PPC Review – Low Keyword Competition Does Not Equal Cheap Clicks

Clive Lobo

I was reading through some Google AdWords quality score guidelines and posts on the AdWords blog and thought I would dispel a rather common misconception in PPC marketing.

Part of a good PPC managers job is to continually look for “long tail” terms – or key phrases that generate cheaper clicks, but high conversion rates. Often, these terms don’t have a lot of advertiser competition and thus, one would conclude that the average cost per click is also very low. Unfortunately, in Google’s AdWords system, it isn’t that simple and the average CPC is not only determined by how many advertisers are on the page.

From the Google AdWords support site:

Remember that competition is only one of the variables that determines your actual CPC. The price you pay for a click is also determined by your relative keyword Quality Score for that query. If your keyword has a low Quality Score relative to the other ads on that page, you may find that your actual CPC is close to your maximum CPC, even though there is low competition for that keyword. Keep in mind, though, that you’ll never be charged more than your maximum CPC for a click, no matter how low your Quality Score.

For some excellent tips on quality score management and a really great comprehensive guide, read through this excellent compliation of PPC quality score info.

Also, take the time to watch Google’s excellent video explaining their auction model and how the various factors affect ad position.

Clive Lobo

Spark’s resident boss man, Clive possesses the very nature of an entrepreneurial spirit.

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