Pay-per-click campaigns are an important part of any online marketing strategy, but you need to be careful how you proceed if you don’t want costs to quickly get out of hand. New PPC options that claim to improve results may be a dime a dozen, but that doesn’t mean they come cheap, and there are no guarantees of returns.
While you have to adapt, to a point, to remain competitive and continue to gain with PPC, you also have to pay close attention to your budget and police spending in order to get the most from every dollar. Here are just a few tips to get your PPC budget in order for 2020 so you can realize gains without overspending this year.
Set a Realistic Budget
Budgeting for PPC, even in the short-term, can be difficult, and it gets more complicated as you forecast out for the year, but it’s essential that you at least have some idea of what you plan to spend and your goals for seeing a return on investment so you have a basis from which to adjust moving forward. With data from past campaigns to draw on, you should be able to come up with a realistic budget that will meet your needs without overtaxing your resources. Make sure to factor in some wiggle room beyond what you think you’ll need to account for unknown hiccups or opportunities.
Break Down Your Budget
Once you have some hard numbers in mind for your PPC spend, it’s time to deep dive into where that money is actually going. You need to break down how much you want to commit to different platforms (Google, Facebook, etc.) and how you want to allocate it for daily or monthly spending, for example. With these details in place, you’re better situated to adjust spending and forecasting as you go.
Project Short-Term Performance
Setting money aside for PPC is a good place to start, but you also need to project how that money will return in the way of clicks, conversions, revenue, and so on. There’s no crystal ball to tell you exactly how your PPC campaigns will shake out, but you can use past and current data to create short-term projections of immediate goals and expectations. If your campaign doesn’t measure up, you can tweak it quickly to recover before things get out of hand.
Forecast Wisely for the Long-Term
In addition to projecting short-term results, you need a more extensive forecast for the year. This big-picture view can give you a basis for long-term strategizing that ensures you make the most of your overall marketing spend. Just keep in mind, you can be optimistic, but it’s better to be realistic when setting your goals.
Don’t Get Too Comfortable
Budgeting and forecasting are essential if you want to set realistic goals and spend wisely, but it’s important to keep an open mind when it comes to PPC and your overall online marketing strategy. Your situation is bound to change, for better or worse, and you need to maintain a level of flexibility that allows you to pivot when things go south, or take advantage of opportunities that spring up.
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