How Do I Get Started with PPC Marketing & Influencer Marketing?

[Rob Stone]

Hi Everyone
After being obsessed with SEO for many years and stung by Penguin I have always thought about PPC.

How did you get going with PPC? Did you have your own service/product?

 

[Steve Brownlie]

How did you get going with PPC? Did you have your own service/product?

I'm assuming you mean 'search engine PPC' primarily Google.

It used to be magic. The nectar of the gods. You spent virtually nothing on a click and made thousands (I did commercial mortgages myself or the leads I got in).

Stuff is more 'real' now. It's more expensive. Your competitors have more beautiful, more optimized sites etc etc.

Personally I'm returning to an old friend (influencer marketing) but if I was going to go hard into paid advertising now I'd be looking at any newer social platforms and worst case Facebook, where the bids haven't driven the costs through the roof like on 'search engine PPC'. Of course you can win there but it's better to learn where it's easier.

My last search PPC campaign was on Yahoo! before it all 'became one with Bing' and you could get finance clicks in some micro niches for a few cents. Those were the days, but they're gone now, best to move on to something cheaper/easier if you want to get into paid imo.

 

[Rob Stone]

Thanks very much indeed Steve

The world has and does move so fast doesn't it, wonder what marketing will be like in just a few years in itself.

I love the fact you mentioned influencer marketing as that is more me personally at the moment, especially how I am building in my niche and demographic.

Utter and deepest respect to CCarter and all the others that use paid but at the moment I feel I would rather start paid with my own product rather than be an affiliate, but maybe other's would see that differently.

I read your outreach guide and have you booked marked for outreach down the line.

End of the day, thanks for replying.. every post here is just so much more inspirational than past forums. Rocks

 

[trendykitty]

I'm assuming you mean 'search engine PPC' primarily Google.

It used to be magic. The nectar of the gods. You spent virtually nothing on a click and made thousands (I did commercial mortgages myself or the leads I got in).

Stuff is more 'real' now. It's more expensive. Your competitors have more beautiful, more optimized sites etc etc.

Personally I'm returning to an old friend (influencer marketing) but if I was going to go hard into paid advertising now I'd be looking at any newer social platforms and worst case Facebook, where the bids haven't driven the costs through the roof like on 'search engine PPC'. Of course you can win there but it's better to learn where it's easier.

My last search PPC campaign was on Yahoo! before it all 'became one with Bing' and you could get finance clicks in some micro niches for a few cents. Those were the days, but they're gone now, best to move on to something cheaper/easier if you want to get into paid imo.

I'm interested in your definition of and approach to 'Influencer Marketing' I've followed quite a bit of it on Twitter // Instagram // Blogs and am starting to see a heavy shift from the FTC cracking down on influencers who about transparency in labeling of sponsored posts. Is this something you've encountered and what are your thoughts on how the industry will shift in the next year or two as more consumers are made aware of the frequency with which the influencers they follow are posting sponsored content?

 

[Steve Brownlie]

Is this something you've encountered and what are your thoughts on how the industry will shift in the next year or two

I've read the stories about the YouTube gamers etc etc etc. But it's not something that I worry about as having it disclosed clearly is totally fine.

Many people forget that for a long time there's been 'implied endorsement' that consumers are used to and somewhat (mostly probably) aware of. Most people know that if their favourite sports star frantically pops on a Rolex before every interview, or randomly changes golf clubs, they're sponsored by the brand. They didn't historically have to announce before every shot 'this swing is sponsored by Ben's Golf Supplies' but people knew and they still were influenced anyway.

So I don't see having to put disclosures on as a big problem.

I think there will be more and more 'smarter' ways of integrating your brand with your influencer marketing though -

Here the entire piece of content was something 'usual' for the H3H3 channel as in their usual 'goofs and gaffs' format but sponsored/inspired by the sponsoring movie etc.

I think that makes more sense than 'this was brought to you by...' like the old TV days, although I'm sure we'll see more of both.

 

[trendykitty]

Ahh, I see. I was actually referring to the two batches of warning letters the FTC has issued to influencers over the last year advising them to start complying with the FTC Guidelines on ETA's reguarding disclosure of material connections or get slapped with sizable fines.