Pay Per Click or Pay Per Human Browser?

Pay Per Click advertising has been around a few years now. Pay per click is a multi million dollar industry which, as yet, is still in its infancy. There is no telling how big PPC will become in the future, but there are certainly many young players in the business, and new PPC search engines appearing all the time. Should we use the smaller PPC search engines? Should we use PPC advertising at all?

Is Pay Per Click Advertising a Valuable Tool?

From a personal point of view, the answer to that is a simple "yes". Quite simply, I have used pay per click advertising since 2003, and have got some excellent results. Those results have been mixed, of course, with some very bad results too. But that's advertising for you, online or offline. You try, you test, you monitor, you experiment, all the time aiming to get better and better results.

The basic advantage of pay per click is built into its name. Your ad will cost you nothing, except when somebody clicks on it to go to your website. Imagine being able to do that in the offline world: place an ad in a glossy magazine, and only pay each time somebody sends for a brochure or calls your sales hotline. I used to sell advertising in glossy magazines. Advertisers can spend $3000 on an ad and get no response. A small business can spend $500 on an ad and get no response, really hurting their business cash flow in the process.

In principle, pay per click is a wonderful idea, but the real problem is in the quality, and the quality can be watered down so easily by fraud. Remember, you are paying for a click. That click could be automated, it could be a genuine person looking for a product like yours, or it could be someone clicking because they are being paid to click.

Pay per click advertising is a valuable tool, but you need to monitor with care.

Is 9 Cents Per Click Cheaper Than 1 Cent Per Click?

My first use of pay per click advertising was with Google Adwords, followed a month or two later by Overture. I have always liked Google Adwords, and it is still my favourite today. It combines high quality clicks, with ease of use and a comprehensive amount of useful management information to help your campaigns. To me, it is way above the others, including Overture.

Once I had campaigns set up at Overture and Adwords I let them run, and it was quite a few months before I started to research the smaller PPC companies. Many of the newer entrants in the field offer tempting starting credits and bids as low as 1 cent per click. I must admit, a year ago I was quite excited about getting loads of clicks at a cent a time.

The old saying "you get what you pay for" did not enter my head at the beginning, but it soon came to mind as I saw those 1 cent payments rocket. I tried several of the newer PPC search engines, but two in particular just zipped through my funds, and unlike Google Adwords, you could not set a daily budget.

I decided to take a closer look at my website stats to see what was happening to those 1 cent clicks. What I did was compare one of the new PPC search engines I was using, with Google Adwords. The comparison was based on whether a visitor to the landing page immediately exited again, or whether they browsed other pages on the site. The landing pages were identical.

I already knew Google Adwords provided genuine visitors, as I first used them for a real estate website, and the ads led to sales; big money for small outlay. In effect, I was using Adwords as my proven control.

The results of the comparison were very convincing. Over a one month period the following happened:

1. From small PPC X, 1187 entered the landing page and 1165 of those exited the site from the same page. That's 98 % were a quick in and out.

2. From Google Adwords, 161 entered the landing page, of whom only 44 exited from the same page. That's 27% were a quick in and out.

As you can see, only 2% of the "X" visitors bothered looking around the website. If I had got the same result from Google, then I could just say it was because it was a lousy landing page. But I did not. 73% of the Google visitors went on to have a good look around the website, that's 36 times better.

So, what do we make of these figures? I used the same keywords for "X" and Google, so I should have had similar results. I have to conclude that "X" was sending very poor quality traffic, Google it's usual high standard.

I then worked out the more realistic cost per browser ie the cost of each visitor who stayed at the website and looked around. With "X" I was paying 1 cent per click, and with Google an average 9 cents per click. You will see from the following table the cost per browser for Google worked out much cheaper than "X", less than 1 quarter the price in fact:

1. The 22 people who stayed on the website to browse from "X" cost $11.87, or $0.54 per browser.

1. The 117 people who stayed on the website to browse from Google cost $14.49, or $0.12 per browser.

On the surface, it might always seem the smaller search engines are cheaper. However, it is wise to monitor the reality. If you want real visitors to your website, ensure that is what you are getting. Would you rather pay 12 cents for a genuine visitor or 54 cents?

These results are, of course, from one test. You may get different results. I think the lesson here is to monitor very closely what is happening with your paid for clicks. Cheap may mean expensive; expensive may mean cheap but good value.

All is not what it seems when you compare prices of Pay Per Click search engines.

Roy Thomsitt is the owner, webmaster and author of http://www.change-direction.com, a new website in late 2004, about working online in a home based business. He has a background in offline advertising, with practical experience of working from home in marketing since 1995, plus 2 years of experience with online marketing. He has a substantial background in financial and project management, implementing new office, accounting, computer and management systems. He is an English expat, now resident in the Philippines.

Wood Dale Chicago prom limo .. Lockport Chicago limo O’Hare
In The News:

Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents
Internet browsers are useful, but they can be dangerous. Clicking on malicious links can direct you to dangerous websites that steal information or infect your device.
Apple's latest iOS update introduces advanced artificial intelligence capabilities, which may be capturing and analyzing sensitive information.
Breach site confirmed 56,904,909 Hot Topic users' data leaked online. Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson says the company's silence makes matters even worse.
Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson discusses how an innovative Easy-Way kit turns standard strollers electric, simplifying navigation for parents.
Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson talks about T-Mobile being hacked in broad cyberattack on global phone and internet companies.
Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson shows you how to add, customize and manage widgets for quick access to apps and info from your iPhone home screen.
Wrong Google searches can not only compromise your device and personal data. They can also bring law enforcement to your doorstep. Hackers are targeting Google searches.
China's Shanghai Kepler Robotics has developed a new humanoid robot that can carry up to 35 pounds per hand for commercial applications across various industries
Checking your hearing has gotten easier with the new hearing test feature in AirPods Pro 2. You can take reliable hearing tests using your iPhone or iPad.
Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.
Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson explains how a VPN — virtual private network — works and how running it can slow down the operation of your device.
The WalkON Suit F1, an exoskeleton developed to help people with disabilities, can actually walk over to a person in a wheelchair, solving a major problem.
ClickFix, a new scam targeting computer users, is on the rise in the U.S. The scam prompts its targets to click on a link to fix a problem.
Skydweller is the world's largest unmanned solar-powered aircraft that can stay airborne for weeks, and even months, without refueling.
The U.S. government said it is investigating after People's Republic of China hackers targeted commercial telecommunications service providers in the U.S.
Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.
Scammers are using increasingly sophisticated ways to lure unsuspecting victims, and some are impersonating an email help desk or support team.
You can unsend or edit your iMessages with the latest iOS updates. Kurt the CyberGuy explains how you can save yourself some potential embarrassment.
Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson says there’s been a rise in cybercriminal services using hacked police and government emails to send subpoenas and data requests to U.S. companies.
Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson discusses how Axiom Space and luxury designer Prada are collaborating on NASA's Artemis III spacesuit design.
Voice assistants may cause confusion across devices. Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson offers some solutions to fix it.
Shameless scammers trick veterans into giving personal info or cash. Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson explores five common scams.
Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson helps you honor our heroes with these powerful podcasts, audiobooks and documentaries this Veterans Day.

Local Business Advertising & Google Adwords

"I don't need the Internet to advertise - I'm a... Read More

How To Screen Your Visitors When Using Pay Per Click Advertising

If you are using pay per click advertising, I don't... Read More

MSN PPC Advertising Network Finally Debuts

MSN PPC Advertising Long-Awaited Debut Announced You probably already know... Read More

Adwords & Adsense: A Beginners Guide

The Mechanism First a brief glossary of terms: Adwords: The... Read More

The Truth - Adsense Click Fraud Can NOT be Stopped

Your probably reading this article because you use Google Adwords... Read More

Pay-Per-Click Fraud Exposed--Part II

According to Andy Jones, a member of the Best Practices... Read More

How to Waste Money and Annoy Potential Customers

Why do some companies bid on keywords for products they... Read More

What The Adsense Top Earners Are Doing To Constantly Increase Their Earnings

It is really frustrating, is it not, to log into... Read More

Get Real-time Adsense Channel Stats And Find Out Which Ads Are Being Clicked

If you have multiple sites or multiple directories in your... Read More

Making Google Adsense Work For You

If you have been online for quiet some time you... Read More

Pay Per Click Search Engine Marketing - Starting A Campaign

Pay per click advertising is an on-going and growing arsenal... Read More

Surefire Google Adwords Formula

Success with Google Adwords isn't quite as easy as some... Read More

What They Never Told You About Adsense!

That's right! Many webmasters are getting suckered into joining adsense... Read More

Six Golden Rules Of Pay Per Click Marketing Campaign

What are pay per click engines?Pay per click engines as... Read More

Creating Revenue Without Much Effort, Set It And Forget It Online

Earning more revenue from your website is the goal of... Read More

Earning from PPC Search Engine Affiliate Programs

What are PPC Search Engines?PPC Search Engines are search engines... Read More

Five Steps to Profit from Google Adwords

Although I was marketing online since 1997 and was making... Read More

Google for Resellers: Leveling the Resell Playing Field

With so many people trying to make money on the... Read More

Per Click - Do They Know Something We Dont?

I have utilized pay-per-click (PPC) advertising since its inception about... Read More

4 Steps To A Successful AdWords Campaign

Not getting the satisfaction you want from your AdWords account?... Read More

The AdSense Formula for Making Money

I often get asked what the secret is to making... Read More

Discover the Art of the Pay per Click Start (Round 2 of 2)

Starting an ultimately effective pay-per-click campaign is difficult. Although the... Read More

$1 Million in Google AdSense Earnings

They are calling him the million dollar man. Jason Calacanis... Read More

AdWords Campaign Set Up AdvancedTips

Make Your Ads DifferentYour completed AdWords ads are going to... Read More

Advertising Click Fraud Rampant Online?

"Pay-per-click," by far the most popular form of online advertising,... Read More

Antigo wedding limo ..