Successful PPC Campaigns: Proven Examples + 22 Best Practices

What makes a successful PPC campaign? Here are 9 examples (along with best practices galore) to guide your next campaign.

Here, you’ll find:

• Definition of a PPC campaign
• Benefits of running a PPC ad campaign
• Real-world examples of successful PPC campaigns
• Expert tips on running a PPC campaign (based on real-life experience)

No pain, no gain. Makes just as much sense for the weightlifting world as it does digital marketing. Except in the latter, it’s more like no pay, no gain. If you don’t invest in your marketing (whether in time or money), you won’t see results. So those with the biggest budgets and consistent strategies see the most successful PPC campaigns.

One we see brands winning with is pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. It’s an excellent method to get near-immediate traffic to your website. 

Wondering how you can do the same? Then check out these successful PPC campaigns and how to replicate their strategies. 

What is a PPC campaign?

PPC stands for Pay-Per-Click and is a digital advertising model where you bid on specific keywords your audience may use to find your product or service. Each time a user clicks on your ad, you pay the CPC (cost per click) rate you agreed to (e.g., $4.08/click).

The most common form of PPC is search engine marketing (SEM), which features ads in search engine page results. However, you can also find PPC ads on other networks, such as social media, Amazon, YouTube, and websites in publisher ad networks. 

Benefits of running PPC campaigns

What appeals to brands about PPC campaigns is the immediacy of the results. But what good is fast traffic if it’s not the right traffic? 

Done right, your search ads will reach a highly targeted audience. PPC campaigns can be set up in minutes and often show results in a matter of hours or days rather than weeks or months.

Here are several other benefits:

• Ability to measure success: PPC campaigns are measurable and allow you to track your performance in real time. This allows you to adjust your budget, targeting, and content as needed.
• Cost control: Unlike traditional advertising, you only pay for clicks on your ads when someone takes action. In other words, no wasting money on ads that don’t yield results.
• Increased visibility: Your PPC ad appears at the top of the search engine page, so it’s more likely to be seen by users before organic listings.

The results you receive depend on how well you optimize your campaigns and the channels you use. For instance, a HubSpot survey shows 80% of brands use paid social media ads (26% say Facebook generates the best ROI). 

But what works for one company may not work for yours, so learn your audience and test until you succeed. 

Examples of successful PPC campaigns

What does a successful PPC campaign look like? It depends on your business goals and target audience (demographics, location, pain points). Some will feature visual ads to capture the attention of shoppers looking for their next pair of boots. While others may only use text to entice a searcher wanting to learn more about a product. 

The stage of the buyers’ journey (awareness, consideration, or decision) will determine the type of ad you use and the channel. 

So let’s review different pay-per-click ads brands use to drive traffic and conversions for their business. 

Huel Vegan Protein: Adding a visual touch

If you’re in the U.K. and type “vegan protein” into Google, you’ll find Huel listed beneath Google Shop ads. 

This search term shows an intent to either learn more about vegan protein or to make a purchase. You can tell because the search engine results pages (SERPs) show a mix of articles (e.g., What is Vegan Protein?) and Google shopping ecommerce ads. 

The ad has an eye-catching image, ad copy discussing the product’s benefits, and site link ad extensions leading to other pages a searcher may be interested in.

Then, when you click the ad, it doesn’t go to a generic homepage. It goes to a landing page for its vegan protein powder with information and flavor options to select from:

Since they’re targeting the shopper’s intent, driving visitors directly to the product listing page is smart. It captures the interest immediately and will increase the likelihood of a conversion. 

Butternut Box dog food: Capturing more real estate

Butternut Box also uses Google search campaigns as part of its PPC marketing strategy. But it chose a different ad format to drive attention to its other pages, like the main menu, other products, and nutritional details. 

 The ad’s layout makes it appear like a regular search result, increasing the odds of a click (because, you know, some people suffer from ad blindness). 

Lumin skincare for men: Highlighting promotions

Yep. Men have skin issues like the rest of us. And when they run into problems with fine lines, wrinkles, and less-than-perfect skin, they head to Google to find products. 

They may type something like: “men’s skincare set” to find a package deal.

Then this shows up:

Speaking of deals, Lumin uses the promotion extension to highlight a 50% off clearance sale. Nice move, since many guys (and folks shopping for their significant other) like to save big. 

The ad copy is also appealing, playing on the challenges its audience is struggling with, and promises a solution. Short, sweet, and to the point — perfect for the male audience that wants to get in, find what they need, and get out. 

If we had to guess, their target customer for this ad was a hardworking, masculine, money-focused man (notice the capitalization of “EARN” and the use of “invest”). 

BetterHelp online therapy: Grasping attention with video

On social media, you need images to halt the endless scroller’s quest to reach the finish line (that never comes). Sure, including visuals in your ad works. But the only thing better is photo’s big brother: video. 

By adding a video to your ads, you create a personal touch — especially if there’s a person from your brand (or a customer) displayed in the ad. Faces are powerful eye-catchers, and it’s likely why BetterHelp used a video of a young woman to draw in social media goers with its Facebook ad:

It’s a nice touch, especially since their offer is for mental health services — a major topic since the pandemic. 

Not only does the ad feature a talking head, but it also has closed captions for those who may want to “hear” what’s said without anyone noticing. The ad copy is also to the point, using a PAS model:

• Problem: Things in life get to be too much sometimes.
• Agitate: You just want someone to talk to about your issues (some don’t have anyone to talk to).
• Solution: You can get help from a licensed therapist, which is matched to you based on a questionnaire.

Also, notice the person in the video looks like a real person — not an influencer with pounds of makeup or using filters. She appears to be a college student, which is relatable to a young target audience. 

Anorak life insurance: Playing on the concerns of breadwinners

Business owners. Solopreneurs. Heads of households working a full-time job. Individuals who are responsible for the well-being of a family have ongoing fears of a premature death that leaves loved ones in a financial bind.

So Anorak’s Instagram ad did an excellent job of pointing out these fears in a simple sketch drawing:

 The visual is eye-catching and speaks to its core audience without a ton of copy. Short and sweet is always the way to go with digital ads because folks are busy, and that gives you only a few seconds to convince them to click. 

EasyJet travel booking: Taking advantage of seasonal holidays

People are keen to open their wallets during the holidays, especially when planning a trip or vacation. This is why travel and lifestyle brands go all willy-nilly with holiday ads.

EasyJet chose to do the same by creating a seasonal PPC ad offering cheap holiday packages. It took a similar approach to Butternut Box with the site link extension to promote other offers on its site, including a summer sale, winter holiday packages, and savings for holiday travels:

Words like “cheap,” “deal,” “limited-time offer,” and “free delivery” are words you can place in your ad copy to get more attention and clicks. Just make sure the rest of the copy appeals to a particular audience, or you’ll waste a lot of money on irrelevant clicks. 

We avoid this when conducting PPC management for clients by using our proprietary software, ConversionIQ. Our platform analyzes PPC campaigns and identifies your top-paying customers and the search queries they use to find you. This way, you can add these keywords to your campaigns to attract high-converting searchers. 

Noom weight loss: Being specific with expectations

Too many brands are vague in their offer, saying things like — we’ll help you succeed (how exactly?)! Anytime you can get into the nitty-gritty of how your brand can help customers, then do it. 

A great example of this in action is Noom’s PPC search engine ad:

Noom’s a weight loss company, but rather than just saying they’ll help you lose weight, they get specific:

“Hit your goals in 16 weeks.” 

This strikes a chord with people struggling to lose weight and who are tired of trying fads that don’t work. Many weight loss products simply promise weight loss, but don’t promise when you’ll see results. 

You can apply this concept to any industry. For example, if you’re a construction service, you can offer to complete building plans or renovations within three months. Of course, you want to be realistic and ensure you can hold your end of the bargain.

Otherwise, you risk losing credibility (Google negative reviews can be brutal for local service businesses). 

DocuPhase business automation: Offering a free resource

The business-to-business industry is unique — rarely will you get a company rep to see an ad, click it, and make a purchase. There’s a ton of red tape to receive approvals for business purchases. 

So you design a high-value asset (aka lead magnet) to offer in exchange for their information (name, company, email, number). Then over time, you use an email campaign to nurture them into a sale.

This is the approach DocuPhase chose with its LinkedIn ad for an ultimate guide on software evaluation:

This works because it offers something of value to the customer — the guide — positioning its brand as an authority on the topic. Critical move because this is the exact software it sells, so it’ll likely highlight what makes its platform better than the others presented. 

In this scenario, you’re not just tracking sales conversions — you’re looking at the number of “sign-ups.” It’s ideal to have an automated email campaign set up to follow up with the prospect over time, warming them up to a sales call. 

MarketingProfs business resource: Building a subscriber list

Advertising for a brand that doesn’t “sell” products is a thing. Companies that focus on building their site as helpful resources will find a subscriber list is worth its weight in gold. 

With a long list of active subscribers, you can sell sponsorships to other brands to promote their offerings in your emails. And if you offer a service, you can use informational content to get a foot in the door with prospects. 

MarketingProfs is a business marketing resource that publishes content, newsletters, and reports companies find valuable. It also hosts events and offers consulting services. 

So what better way to stay top of mind with prospects than to land in their inboxes weekly? 

Rather than rely on organic traffic to a blog to grow its email list, it chose to use LinkedIn to build brand awareness and grow its subscriptions:

It emphasizes the newsletter is “FREE,” which is good because business newsletters aren’t always free. Then its unique “selling” proposition is that you’ll actually want to open the emails they send (because we all subscribed to content we scoff at and skip over). 

What’s great about LinkedIn is that with the “Subscribe” CTA (call to action), users can sign up right on the platform. No need to leave the app or site, which increases the odds of a conversion. 

22 best practices for creating successful PPC campaigns

What makes successful PPC campaigns? Is it the ad platform you use? The offer? The copy? Your budget? 

It’s a mix of all the above. There’s no one way to build a pay-per-click advertising campaign. But there are some best practices you can follow to increase the odds of success. 

1. Launch full-funnel ad campaigns
2. Align PPC campaign goals with company objectives
3. Allocate ample budget to meet goals
4. Learn to leverage bid adjustments
5. Schedule ads to optimize spending
6. Iterate your ad copy
7. Test AI-powered ad creation tools
8. Ensure advertising compliance
9. Create mobile-first PPC ads
10. Know your keyword match types
11. Aim for the highest quality score
12. Enable all available extensions
13. Experiment with audience targeting
14. Optimize your website and landing pages
15. Select the right bidding strategy
16. Choose keywords wisely
17. Give prospects more conversion options
18. Split-test PPC campaigns
19. Revisit, review, and optimize ads
20. Prepare insightful ad reports
21. Avoid focusing on a single network
22. Partner with an experienced PPC agency

 1. Launch full-funnel ad campaigns

Focusing on the big picture (e.g., customer acquisition) is important, but remember that a single PPC campaign can’t lead a prospect through the entire customer journey.

That’s why we recommend creating full-funnel ad campaigns. Here’s a quick overview of how this concept works:

• Start with a brand awareness campaign to reach new prospects. Focus on introducing your brand and highlighting your unique value proposition (UVP).
• Retarget engaged prospects with a middle-of-funnel campaign. Encourage potential customers to watch your videos, visit your website, or download a lead magnet.
• Retarget in-market prospects who are close to making a decision. Invite them to browse your ecommerce catalog, sign up for a free trial, and make a purchase.

“At HawkSEM, we focus on the entire visitor flow, pre-click to post-click,”  explains Sam Yadegar, CEO of HawkSEM.

“In other words, we focus on generating traffic, catering to that traffic, and having a plan to walk them through the conversion funnel. We also use conversion tracking for every step of the journey to ensure we have the necessary data to continue optimizing campaigns.”

 2. Align PPC campaign goals with company objectives

Successful PPC campaigns are all about objectives. No marketing campaign will win if it doesn’t help the company achieve its objectives. So, be sure you start every campaign with the end goal in mind. Otherwise, it’s easy to fall off track when you don’t have a clear understanding of the big picture.

It also puts you in the dark about which metrics to track. For example, PPC advertising isn’t successful because it has a lot of traffic and clicks, if your goal is to get email subscribers. In this case, you should be looking at the number of subscribers compared to the amount of traffic and clicks to see if your keywords are high-quality.

When your PPC efforts fit with your business goals:

• It’s much easier to get buy-in for campaigns, especially as you scale successful ads.
• You’ll know which metrics to measure, so you won’t be distracted by vanity metrics.
• You won’t have to wonder which campaign objective to use.

Virtually every PPC network uses an objective-based campaign model. That means you can easily set up campaigns to help your business reach growth and revenue goals.

 3. Allocate ample budget to meet goals

When you first run or scale PPC ads, it’s tempting to start small. In some cases, it’s a good idea to allocate a small budget for a test campaign. But if you limit the budget too much, you’ll prevent the campaign from succeeding.

How much should you budget for PPC? Because PPC uses a cost-per-click (CPC) model, the first step is estimating how much you’ll spend to get a prospect to click on your ad.

If you’re new to PPC, you have a couple options. One is using a tool like Google Ads Keyword Planner, which provides an estimated CPC range for keywords.

Another option is using the forecasting tools built into each PPC network. As you adjust your daily or lifetime budget, the tool estimates the number of clicks your ad will get.

If you aren’t new to PPC ads, you already have tons of data at your fingertips. Use past campaign data to guide budgeting for new campaigns.

 4. Learn to leverage bid adjustments

Some PPC networks automatically adjust bids for you. For example, LinkedIn Ads automatically increases your manual CPC bids by up to 45% to improve your results.

But in some cases, you’ll need to adjust bids manually to capture more results. For example, Google Ads allows advertisers to make manual bid adjustments based on a wide range of factors.

You can opt to bid up to 100% more or less based on factors like:

• Audience segment
• Device type
• Ad placement
• Ad schedule

Unless you’ve run similar campaigns before, avoid setting up bid adjustments up front. Instead, let the campaign run and decide on adjustments after reviewing the results.

 5. Schedule ads to optimize spending

Whether you run Microsoft Ads, Facebook Ads, or Google Ads, your campaigns will automatically run around the clock. In some cases, that’s exactly what you want to happen. But in other cases, you’ll get higher ROI by setting ads to run on a schedule.

For example, say you notice your entire daily budget is spent before 6 a.m. Yet, the quality of the website traffic is low, and the conversion rate is terrible. By running ads during specific periods only, you can ensure you’re reaching prospects at the optimal time.

It’s also a good idea to schedule ads if prospects need immediate manual follow-ups. In that case, you’ll want to make sure you only run ads when your team is online.

 6. Iterate your ad copy

To capture attention and get the results you want, ad copy needs to be clear, concise, and compelling. Since most PPC ad copy has strict character limits, you have to master the art of writing high-converting copy.

However, PPC ad copy best practices require more than a single line of copy. Instead, add as many iterations as possible to see what resonates with your audience. For example, Facebook Ads supports five versions for each field.

As the campaign runs, monitor the results to see which messaging and call-to-action (CTA) copy works best for your audience. Based on the data, you can switch off underperforming text assets or use them to tweak copy in future campaigns.

 7. Test AI-powered ad creation tools

AI and machine learning technology can help beginner and advanced advertisers set up PPC ads faster. Nearly every PPC network is rolling out some type of automation in the form of AI-powered tools. For example:

• Google Ads now offers AI-powered assets for search ads (below)
• Amazon Ads now has AI-powered image generation
• Facebook Ads is rolling out generative AI tools for visuals and text

Most advertisers will get value from testing these tools. But remember that these tools require close monitoring to ensure they meet paid search ads best practices.

 8. Ensure advertising compliance

For many advertisers, using AI tools and maximizing creativity are key priorities. Yet, it’s just as important to ensure you’re complying with ad network requirements and meeting brand guidelines.

“Our team always ensures compliance in my PPC campaigns. Working with clients across different industries gives us distinct compliance requirements we need to abide by when creating and launching a successful PPC project. Our goal is to maintain the integrity and credibility of these brands while delivering their desired results and metrics,” explains PPC expert Nat Miletic.

“We study industry regulations thoroughly and ensure transparency in our PPC campaigns. Keeping up with the constantly changing policies in our client’s region, advertising platforms, and potential privacy concerns is part of our research and creation process.”

 9. Create mobile-first PPC ads

If you’re still designing ads for desktop users, it’s time to prioritize mobile users. The average advertiser allocates over 50% of spend to mobile ads, and in the United States alone, mobile ad spending is projected to exceed $200 billion in 2024.

Use these Facebook, Google, and Amazon PPC best practices to target mobile users:

• Optimize ads for voice search by using conversational long-tail keywords
• Use concise CTAs that stop the scroll and prompt prospects to take the next step
• Link to mobile-optimized sites that follow best practices for PPC landing pages

 10. Know your keyword match types

When you run Google or Bing search ads, building a target keyword list and choosing the right match type can make or break your campaigns. So choose a match type that aligns with campaign goals and search intent.

• Broad match keywords can help you reach the maximum number of people. But they may end up wasting ad spend on bad-fit prospects.
• Phrase match keywords offer a happy medium. They’re more specific than broad match, yet they can still fit a wide range of search queries.
• Exact match keywords are the most restrictive. They trigger ads for specific search terms only, which can improve click-through rate (CTR) and decrease cost per action (CPA).
• Negative keywords can help you disqualify your ads for irrelevant searches. Developing a negative keyword list is a crucial Google PPC best practice.

Note that you can set most match types for keywords during the Google Ads ad group setup process. You can build negative keyword lists for campaigns or the entire account.

Copywriter Kate Ingham-Smith recommends creating single keyword ad groups (SKAGs). This is when you create one ad group that focuses on a single keyword and its variations. So you might have:

• Vegan recipes (broad match)
• “Vegan recipes” (phrase match)
• [Vegan recipes] (exact match)

“The benefit of SKAGs is that your targeting becomes much more precise. You can focus your ad copy and assets on the right people, and it makes it much easier to amend your bids,” explains Ingham-Smith.

“Do SKAGs take a while to set up? Yes. Are they for every business? No. But for most Google Ads users, once they’re set up, they’re easy to manage and mean you can create highly targeted ads. I set them up for a previous client, and as a result, average click-through rate went from about 2% to 9% in the space of a few weeks.”

 11. Aim for the highest quality score

Paid search best practices often focus on increasing quality score, and for good reason. The higher your keyword Quality Score, the more relevant and useful your ad is likely to be for searchers. Since this score takes your landing page and expected CTR into account, it can help you understand and optimize for user experience.

Networks like Facebook Ads have a similar metric called quality ranking (above). This metric compares your ad quality against others competing in the same auction to help you understand how your ad stands up. It’s helpful for creating excellent ads compared to the competition.

 12. Enable all available extensions

For many PPC ads, copy and creatives are just the beginning. From Google to Facebook Ads, most networks allow advertisers to add various ad extensions, assets, and callouts.

These elements appear automatically when the ad network’s algorithm determines they’re likely to drive better results. For example, a call extension or a group of site link assets (below) may appear on a Google ad when it’s likely to get clicks.

One of the biggest benefits of these elements is that they allow ads to take up more real estate on search engine results pages (SERPs). As a result, they often stand out more, which can lead to more clicks and conversions. They also provide more information, including unique value messaging and time-sensitive offers.

 13. Experiment with audience targeting

For search campaigns, the perfect target audience doesn’t exist — at least not for long. As an advertiser, you have to build new audiences continuously to attract fresh demographics and avoid overdelivering ads to the same prospects.

“One of the key ingredients for effective PPC campaigns is a keen understanding of your target audience and aligning this understanding with rigorous keyword research,” explains Connor Butterworth, CEO and Owner of Southwestern Rugs Depot.

“Before launching a PPC campaign, we devote ample time to pinpointing our primary and secondary audiences. This includes identifying their demographic, interests, typical online behaviors, preferences for certain rug types or designs, and consumer patterns. Once we have a clear reader persona, we dive into comprehensive keyword research.”

Best practices for audience building depend on the funnel stage. For top-of-funnel targeting, using automated options like Facebook Ads’ advantage audience can help.

For bottom-of-funnel targeting, it’s almost always best to use first-party data for retargeting. With a remarketing strategy, you can guide prospects through your funnel and toward a conversion while lowering your cost per click (CPC).

 14. Optimize your website and landing pages

The content on your landing page is equally, if not more important than the copy in your ad. Not only must it engage and convert visitors — you must also optimize it for search engine traffic.

Every ad receives an ad quality score, so using the same and similar keywords in your landing page and the ad is key to appearing higher in the SERPs. 

Plus, it increases the odds of conversion if your ad and landing page are aligned in messaging.

“One of the biggest impacts on your PPC performance isn’t the ad itself but your landing page. If users don’t see what they like when they click, they’ll leave as quickly as they came,” explains Robert Kaskei, chief people officer at Checkr.

“We test different landing pages against each other to see how effectively they speak to users and deliver the content they need. You must think about your user’s needs through every part of the process because spammy or misaligned landing pages alienate the people you’re trying to serve. Use real photos rather than stock imagery, genuine customer reviews, and social proof that your business really delivers.”

True conversion rate optimization (CRO) is about more than testing button colors or CTA language. By partnering with a CRO strategist, you can test landing page iterations and make data-driven improvements.

For example, we created custom landing pages for Wyndham, continuously testing the ad and landing page copy for consistency and optimal performance. 

Here was the outcome:

• Increased lead volume three times over
• Increased conversion rate by 250%
• Decreased cost per lead by 45%

But what makes a good landing page?

• A killer headline
• Clean, attractive design, and enough white space
• Short, compelling, and convincing copy
• Clear, actionable CTA
• A user-friendly lead form if you’re collecting information
• Appropriate visual content – images and videos
• Superfast loading speed
• Social proof – testimonials
• Mobile-friendly

 15. Select the right bidding strategy

You have two options for a bidding strategy: manual or automatic. This is where many brands get lost. Some opt for automation, thinking it’ll always select what’s best for your brand. 

However, automation uses an algorithm to make these decisions, which means it relies on data to make choices. If you’re just starting your campaign, automation isn’t the best option because it lacks the data required to make sound decisions. 

So we always recommend beginning with manual bidding for at least several months. But this requires understanding how PPC works to know how much to bid and which keywords to bid on. It takes consistency and testing to see what works. A part of this is learning the ad platforms you plan to advertise on. 

Bidding strategies vary dramatically from network to network. Here are some to consider:

• Google Ads experts often recommend using manual CPC to gain more control over how much you bid for each keyword.
• LinkedIn Ads offers manual bidding for maximum control and cost cap for limiting what you spend on key results.

When we worked on Swimsuits Direct’s paid search and Google Shopping campaign, we saw an 80% increase in return on ad spend (ROAS). And that’s because we implemented continuous bid management to account for seasonal changes that fluctuated product demand.

 16. Choose keywords wisely

Bidding on the wrong keywords is something you want to avoid at all costs in a PPC campaign. Getting it wrong and receiving no clicks is the best you could hope for. In reality, you may pick a high-volume keyword your target audience isn’t searching for, which means you’re paying for thousands of clicks that will never convert. 

To show the importance of keyword research and selection, we have another example. We worked with Columbia Virtual Academy’s PPC campaign and heavily emphasized keywords with high intent, thanks to data from ConversionIQ. 

There were many similar terms related to their program, like “online college courses,” so we selected “Exact” and “Phrase Match” relevant keywords to bring in the right traffic. 

The result:

• Increased Google Ads conversions by 134% year over year
• Decreased cost per acquisition (CPA) by 51%
• Higher search click-through rate (CTR) by 45%

But it’s not just about creating ad groups with winning keywords. It’s also about finding the keywords that are losers and adding them to your negative keywords list, so your ads don’t appear in those results. It’s also critical to focus on long-tail keywords to reach a more specific audience.

 17. Give prospects more conversion options

When you run PPC ads, it’s easy to focus on getting clicks and website conversions. But remember that your target audience may convert more easily via another channel.

To find what works best for your audience, test the available conversion locations. In some cases, you can target multiple conversions with a single ad. For example:

• Google Ads allow call ads and lead forms
• LinkedIn Ads support native lead forms
• Facebook Ads (below) offer lead forms, phone calls, chat, and app conversions

 18. Split-test PPC campaigns

Even with in-depth audience and competitive research, it isn’t easy to predict which search, image, or video ad will resonate best with your audience. That’s why split testing is a best practice for PPC advertisers.

Every major PPC network offers native split testing tools, which let you compare two or more versions of an ad or ad group against each other. Use these tools to test elements like creatives, audience targeting, or placements. Then use the results to fine-tune your marketing strategy and continue to create better ad campaigns.

For example, HawkSEM used split testing to optimize a PPC campaign for AppDynamics. As the conversion rate optimization case study details, the campaign resulted in a 20% higher conversion rate, and it also doubled targeted traffic.

 19. Revisit, review, and optimize ads

Avoid setting and forgetting PPC marketing campaigns or letting them run unchecked. Some networks give you the option to apply recommendations automatically, which can save you time.

But in most cases, you’ll get better results and learn to create better campaigns when you review recommendations manually. Make a point of checking campaigns daily — or, at the very least, weekly — to review and adjust.

To save time on basic optimizations, consider setting up automated rules. These settings can automatically increase budgets for successful campaigns or switch off underperforming ad groups, allowing you to take advantage of more conversion opportunities.

 20. Prepare insightful ad reports

Regular reports are essential for understanding how your ads are performing. With relevant insights, you can make informed decisions about which campaigns to scale, which to shut off, and which to iterate.

When preparing reports, resist the temptation to report on every possible metric. Instead, let your campaign goals guide you. For example, a report for a lead generation campaign may focus on:

• Impressions
• Website clicks
• CTR
• CPC
• Form opens
• Form submissions

A report for a sales campaign targeting phone calls may focus on:

• Impressions
• Phone calls
• Conversions
• Conversion rate
• Revenue

 21. Avoid focusing on a single network

Ad tech is evolving rapidly. Some networks may deliver better or worse results for you over time. If you focus on a single network, you could miss out on critical opportunities to reach your target audience and achieve the best possible results.

To develop the optimal PPC strategy, consider using networks like:

• Amazon Ads to target prospects as they shop
• Google and Bing Ads to reach prospects searching for your brand, products, or solution
• Facebook Ads to connect with prospects as they browse social media

“At HawkSEM, we integrate ConversionIQ for all our PPC campaigns. It allows us to see every step of the customer journey, from initial search to sale and everything in between,” shares Rambod Yadegar, President of HawkSEM.

“CIQ then gives direct insights on campaign specifics such as keywords, time of day, day of week, geo location, device, and other customer demographics that allow us to get more of what is working and trim the fat on what isn’t. Further, CIQ provides customer data that allows us to branch off into other marketing channels such as SEO or paid social.”

 22. Partner with an experienced PPC agency

If you have an in-house digital marketing team or a dedicated PPC marketing expert, adopting these best practices may seem easy. But if you’re taking a DIY approach to PPC management, juggling these guidelines and developing ad creatives may be too much.

In that case, hiring an experienced agency is one of the smartest moves you can make. Our seasoned team can help with every aspect of PPC ad campaigns, including:

• Account audits
• Campaign setup
• Keyword research
• Ad copy and creative optimization
• A/B testing
• Landing page optimization
• Conversion rate optimization

Reach out to learn how HawkSEM can help audit, launch, and optimize PPC campaigns.

The takeaway

Successful PPC campaigns aren’t created from thin air. It requires planning, optimization, and continuous testing. Since there’s no one-size-fits-all solution for every business, you must do the legwork to understand your target personas and their needs.  

From there, you can build a campaign that’s more likely to attract and convert your target customers. But let’s face it, many business owners lack time to build a PPC campaign from scratch, let alone manage it. 

This is where HawkSEM comes in. If you want a partner to guide your PPC campaign from launch to the finish line — give us a call today. 

This article has been updated and was originally published in March 2023.