such as negative word options, geo-targeting, and exact word targeting. The structure and process of creating PPC accounts differ significantly between the search engines, requiring a great deal of time to understand the mechanics and terms of campaigns creation.

For a law firm, it is optimal to have a number of different ads each with a large number of keywords. Effective campaigns use dozens of keywords because users type in dozens of different search terms when seeking the same search result.

For example, suppose you are a litigator in Los Angeles and one of your areas of practice is defending those charged with speeding tickets. Prospective clients of your firm might type in the following search terms:

traffic ticket attorney

speeding ticket lawyer in los angeles

L.A. traffic lawyer

lawyer to help me get out of traffic ticket

find a speeding ticket atty

Dozens of other search terms might also be used. If you limit your self to only a few keywords, you will miss out on potential clients. Similarly, you want different ad variations to see which ads get more clicks to determine which ads are more effective in attracting potential clients.

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