ppc-google-adwords-express

Google’s search engine empire has been expanding more and more rapidly over the past two years for some time, flirting with all sorts of new types of functionality: entering the social sphere with Google+, introducing cloud computing to the masses with the Google Chromebook and launching the Google Voice VoIP service. Google is on the forefront of the move to the cloud, and this shift—from dedicated servers to cloud-based systems, and from traditional hardware to cloud hardware—is likely to be the industrial-strength blockbuster of both the manufacturing sector and many of the markets for the next few years.

Google has cultivated an expertise at creating scarcity: infiltrating and making themselves necessary in our everyday lives. Google Apps are crucial to functioning of many companies, making everyone’s work easier by storing and processing information and streamlining collaboration.

Now they are looking for ways to bring PPC to the masses: Say hello to AdWords Express.

AdWords Express is basically targeted at small business users. This tool allows business owners to generate PPC campaigns in a few easy steps, getting them into the Internet marketing game without much hassle. But what does that mean for human PPC campaign managers? Will they see reduced demand? Will their services be seen as less valuable, requiring them to rethink their business practices?

AdWords Express

AdWords Express is fairly straightforward. Small business owners sign up via their Places page or they can sign up by going through the AdWords Express page. Express users give Google some basic information about their business: its name and location, any applicable business categories, the business’s official website, a simple business description and the desired budget ($50 minimum). Google then uses that data to find appropriate keywords to target and establish a PPC campaign for the keyword that is most likely to present the greatest return. Users can create different ads for each business category and split the budget among them however they see fit. Businesses will show up in local searches and will appear on Google Maps as blue pins, making them stand out from the normal red pins. Express is geared entirely towards local search results, which helps keep the cost for business owners small by keeping them from having to compete with national brands. As a small business tool, Express imparts great value for business owners and can help them reach far more customers than they could without an Internet marketing campaign.

Human-Managed Campaigns

Where does that leave professional PPC managers? While some may see Express as a machine rival to human PPC managers, it’s more likely that it will actually generate more interest in Internet advertising, giving rise to more customers for knowledgeable professionals. AdWords Express is a great introduction to PPC advertising and will help business owners see the value of local marketing and SEO, but it’s a very basic service with extremely limited options for the customization of your campaign. In order for most businesses to see continued growth through internet marketing , they need to gradually widen the funnel of their internet advertising campaigns, chasing after longtail keywords and monitoring their click-through and conversion rates with a close eye to figure out how to spend their budget. Obviously, this would be overwhelming for most small business owners, which is where the professionals step in. Human-managed PPC campaigns are much more flexible and can be broadened or narrowed, depending on the business owner’s needs. PPC campaigns can be calibrated according to a level of sensitivity and specificity that AdWords Express just doesn’t have.

Internet advertising is Google’s bread and butter. The majority of Google’s $20B annual revenue over the past few years–$8 billion Q1 2011– revenue coming from advertising. While it’s ramping up its cloud efforts, with products like the ChromeOS and the Software as a Service offering of Google Apps, its concentration on increasing interest in PPC campaigns hasn’t waned; AdWords Express is proof of that. The ease with which a business owner can create a low-cost, locally-targeted advertising campaign will serve to whet their appetite. At that point a human PPC campaign manager can step in, offering them even further growth when they see that the investment will bring desirable returns. AdWords Express won’t be putting human advertising professionals out of business any time soon. The fact is that it will likely end up boosting their business in the long run.

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