PPC, first invented in the mid-1990s, still remains a cult favorite among marketers–and for good reason. When executed right, PPC generates quick and long-term conversion wins without the hefty price tag that’s usually associated with more traditional forms of marketing.
So, if you find yourself spending way more than the industry average for your paid ads costs, you could be falling victim to PPC myths as long-standing as the strategy itself (probably perpetuated by your competition too!)
Today, we’ll expose and debunk 3 of the most common PPC myths that could be stopping you from enjoying the full benefits of paid ads.
RANKING 1ST ON A SEARCH ENGINE RESULTS PAGE (SERP) GETS YOU THE MOST PROFIT
Sure, seeing your ad come up first on a search engine results page looks (and feels) good. And you may think getting that top position is the ultimate goal of a PPC campaign. You’re not entirely wrong–but you’re not completely on the money either.
Getting that top position certainly gives you the most visibility, providing your target audience easy and instant access to your brand and services. Besides being visible to ready-to-enroll prospects, you also attract leads who are still in their research phase and are nowhere near converting.
You might get more clicks and traffic but they may do nothing more than look good on paper and drive your acquisition costs up.
And because that top spot is such a coveted position, it’s basically the digital equivalent of prime, high-end real estate. In short, it’s expensive (and aggressively competitive) to acquire and maintain. You might just end up paying more than what you can generate in profits.
PRO TIP: According to Mia–one of our Senior Account Managers–the solution is to analyze and test ad positionings that give you the best value for your investment.
USING AS MANY KEYWORDS AS YOU CAN
The logic behind this still-rampant myth is fairly straightforward: more keywords = more traffic.
But in education marketing, where higher ed companies invest billions to attract students and the playing field is notoriously competitive, adopting a buffet-style strategy just ends up getting you unqualified leads that send your costs skyrocketing.
Our recommendation: use only keywords that are relevant to your brand and your prospective students to minimize getting clicks that do not convert.
YOU CAN FIGURE OUT PPC ON YOUR OWN–FAST.
Seasoned marketers know that learning PPC advertising is a lifetime commitment because it’s constantly evolving with new technology and your audience’s changing needs.
PPC has the capacity to drive sustainable and scalable growth for education companies, but it takes expert and dedicated attention to achieve this. PPC advertising can be a finicky platform and takes constant monitoring (and therefore time) to generate the best results.
If your in-house team is managing multiple marketing functions, it’s worth looking into education-focused agencies to help you tailor strategies that are specifically designed to drive enrollment growth.
Because of the rapid changes that influence the digital marketing space, PPC myths will continue to remain alive and will keep costing companies money unless experienced marketers constantly pursue evolving best practices.
Grow Enrollments is a crew of education marketing experts, working as an extension of our clients’ teams. Contact us today! We’ll get to know you and your growth goals and determine whether we’re the best partner to scale your brand.
