AI-Driven PPC: Should You Incorporate Machine Learning into Your 2023 Strategy?
Let’s have a closer look at how AI is transforming PPC in 2023 and delve into the benefits for marketing teams currently struggling to navigate a competitive climate.
The PPC landscape keeps evolving. From automated advertising to leveraging curated content, the marketing sector as a whole has seen a technological transformation like no other on the back of the pandemic.
However, no development has been talked about more than artificial intelligence. While AI has been around within the corporate industry for a while, only recently has it made steps to improve marketing productivity and success.
After a 2022 survey predicted that a third of all marketing teams now leveraged AI within their strategies, it’s time to see what this technological tool has in store for the PPC world.
“Last year, we witnessed many changes in the pay-per-click (PPC) world, from increased automation to vertical videos to government regulations and economic challenges,” says Forbes author Serenity Gibbons. “Business leaders can expect many of the same AI and automation changes in 2023. As a result, they should continue preparing to adapt to a volatile PPC world.”
One target group that has dominated marketing attention in the last year are smartphone consumers. With over 60% of mobile users now engaging with at least one PPC ad weekly, they have become the prime reason why PPC teams are turning to AI to help improve their campaign success.
Not only can AI help predict mobile audience behaviour, but it can encourage personalised advertising and content creation, which speaks directly to a demanding mobile generation. Let’s have a closer look at how AI is transforming PPC in 2023 and delve into the benefits for marketing teams currently struggling to navigate a competitive climate.
Benefits of Leveraging AI For PPC
Artificial intelligence has quickly become the backbone of a number of modern-day marketing strategies. Not only does it enhance campaign planning, audience research and team productivity, but it is quickly unlocking new opportunities for marketers to automate new processes.
One sector of marketing in particular that is benefiting from AI is PPC, otherwise known as pay-per-click advertising.
As defined by Search Engine Journal, “PPC is a form of online marketing where advertisers pay each time a user clicks on one of their ads.”
Think of the common search engines such as Google and Bing. The ad-titled search results that appear at the top of the page are based on ‘paid keywords’ that companies bid for in return for a high SERP score. The better your PPC strategy, the more visible your online store will be to its target consumers.
(Image Source: PPC Expo)
AI continues to change the game for PPC advertisers. With the ability to automate common processes such as bidding, spend allocation and keyword hunting, marketers quickly gather insights in real time without the need for manual labour and research.
Better still, AI can also enhance PPC campaign creation too, as well as analytics. From ChatGPT to Google Bard, AI can also help marketers curate content that is keyword rich and directly targeted to their demographic.
3 Ways AI is Transforming the PPC Landscape?
According to a recent Deloitte study, a whopping 50% of organisations are planning to incorporate AI into their marketing budget in 2023.
Let’s delve into some of the exciting transformations this technology could bring to PPC marketers in a new automated marketing sector.
Content Curation
One of the most popular uses of AI amongst marketers in 2023 has been content creation. If you haven't yet heard of ChatGPT, have you been living under a rock?
“AI has the potential to both curate and generate content, then place it in front of the right people on the right platforms,” comments Jason Hall, Founder of FiveChannels. “AI can generate viable topics for writers or even develop initial drafts of content based on certain parameters.”
“On the strategy side, AI has the potential to help marketers map out an end-to-end content strategy. Some marketing tools are already providing this feature,” he continues. “I predict it will also be able to generate comprehensive reporting on content initiatives, with little to no human labour involved.”
When thinking about curating content for PPC purposes, it’s time to think about what your target consumers are most likely to search for. With this in mind, you can now use tools such as ChatGPT to curate targeted ad copy and even ask AI to focus in on a particular keyword or phrase.
While AI-generated content still needs some human work, it’s quickly cutting down writing time for marketers and transforming productivity across the board.
Automated Advertising
Automated advertising is music to a PPC marketer’s ears. Placing an ad can be a lengthy process, but incorporating AI into your strategy could make it a walk in the park.
Automation alone has increased global advertising productivity by 1.4% annually. From automatic personalisation to improved retargeting, AI enhancements can shape a customisable campaign for every target lead.
“These systems operate autonomously, placing the right kinds of ads in front of the right kinds of people based on complex algorithms and big data. This is what's known as programmatic advertising," says Hall. “With AI, businesses can optimize their return on investment by only placing ads in front of relevant viewers. Ads can be bought automatically and then personalized at scale. Many advertisers are already using this technology.”
When you make a website, it’s important to create content that directly links to these programmatic ads. If your content contains the same persisted keywords as your ads, you’ll not only see more clicks, but you’ll also see less bounce once consumers arrive on your page.
Managing PPC Bids
PPC bidding can also cost time for a marketing team. Employing AI-powered platforms such as Google Ads to control your PPC bidding can help make your campaigns more effective.
With the ability to curate your own AI algorithm that manages your individual bids, you can adjust your bids autonomously. With AI-powered prediction on your side, you’ll be less likely to bid too low on ads that drive quality leads, which in turn boosts your ROI and reduces overbidding.
A number of industry leaders have automated their bidding process. Take the holiday booking company Trivago for example. Using AI-driven bidding alone, the platform raked in a 36% growth in conversions in 2022.
The key here is still to monitor your performance. While fully automated strategies boost productivity, they also require a more watchful eye. Ensure that you stay within your own budget and tweak any automated solutions that may not sit in line with your overall growth strategy.
An Automated Future?
AI certainly has a long way to go in the world of PPC, but its benefits are not to be ignored. As a team productivity booster, AI not only automates repetitive tasks but can significantly improve campaign forecasting.
As we approach a new era of digital native demographics and constantly shifting trends, AI could help marketers be quicker on their feet in adapting their targeting and advertising strategies.
The question is, could machine learning make traditional marketing redundant? Only time will tell.