Online Marketing

Is PPC Getting Old?

Just like I promised, this post is the other side of the coin. I recently read an article in WebProNews written by iEntry CEO, Rich Ord about the PPC party being over. That which used to be a highly effective marketing tool reaching its end? Hmm…I can exactly say I agree 100%. However, I do admit Mr. Ord’s points were highly valid and by the end of the article, he got me sold that perhaps PPC’s really getting old. If it is, well, that’s life. Things get old quickly and in cyberspace, ideas get old more quickly than they do in real life. In a nutshell, reworded and presented in a new package, here is what Rich Ord was trying to say:

1. Too Many Ads Kill the Biz

Think of it this way. You see an ant crawling on your wall. You follow the ant around. The moment you’re poising to squash the little critter it joins its millions of ant buddies so you go crazy and stamp the whole lot of them blindly. It’s the same thing with ads these days. Due to its increasing popularity, “clutter” has been causing ad blindness. All the ads look the same, which then, to click?

2. As a Consequence of the First One, Conversion Rates are Low

Because people are blindly clicking on the ads, not everyone would necessarily turn into a client or customer. Sad, but true.

3. PPC Ads Have Become Expensive

Since advertisers actually bid for ad slots, and the market’s growing all the time, the costs for PPC have increased significantly.

4. Consumers Wise Up

I, for one, have become wary of clicking on ads. In many times more than one, I clicked on the sponsored ads’ results every time I key in a query in a search engine. I’ve encountered one too many scam-like operations clicking on those links so I rarely do that now. Just like me, the rest of the world might treat ad links the same way.

These are some of the reasons given. Do you agree? Is PPC going to be dead soon? Do you not agree? Blog about it.

Filed under: pay per click