What Is PPC Management? 

PPC marketing (short for pay-per-click) is a key part of most businesses' digital marketing strategy. However, not every marketing team has the time or workforce to tackle the day-to-day tasks required to run successful PPC campaigns.

That's where PPC management comes in! Hiring a PPC agency to oversee PPC campaigns and develop strategies to maximize ROI while letting you get back to running your business.

In this helpful guide, we'll explain PPC management and why it's crucial for your company. But before we dive in, let's make sure you have a good understanding of PPC marketing itself.

What is PPC Marketing?

Pay-per-click (PPC) marketing—PPC for short—is a method of internet advertising in which advertisers are charged a small fee every time their ad is clicked to reach their target audience. Advertisers aren't charged when users see the ad, only when they click through to a landing page. It's a popular form of digital advertising used on search engines and social media platforms.

The most widely used form is search engine advertising via Google Ads. The platform allows advertisers to pay for their web pages to appear on a search engine results page.

Instead of ranking organically through search engine optimization, these sponsored links rank through complex algorithms. Advertisers bid on keywords, which vary widely in price based on competition, to receive ad placement on relevant searches.

What is PPC Management?

PPC management refers to the efforts required to oversee a company's PPC strategy and PPC ads spend. This can be done by a member of your in-house marketing team or by an external PPC management company like PPC Masterminds.

The goal of effective PPC management is to keep your digital marketing endeavors running smoothly and create the most effective PPC ad campaigns possible. Using a strategic, data-driven approach, they'll improve account performance and boost ROI.

What does PPC management include?

Wondering what services a PPC management company can provide your business? Here are some essential components of successful PPC management, whether it's done in-house or by an experienced agency.

Campaign Setup and Strategy

Effective PPC management begins with a strategic campaign setup, which is crucial for achieving targeted results. The process involves selecting the right keywords that align with your business goals and audience searches and setting appropriate budget limits to control costs effectively. Determining your target demographics is essential to tailor your ads precisely. Moreover, a thorough competitor analysis provides insights into successful strategies, helping you craft campaigns that can outperform rivals in your niche. This holistic approach ensures that every element of your PPC campaign is optimized for maximum impact and return on investment.

Ad Creation and Optimization

Ad creation and optimization are pivotal elements in PPC management, focusing on developing compelling ad copy that speaks directly to the target audience's needs and interests. The creative process involves not just writing engaging text but also designing visually appealing ads that capture attention and convey the message effectively. To ensure these ads perform optimally, continuous A/B testing is essential. This involves experimenting with different versions of an ad to see which performs better and adjusting accordingly.

Additionally, quality score analysis is conducted regularly. This assesses the relevance and quality of both the ads and their corresponding landing pages, helping to refine strategies and improve overall ad effectiveness. These strategies are vital for boosting click-through rates and improving conversion rates, ultimately leading to a more effective PPC campaign.

Keyword Research & Analysis

Choosing the right target keywords and ad groups can make all the difference in reaching your target audience. Carefully selected keywords will help your ads appear on highly relevant search results pages and drive clicks.

A digital marketing agency can perform keyword research and analysis. Using keyword research tools, they'll help prioritize your most lucrative keywords and discover new keyword ideas. These keyword ideas can also be applied to your SEO content. It's also vitally important to find negative keywords, which are used to filter out unneeded traffic.

Competitive Analysis

Competitive analysis is a key part of PPC strategy development. Understanding what your competitors are doing can help improve your strategy and differentiate your ad content. Here are a few things your PPC manager will take note of:

Keyword selection

First, you'll need to determine what keywords your competitors are targeting— and which ones they're not. If your competition is bidding aggressively on a particular keyword, it's likely a high-quality word or phrase you'll want to start bidding on too.

Ad copy

Many competitor research tools also provide insight into your competitors' ad copy. What headlines, calls to action, and key selling points are they prioritizing?

Landing pages

Are you struggling to create compelling landing pages? Your PPC manager may want to examine the design, copy, and calls to action on your competitors' pages.

Bing Search Ads (Microsoft advertising)

Google is always the first choice, but for some businesses, Bing performs just as well.

Other Ad platforms

Our PPC managers work with all kinds of channels, and managing your PPC account doesn't mean sticking with just one. We will also provide you with our recommendations and move forward based on your discussions.

Landing Page Creation & Optimization

Landing pages— the web page a user is sent to after clicking on your PPC ad— can make or break your paid advertising efforts. A PPC management agency can help you create strong pages that drive conversions. PPC Masterminds is staffed by a diverse team of copywriters, designers, and analysts who can help with landing page design, headline and body copy, CTAs, and more.

PPC Campaign Monitoring

The primary function of effective PPC campaign management is to oversee PPC campaigns and keep ad accounts running smoothly. Here are a few day-to-day management services a PPC campaign expert will oversee:

Google Ads Account Monitoring

Your Google Ads account can be quite intimidating to tackle on your own. To save time and minimize stress, your PPC manager will oversee the day-to-day tasks required to run your Google Ads account. They'll create and monitor campaigns, manage bids, and take advantage of Google Ads' reporting and analytics tools to ensure you have a successful PPC campaign.

Bid Optimization & Adjustments

Your account manager will monitor the keyword performance of your current campaigns to ensure you're prioritizing your most profitable keywords and sticking to your marketing budget. They'll tweak audience segmentation and adjust bids based on ad campaign performance.

Ad Spend Management

A good account manager is one who sticks to your marketing budget and keeps you on track for your targeted ad spend. They'll check ad spend trends at the beginning of the month, pace budgets, and adjust campaigns based on performance.

Campaign Optimization & Testing

In addition to creating and monitoring your active campaigns, a PPC management company should also test them. Testing different ad copy, headlines, and landing page designs creates the best ad experience possible. It's an essential part of conversion rate optimization (CRO).

Google Ads makes testing easy with their responsive ads feature. By creating multiple variations of the same ad, you'll learn which combination provides the best ROI. A digital marketing agency can also use A/B testing and other tools like heat maps, surveys, and focus groups to improve your PPC campaigns.

Analytics & Reporting

Analytics is one of the most important PPC management services an agency offers. It's crucial to understand how your campaigns performed and how much money was spent. Your PPC manager should regularly report on monthly ad spend, progress toward your marketing goals, and these key metrics:

• Conversion rate
• Cost per click (CPC)
• Cost per acquisition (CPA)
• Return on ad spend (ROAS)
• Total impressions and total clicks

Here at PPC Masterminds, we provide our clients with real-time reports about ad performance, monthly ad spending, and the results of recent testing efforts. Unlike other digital marketing agencies, we won't keep you in the dark or overwhelm you with countless reports. Instead, we'll work as an extension of your in-house marketing team to ensure everyone stays in the loop.

Google Ads Account Audit

An account manager can also audit your account. By identifying and diagnosing problems, they'll keep your campaigns running smoothly and your account in tip-top shape.

Manage Other Types of PPC Ads

While Google Ads may be the most popular form of PPC advertising, it's not the only one out there. In addition to paid search advertising, an agency can help run other forms of PPC ads:

• Remarketing/retargeting ads
• Paid social media advertising
• Video advertising
• Gmail sponsored ads
• Google Shopping campaigns
• Bing Ads & other search engines
• Amazon Advertising

Should my business hire a PPC management agency?

Still unsure about investing in PPC expert management services? Here are a few benefits of working with an agency like PPC Masterminds on your paid search campaigns.

Gain Valuable Insight & Expertise

Whether they're consulting to support your marketing team or taking over your campaigns entirely, a PPC company can provide valuable insight into the complexities of PPC marketing. Choose a digital marketing agency that specializes in PPC management to ensure you get the best expertise possible.

PPC Masterminds is staffed by a diverse team of account managers, copywriters, designers, analysts, and digital marketing experts. Working alongside your in-house team, they'll provide insight and expertise that takes your PPC campaigns to the next level.

Save Time

Paid search advertising can be incredibly tedious and time-consuming, especially if you're new to the world of PPC. Hiring a PPC management company can help you save time while still meeting your monthly marketing goals. Instead of getting caught up in the day-to-day tasks of overseeing your PPC campaigns, you can get back to running your business.

Outperform Your Competitors

PPC advertising is essential if you want to outperform your competitors in today's digital age. Account managers can provide insight into your competitors' strategies and develop campaigns that outperform them. They'll help with competitive keyword bidding, landing page development, retargeting, and more.

Choosing Between In-House and Agency PPC Management

Choosing between managing PPC campaigns in-house and hiring an agency involves balancing the advantages and disadvantages related to cost and performance.

Managing PPC campaigns in-house offers direct control over strategies and the ability to make quick adjustments. It fosters a deeper brand knowledge among the team, which can lead to highly tailored ad campaigns. However, the in-house approach requires substantial investments. Companies need to hire and retain employees who are not only skilled in PPC but are also continually updated on the latest digital marketing trends and platform changes. This necessitates ongoing training and sometimes certifications in new technologies and strategies. Additionally, to compete effectively at the highest levels, businesses must invest in advanced tools and software for data analysis, bid management, and campaign tracking, which can be costly.

On the other hand, hiring an agency provides access to a team of experienced professionals who bring a breadth of knowledge and resources from working across various industries. Agencies maintain an up-to-date grasp of the latest PPC trends and technologies, providing your campaigns with a competitive advantage in the marketplace. They can scale efforts quickly and are typically more cost-effective for companies without a dedicated marketing team. The drawbacks may include less day-to-day control over the campaigns and potential misalignments in business understanding and goals.

Ultimately, the choice depends on your firm’s specific needs, resources, and the complexity of the PPC campaigns envisioned. Before deciding, consider factors like budget, control preferences, resources, existing marketing expertise, and the strategic importance of PPC to your overall marketing goals.

How much does PPC management cost?

As with all marketing services, there's no easy answer. Most businesses only spend a few thousand per month on PPC advertising, but many larger companies spend upwards of $25,000 per month. The cost of PPC management services varies widely based on the following factors:

• Sticking with your in-house marketing team vs. hiring a PPC agency
• The size of your business and the industry you're in
• The complexity of your PPC marketing efforts
• The size and quality of the agency you're working with

The best PPC management company is one that sticks to your monthly ad budget. While some agencies work at a fixed monthly rate, others charge based on your monthly ad spend.

We understand that not all PPC accounts are the same and that every business needs reliable, quality traffic to ensure its long-term success.

At PPC Masterminds, we take a contract-free approach that can easily adapt to your business's ever-changing marketing goals and monthly budget. Don't waste your money on another PPC agency, get new customers consistently with our 5 star rated ppc campaign strategies.