The trend in the paid search management industry is for pay per click or paid search management companies to charge the merchant for management fees based on the merchants costs associated with each engine or otherwise specified as their PPC budget. When I received my Google qualified professionals certification I was included with a wide group of managers throughout the industry that had to face the question of how to charge the merchants for the service of managing their Google, Overture, and other paid search accounts.
The problem I am finding is that pay per click management companies who are charging merchants based on their budget have an opportunity to inflate that budget based on practices that could be overlooked or unquestioned by a merchant. Some of these “tricks” due increase unwanted traffic as well as the costs associated with obtaining that traffic through each engine. Examples of PPC Budget Inflation Issues
1) Non specific targeting of keywords
Improper attribution of negative keyword additions to campaigns
Improper use of broad, phrase, and exact math options within engines
Improper ad copy, discreet use of negative ad copy qualifiers
Inciting non qualified clicks to the account
Improper use and placement of content or image ads
2) Inflating keyword CPC (Cost per click) to abnormal competitor levels, inflating the merchants cost and ultimately budget.
There was one account in particular I remember managing, our average cpc (Cost per click) was about .080 cents, there were not any keywords that were over $1.00 per click. The campaign was running smoothly, until a competitor came into our category and placed their ads in first position at $30.00 per CLICK! I did find out that the account was in fact being managed by a company that charges based on the merchants budget. I doubt the merchant knew they were getting uh, over charged for their ad placement!
Another client came to me and asked me to look over their Google Adwords campaign to determine any issues; much to my surprise the company they had hired had added the same keywords three different times to their account in broad match, phrase match, and also exact match. The company was charging the merchant based on how many keywords they had to manage, so the management company added all of the merchant’s keywords three times!
It is important to receive reports from your paid search Management Company or team, which should include the placement, cost, match type, and conversion of each keyword. It is also helpful to see a competitor report or concerning their keyword activities as well as the average cost for that specific keyword in the specific engine to compare against current costs. Hiring a Paid Search Management Company
It is important to look for qualities in a management company that will benefit as well as ensure the success for your paid search account. A company that first asks to assess your current accounts and a company who can hand you an analysis concerning sales and cost projections ultimately would be able to give you insight to your programs success BEFORE you start your campaigns. Goals and objectives as well as conversion rates, landing page identification, and proper campaign set up as well as the management’s communication with you are all important factors when hiring a paid search management companies.
Hand management is great for smaller accounts; larger keyword campaign accounts across multiple engines can also be run effectively with the assistance of an API (Application program interface) many paid search management companies use an API for larger accounts. API’s are not the end all for management and can be quite complex concerning their abilities. However working with a company that offers you not only an API but a choice in API’s shows their flexibilities concerning abilities to manage. Atlas One point (Formally Go Toast) is one of the most comprehensive API’s available today. However configuring the rules bidding takes someone who has been trained or well versed in managing the application to manage it effectively and the costs associated with the use of an API can be exorbitant if you are requesting hourly updates for thousands of keywords.
The practices concerning keyword management companies charging clients based on their spend or based on the amount of keywords that need to be managed can be best solved by hiring a pay per click or a paid search management company that charges each client based on their overall needs concerning launch and assessing the amount of hours needed to fulfill the management requirements based on that assessment. Including whether or not the client will require hand management or an API management solution. You should request and receive a proposal that includes hours, persons on the team as well as their qualifications.
Merchants interested in streamlining their paid search accounts have many options, how those options are managed and ultimately charged is left to the discretion of the merchant; and that choice ultimately leads the merchant to amazing profits or unnecessary costs.
Pay per click management companies – charging from the budget?
The trend in the paid search management industry is for pay per click or paid search management companies to charge the merchant for management fees based on the merchants costs associated with each engine or otherwise specified as their PPC budget. When I received my Google qualified professionals certification I was included with a wide group of managers throughout the industry that had to face the question of how to charge the merchants for the service of managing their Google, Overture, and other paid search accounts.
The problem I am finding is that pay per click management companies who are charging merchants based on their budget have an opportunity to inflate that budget based on practices that could be overlooked or unquestioned by a merchant. Some of these “tricks” due increase unwanted traffic as well as the costs associated with obtaining that traffic through each engine.
Examples of PPC Budget Inflation Issues
1) Non specific targeting of keywords
Improper attribution of negative keyword additions to campaigns
Improper use of broad, phrase, and exact math options within engines
Improper ad copy, discreet use of negative ad copy qualifiers
Inciting non qualified clicks to the account
Improper use and placement of content or image ads
2) Inflating keyword CPC (Cost per click) to abnormal competitor levels, inflating the merchants cost and ultimately budget.
There was one account in particular I remember managing, our average cpc (Cost per click) was about .080 cents, there were not any keywords that were over $1.00 per click. The campaign was running smoothly, until a competitor came into our category and placed their ads in first position at $30.00 per CLICK! I did find out that the account was in fact being managed by a company that charges based on the merchants budget. I doubt the merchant knew they were getting uh, over charged for their ad placement!
Another client came to me and asked me to look over their Google Adwords campaign to determine any issues; much to my surprise the company they had hired had added the same keywords three different times to their account in broad match, phrase match, and also exact match. The company was charging the merchant based on how many keywords they had to manage, so the management company added all of the merchant’s keywords three times!
It is important to receive reports from your paid search Management Company or team, which should include the placement, cost, match type, and conversion of each keyword. It is also helpful to see a competitor report or concerning their keyword activities as well as the average cost for that specific keyword in the specific engine to compare against current costs.
Hiring a Paid Search Management Company
It is important to look for qualities in a management company that will benefit as well as ensure the success for your paid search account. A company that first asks to assess your current accounts and a company who can hand you an analysis concerning sales and cost projections ultimately would be able to give you insight to your programs success BEFORE you start your campaigns. Goals and objectives as well as conversion rates, landing page identification, and proper campaign set up as well as the management’s communication with you are all important factors when hiring a paid search management companies.
Hand management is great for smaller accounts; larger keyword campaign accounts across multiple engines can also be run effectively with the assistance of an API (Application program interface) many paid search management companies use an API for larger accounts. API’s are not the end all for management and can be quite complex concerning their abilities. However working with a company that offers you not only an API but a choice in API’s shows their flexibilities concerning abilities to manage. Atlas One point (Formally Go Toast) is one of the most comprehensive API’s available today. However configuring the rules bidding takes someone who has been trained or well versed in managing the application to manage it effectively and the costs associated with the use of an API can be exorbitant if you are requesting hourly updates for thousands of keywords.
The practices concerning keyword management companies charging clients based on their spend or based on the amount of keywords that need to be managed can be best solved by hiring a pay per click or a paid search management company that charges each client based on their overall needs concerning launch and assessing the amount of hours needed to fulfill the management requirements based on that assessment. Including whether or not the client will require hand management or an API management solution. You should request and receive a proposal that includes hours, persons on the team as well as their qualifications.
Merchants interested in streamlining their paid search accounts have many options, how those options are managed and ultimately charged is left to the discretion of the merchant; and that choice ultimately leads the merchant to amazing profits or unnecessary costs.