Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising is one of the best ways to improve brand awareness. Every time a user searches a keyword related to your industry, your ad will appear at the top of their search results screen above all other results. PPC brings in a generous return on investment, too. In fact, for every $1 businesses spend on AdWords, businesses make an average of $2.
But in order to determine whether or not you are getting the most from your PPC campaign, you’re going to want to arm yourself with the proper tools. Here are the top five we recommend.
AdWords Editor. Are you constantly managing huge campaigns or campaigns from multiple accounts? Since you’re already using Google AdWords, their Editor tool is a godsend for those who need to make bulk edits and optimizations. This tool works great for those who are managing seasonal campaigns, such as landscaping or a boat tour company.
Twitter Analytics. There has been a lot of debate about the effectiveness of Twitter as an advertisement platform. But their analytics provides a ton of useful data; you can determine the reach of your tweets and the engagement it brings. The platform can also tell SEOs whether or not their advertisement campaign is effective enough for the target demographic.
BuzzSumo. We aren’t all that keen on having to pay for online tools — if it’s free and it works effectively, then why not? However, BuzzSumo is an exception to this rule. For $99 a month, this wonderful tool shows you the most shared content in your industry, gives suggestions for “clickable” article and PPC headlines.
iSpionage. Start your AdWords campaign off in the right direction. This brilliant tool can provide you with accurate and current information about what your competitors are doing regarding advertisement campaigns. See how effective their campaigns are by analyzing and tracking their every move to determine whether or not you need to be making some changes. For $59 a month, this is one of the best intelligence tools out there.
CallRail. Do your clients rely heavily on their phone to bring in new business? If so, CallRail is a great option to track phone calls, record demographic information and analytics. What makes this tool even better is that it integrates with Google Analytics and AdWords. Start off with a two week free trial; if you like what you see, pricing starts at $30 a month.
Remember that PPC should supplement SEO services and can help businesses reach a broader audience. There are plenty more online advertisement tools out there, so feel free to run a few trials before finding out what works best for you and the campaigns you manage.