What is PPC advertising

Main concepts of PPC advertising

PPC is a model of online advertising where you pay not for your ad being in a queue among others, but for someone clicking on it. The very fact of a click is already a signal that a person is interested.

It’s short and direct:

• If you want, you have to pay for real interest, not for hoping for the best.
• You control the budget to the penny.
• You choose who to show your ads to.

According to various studies, the average ROI of PPC campaigns can reach 200%. This means that for every $1 invested, a business receives about $2 in revenue on average. Of course, the actual result depends on the niche, settings, and quality of the advertising strategy.

How PPC advertising works

1. Choose a platform
   Facebook Ads, Google Ads, LinkedIn Ads – wherever your audience is, there’s your advertising.
2. Create an ad
   The text, picture, and call to action should be such that a person looks at it and immediately thinks: “I’ll take it!”
3. Set up targeting
   Who do you show your ads to? Location, age, interests, online behavior – everything matters.
4. Set the budget
   How much you are willing to spend per day or per click.
5. We launch the campaign
   You press the button and your ad starts running.
6. Analyze and optimize
   We look at the results and understand where we need to improve.

Key metrics:

• CPC (cost per click): from $1 to $7, depending on the niche.
• CTR (click-through rate): how often people click.
• Conversion: whether traffic turns into real actions (registrations, purchases, subscriptions).

Differences between PPC and other types of online advertising

Let’s compare PPC with SEO and CPM (cost per impression)

Bottom line:

• PPC is fast and expensive, but it gives an immediate effect.
• SEO is an investment of time and effort, but cheaper in the long run.
• CPM is better for branded advertising: when it is important to be seen, even if not clicked.

Types of PPC advertising

PPC contextual advertising

In 2024, the average conversion rate in Google Ads was 6.96%, and the average cost per click was $4.66. To get the most out of Google Ads, it’s no longer enough to simply insert keywords into the headline. Today, hyper-personalization rules – when your ad knows even what the user doesn’t know about himself. Algorithms analyze their interests, behavior, and even time of activity to show them exactly the product they need.

Automated betting strategies are another secret feature. Artificial intelligence adjusts bets in real time, squeezing out the best result without extra costs. And don’t forget about ad extensions. Contact information, prices, promotions – now you can submit all of this directly in the search results. People don’t even need to click on the website to understand why your offer is better.

PPC advertising on social networks

Social media has become the new TV advertising. Here, you don’t need to push your product on people’s heads – you need to be able to blend in naturally. What works best? Short videos of up to 15 seconds. If you don’t have time to tell the most important things about yourself during this time, you won’t get another chance. That’s why TikTok and Reels formats are currently the most effective.

Interactivity is another key. People don’t just want to watch, they want to interact. Polls, filters, and quizzes engage people in the game and create a sense of a live dialog with the brand.

You can also work with Lookalike audiences here: when you take your best customers’ database and the platform finds hundreds more similar ones.

Banner and video PPC advertising

Banners and videos are like billboards in the digital world. If they are cool, they will be noticed and remembered. Therefore, ads should be fast, clear, and convenient for the finger that taps the screen. This means that adaptive ads are a must-have. They automatically adjust to any screen size, whether it’s an old iPhone or an ultra-wide monitor.

Interactive videos are a separate thrill. This is when a person not only watches an ad, but also presses buttons inside it: votes, chooses an option, reacts. When advertising becomes a game, attention is retained many times longer. And yes, you cannot do without A/B testing. Throw different variants of banners at the market, mix colors, headlines, messages – and see what works best.

Benefits of PPC advertising

And now we’ll share our observations on why PPC makes businesses move faster, more agile, and more profitable.

Fast results

The first visitors can appear on the site within a few hours after the campaign is launched. And on the day of launch, you can get the first sales or leads, while organic search results take weeks or months.

Fact: 90% of Internet users see Google ads. That means that 9 out of 10 people come across PPC ads, even if they think they haven’t noticed anything.

Flexibility and targeting

One of the coolest features of PPC is the flexibility to customize your audience. You clearly choose:

• geography (city, district, or even street)
• demographics (age, gender, marital status),
• interests (sports, business, cooking),
• behavior (website browsing, purchases).

And all of this can be customized on the fly.

As a result, you don’t burn your budget on people who don’t need your product. You talk directly to those who are ready to open their wallets. By the way, PPC allows you to quickly test new ideas: change the targeting, rewrite the ad, jump to another audience – and all without losing momentum.

Transparency and cost control

With PPC, you can clearly see where every hryvnia goes. And you pay only for a click, which means only for a real action.

Why it’s cool:

• You can limit your daily or monthly budget.
• You can turn off or change campaigns in real time.
• You can instantly see which ads are working and which are just eating money.

And one more thing: you always know the ROI. No more “it seems like the ads are working”: everything is on graphs and in numbers.

High return on investment (ROI)

And now the sweetest part. PPC advertising actually makes money. The average ROI of PPC campaigns is 200%, and the conversion rate of PPC traffic is 50% higher than organic traffic. So if someone else thinks that PPC is an expense, not an investment, feel free to show them these numbers.

An example of a PPC ad

PPC advertising is immediately visible. Most often, it appears as text ads that appear above or below organic search results on Google. If you look closely, there is always a small “Ad” next to the title, which honestly warns you that it is a paid ad.

Another common format is display advertising. These are the same banners you see on news sites or in apps: bright, catchy, and often with an image that instantly catches your eye.

On social media, PPC looks even more natural. It can be a post in a feed or a story on Instagram or Facebook that looks very similar to regular content. The only clue is the “Sponsored” or “Advertising” mark. If the user stops, likes, or comments, the ad is working.

And on YouTube, everything is even more straightforward: you start a video, and a commercial appears before or within it. And here everything is fair: either you watch it or click “Skip”.

Analysis of successful cases

1. The Whistler Medical Aesthetics clinic faced a classic story: a website, services, and almost no visitors. The brand was not recognized, and traffic to the website brought neither leads nor money. The owners felt that they were idle at a time when competition in the aesthetic field was growing every day.

Solution: We had to not only increase the number of visits to the website, but also bring in the most interested audience. To do this, we launched dynamic search ads in Google Ads. Google generated headlines based on the site’s content and showed ads to those who entered relevant queries. We also added geo-targeting, a setting that showed ads only to people from a specific region where the clinic actually provided services.

Result:

• Traffic to the website grew by 60% in just the first month.
• The company’s revenue increased by 66% over the same period.

This case study clearly shows that the right combination of dynamic ads and local targeting can work better than any “super creative ad”.

2. The Inn & Spa at Cedar Falls hotel complex had excellent facilities, beautiful nature around, but the level of bookings was consistently low. The owners saw in the analytics that people were visiting the website, but either not booking anything or choosing competitors.

Solution:
Standard advertising would not help here. So they did a comprehensive optimization:

• We added negative keywords so that ads would not be shown to people who searched for something like “free campsites” or “cheap spas.”
• Adjusting bids by time of day – we intensified advertising in the evening, when people are usually looking for options for recreation.
• Targeting by demographics – ads were aimed at solvent adults who were actually planning a vacation.

The result: revenue from bookings increased by 89% year-on-year.

3. Online store of branded glasses. Problem: high cost per conversion. It was expensive to buy clicks, and there were few real customers. The budget was spent quickly, and efficiency suffered.

Solution: Cómon Agency performed a deep optimization:

• We reviewed keywords, added new ones and eliminated irrelevant ones.
• We updated the ads, making them more attractive and accurate.
• We adjusted bids depending on devices, time of day, and audience.

Result: The cost per conversion decreased by 48%, and the number of conversions increased by 329%.

4. The fitness app aimed to attract users who would not only install the app but also sign up for a paid annual subscription.

Solution:

• Launched a targeted advertising campaign that focused on the main benefit: one subscription for $107.99 gives access to the app for a whole year.
• We actively used video and banner ads to show the simplicity and effectiveness of the app.

Result:

• We received 223 installations of the app.
• The cost of installation was only $12.26.
• Considering the subscription cost of $107.99, the ROI is impressive.

The target audience clearly understood the benefits – and was willing to pay.

What does PPC advertising cost?

How much does PPC advertising really cost and how to avoid wasting your budget on the first three clicks? There is no universal price, but there is logic, there are numbers, and there is common sense that will help you keep a balance between “want” and “can.”

So, what does the price of PPC advertising depend on?

1. Bids
   You decide how much you’re willing to pay per click. But a higher bid is not a guarantee of first place. The quality of the ad and its relevance are also important. If your text works, Google can put you higher for a lower price.
2. Competition
   If you sell insurance or legal services, get your wallet ready. In less “hot” areas, the rates are more modest.
3. Niche
   In B2B, the average cost per click is higher than in regular e-commerce. Simply because each lead there can bring thousands of dollars. The logic is simple: more profit means more competition.
4. Setting up a campaign
   It’s not just about “running ads,” it’s about proper targeting, keyword selection, and ad optimization. If your Quality Score is high, Google gives you a discount on the cost per click.

How to calculate the PPC budget?

There are clear steps:

1. Defining goals
   What do you want to get: recognition, subscribers, sales? The goal determines how much traffic you need and what the costs will be.
2. Analyze historical data
   If you’ve already had campaigns, review the statistics: average cost per click (CPC), conversion, ROI.
3. Formulas for calculating the budget

Formula №1
Budget = Number of required clicks × Average cost per click

Formula №2
Budget = (Target revenue / Average revenue per conversion) × (CPC / Conversion)

      4. Consideration of seasonality
In November (read: Black Friday), bets go off into space. In January, it’s the other way around. Plan your campaigns with trends in mind to avoid unpleasant surprises.

Relevant data worth knowing:

• Average cost per click (CPC): $0.11 to $4.66, depending on niche and platform.
• Average conversion rate: 6.96% for search ads.
• ROI: According to Google Ads, every $1 brings an average of $8 in profit.

How to order PPC advertising in Cómon Agency?

You go into your PPC settings, and you feel like you’ve opened an airplane engine and someone is telling you to start it: “Start it”? Then it’s best to immediately contact those who know where to push. Namely, to the experts from Cómon Agency.

• Targeted traffic. They don’t waste their budget on just anyone – advertising hits the right target: those who are really ready to buy your product or service.
• Fast results. Forget about waiting for “sometime in a year”. PPC is turned on – and people are already on the site today.
• Budget control. How much money you are willing to give for clicks is how much you will give. No one else will take more.
• Flexibility and scalability. Has the market changed? Need a new campaign? Adapt your strategy quickly and efficiently.
• Analytics and optimization. Only specific numbers, real conclusions, and weekly strategy updates.

Cómon Agency internet marketing agency covers almost everything:

• Contextual advertising (PPC): well-thought-out Google Ads campaigns without draining the budget.
• Targeted advertising on social media (Instagram, Facebook).
• SMM promotion (content, strategies, outreach)
• SEO promotion – so that the site does not hang on the 7th page of search results.
• Google Shopping: if you have products, they know how to sell them.
• Comprehensive eCommerce promotion: for those who want real sales, not likes.
• Promotion of new websites: if you don’t have a reputation yet, they will help you build it.

So, if you’ve read this far, you already know that clicking buttons in Ads Manager is not an option. It’s time to act:

Questions about cooperation or partnership:
team@comon.agency

Do you want to start an ad campaign right away?
sales@comon.agency

Or a quick option: leave a request for a consultation through the website. After the application, a Cómon Agency professional will contact you to discuss the details.