Budgeting for Better Google Pay-Per-Click Results

Getting started with a Google pay-per-click campaign can seem pretty easy: type in ad, choose keywords, set budget and bids, and voila! Instant website traffic! However, if you don’t determine and manage your budget wisely, your results may be less than satisfactory.

The most important thing to do with your advertising budget is to be realistic.  Know how much you really can afford, and set your budget within that range.  You should also consider the time-line for your campaign.  You may want to generate a lot of traffic for your web-site quickly, like for an upcoming holiday season or an event, or advertise over a much longer period, spanning months or years.  

If you budget too high, you’ll fly through your money too quickly, or even money you don’t have.  Too low of a budget just may not generate enough traffic to justify your campaign. 

What are your options?

With Google pay-per-click, you get to chose whether you want to control your spending on a daily or monthly basis.  The daily budget helps you maintain a predictable rate at which your money is spent.  On the other hand, a monthly budget allows for more spending if there are more seekers, as the money spent isn’t limited by day.  It really depends on the extent of control you want or need.

The other crucial option facing your Google pay-per click advertising budget is the ad delivery method: standard or accelerated.  Your ad impressions are viewed at an even pace through-out the day (or month) with standard delivery.  This gives you more power over how often the ads are shown.  Accelerated ad delivery shows your ads as quickly as possible.  This is great for a surge of traffic, but can also use up your money very quickly, so it must be monitored.

Staying focused on your advertising goals and paying close attention to all your budget options will get you better results with your Google pay-per-click campaign.