by Idea Lab

An effective way to achieve high rankings in the search results of major search engines is to invest in Pay Per Click (PPC) keyword advertising.

PPC advertising is often implemented when:

• a website’s organic listings aren’t drawing enough traffic
• a company wants to improve its brand recognition and visibility
• a company needs to keep up with competitors who are using PPC advertising to promote select services or products
• a website needs quick infusion of traffic
• a website has a time-sensitive promotion or other specifically targeted campaign

At present, there are two main companies offering PPC advertising: Google AdWords and Overture’s Precision Match. Google AdWords will display the website ads both in Google and AOL search results. Overture’s Precision Match will display the website ads in both Yahoo and MSN search results. Implementing PPC campaigns on both AdWords and Overture will ensure the ads are displayed in search results of the four major search engines.

In addition to AdWords and Overture there are several “second tier” pay per click services that might be worth consideration. These companies are cheaper to advertise with, but also have less traffic so fewer users see the ads. For a listing of these services, please visit Search Engine Watch’s second tier listing.

Instead of going through a tutorial here on how to set-up and run a PPC campaign for both Google and Overture, take the interactive tour offered by each company and read an article online about each. In addition, read the two articles from GreatChurchWebsites.org that will take you through from start to finish how to set-up and create a PPC campaign in each.

Google AdWords
Tutorial
Google AdWords Website
(click “Sign-up Demo”)

Article
Promoting your site: Google AdWords

Overture Precision Match
Tutorial
Overture Website (click “How Overture Precision Match Works”)

Article
Promoting your site: Overture/Yahoo