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Google Adwords

What is Google AdWords?

Adwords is a pay-per-click advertising on Google. This is considered to be Google’s flagship advertising product and also its primary source of income. These PPC advertisements appear on the right hand side of the Google Search page and is meant for both text and banner ads. This Adwords program is meant for local, national and international distribution of products. 

The text advertisements are typically brief with some basic information like the title and one or two content text lines; the banner advertisements on the other hand can be one of the several different Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) standard sizes.

The history of AdWords:

In 2000, the AdWords product was introduced by Google. Initially, Google managed the ad campaigns in return of a monthly amount paid by the advertisers. To help the small to medium size businesses that wanted to handle their own advertising campaigns, Google soon started the Adwords self service portal. Google’s management campaign service, Jumpstart, initiated in 2005, helps advertisers to set up their own ad promotions. In the same year, Google introduced a program to officially declare all the companies as well as individuals who have successfully completed AdWords training. Since this is a difficult process, most of the advertisers prefer to use the services of an external consultant to manage their ad campaigns. 

What is site-targeted advertising?

Site-targeted advertising was launched by Google in the year 2005. Using the AdWords control panel, advertisers can enter keywords of interest, and Google will recommend relevant sites within their content network. It is then up to the advertisers to bid on CPM or cost per mille basis for the proper positioning.

All Adwords are entitled to be featured on the Google website. If the advertisers wish, they can also show their ads on the partner networks of Google which includes AOL search, Ask.com and Netscape. These search networks also display the AdWords ads in response to user searches.

Who are the competitors of AdWords?

Two biggest competitors of Google AdWords are Yahoo Search Marketing that was formerly known as Overture and Microsoft Adcentre.

What are the benefits of using Google AdWords?

Using Google AdWords has a lot of advantages. Some of these include:

• Quick results – By using Google AdWords, advertisers can put up their ad campaigns on the internet and begin all the marketing strategies within minutes. AdWords also provide very fast traffic and quick feedback to the advertisers. 

• Target clientele – All the users of Google AdWords select the keywords that match their desired products or advertisements so that reach out to the prospective buyers who are looking for their product or service.

• Full control over the finances – The best part about using Google AdWords is that the advertisers have full control over their ad budget and there is no minimum monthly spending limit. A set up fee of $5 is charged post which it is up to the advertisers to choose what amount they will pay for every click. The amount can range anywhere between 5 cents to $50 USD. The advertisers are also allowed to fix up a daily allowance; once the day’s budget is spent, the advertisement is removed from the net so that the advertisers don’t overspend. 

• Productivity - Google AdWords uses reports and statistics to educate the advertisers about the keywords, advertisements and prices per click that gives the most effective results. This information helps the advertisers to yield the maximum output from their advertisements.

What are the features of Google AdWords?

AdWords offers some great features to its users. It is also important to remember that a Google AdWords account is fully customizable for any advertiser. The features are listed below:

• AdWords uses the Cost-per-click or CPC mode of pricing which means that the advertiser only has to pay for the clicks that he has received at a price that he has selected. 

• It also uses the Cost-per-mille or cost-per-impression method for those who prefer to target individual content sites and pay by the impression. 

• The advertiser has the power to set his or her own budget, which can be as low as 1 cent USD.

• AdWords permits its users to display their ads on the days as well the hours of their choice.

• One or multiple ads can be targeted with one or more keywords.