Which advertising program is right for you? A lot depends on your desired outcome. But here is a quick list of the major campaign types for you to investigate further.
Advertising your contracting business online is like the advertising you do in the real world. Obviously advertising is the real world but you know what I mean. You will recognize many of the terms, but I thought I would explain them as they relate to online advertising.
CPM or Cost per Mille – This term comes over from print and means the same thing online as it does offline, cost per thousand impressions.
CPV or Cost Per Visitor – This is the price you would pay to have specific visitors to a specific website. For example, if you install toilets, you may want to advertise on a blog that talks about plumbing.
CPV or Cost per View – You pay for each and every unique user to your website.
CPC or Cost per Click – Also called Pay per Click or PPC, CPC is the charge you would pay every time someone clicks on a link that redirects that user to your website. The nice part here is you only pay when the user performs the click, so impressions are free.
CPA or Cost per Action – Even more defined than the previous four. You pay only when someone completes a specific task such as filling in a follow-up form.
CPL or Cost per Lead – Similar to the CPA model in that you are charged when the user takes action. However, the action here typically does not result in a direct sale. More likely, your prospect will add themselves to your mailing list or newsletter.
Cost-per-Call – This model is similar to CPC, but instead of being charged each time someone clicks, you are charged every time someone calls you.
Which one is right for your contracting company depends on what you want to get from advertising online. I would suggest working out your goals and what you would like to achieve with any campaign you launch online, then work your way back to the best advertising model that makes sense for the campaign.