Busted: 10 Myths PPC Companies Tell Their Clients

PPC companies sometimes get a little too aggressive with their sales pitches. That’s just a polite way of saying that they don’t always tell you the truth.

In fact, they’re known to promote some whoppers.

Here are the top 10 myths that PPC companies tell their clients.

1. You’ll Always Enjoy a Positive Return

You won’t always get a positive return on investment (ROI) with PPC. That’s the cold, hard truth.

Of course, PPC companies won’t tell you that. Instead, they’ll promise you that your sales will spike, on average, 73% (or some other figure) once you start a PPC campaign.

Don’t believe it.

First of all, your business isn’t average.

Second, those kinds of stats can be manipulated.

2. “It’s As Simple As Clicking a Button!”

In their effort to convince you to sign on with them, some PPC companies might tell you that you can launch your very own PPC campaign by just clicking a button. That’s when you should remember what your mother told you about things that sound too good to be true.

No, you can’t run an effect online ad campaign by just clicking a button.

You need an advertising strategy. You need graphics. You need great ad copy. You need an advertising theme.

Clicking a button won’t give you any of those things.

3. All PPC Companies Are Pretty Much the Same

Maybe you’ve heard that all PPC companies are basically the same. That’s wrong, too.

Some PPC companies are more dedicated to customer service than others. Some companies are better suited to specific industries. Some companies have better track records.

You’ll have to take some time to determine which company is right for you.

4. You Can’t Talk to Your Account Manager

For some reason, people who sign on with PPC ad companies are under the impression that they don’t get to talk to the person actually running the ads. Instead, they get to talk to a middle man known as the “account rep.”

But behold, this is not always the case!

Many PPC companies will let you speak directly with your paid media manager. That can be very helpful, so you are not stuck playing telephone all day.

5. You Have to Use Google AdWords

Some PPC companies might tell you the following: “You have to use Google AdWords! It’s the best ad network out there!”

That second sentence is debatable. The first sentence is flat-out false.

While Google AdWords is a powerful option, there are numerous other PPC ad networks that might be better suited to your brand. Also, there are other platforms that enable you to reach people outside of the Google ad network (for example: Facebook, LinkedIn and Pinterest).

6. “We Want You to Make Money!”

Some PPC companies might lead you to believe that they only care about your profitability. Unfortunately, many of them don’t.

They just want your money.

The success of your online ad campaign will depend on you. Don’t get me wrong, of course most paid media managers care about the client. But no one cares more than the client.

7. PPC Will Solve Your Sales Problems

If you’re concerned about lackluster sales, some PPC companies might try to convince you that the best way to increase sales is by spending more money on advertising. That’s not necessarily the case.

You might have disappointing sales because of a poor business model. You could just be in a temporary slump because of the nature of your product.

The fact is that you can’t solve all your sales problems by just throwing more money into advertising.

8. PPC CTR Is What’s Most Important

“But I have such a CTR!”

How many business leaders, looking at disappointing sales figures, have used that line? Far too many.

Your click-through rate isn’t the only thing that matters when it comes to PPC advertising. That’s because the PPC conversion rate only shows you how many people have visited your site.

It doesn’t show you how many of those people became paying customers.

You’ll have to do some onsite conversion rate optimization (CRO) if your sales figures don’t line up with your PPC conversion rate.

9. You’ll Get the Best Return If You Land in the Top Position

What could be better than #1?

In this case, #2 and #3.

That’s because some ads in the #2 and #3 spot perform better (at least on a total return basis) than ads in the #1 spot.

Why is that? Often, it’s because people who are “just shopping” click on the link in the #1 spot. They don’t spend any money. This is more true than even with expanded text ads.

10. You’ll Get More Conversions If You Add More Keywords

If you’re not seeing the conversion rate that you want to see, then somebody at your PPC company might tell you to add more keywords. That probably won’t solve your problem.

Although you’ll likely get more impressions with more keywords, you won’t necessarily get more conversions.

The worst part is that you’ll probably burn up your advertising dollars a lot quicker if you just increase the number of keywords related to your campaign.

Review Your PPC Company

Like all things in digital marketing, there is a lot to know about PPC. Make sure to keep these things in mind when vetting and working with a paid media company.