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Home - Services- Pay Per Click (PPC)

Pay Per Click (PPC)

  • An Internet marketing design in which marketers pay a fee each time one of their ads is clicked.
  • It's a means to buy checkouts to your website rather than trying to "earn" those visits organically.
  • Search engine marketing is among the most popular forms of PPC.
  • It makes it possible for advertisers to bid for advertisement placement in an internet search engine's sponsored links when they look for a keyword related to their business offering.
  • As an example, if we bid on the keyword "PPC software," our ad could appear at the top of the Google results page.
  • Ads can be in the form of:
  • Text based Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs)
  • Display banner advertisement
  • Embedded video
  • Video advertisement within a video (for example on YouTube)
  • Native advertising content (sponsored content)
  • In-app advertising
  • Pop-up advertisement in an app or website

The list of best PPC ad

1. Google Ads

You already know that Google is the most extensive PPC Ad network, with over 78% of the global market share.

Let’s back that up with some numbers so you can get an idea of how that translates into real numbers.

  • 40,000 searches every second
  • 3.5 billion searches every day
  • 1.2 trillion global searches per year

Simply put, it is the most used search engine and the best way to reach most Internet users worldwide. Perhaps except China, which has restricted Google’s services in the People’s Republic.

It has the advantage that anyone you want to target is likely to use Google, so it’s a great platform regardless of your industry.

However, that means your competitors are probably using it, so the Cost Per Click (CPC) on competitive keywords can be prohibitive.

Not only is Google the largest PPC Ad Network, but it also offers a great choice of free tools like Keyword Planner and Google Analytics to assist you in getting the most out of your marketing efforts.

Google’s Display Network is also industry-leading, offering display PPC ads on sites like YouTube, Blogger, and some of the world’s most visited websites.

Pros

  • The most extensive global reach by far
  • Variety of bidding strategies
  • A vast suite of tools to optimize your Pay Per Click Ad Campaign
  • The Display Network has an unbeatable choice of websites

Cons

  • The highest CPC of all the advertisement networks
  • Well-publicized issues with Click Fraud
  • Very competitive

2. Microsoft Advertising (Bing Ads)

Being second is not necessarily a bad thing. We recently took a closer look at Bing Ads, which is now known as Microsoft Advertising, and we think that the second largest PPC platform offers many advantages.

If you’re looking for a Google Ads alternative that offers cheap CPCs (compared to Google) and still has a broad reach, Microsoft Ads could be very tempting. Like Google, Microsoft Ads offers paid search engine results and a selection of popular websites where you can place your video, banner, or content ads.

Although the choice of partner sites for display advertising is not quite as wide as Google’s, the ability to advertise on MSN, Yahoo, and AOL has its advantages.

Another selling point for Microsoft’s PPC Ad Network is that users tend to come from well-off backgrounds.

Some statistics for the Microsoft Ads/Bing Ads PPC Network:

  • 5.4 billion searches a month throughout the platform
  • 36% market share in the U.S.A.
  • 20% market share in the U.K.
  • One third of the worldwide market share

Pros

  • Relatively inexpensive CPC for a PPC Advertisement Network
  • A third of the worldwide search market share
  • High end demographic, especially in the USA
  • Less competition for popular keywords and searches
  • Choice of sponsored SERPs and Display Ads
  • Well suited to B2B Ad Campaigns

Cons

  • Not as much selection for Display Network results as Google.
  • Still attracts a high volume of Click Fraud.

3. Facebook Ads

In third place, Facebook Ads provides a very different but still appealing ad network package. While Google and Microsoft Ads are both search-based, Facebook Ads rely on demographic targeting.

It suggests that a user doesn’t have to actively search to activate your ad. Instead, you can have your ad seen in two of the most extensive social media feeds.

  • Facebook
  • Instagram

Ads can also be displayed in Facebook Messenger and Facebook Audience Network. It is mainly focused on ads within apps. If your business is apps or the kind of thing that targets app users, you might see a good option here.

But it’s that option to advertise on Instagram or in the Facebook feed that’s powerful.

Facebook’s algorithms give you the ability to target specific demographics and interests. And since you’re not showing up in search results, your paid ads appear more like native content.

To remember, Facebook Ads and ads on the FB Network need to be very visual. There are no text-only search results here. Shareable, well-framed, and with catchy, clickable content is what Facebook is all about.

The average CPC for Facebook ads tends to be lower than Google and Bing, with the average being around £1.72.

Pros

  • Outstanding for specific demographic targeting
  • Native content ads can be highly effective
  • Visual web content does best on Facebook Ads, especially with Instagram
  • No need to bid on keywords. Your ad will show to a target demographic whether they search or not
  • Some good options for app developers
  • Relatively cheap CPC ad network

Cons

  • Although Facebook Ads targets a wide age range, it is increasingly an older demographic (over 30s)
  • Advertisement viewers may not have purchasing intent.
  • Mainly B2C-focused ads, although some suggest FB Ads for B2B can also be effective.
  • Facebook can be a controversial platform, and some advertisers are boycotting them at the time of writing.

4. Linkedin Ads

LinkedIn Known as “Facebook for professionals,” Linkedin has steadily gained popularity as a PPC platform. The reason for this is that you can reach a business-savvy and well-educated market that often has strong buying power and intent.

If you’re a B2B service provider, you’ve probably thought about Linkedin Ads before. As with Facebook, you can also target specific demographics. In this case, however, you’re talking about professionals, such as marketers, C-level executives, and business owners.

Just like all the entrances on this list of the best ad networks so far, there is a selection of ways in which your Linkedin Ads can appear:

  • Sponsored posts (in the feed)
  • InMail (direct mailings to specific target customers)
  • Text ads
  • Dynamic ads
  • Display partner network

So what is the average CPC for Linkedin Ads?

LinkedIn requires a minimum bid of £2 for CPC and CPM ads. So it’s already not the ad network with the most inexpensive CPC.

Interestingly, they likewise use a cost per send option for these InMails, with a flat rate for each received mail. It can be as low as £0.10c per send or something like that.

But when it comes to audience quality, at least for B2B marketers, Linkedin is hard to beat.

Pros

  • Excellent access to an audience of active professionals
  • Option for native ads (sponsored content)
  • InMail offers an excellent way for some direct marketing
  • Great demographic targeting

Cons

  • Not the cheapest CPC
  • Only suitable for B2B marketing

5. Taboola

The initial of the dedicated native advertising platforms on our list. You have probably seen Taboola on your favorite news site. The company specializes in sponsored content that fits into the news articles or content displayed on partner sites.

It’s like Google Adsense and the Display Network, but for a carefully curated list of sites.

How does it work for marketers?

If you want your brand name to show up on sites like Business Insider, Forbes, or New York Times, Taboola is a cheap and effective solution.

You need to create engaging content designed to convert (without being spammy, of course). Yes, that means creating a blog post or news article about your product or service.

Your PPC options are either CPM or CPC.

The average CPC for Taboola is usually only a few cents, making it one of the cheapest options for PPC Ad Networks.

Another difference between Taboola and Google’s Display Network/Adsense is that the Taboola network websites must be high quality. It means that all sites on the Taboola network must have more than 1 million visitors per month, while Google Adsense sites can have pretty much any amount of traffic.

Pros

  • Made for content marketing
  • Low CPC compared to other ad networks
  • High-quality sites with high traffic volumes
  • Helpful in retargeting based on what users have clicked online before

Cons

  • Your content marketing game will need to be on point
  • Some see these types of content as intrusive or spammy

6. Outbrain

Taboola now owns Outbrain, so it’s pretty much the same thing. They’re both focused on content marketing, with a selection of high-quality websites.

So, what’s the difference between Outbrain and Taboola?

Taboola websites tend to have more traffic, with industry monsters like Forbes, etc.

Outbrain is still no slouch for displaying your content on its network of publishers. You’ll show up on sites like The Guardian, CNN, Wired, Conde Nast Traveler, and Cosmopolitan.

Outbrain’s average CPC is also lower: reportedly £0.10c, while Taboola’s is closer to £0.45.

Pros

  • Excellent selection of publisher websites
  • Lower CPC than parent ad network Taboola

Cons

  • Like Taboola, people can discover this sponsored content spammy

7. RevContent

Another content suggestion ad platform, similar to Taboola and Outbrain. Although RevContent doesn’t have a selection of high-end sites, it has a good reach with the US audience.

By their admission, they are the fastest-growing native advertising network globally. So, if you’re looking for a platform with growth potential and much less competition, RevContent might be a wise choice.

For a PPC Ad Network with a relatively small reach, you expect the average CPC to be relatively low. However, reports suggest that RevContent’s CPC is about the same as Taboola’s, at about £0.44c per click.

Pros

  • The world’s fastest-growing native PPC Ad Network
  • Not much competition
  • Thousands of partner websites for you to reveal your web content on

Cons

  • RevContent appears to be perceived as a spammy advertisement provider on forums
  • Quite high CPC considering the relatively small portfolio

8. Reddit Ads

Another social media platform that makes a great PPC Ad Network? Yes, but Reddit is another useful niche advertising platform you should have in your arsenal.

What exactly is Reddit? Well, it’s the most significant social forum in the world, and if you’re not up to speed up, you might want to take a look.

There are currently around 330 million monthly active users, with visitors coming for everything from sharing memes to researching business opportunities. Yes, there’s a lot of B2B and B2C potential in this network.

Your ad will be displayed in the form of a Reddit post with “Promoted Post” in the bottom right corner. It means that your ad will usually be seen at the top of a subreddit page or show up in the feed, just like a native promotional post.

Advertising rates on Reddit are reasonable, with prices starting at £1.50 for CPM.

But is it worth it to use Reddit for advertising? The jury is still out, with mixed reviews online. The advantage of adding Reddit to your list of PPC sites is that you can search by community, interests, and location – among other options.

In short, while it hasn’t proven to be the most effective CPC Ad Network, there’s a lot of potentials.

Pros

  • Relatively cost-effective
  • Good targeting options
  • Still quite unsaturated as an ad network

Cons

  • Combined reports about how effective Reddit ads are
  • It could be more effective to post your link as a standard link in a related subreddit without paying for it

9. AdRoll

As one of the largest retargeting advertisement networks, AdRoll is a powerful tool to drive revisits or convert interested visitors into paying customers.

AdRoll works with AI to understand visitor behavior. It bundles your marketing strategy across multiple channels to drive engagement on social media, via email, or through your e-commerce website.

AdRoll’s secret weapon is BidiQ, which analyzes user data across web and social media platforms to serve ads at the best price. You can also use AdRoll to target customers with emails tailored to them, often touted as a critical conversion strategy.

Advertisers can furthermore harness the power of dynamic advertisements. These ads appear with a relevant product after you search for something similar. Although some people find these insane, they have proven quite effective.

If you’re trying to find a method to link your retargeting strategy and you’re wondering if there’s another way (besides Google Advertisements), AdRoll is an excellent choice.

Pros

  • Dedicated retargeting platform with very effective AI
  • Links retargeting across websites, social media your site
  • Discovers the best deal on retargeting ads

Cons

  • A complex system can be hard to get the best results without some severe study
  • Not much control over bidding strategies as AI handles it all
  • Prices differ hugely depending on your ad campaign

10. RTB House

An additional choice for retargeting ad networks is RTB House, a smaller upstart that offers its AI tools brand.

RTB House has access to more sites for retargeting potential but is similar to the larger and more established AdRoll.

As the name suggests, RTB House offers real-time bidding on a wide selection of PPC Ad Networks, all within their platform.

Pricing-wise, RTB House is bid-based only, so you’ll need to get in touch with them to discuss your retargeting ad requirements.

Pros

  • Extensive selection of websites for ad retargeting
  • Similar to AdRoll

Cons

  • No free package

11. Twitter Ads

Back to the social media giants, Twitter Ads is a useful PPC Ad Tool for business owners.

The choices for Twitter Ads are:

  • Promoted Tweets
  • Promoted Accounts
  • Promoted Hashtags
  • Promoted Moments

Twitter then promotes your tweets and gets them to about 30,000 additional people. Most of them speak for themselves. Another option, Promote mode, an automated promotional bidding option that allows you to tweet and carry on as usual.

This can be quite an adequate Pay Per Click method for a flat rate of £99 per month.

As with all social media networks, you can run PPC ads on Twitter based on interests, demographics, and geographic location.

For best results, use visual content or harness the power of Twitter’s Micro-Blogging style.

Pros

  • Twitter is one of the least expensive social media ad networks
  • Powerful demographic targeting
  • It can be helpful for both B2B and B2C
  • Promoting your hashtag can be an effective ad strategy

Cons

  • Cutting through the sound on Twitter can be an effort
  • If you’re not already making use of Twitter, then it might not be so useful

12. Twitch Ads

Here’s a stat for you. 50% of American Millennial Men use Twitch. Yes, Twitch has the prospective to be a substantial advertising network. Do we have your attention?

If you’re not up to speed: Twitch is a live streaming platform built on live gaming. Nowadays, you’ll also find musicians, vloggers, and more live streaming on this fast-growing platform.

Ads on Twitch can appear as:

  • Sponsored posts next to live streams
  • Embedded video on the home page or category pages
  • Text and image box on the side
  • Text and image header

You can also sponsor events (such as tournaments or leagues) or use Twitch SureStream. Both options offer high visibility and bypass things like ad blockers, so your ads are guaranteed to be seen.

There are about 1 million viewers on Twitch at any given time and growing. As Twitch states on its website, this is more than the daily viewers of CNN or MSNBC. So this is a PPC network to watch out for in the future.

In terms of demographics, 81% of Twitch viewers are men, predominantly in the 18-34 age group. Most Twitch viewers are tech-savvy and trust influencers and YouTube stars more than traditional broadcast channels.

One of Twitch’s strengths is that you can choose to have your ads appear in the streams of specific live streamers. It is more affordable than influencer marketing and slightly more targeted than traditional PPC Ad Networks.

It is a channel that has been recognized for its powerful potential and is now being used regularly by some brands. For you as a market expert, this means that advertising on Twitch is not as cheap as it used to be.

Pros

  • Target a young, tech-savvy, and mostly male demographic
  • Deals potential for influencer partnership style advertising for a fraction of the cost
  • Some interesting Pay Per Click adoptions
  • Something for everybody with regards to advertising, with high-end sponsorship options or more affordable display advertisements

Cons

  • High quality (i.e., expensive) advertisements work best, usually video
  • Some ad channels such as homepage ads can be costly for small businesses

13. AdNow

Another native advertising content platform AdNow provides access to over 160,000 publishers. By offering real-time bidding through AdNow, advertisers can run Native Content Ads or Banner Ads.

The ability to run both banner and native ads from one publisher can be beneficial. Publishers who use AdNow are often the types you don’t see on Taboola, Outbrain, or RevContent. This is because AdNow is less strict about the publishers it accepts.

That doesn’t necessarily mean poor quality sites, but it implies a reach that those advertisement platforms don’t offer.

A selling factor for advertisers is the low CPC, around 3 to 6 cents per click, while CPM is up to around £2.

Pros

  • Native content and banner ads
  • Websites not seen on some of the more significant native content ad sites
  • Relatively cheap CPM and CPC for a PPC network

Cons

  • Some reports that ad high quality is not as good as bigger competitors
  • Less stringent screening for websites

14. AdRecover

The number of users using ad blockers has increased in recent years, with browser extension options to block ads. But this intelligent PPC Ad Network offers the potential to bypass ad blockers with fully allowed and non-intrusive ads.

Data shows that the demographic probably to use ad blockers are millennials, so using AdRecover offers your ads the potential to be seen by this high-value audience.

AdRecover claims that all ads are non-intrusive, and many of them are displayed “above the fold” without slowing downloading speed.

It is done with static or text-based ads, so there are no video or banner ads here.

There is no data online about the average cost of using AdRecover for advertisers. But they suggest that to use AdRecover, your monthly media spend should be £10,000. It might not be the most excellent solution for SMBs, but it could be a valuable way to target millennials for established and growing businesses.

Pros

  • Obtain your ads seen by users who use ad blockers, who are usually millennials
  • Non-intrusive ads only
  • Their data suggests high CTR and conversion rates

Cons

  • It might not be suitable for low budget PPC ad campaigns
  • No display or video ads

Choosing the best Pay Per Click ad network for your ad strategy

As we have seen, there is a wide choice of ad networks for advertisers, and choosing the best one is not so easy. The best all-rounder is Google Ads, as it offers the largest search engine for ads and the Display Network with the broadest selection.

If you’re looking for a platform that targets a specific audience or a PPC Ad Channel with less competition, this list may have given you some ideas.

Such as, if you want to target business professionals, Linkedin Ads might be the best choice for you. Or, if you’re thinking about using PPC Ads with native content, hopefully, one of our suggestions could be your solution.

Remember that Click Fraud is constantly a risk with paid ads, so protect your Google, Facebook, and Bing Ads with ClickCease. Try out with a free trial, and make sure those pesky bots and scammers are blocked…!