What do YOU want to learn about PPC?

[cactus_jeanl]

For those of you out there attending our Boot Camp in October (and if you're not, you don't know what you're missing!), I will be co-presenting a PPC session covering the top 10 DON'TS of PPC marketing. We're planning a fun & informative session that will help you avoid the pitfalls many marketers face when they start advertising on the search engines.

My question for all of you is, are there areas of PPC that you struggle with? Things you don't quite understand? What do you want to learn more about? Help me shape the presentation into something that will benefit everyone!

[erikko]

i can't understand how to determine the right keywords for me to target something

[cactus_jeanl]

Hi Erikko,

It can be tricky at times to decide what keywords are worth your money! My advice would be to turn to some keyword research tools, like the free ones that Google, Yahoo & MSN offer. You can enter your core product categories in and find other variations on those words that you can bid on. I believe all 3 engines also give you the option of entering a URL and will provide keyword suggestions based on that.

In the end, you want to find out what kind of keywords users are using the describe the product or service you are offering and target those words.

[erikko]

i'll try and follow your advice cactus_jean. sorry for the long reply though

[naturalwoof]

Hello-
2 questions....when is the next boot camp or any conferences like this one that you may know of?
I just started a yahoo store and did everything i could think of as far as SEO, keywords, etc. I feel like I am missing something as I am still not coming up on searches. What does it mean to "bid on keywords"?
HELP!!!! Need marketing help!
Thanks,
Emily

[cactus_jeanl]

Originally Posted by naturalwoof

Hello-
2 questions....when is the next boot camp or any conferences like this one that you may know of?
I just started a yahoo store and did everything i could think of as far as SEO, keywords, etc. I feel like I am missing something as I am still not coming up on searches. What does it mean to "bid on keywords"?
HELP!!!! Need marketing help!
Thanks,
Emily

Hi Emily!

Solid Cactus hosts their Boot Camps roughly every 6 months. We just had one in October, so I would look for the next one to be in the spring.

When I say "bid" on keywords, I'm referring to Pay Per Click marketing, or PPC. It's different from SEO, though it does also take place on the search engines. When you are doing SEO, you're optimizing for the natural results. Those are what Google has ranked as the best results for the keyword you searched. When you search a product or category, take a look at the listings on the side, and sometimes on the top that are labeled "sponsored listings". Those are not SEO related, but are spots you can actually buy! You create ads and bid on the keywords you want to show for, and Google (along with Yahoo, MSN & many other engines) will show your ads if your bidding is competitive.

Here are a couple of resources explaining PPC:

Pay per click - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
https://adwords.google.com/support/b...6084&topic=115
Pay Per Click Management - Solid Cactus

SEO is a long term strategy, so if you've only been at it a few months, this might be why you're not seeing yourself in the search engines yet. PPC is a nice supplement to SEO since you can get your ads showing in a matter of hours, rather than months. Let me know if this helps!