After all, there are content sites and social networking sites that will give you web space and a web presence at no cost. All you need is a computer, an internet connection, and a little bit of time.

Is there any reason to spend money while setting up your campaign? There is: pay per click (PPC) advertising.

Many people avoid pay per click advertising. The reasoning is that they can drive traffic to their sites using other methods and pay per click is just money down the drain. Well, there is merit to that argument, but pay per click advertising should not be dismissed out of hand.

To determine if pay per click advertising is right for you, you need to determine a few things: do you have the necessary capital; will your pitch be strong enough to turn prospects into cusomers; and what is your current customer reach?

First thing is the capital. Do you have enough money on hand to cover these advertising costs? Dovetailing into this question is the next, how strong is your pitch.

If you have very strong and persuasive sales copy on your website that has a high success rate, then pay per click is probably a good option for you. Every click will cost you money, but when you are converting those clicks to sales, the cost is minimal. If, however, your pitch is weak, then pay per click advertising may not be a great idea.

Advertising such as this is paying for people's attention. After they have clicked through to your site, you need to grab their attention, and convert it to a sale.

The last question is what is your current customer reach, and more specifically, what are your goals, in relation to customer building? Do you already have a good system in place to manage your customer list?

If everything works smoothly and you have good convert rates, then it is a good idea to build that list, thereby building your sales, and pay per click may help you get more people into your list. Conversely, if your list is growing fast from your regular techniques, then you probably don't need pay per click.

If you are a beginner, pay per click can be a delicate balance. You need to build your list, but may not have the money on hand to do it. In this case, getting help from someone who has mastered the finer points is pure gold.

When looking for PPC training, always be sure that your mentor has actually walked the talk, and is not just selling you a product and leaving you to it.