For most small business managing a low to medium volume PPC campaign is best handled in-house due to the high price that most “experts” charge and how easily it can be set up by the owner, manager or even a tech savvy employee. If however you think that you need to bring in outside help, there are two strategies that I believe can help make the most of your PPC dollar.
1 – Hiring a company for Initial Campaign Set-Up
This is a great option for a business that wants to get started on the right foot with PPC and then when things have been optimized they can take over and get away from paying what can be very high monthly PPC management fees. Of course many companies will try and talk its customers out of this because the ongoing monthly fees are where they make the majority of their money. If you feel that your campaign has reached a point where you are seeing good returns and are comfortable with the PPC concepts taught throughout this blog taking things over could be a good option.
Unless your business is in an industry that is constantly changing, or one where many new competitors are entering your market, ongoing professional PPC management is an expense that is not needed for most small business. Of course always make sure when you first sign up with a company that you can take over if needed in the future. Make sure that you bring up the possibility that you may want to take over monthly management in the initial negotiations and get it in writing.
2 – Hiring a Company to Handle All Aspects of Your PPC Campaign
For certain large businesses in certain areas and markets, outsourcing all of your PPC needs can be a viable option. However, I have found that the cost of long term professional management is generally out of reach for the average small business unless they are in a very large market, and have a strong understanding of the lifetime value of its customers.
Questions to Ask Potential PPC Management Companies
Don’t be intimidated by PPC management providers. If the first company that you look at is not a fit, feel free to go to the next. There are plenty of companies out there that would be happy to have your business. Here are a few questions to ask any potential PPC management candidate. After completing this module you should be able to have an intelligent conversation about your PPC needs and be able to evaluate their answers.
- What tools do you use for your PPC campaigns?
- How do you evaluate the success of a campaign?
- What are your biggest success stories?
- What was your biggest PPC failure?
- What areas of PPC are you strongest in?
- What areas of PPC are you weakest in?
Yes, some of these questions will make the person you are interviewing squirm. But if they can be honest with you, and give straight forward answers, asking these questions can start the relationship off on the right foot.
