Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising is a popular and effective way for businesses to drive traffic to their website and promote their products or services. With PPC advertising, advertisers only pay when someone clicks on their ad. There are several different types of PPC ads available to choose from, each with their own advantages. Understanding the options can help businesses select the right PPC ad type to achieve their marketing goals.
PPC ads allow advertisers to show up on search engine results pages and reach people actively searching for products or services. They also enable displaying ads on other websites and apps through placement networks. The major PPC platforms are Google Ads, Microsoft Advertising, Amazon Advertising, and social media networks like Facebook and Instagram.
Overview of PPC Advertising
Before we get into the different ad types, let’s quickly go over what PPC advertising is. PPC ads are sponsored listings displayed by search engines and other online publishers. Unlike organic search results, PPC ads appear because an advertiser is paying the platform each time their ad is clicked.
Some key things to know about PPC ads:
- You only pay when your ad is clicked, not just viewed (hence the “pay per click” name)
- PPC ads appear prominently above or alongside organic search results
- You can target PPC ads to specific keywords and demographics to reach your ideal customers
- Platforms like Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising offer PPC ad networks
- PPC allows you to test out messaging and analyze performance in real time
Click this link for more facts about Google PPC – https://www.firstpagedigital.sg/google-ads/.
Now let’s look at the main types of PPC ad formats available today.
What Types Of PPC Ads Are There?
The 7 main types of PPC ads include:
1. Search Network Ads
Search network PPC ads show up on search engine results pages when people search relevant keywords. They help advertisers get their site in front of motivated searchers who are already looking for their offerings.
Google calls these text ads on its search network. Bing refers to them as search ads. Search network ads have a title, description lines, and a visible URL. The ads target keywords searched by users and aim to drive them to the advertiser’s site.
Key benefits of search network PPC ads:
- Reach people searching for your products or services
- Appear above or alongside organic search results
- Only pay when someone clicks your ad
- Help drive qualified visitors to your site
2. Shopping Ads
Shopping ads feature product images, prices, and titles. They help advertisers promote specific products and drive traffic directly to their product pages.
Google Shopping ads appear at the top and bottom of Google search results and help brands stand out. Microsoft Advertising and Facebook also have their own shopping ad formats.
Benefits of shopping PPC ads:
- Showcase products visually
- Drive traffic directly to product pages
- Reach people searching for products
- Only pay when someone clicks your ad
3. Display Network Ads
Display network PPC ads show up on thousands of websites, blogs, and apps through ad networks like Google Display Network and Microsoft Advertising. They help extend reach and visibility beyond just search engines.
Display ads come in different formats like text, image, and video. Advertisers can target them to specific sites, topics, audiences, and placements. The ads aim to increase brand awareness and website visits.
Advantages of display network PPC ads:
- Broad reach beyond search engines
- Various creative formats
- Targeting capabilities by topic, audience, site
- Drive visits from publisher sites
- Branding and awareness opportunities
4. Video Ads
Video ads enable advertisers to showcase engaging pre-roll, mid-roll or image video ads on YouTube, Facebook and other sites. They help tell brand stories creatively while capturing viewer attention.
YouTube video ads play before or during YouTube videos. Facebook video ads auto-play in News Feeds. Advertisers only pay when the full video is watched for a certain length or clicked.
Key features of PPC video ads:
- Storytelling through sight, sound and motion
- Ad formats blend with content
- Pay based on views or clicks
- Targeted to relevant topics and audiences
- Drive brand awareness and interest
5. Dynamic Search Ads
Dynamic search ads automatically promote web pages on an advertiser’s website that are relevant to a user’s search terms. Google, Bing and Amazon offer these data-driven responsive search ads.
The ads pull headlines, descriptions and landing pages from the advertiser’s site based on what the searcher is looking for. They help maximize coverage across all relevant website content.
Benefits of dynamic PPC search ads:
- Responsive ads tailored to search queries
- Promote all relevant pages automatically
- Don’t need pre-determined keywords
- Low maintenance after setup
- Help drive traffic across whole site
6. Remarketing Ads
Remarketing PPC ads target people who have previously visited your website. They help bring site visitors back and convert them into customers.
Google, Facebook, Microsoft and others provide options to remarket across search, display, shopping and video ad networks. Advertisers can create custom audience lists to re-engage past visitors.
Value of remarketing PPC ads:
- Target people familiar with your brand
- Bring visitors back to complete purchases
- Customize messaging for each audience
- Cost-effective way to convert site traffic
- Used across search, display, shopping, video
7. Lead Generation Ads
Lead generation ads aim to capture contact information from interested prospects right in the ad unit. They allow driving and qualifying direct leads from PPC without needing to send users to a website first.
Google, Microsoft Advertising, Facebook and LinkedIn offer lead generation ad formats. Advertisers only pay when a user submits their details, like name, phone, email or other questions.
Advantages of PPC lead gen ads:
- Collect qualified leads directly
- Reduce leaks in the funnel
- Target Engaged audiences
- Custom lead forms and questions
- Pay only for completed leads
Conclusion
There are a wide variety of PPC ad formats and networks available to advertisers. Each has unique benefits and use cases to help drive results based on marketing objectives. Testing different options is key to find the right mix to effectively reach target audiences and promote products, services or brand. Keeping ads relevant, tightly targeted and optimized for conversions can help maximize ROI. With a strategic PPC approach using the main types covered here, advertisers can boost their visibility and website traffic to grow their business.
FAQ
What are the main types of PPC ads?
The main types of PPC ads include search network ads, shopping ads, display network ads, video ads, dynamic search ads, remarketing ads, and lead generation ads. These different formats allow advertisers to promote their business across search engines, websites, videos and social networks.
Where do PPC ads show up?
PPC ads show up on Google and Bing search results pages, display and video networks like Google Display Network, YouTube, and Facebook, as well as shopping sites like Google Shopping and Amazon. Advertisers can target PPC ads to appear on relevant sites and in front of targeted audiences.
How are PPC ads priced?
PPC ads are priced on a cost-per-click (CPC) basis, meaning advertisers only pay when someone clicks their ad. The CPC is based on factors like competition, ad position, quality score and auction price. Impression share bids are also used for some PPC ad formats and placements.
What are the benefits of PPC ads?
Benefits of PPC ads include reaching motivated searchers, targeted visibility beyond just search, various creative options, only paying for results, brand awareness, driving website traffic, remarketing abilities, and collecting leads directly from ads.
How can I get started with PPC ads?
Getting started with PPC requires signing up for an account with a platform like Google Ads, defining campaign goals and settings, creating ads and landing pages, setting a daily budget, bidding on keywords, and launching campaigns. Tracking performance and optimizing over time is key for PPC success.
What makes an effective PPC ad?
Effective PPC ads use compelling and relevant ad copy, tightly targeted keywords, dynamic ad formats, strong call-to-action, optimal ad position, and landing pages tailored to each campaign. Performance should be monitored to refine elements like keywords, bids and creative over time.
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