[GTM glossary](/glossary.txt) Pay per click Marketing # Pay per click (PPC) In short Pay per click (PPC) is an advertising model in which the advertiser pays only when a person clicks an ad. Instead of paying for impressions, you pay for visits, which makes cost tied to traffic. PPC is most associated with search engine ads and paid social. In B2B it drives visitors to landing pages, demo requests, and content offers, with the cost per click set by competition for the keyword or audience. ## How PPC works In most platforms, advertisers bid on keywords or audiences. When a matching search or user appears, an auction decides which ads show and in what order, using bid and ad quality. You are charged when a click happens, often less than your maximum bid. --- ## Key PPC terms * **CPC:** Cost per click, what you pay on average for each click. * **CTR:** Click-through rate, clicks divided by impressions. * **Quality score:** A platform rating of ad relevance and landing page experience that influences cost and position. * **Conversion rate:** Share of clicks that become leads or customers. --- ## Setting up a B2B PPC campaign Choose keywords that show buying intent, such as problem or solution phrases, and add negative keywords to block irrelevant searches. Write ads that match the search, and send clicks to a page built for that offer. Say a team pays a certain amount per click and one in twenty visitors requests a demo. Divide spend by demos to see cost per demo, then compare it with what a demo is worth. The numbers here are only an example. --- ## Why click cost alone misleads A low cost per click is not a good result if the clicks never convert. Judge campaigns by cost per qualified lead or opportunity. Related metrics such as revenue per click help compare keywords on value instead of volume. --- ## Common mistakes * **Broad match without negatives:** You pay for irrelevant clicks. * **Weak landing pages:** Good ads cannot rescue a page that does not convert. * **No conversion tracking:** You cannot optimize what you do not measure. * **Set and forget:** Check search terms and bids regularly. --- ## How to improve PPC results Review the search terms report weekly and add negative keywords for irrelevant queries. Test two ad variations at a time and keep the one with better conversion, not just a higher click rate. Improve the landing page too. Matching the headline to the ad, shortening forms, and showing proof often lifts conversion more than bid changes. When conversion improves, the same budget buys more leads, and you can afford to compete for better keywords. --- ## Pay per click FAQs **What does pay per click (PPC) mean?** Pay per click is an advertising model where the advertiser is charged each time someone clicks an ad. You pay for visits instead of impressions, which links cost to traffic. It is common in search and social advertising. **How does PPC advertising work?** Advertisers bid on keywords or audiences. When a matching search or user appears, an auction ranks ads using bid and quality. The advertiser pays only if the ad is clicked, usually an amount at or below their maximum bid. **What is a good cost per click for B2B PPC?** There is no universal good number. Cost per click varies by keyword competition, industry, and audience. A better test is whether clicks turn into qualified leads at a cost that is lower than the value of a customer. **What is the difference between PPC and SEO?** PPC is paid and stops delivering traffic when you stop paying. SEO is unpaid optimization to rank in organic results, slower to build, and longer lasting. Many teams use PPC for quick tests and SEO for steady, compounding traffic. Share term --- ## More related phrases * [Cost per mille](/glossary/cost-per-mille.txt) * [Paid social](/glossary/paid-social.txt) * [Account-based advertising](/glossary/account-based-advertising.txt) ## Similar phrases * [Paid search](/glossary/paid-search.txt) Paid search places ads on search engine results pages and charges per click, letting B2B teams reach buyers at the moment they search for a solution. * [Digital advertising](/glossary/digital-advertising.txt) Digital advertising is paid promotion delivered through online channels such as search, social, and display, used in B2B to reach target buyers and drive pipeline. * [Search engine marketing (SEM)](/glossary/search-engine-marketing.txt) Search engine marketing (SEM) is the practice of earning visibility and traffic from search engines, most often through paid search ads, to reach people already looking for a solution. * [Click-through rate (CTR)](/glossary/click-through-rate.txt) Click-through rate (CTR) is the percentage of people who click a link, ad, or email after seeing it, calculated as clicks divided by impressions or sends. * [Search engine advertising (SEA)](/glossary/search-engine-advertising.txt) Search engine advertising (SEA) is paid advertising shown on search engine results pages when people search specific keywords, typically bought on a pay-per-click basis.