PPC Advertising: What You Actually Need to Know

Let’s be honest about PPC: it’s the fastest way to get traffic, and also the fastest way to burn money.

The difference between these outcomes usually comes down to management. Good PPC management prints money. Bad PPC management is an expensive lesson.

Here’s what you need to know to end up on the right side.

What PPC Actually Costs in the UK

Before we get into management, let’s talk about what clicks actually cost. These numbers are UK-specific data from 2024:

Google Ads averages:

But averages are misleading. What you’ll actually pay depends heavily on industry.

High-cost industries (UK):

Lower-cost industries:

WordStream’s 2024 benchmarks show the global average CPC hit $4.66 this year — a 10% increase from 2023. Costs are going up across the board.

The trend is clear: clicks get more expensive every year as more businesses advertise and competition increases.

What Management Actually Costs

On top of your ad spend, you’re paying someone to manage campaigns. Here are the common models:

Percentage of ad spend:

Flat monthly fee:

Hybrid models:

Performance-based:

UK agency benchmarks show management fees typically range from £500-2,000/month for small businesses, scaling up from there.

The real total cost:

Let’s say you want to test Google Ads with £2,000/month ad spend:

If you’re spending less than £1,000/month on ads, agency fees often don’t make economic sense. Consider learning it yourself or finding a freelancer.

What Good PPC Management Actually Includes

A competent PPC manager does more than just “run ads.” Here’s what you should expect:

Strategy and Setup (Month 1)

This is where the thinking happens:

A thorough setup takes time. Agencies that skip this phase to “get campaigns live faster” often waste more money in the long run.

Ongoing Management (Monthly)

The actual work of PPC:

This isn’t set-and-forget. Good PPC requires daily or weekly attention, which is why management fees exist.

Reporting and Analysis

You should get:

If your reports are just screenshots of Google Ads dashboards, that’s not analysis — that’s laziness.

When PPC Works (and When It Doesn’t)

PPC isn’t magic. It works well in some situations and poorly in others.

PPC works well when:

PPC struggles when:

Average conversion rates across industries are around 4-5% for search ads. That means 95% of clicks don’t convert. Your landing page and offer matter enormously.

Different platforms serve different purposes:

Best for: High-intent leads (people actively searching for solutions)

Pros: Intent is clear, massive reach, detailed targeting

Cons: Competitive, expensive in some industries, requires keyword expertise

Typical CPC: £1-5 for most industries, £5-10+ for competitive verticals

Google Display

Best for: Retargeting, brand awareness

Pros: Cheap impressions, wide reach

Cons: Low intent, banner blindness, click fraud concerns

Typical CPC: £0.30-1.00

Google Shopping

Best for: E-commerce, product-based businesses

Pros: Visual format, product-level targeting, high intent

Cons: Requires product feed setup, competitive for popular products

Typical CPC: £0.30-1.50

Meta (Facebook/Instagram)

Best for: B2C, visual products, interest-based targeting

Pros: Detailed demographic targeting, creative formats, cheaper clicks

Cons: Lower intent than search, privacy changes affecting tracking

Typical CPC: £0.50-2.00

LinkedIn

Best for: B2B, targeting by job title/company

Pros: Unmatched professional targeting

Cons: Expensive (£3-8+ CPC), limited to business context

Typical CPC: £3-8 minimum

Microsoft/Bing

Best for: Reaching older demographics, cheaper alternative to Google

Pros: Less competition, lower costs, often overlooked

Cons: Much smaller audience, similar interface to Google

Typical CPC: 20-40% cheaper than Google for similar keywords

How to Tell If Your PPC Is Working

The metrics that matter:

Cost per acquisition (CPA): How much you spend to get a customer or lead. This is the number that determines profitability.

Return on ad spend (ROAS): Revenue generated divided by ad spend. If you spend £1,000 and generate £4,000 in sales, that’s 4x ROAS.

Conversion rate: Percentage of clicks that convert. Below 2% usually signals a landing page problem.

Quality Score: Google’s rating of your ad relevance (1-10). Higher scores mean lower costs.

What “good” looks like varies by business:

E-commerce typically targets 4:1 ROAS (£4 revenue per £1 spent) or higher.

Lead generation should achieve CPA lower than customer lifetime value. If a customer is worth £1,000 over their lifetime, paying £100-200 to acquire them might be profitable.

B2B with long sales cycles might accept lower ROAS knowing not all leads close immediately.

Red Flags When Hiring

Run from agencies that:

Guarantee specific results: “We guarantee first page rankings” or “We’ll 5x your leads” — nobody can promise this because you’re bidding against competitors in an auction.

Won’t give you account access: You should own your Google Ads account. If they build campaigns in their account, you lose everything when you leave.

Require long contracts upfront: 12-month minimum with steep cancellation fees is a red flag. Good agencies let results speak for themselves. 3-month minimum is reasonable.

Won’t explain their strategy: If they can’t tell you what keywords they’re targeting, how they’re structuring campaigns, or what they’re testing, they’re winging it.

Focus only on clicks or impressions: “We got you 10,000 clicks!” means nothing if those clicks didn’t convert. The only metric that matters is cost per acquisition.

Hide the ad spend breakdown: You should know exactly how much goes to platforms vs. their fee. Agencies that bundle these are often taking a hidden margin.

What to Look for Instead

Good agencies will:

Show relevant case studies: Not just “we work with big brands” but specific results with businesses similar to yours.

Ask questions before pitching: They should want to understand your business, margins, and goals before proposing anything.

Be honest about timelines: Expect 2-4 weeks to set up properly, another 2-4 weeks for initial optimisation, and 2-3 months for campaigns to mature.

Provide transparent reporting: Clear dashboard access, regular reports you can understand, honest assessment of what’s working.

Suggest not doing PPC if it’s wrong for you: The best agencies turn away clients where they don’t think they can deliver results.

Managing PPC Yourself vs Hiring Out

Consider DIY if:

Hire help if:

The middle ground: Learn enough to understand what good management looks like, then hire someone to execute. You’ll be a better client and catch underperformance faster.

Getting Started with PPC

If you’re considering paid advertising:

1. Make sure your website converts first

No point paying for traffic to a site that doesn’t turn visitors into leads or customers. Test organic traffic conversion before scaling with paid.

2. Start with one platform

Google Search for high-intent keywords, or Meta for awareness/consideration. Master one before expanding.

3. Set realistic expectations

First 30 days are for learning, not results. Expect 60-90 days to reach optimised performance.

4. Define success upfront

What’s a lead or customer worth? What CPA is profitable? Agree on these before spending.

5. Budget appropriately

Below £500/month rarely generates enough data to optimise. £1,000-3,000/month is a reasonable testing budget for most small businesses.

Curious whether PPC is right for your business? Our PPC advertising services start with an audit of your current situation. No commitment, just honest advice. Let’s talk.