Find Top PPC Agencies & AdWords Consultants Near You

PPC Agencies & AdWords Consultants

Paid search is a popular online advertising channel for both large and small businesses because of its low-cost base, data driven design and wide audience reach. Hiring an expert pay per click (PPC) consultant or agency can help you improve your conversion rate, better manage your paid search campaigns, drive traffic and gain new customers

What is a PPC agency?

A PPC agency is comprised of PPC consultants who are experts at creating, optimising and managing PPC campaigns for major search engine platforms like Google, Microsoft, Yahoo and Amazon. PPC consultants are essentially digital marketers with a focus on search engine marketing, keyword research, ad creation and PPC campaign management. 

Note: PPC consultants may also be referred to as an ‘AdWords Consultant’. This is because Google is one of the most powerful and popular advertising platforms. However, most PPC consultants work across a wide range of paid search platforms as well as Google Ads.

There are some crossovers between PPC consultants and SEO specialists, and while they may share a similar skillset their area of expertise differs.

What is the difference between PPC and SEO agencies?

The key difference between PPC and SEO agencies is their area of expertise. PPC agencies are the pros to hire for paid search advertising, while SEO agencies are experts at improving your organic search rankings.

What are the benefits of hiring a PPC agency? 

You may be wondering, “Why can’t I go it alone?”

There is no reason why you can’t or shouldn’t do your own PPC ads (as long as you have a basic understanding of what to do or are willing to go through the learning curve). But for many small business owners, hiring a specialist PPC expert or agency is a much better and cost-efficient option.

Here are some of the reasons why you might want to consider hiring a PPC agency versus the DIY option:

• PPC agencies are in the know about industry standards and benchmarks 
• They have the capacity to do vigorous testing
• Running PPC campaigns takes time - something which many business owners are short on
• PPC requires you to keep on top of updates and trends - another thing which is difficult to do when running a business 

What services do PPC agencies and AdWords consultants offer?

PC agencies and AdWords consultants can help you with:

• Pay-per-click (PPC) project consultation
• PPC strategies
• Google AdWords campaign management
• Google AdWords remarketing campaign management
• Google Shopping, Google Map and Google display network ads
• PPC ads creation
• AdWords conversion rate optimisation
• Keyword research
• Competitor and industry keyword research
• Online reputation management

How do I hire a PPC agency?

Here is a checklist of key considerations and things to look out for to help you find the best AdWords consultant or PPC agency for your business:

• Certification: AdWords consultants can get training and certification from Google to understand the latest rules, trends and strategies (this is important as Google makes regular updates)
• Their niche: Find PPC agencies and consultants who have experience serving your type of business or industry. This gives them an upper hand in knowing what does and doesn’t work.
• They stick to a budget: Hire someone who understands your budget limitations and can realistically work with what you have (this is partly up to you to establish and communicate your budget before hiring).
• They do rigorous testing: PPC ads become effective through extensive testing, so ensure you ask about this during interviews.
• They share detailed reports: A good AdWords consultant will take the time to walk you through reports and explain the data.
• They are strategic: Good AdWords consultants should be able to devise several strategies that are unique to your business.
• Reviews: What do their reviews and previous client testimonials say about them?
• They know the competition: With fierce competition, a good consultant knows how to navigate so that your business comes out on top.
• They are good to work with: Hire someone who is transparent, responsive and proactive in their work and communication with you.
• Get to know them: Once you've narrowed it down to a few candidates with great reviews, arrange to meet them online or face-to-face.

What questions should I ask before hiring a PPC agency?

Here are some key questions to ask your PPC agency to help you narrow down your options:

• Are you Google certified?
• Who will manage my account?
• How will you manage any updates required for my website?
• How often will you send me reports?
• Will I also have access to campaign analytics?
• How do you price your services?
• Have you worked with businesses similar to mine?
• Which metrics do you use to measure success?

How much do PPC agencies charge?

AdWords consultants and PPC agencies usually price their services as a flat-rate fee/monthly retainer basis, or hourly. They may also charge you based on a percentage of your total ad spend (usually up to 30%).

The average rate for AdWords consultants and PPC professionals in Australia ranges between $70 to $250 per hour (depending on experience). They may also charge an initial consultation fee for research and strategy. 

With these figures in mind, the average cost to hire an AdWords consultant or PPC agency for small businesses ranges from as little as $250 to $3,000+.

If you’re still not sure whether hiring a PPC agency is the right option for you, you can browse our Q&A section or reach out to our community for advice.

If you’ve decided that managing your own PPC campaigns is a better option for you, we’ve put together some information on PPC and Google AdWords tools to improve your paid search campaign management.