>>Internet Strategies
by Kelly “Rags” Ragland
Hit the bull’s-eye with…
Pay Per Click Advertising
Kelly “Rags” Ragland is owner and operator of Rags to Stitches Productions, a
holistic advertising-specialty company providing a range of services from web
design and development to customized apparel.
The next process is the meat-and-potatoes
of the campaign. I was able to select my
target audience by location—choose from
wide-open everywhere, or narrow by state/
province or by city. Next, define the target
demographic—age, sex, relationship, languages, or even an option to target people
on their birthdays. I chose English-speaking
customers in the USA and UK, ages 18 and
up of all ages, sexes and relationship sta-tuses, as the My Dart Shirts website ships
worldwide and accepts several methods of
payment and currency.
The next part of creating the ad can only
be described as pure advertising perfection.
I was able to narrow down my target audience’s likes and interests. Likes and interests
targeting is based on information users list
in their Facebook profiles, such as favorite
movies and music, or groups and pages they
When it comes to pay-per-click advertising (PPC), it comes as no surprise that many on- line businesses may experience hesitation, with questions of whether or not it will pay
off in the short or long term. While it’s true that most PPC advertising programs offer a small
margin between success and failure, I’ve recently discovered that Facebook has increased that
small margin to a wide-open window of opportunity and removed the need for any doubt.
The process is truly genius when you look at the elements. By nature, Facebook already
knows its users, what their users shop for, their hobbies and interests, friends and online
activities. In short, Facebook can find a target demographic by simply asking a few questions. And with that, rest assured that a PPC ad campaign will be drawing the attention on
qualified buyers, eliminating the risk of paying for unqualified clicks.
Case in point, I recently dove right in
with a moderate $50 investment on a
PPC ad for the My Dart Shirts website.
I found the process exciting, easy to use
and above all—successful.
Build it
Creating the ad took all of about 10 minutes. I simply went to the My Dart Shirts
business page on Facebook and used the
link “promote with an ad.” That took me
to the ad creation page where I was asked
for the title and body text. Both are limited in how many characters you may use,
so the no-brainer is to simply make it a
call to action—an eye-catching title and
some body copy such as “click here for
details.” I opted for a title of “Your Dart
Shirt!” and a brief teaser telling my prospective clients to “find yours here!” I also
used, and would recommend, the image
option. There is no extra charge and it
provides an eye-catching element to the
ad. The system has a live preview as the
content is entered, so there’s a representation of exactly what it will look like.
36 • PRINTWEAR • JUNE 2010
