Looking beyond PPC
PPC (pay per click) advertising has become an incredibly popular form of online advertising in the past four years. However, there are many downsides to PPC.
The main problem with PPC is that while people may be interested in the type of product you’re offering they may not be necessarily interested in your specific offer. For example, if you want to advertise window blinds you could put up a Google adwords ad for “window blinds??? “white window blinds??? etc. However, the problem is when someone searches for those keywords they will probably want to comparison shop before they buy to find the best deal or the highest quality, etc.
As a result your adswords ad may get lots clicks but little or no conversions. If you’re paying $1 a click or more this can be very problematic because the costs can mount quickly. There could be a fundamental flaw in your ad copy that you’re completely oblivious to that results in not getting any conversions. Or maybe your competitors offer a better deal that you simply can’t match without sacrificing profitability.
If you’ve just launched a new business or want to promote an affiliate product what is a marketing strategy that doesn’t involve PPC? Here is a very important rule:
TO SELL SUCCESSFULLY THE CUSTOMER MUST HAVE AS FEW CHOICES A POSSIBLE
This strategy worked wonders with Pfizer in the 90’s with the launch Viagra. If someone wanted a pill to treat erectile dysfunction their only option was viagra and as a result Pfizer made billions.
The same rule applies to the success of Microsoft and Intel. If someone wants to buy a computer they only have three choices for the opperating Microsoft, Linux, and Mac OS and only two choices for the microprocessor; AMD or Intel.
Why does PPC violate this rule? Because surfers not only sees your ad but all your competitors so he will just click around. Maybe he will buy from your site, but often he won’t. He has too many choices. And unless you bid high enough your ad may not be seen at all because it will be below the fold or on page 2 or 3. Meanwhile, your spending lots of money on clicks. Why not make YOUR site the only choice?
Thats why I recommend advertising via flyers because your potential customer will only be able to see your ad. He won’t be surrounded by ads from other competing companies, as is the case with PPC. This improves the chance the prospect will call the number on your flyer of visit your website and complete the sale, which equates to a higher conversion rate and better use of ad dollars.
Overall, I’m not advocating abandoning PPC. For many businesses PPC works wonders. But if you’re running into difficulties converting PPC traffic you may want to consider the rule I outlined to optimize your ad dollars instead of wasting them on non converting clicks.
One Response to “Looking beyond PPC”
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Comment from Douche
Time September 3, 2007 at 10:44 pm
Best.Blog.Ever.