Pay-Per-Clicks . . . One way to boost traffic to your Web site

By Robin Nobles

One of the ways to boost traffic to your Web site is by purchasing keywords from one of the pay-per-click search engines or directories.

But with literally hundreds of choices, how do you pick the pay- per-click engine with the best visibility that has the potential of giving you a higher return on your investment?

And, just as important, what are some strategies for working with the pay-per-click engines, and how do they operate?How do Pay-Per-Click Engines Operate?

With pay-per-click engines, you bid on keywords that describe your business, your products, or your target audience. Then, you're charged your bid price every time someone clicks on your ad, which is displayed when a searcher types in the keyword you've chosen into the search box at an engine. Whoever is willing to pay the most for the keyword or keyword phrase will be at the top of the rankings.

There are many benefits to working with pay engines, which we'll cover in this article.Important Pay-Per-Click Engines and Directories

Overture: http://www.overture.com
Overture is certainly the pay-per-click engine that most people recognize. It's also one of the most expensive and competitive. However, the visibility of Overture is impressive, to say the least. It provides the top two or three results to "big boy" search engines and directories like Yahoo!, Lycos, HotBot, and MSN Search. In fact, Overture claims to reach 80% of all Internet users.

Overture listings are generally found at the top of the regular search results in an area called "Sponsored" results or sites. Overture's pay-per-clicks operate under one premise: whoever has the deepest pockets and is willing to pay the most gets on top. The minimum bid is $.10, and there's a minimum charge of $20 per month. A $50 initial deposit is non-refundable and will be applied to click throughs or to the minimum monthly spend. When your account is depleted, they'll contact you to see if you want to add additional funds to your budget.

Google AdWords: http://www.google.com/ads/
Google AdWords have fast become extremely important in the pay-per-click arena, with results being shown at search engines like Google, AOL Search, Ask Jeeves, and Teoma.

Google AdWords operates differently than Overture in a number of ways. Your click-through rate and cost per click together determine where your ads are shown, so better ads rise to the top. That means no one can lock you out of the top position.

Google AdWords are shown on the right-hand side of regular search results in a shaded area called "Sponsored Links." Because your click through rate has an influence on the placement of your AdWords ad, your ad's title and description must be captivating and designed to pull in traffic.

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