*broad match-This is the default setting for Adwords. Broad keyword matching will produce many impressions with few results. For example, if your keyword is tennis shoes your ad will show up when anyone enters tennis or shoes in any order, and with additional terms (ie: red tennis shoes). If you have a small niche, a broad match can give you a lot of exposure however, your cost per click will be higher at first.



*negative keyword-This stops your ad from being shown if someone uses that keyword in their search. To use negative keywords, simply place a minus sign in front of the phrase. For example, if you want to avoid freebie seekers, use ?free in your keyword list.

*phrase match-A phrase enclosed in quotes (ie: ?red tennis shoes?). This will ensure that you ad will be shown to anyone searching for that specific phrase in that order and may include additional phrases.

*exact match-A phrase enclosed in brackets (ie: [red tennis shoes]). Using exact match will show your ad only when the customer enters those words in that order and no others.

*conversion rate- The number of visitors who actually buy something. With 100 visitors and 3 sales, your conversion rate is 3%.

*return on ad spend-The number is calculated by measuring how many dollars you take in versus how much you spend on advertising. If you spend $1,000 and take in $5,000, your return on ad spend is 500%.

*return on investment-If you spend $1000 to make $50,000 then the return on your investment or ROI is 2500%.

You should take advantage of some of the free bidding information available at www.searchmarketing.yahoo.com/rc/srch. This will give you deeper knowledge of pay-per-click strategy and allow you to bid with an action plan. The site includes information on budgeting, finding keywords, tracking your results and managing your campaigns. There is also a keyword selector tool, a bid tool, a return on investment calculator and a cost per thousand calculator. These tools and additional information will make you a savvier advertiser.

When you are beginning your ad campaign remember to use as many targeted keywords as you can. Use keyword variations for example tennis rackets, tennis racket and tennis racquet. You can also try using misspelled words, and as many spelling variations as you can think of. Your increase your chances of getting clicks at a cheaper rate because many of the keywords you choose will be less popular. Also, limit your geographic area to just a few countries (ie: U.S. and Canada only). Once you've established success in these regions you can expand to other markets.

With regards to pricing your bids, try to start your bids high to see where the traffic is and then you can cut back to economize your advertising dollars. If most bids are at 25 cents, and the top bid is $5.00 then the top bidder is trying to control the #1 spot. In a case like this, you can bid $4.99 and only have to pay 26 cents. Check your bids regularly to make sure #1 doesn't underbid you. However, try not to get caught up in a bidding war. There are ways to drive traffic to your site without killing yourself financially.

You should study your competition carefully. Look at all of the ads that place on the first page of Google. See if you can apply anything from their ads to your writing. There is nothing wrong with copying a popular ad formula.

Even as an affiliate it is essential to collect the e-mail addresses of your prospects. Having a way to contact potential customers will allow you to sell more than one time. You can collect e-mail addresses with an exit pop up for those who do not buy. You can also have a newsletter offer page before the main sales page of the affiliate program. When you collect the e-mail address, offer them something free like a report or newsletter. Collecting the e-mail addresses will allow you to make future sales to the same group of people and create a targeted mailing list.

Finally, always, always, always double check the url in your GoogleAd, or all of this work will be for nothing. Before you launch your campaign, make sure those clicks will get through so you can build your list and sell the product.