Advertisers using PPC search services think their ads must be in
the top position in order to make the most
money, but this is a novice point of view.
The ad in the first position is more likely to receive compulsive clicks that don’t convert and at the same time, cost more.
Advertisers in the #1 position
pay top dollars with the highest cost per
click to receive traffic that does not convert. Pay per click bidding for #1 results in overbids for inflated keyword prices.
Do not bid for the #1 position, set your cost per click so the ad displays
above the fold: the level where a user is not required to horizontally scroll to see your ad. Generally, the first 5 ads are displayed in the right column. The number of paid search ads displayed depends on the screen resolution of the user.
Being in the top 3 results is even better, as it receives increased exposure on Ask.com and AOL.
The second, third, and fourth positions only marginally differ in their ability to drive traffic, and will cost much less.
Here is the one condition which differs from the above advice.
If there are only 1 or 2 competitors for a keyword, you want to be number 1.
With few advertisers, it is likely you’ve discovered a relatively obscure keyword,
which is GOOD for your business.
It is often much cheaper to get that top position and second, the obscurity means your traffic is likely very targeted.
The traffic is more pinpointed, and you will have very few compulsive clicks from tire kickers. With specific keyword searches, the top position very valuable. This is similar to type in traffic where a user literally types in their question into the address bar, hoping for the correct result.
This is the long tail, and long tail keywords are hard to find because they are often longer and receive much less traffic. Most keyword research tools will miss them, it takes creative keyword research to find quality 4+ word keyword phrases.
Combining the results of these obscure keywords will result in well-targeted traffic ready to spend money at
your site.
Happy bidding.
