What is Pay-Per-Click Advertising (PPC)?
Key Takeaways
- The advertiser pays for a visit rather than for the ad being shown, which ties spend directly to traffic.
- Search ads are triggered by keywords, so they reach people at the moment they are looking for something specific.
- Position is decided by an auction that weighs the bid against the relevance and quality of the ad and its landing page, not by budget alone.
- Traffic stops when spending stops. PPC buys visibility; it does not build the lasting kind that search engine optimisation and content do.
Understanding PPC Advertising
In a PPC campaign the advertiser chooses the searches or audiences it wants to appear for, writes the ads, sets a maximum price per click and a budget, and sends clicks to a page built to convert them. Every part of that chain can be measured, which is the model’s main strength.
Its main risk is the same measurability read carelessly. Clicks are easy to buy; clicks from people likely to become customers are not. Keyword choice, negative keywords, ad relevance and the landing page decide whether the spend produces enquiries or only visits.
PPC works best alongside organic channels rather than instead of them: to test which messages and keywords convert, to cover searches a site does not yet rank for, and to support launches or offers with a fixed time window.
Related Terms
- Digital Marketing
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
- Keyword Research
- Call to Action
- Lead Generation
- Sales Funnel
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the difference between PPC and SEO?
PPC pays for placement and stops when the budget does. SEO earns placement in organic results over time and keeps working without a cost per click.
Where do PPC ads appear?
Most commonly in search engine results, on social media platforms, and across advertising networks of partner websites and apps.
What decides how much a click costs?
Competition for the keyword or audience, and the quality and relevance of the ad and landing page, which platforms reward with lower prices and better positions.
This term is treated at length in Understanding PPC Advertising: A Comprehensive Guide.