Do you use PPC to drive traffic?

[Alminc]

I've never used Google Adwords simply because
it seems too complicated and I'm afraid of loosing
a lot of money.

But it seems that all real money makers use PPC traffic
and earn big.

Do you use PPC?
How did you get started?
Did you loose a lot of money until you learned the tecnique?

What is the least risky way to learn it?

[Mark Owens]

Yeah I use PPC. I got started when I get one of those free $100 credit for YSM (Yahoo Search Marketing). They're still around I think. I lost a couple hundred before seeing some profit.

My main advice to you would be track, track, track. Track which keywords are bringing in the money and drop all the non-converting ones. Sounds obvious, but apparently it's not

[JustVisiting]

Originally Posted by Alminc

What is the least risky way to learn it?

When you learn it's like Gambling! You only spend what you can AFFORD to lose.

[Easy Cash]

It is a hard thing to get a grip of.

You need to experiment a lot and set it up which takes quite a bit of time. If you have no experience in getting free traffic - I would learn this first and then start working on Adwords.

You learn so much by driving traffic using all the free methods there are around.

[Brian_Mahaffey]

I have spent a lot of money until I finally start getting it to work.
Like in all advertising start low and test and then ramp up.

[JustVisiting]

Originally Posted by Brian_Mahaffey

Like in all advertising start low and test and then ramp up.

Agreed.

But many folk have no idea how to test or monitor. And with kw bids typically ranging $1 - $3 ( my 'sixth sense' based on a lotta research of many markets ) learners can blow a lot of money fast.

Even a 'basic' campaign test of 200 clicks can cost $200 - $600.

Most people try several campaigns before finding a profitable one.

If I were starting Adwords advertising today I'd set aside a minimum budget of $1000.

[itfactory]

If you never work on PPC, I would strongly recommed you to hire PPC expert (work closly with him) or, use adwords coupen code. Read Google adwords tutorial, download free adwords editor (save you more time). Some tips for you.

The art of creating enticing AdWords adverts

1. SOC [Spy on Competitor's]
2. AIDA [ Attention, Interest, Desire and Action]
3. USP [ Unique Selling Proposition For Your Ad ]

Headline

The headline of the AdWords advert needs to closely match the keywords your potential visitor will have used when searching. These keywords should match your product or service.

Advert creation

When creating the main 2 lines of your advert, you need to capture their attention with a compelling message. Here are some tips for writing effective messages:

Consider asking a question which conceals a benefit. This will increase your Click Through Rate (CTR) hugely! For example

Adwords Courses
Did You Know Attending Our Adwords
Courses Can Enhance Your Career?
www [dot] website [dot]com

Write multiple adverts to test against each other. For the same set of keywords, ensure you create between 2 and 4 adverts. This will allow you to test different messages and appeal to different personality types. Run them against each other and see which advert performs best. As soon as you identify the worst performing advert (which will have the lowest Click Through Rate), delete it and create another one. You should always be aiming to beat your currently best performing advert to make the most of your money.

A common mistake is to leave the adverts running indefinitely against each other. Ensure you monitor the adverts on a regular basis - at least monthly and ideally weekly.

The display URL is the web address where you will be sending people. It is worthwhile capitalising the first letter of each individual word within the URL e.g. www [dot] website [dot]com This ensures each word stands out, and it also helps to build brand awareness for your name even if the potential visitor does not click on your advert. Additional tips including using subdomains which are based on keywords. Subdomains are folders or different areas within your website. An example is www subwebsite[dot] website [dot]com where the word subwebsites has been added as a subdomain.

[iTechSolutions]

If you use right tools before start spending on PPC chances are you'll make money.

I have $100 Yahoo and $50 Google free PPC links, only if you want to open a new account. You can send me a PM if need it.

[wbnetwork]

Be careful with Google Adwords, my first time around a blew through a few thousand real quick! If you want to practice, use yahoo or MSN's PPC campaigns. They are much cheaper and the ads don't have to be perfect. There is no google slap or low quality score. And the clicks are very cheap.

[awyssmann]

There is tons of information out there that can help teach you the basics of PPC marketing. Google is the one that everyone wants to be on because of the traffic that they drive through everyday but Yahoo and MSN will allow you much cheaper clicks. I found Perry Marshall's book, The Definitive Guide to Google Adwords to be fanatastic in helping me get started, it is a must. Even if you are going to hire someone to do your PPC management it is a must so you don't get ripped off. If you'd like a link to the his book, reply to this post with an email address and I'll gladly send it your way.
Good luck and happy learning!

[Emailrevealer]

If you work on free traffic first you can experiment with adwords after you reach a plateau.

I recommend the Perry Marshal course before you begin