The Time Is Right For PPC Advertising

For sports fans the reality of targeted advertising has always been a part of any big sporting event. Rotating billboards at pitch-side, sponsored kits and even logos sprayed onto a playing surface are all now part and parcel of most sports. The most obvious targeted marketing in sport, the half time commercial, has also hit the headlines this year for all the wrong reasons. Motor racing fans have always complained about the ads that interrupt a race but this year football fans have complained, especially Everton and Liverpool fans that missed a goal in a crucial Derby game as the programme cut to an ad break.

But this type of targeted marketing is necessary as it reaches the biggest audience, creates the most revenue for TV companies and advertisers alike and creates brand awareness amongst crucial demographic groups. For PPC advertising the principle is exactly the same but it's surprising how few people are using it to its full potential. Targeting a PPC campaign cleverly can be the difference between success and failure, especially for smaller companies.

In the same way that television, radio and printed media advertising can be used in a targeted fashion to ensure that the correct audience is reached so too can PPC, or Pay Per Click, advertising. There may not be the opportunity for a half time ad break but there is certainly the ability to target a PPC campaign so that it is focussed on a particular location or time and not just on the keywords that are the fundamental building blocks of any PPC campaign.

Although online advertising is fast becoming recognised as the important tool it undoubtedly is companies are still slow to exploit it for all it's worth. Because of the vast difference between traditional advertising and the new online marketing there is a reluctance to jump in and take advantage. Many creative people also see PPC as less important because of the lack of a prominent visual, but they are missing the point. PPC holds as much of a challenge, creatively, as any newspaper advert.

At the end of the day any successful advertising campaign is based on return on investment and this is where PPC has an advantage over traditional media. It is hard to say, for much printed advertising, how much of an effect it has on sales, indeed for many large companies advertising is just a way of keeping a profile rather than generating sales. PPC can be monitored to such an extent that its effectiveness can be measured and its strengths and weaknesses can be highlighted. This information can then be used to fine tune the campaign and totally eradicate any areas that are not performing.

The area that is set to improve in the future is that of time targeted PPC. It is known that over half of us are more receptive to advertising after 6pm so there is obviously some room for investigation there. Combine this with factors like which day of the week works best, weekend campaigns and late night PPC and many companies may find that they are casting their net too wide and need to rethink their strategy.

As traditional media continues to suffer as a result of the economic downturn and advertising revenue drops off, companies may start to turn to PPC as a more cost effective way of spending their budgets as it offers an opportunity to make sure that every penny spent is used to best effect.

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