A PPC specialist knows everything about contextual advertising, including how to set it up to bring in more clients at a lower cost, who to show it to, and how best to “package” messages. Read about the skills and knowledge needed to become a contextual advertising specialist. We also asked practicing experts to tell us about the pros and cons of this profession.
Who is a PPC specialist?
A PPC specialist is a person who:
- writes text for advertisements and sometimes banners.
- sets up and launches advertising campaigns.
- looks at how well they did their job.
- analyzes what needs to be improved so that advertising brings in more of the target audience.
- conducts tests – for example, launches two types of ads and sees which works better.
The result of the work of a contextual advertising specialist is the advertising that we see on the Internet every day.
The PPC specialist also creates Google Shopping ads for products:
He also runs advertising campaigns on social media, such as Facebook and Instagram.
When launching contextual advertising, the specialist pursues the goal of providing the company with a stable flow of leads. That is, traffic consists of people who are potentially ready to perform a target action. And through the efforts of other departments, such leads will turn into buyers. And the specialist can launch the advertising itself with different goals:
- bring people to the product page so that they can make a purchase;
- tell about a promotion or a new product;
- increase traffic to your website or blog;
- encourage people to take specific actions, such as clicking a link and signing up for a free webinar, etc.
A PPC specialist must analyze whether the set goals were achieved with the help of advertising. Therefore, he works very closely with reports and figures. Plus, such an employee must clearly understand whether the budget invested in advertising pays off. He also has to answer for punctures that lead to losses – for example, if, due to incorrect campaign settings, the budget was lost in two days without bringing in leads.
A PPC specialist can work in-house, i.e. be a full-time employee of a company, in an agency or as a freelancer. Moreover, the latter does not mean a less serious approach. Let us quote one of our partners who works with clients using exactly this scheme:
Let’s briefly consider the difference between a PPC specialist working for a company and for yourself.
A PPC specialist in an agency does not communicate directly with the client. Communication with the customer is carried out by the Project Manager. A full-time specialist is sure to take on all projects that are transferred to him. But he does not need to look for clients himself – this is done by the sales department, or clients come themselves.
A freelance PPC specialist can choose which projects he wants to work on. But he must find clients himself. Since there is no rate, he takes a big risk when there are no customers or few. But if a freelancer has earned a good reputation, other specialists recommend him.
In-house PPC specialist. Engaged in promoting only his own company. On the one hand, this allows you to thoroughly study the specifics of your own product or service. On the other hand, if you like to switch between different areas, you can get bored here.
Responsibilities of a PPC Specialist
Duties may vary from company to company. However, we will look at the main ones that are most often mentioned when applying for a job.
Creating Ads
A specialist writes the text of the ads. And not just like that, but taking into account how to profitably emphasize the advantages of the offer. And at the same time fit into a limited number of characters. A competent ad should be informative, without “water” and common phrases. Also, it should not copy the competitors’ advertising – otherwise the client will not remember the brand. In short, this is not an easy task.
Setting up advertising
A PPC specialist knows Google and Facebook/Instagram advertising accounts as well as his own room. Let’s say a manager or a customer says: “Let’s launch a campaign for everyone interested in gadgets. Just make sure we don’t run out of money in the first three days.” The specialist must understand how to set up a campaign to take these wishes into account.
What is included in the advertising setup:
- creating ads in the advertising account, uploading creatives;
- targeting assignment – i.e., choosing the audience to which the ad will be shown: interests, age, gender, etc.;
- customizing the display of ads – for example, on a specific day or time;
- working with a feed, if we are talking about an online store – this is a table with data about the product: price, size, color, description, availability/absence status, etc.;
- competent distribution of the budget between campaigns and within one campaign;
- bidding – i.e., the cost of clicking on an ad or conversion.
The latter also requires special attention, although advertising systems recommend optimal rates. The fact is that the display of contextual advertising is “played out” at an auction. Other companies also pay for clicks. If you set a rate that is too small, the ad simply will not be shown. If it is unreasonably large, you can quickly go into the red.
Monitoring running campaigns
Launching an ad doesn’t mean relaxing and forgetting about it. A PPC specialist constantly monitors what’s happening in the advertising accounts. And it’s not just about the results. After launching, you need to look at:
- Have all ads been moderated – sometimes, the system does not allow absolutely normal ads, and they have to be redone;
- Whether the budget is being written off as planned – there are often cases when a specialist did not take something into account in the settings and the money was spent too quickly;
- Whether there are any conversions from advertising, how users behave – for example, an ad may contain wording that is confusing and brings in “junk” traffic;
- Whether there are calls from advertising or if in this business clients usually call, the specialist looks at this data in call tracking reports .
Advertising efficiency analytics
Once the ad is launched and enough data has been collected, the specialist monitors its effectiveness. He takes into account many aspects, but to summarize, the following points are analyzed:
- how many conversions and leads there were from each campaign;
- whether the investments in promotion have paid off, what is the ROI – this is easier to understand if the company uses end-to-end analytics :
- how specific keywords worked, whether they brought in the wrong audience, etc.;
- what audience calls from the launched advertisement, etc.
The latter can be found out by listening to audio recordings of calls from a virtual PBX and call tracking. During listening, a contextual advertising specialist pays attention to:
- Are interested clients calling, or is the advert formulated too abstractly and therefore the wrong audience is contacting;
- do the callers match the customer profile or do their gender and age differ – perhaps the targeting settings need to be changed;
- what questions people often ask – it is advisable to add this information to the ads.
Advertising optimization
A PPC specialist looks at what works best and what doesn’t and turns off ads or optimizes them. For example, adds the most converting keywords to them. If he notices that some keywords bring “junk” leads, he expands the list of negative words, i.e. words for which the ad will not be shown. He decides how to redistribute the budget.
For example, we have a case where the agency noticed that some campaigns were not leading to conversions. By disabling them, the specialists freed up 54% of the budget — and invested it in the most successful campaigns.
Preparation of reports and forecasts
Wherever a PPC specialist works, he or she confirms the results of their work with data. In small companies, it is enough to show a report from Google Analytics. But most often, the manager or boss asks for a sample of key indicators.
Therefore, a PPC specialist can build reports in:
- Google Sheets or Excel;
- Google Data Studio;
- Microsoft Power BI;
- can download a call tracking report on calls from contextual advertising;
- or provide a report on campaigns from end-to-end analytics.
Finding new ways to achieve results
A PPC specialist is constantly developing — of course, if he wants to remain in demand on the market. Google and Facebook are constantly rolling out new advertising tools. A specialist must study and master them in a timely manner.
You also need to regularly study new channels for getting traffic and test hypotheses, creatives, and approaches. The more popular a source is, the higher the competition in it. It is in your interests to find new promotion options and follow the news. Therefore, PPC specialists usually subscribe to thematic channels and publics, join contextual chats, read publications about digital.
How to Become a PPC Specialist?
The university does not teach such a specialty. But the main thing here is to have desire, because there are quite a few ways to learn how to set up contextual advertising. You can start with:
- free Google courses on working with their advertising accounts;
- video tutorials on YouTube;
- courses from specialized agencies and practicing specialists;
- blogs of digital agencies and services – there are usually a lot of guides and life hacks on setting up contextual advertising.
Contextual advertising specialists often told us that they came to the profession, initially simply being interested in digital. For example, someone had their own portal, and it needed to be promoted. Someone filled the client’s site with content, and then also took up PPC promotion. In short, there can be many paths – the main thing is to have the desire to master a new specialty. Below is an example that proves this.
What should a contextual advertising specialist know?
- principles of working with advertising accounts and web analytics systems;
- tools for creating reports and visualizations, knowledge of formulas, principles of data downloading – Google Data Studio, Google Tables, Excel, etc.;
- call tracking – understanding how its reports are built, how to listen to calls correctly, the ability to create samples according to the required parameters;
- skills in working with end-to-end analytics;
- basic knowledge of design – there are companies where the PPC specialist independently develops creatives;
- English would also be useful, since information about new products and instructions for them first appear in Western sources;
- principles of working with media advertising – employers usually rate this as an additional plus;
- digital marketing terms – at least half of the work of a PPC specialist is based on this “language”.
Pros and Cons of Working as a PPC Specialist
Pros
- This profession is in demand and is fairly well paid. Large companies often try to lure experienced professionals. And in general, work in IT is a promising and stable niche.
- A PPC specialist is constantly learning something new. This makes him in demand on the labor market.
- You can work remotely or freelance. This job is also suitable for students or people with disabilities.
Minuses
- This is painstaking work that requires attention to detail, numbers and data. It cannot be said that it is as creative as the work of a designer. If you quickly get bored with reports and indicators, it is better to choose another profession.
- You are responsible for the company’s money, distributing the budget for promotion. And it is always a big stress if something goes wrong.
- There are complex niches where a specialist’s hands are literally tied. For example, medicine – here there are many restrictions in contextual advertising. There are areas with very high competition. Or products for which it is not clear at all how to promote. One of our partners had a project – software for accounting of fuel consumption for airports. In short, there are very complex tasks.
Often, a PPC specialist is involved in the so-called “marketing and sales conflict.” When the manager blames there are no sales, and sales say that it is marketing’s fault and advertising does not generate leads. But if you have enough data, it is easy to defend yourself against such accusations. Read the case of how an advertising contractor proved that advertising generated leads, but the sales department was losing them.
Bonus: What soft skills are needed to become a PPC specialist?
Perseverance, the ability to not be afraid of monotonous work. When I was hired five years ago, the first three days I only dealt with search queries, collected and filtered lists of minus words. After all, for presentation in one large account in a week there can be 5000 or more search queries. They need to be reviewed, added or excluded. Even if there is a script that helps – no one has canceled manual verification.
Concentration. In order to complete everything on time, it is important to focus on the task. It happens to me that I just switch off and immerse myself in it, and when I finish, I see that three hours have already passed. It is enough to turn on “your wave”, and even the noise of the office is not a hindrance.
Attention to detail. They can either bring results or lead to the loss of a partner or client.
The ability to find options, not excuses. It happens that there is no standard solution on how to attract the target audience to the site or improve current indicators. You need to think and find an option, or better yet, several. So take such situations as a challenge.
Immersion in the project. When you delve into the niche completely, it is easier to select promotion tools and build a campaign structure.
Willingness to control. Let’s say a partner/client asks for some changes, but you understand that this can only worsen or harm you. Therefore, it is important not only to follow orders in the spirit of “just so that it happens” but also to warn about the consequences in advance.
Conclusion
In conclusion, a PPC specialist plays a crucial role in driving targeted traffic and optimizing ad performance. They handle everything from creating ads to analyzing their effectiveness. While the job offers flexibility and the opportunity to work on diverse campaigns, it also comes with high responsibility and detailed work. For top results and effective ad management, partnering with the best PPC marketing services can greatly enhance your advertising efforts and ensure a strong return on investment.