In the offline days long before the World Wide Web and PPC (Pay per click) ads came along, publishers as well as radio and TV stations experimented with something called PPO (pay per order) and PPR (pay per response) or PPL (pay per lead) advertising. As the names suggest, these were ads where the advertisers either paid per lead generated or order generated. But the truth is that these ads never really took off and were never widely accepted.
So what happened in the case of online PPC (pay per click) ads? What caused these kind of advertisements to become so wildly popular as they are today?
Google Launched The PPC Revolution
To answer some of these questions it is useful to go back in time a little and trace the origin of the popularity of PPC ads. There is the amazing story of well known search engine giant Google which has experienced phenomenal growth within such a short time of existence.
The Google fairy tale is still a fascinating read even today. Started by Larry Page and Sergey Brin while they were still students at Stanford, for a long time this venture grew tremendously in popularity and usage and was very widely used and yet had not found a way to generate revenue. It was obvious that charging a fee for the use of their revolutionary search engine was not the right model. That search for a way to generate revenues ended when Google was already receiving millions of visitors daily and the company just found a convenient and non-intrusive way to display advertising.
It is clear that the founders of Google realized quite early on in the game, what many others have not seen to date. That is the fact that although the Internet is widely seen as an improvement of the Television, this is not true and the web is actually an adavanced telephone more than anything else. This is easily proved by the fact that TV and the web are in fact two very different mediums. TV can accommodate a lot of advertising comfortably, but advertising on the web is usually viewed as a nuisance and intrusion into people's privacy. This is the main reason why PPC ads took off quickly even when a similar concept offline never really proved attractive to most publishers and advertisers alike.
Google looked for a way to carry advertising online to its' huge audience without intruding and came up with the idea of displaying only relevant advertisements based on searches on its' popular search engine. The idea was simple but extremely powerful and meant that somebody using keywords to search for information would end up with the organic results of their search on one side and on the other relevant advertisements on the same subject.
The next problem they had to solve was the fact that based on the huge audience they had, they would be justified in charging very high advertising rates. However the market accustomed to cheap online advertising was unlikely to accept those ad rates.
And that is how PPC ads came into use at Google. By charging only for click throughs to the site, advertisers were very happy to pay huge sums as long as it was for actual visits to their sites from people who had clicked on the Google PPC ads because they will usually have been able to generate an even larger sum of money from orders placed by a percentage of the visitors who arrived at their sites.
The rest as they say, is history. The Google PPC concept rapidly grew in popularity and is today by far, the most popular form of advertising on the web.
Others Join The PPC Party
As you read this, there are numerous other online companies and sites that offer PPC ads. They make lots of sense because advertisers can easily measure their response and sales revenue against what they have spent on advertising.
Today there are a number of interesting search programs that include PPC advertising and are well worth taking a look at because they are capable of providing the perfect solution for many online marketing and advertising problems.
Got a Question? Ask.
Ask the community a question about this article:
Frequently Asked Questions
Increase in debt
By: winn | 09-09-2008
How would an increase in debt affect the cost of capital?
Audi transmision
By: progressivepro1 | 09-09-2008
what type of fluid must use for audi a4 transmisionand haw much need ? thank you audi transmision
Ira plan plus other stock plans. is it possible to ...
By: zeke | 09-09-2008
ira plan plus other stock plans. is it possible to just roll them over into reducing my mortgage?
Company information?
By: universalgal | 09-09-2008
Looking for information on a companies to sell into my business products. Where will I get Manager Level business contacts in any department at any company ?
Shopping for wooden nickels
By: mike hayes | 09-09-2008
wood nickel
Marketing plan for the olympics
By: TerGarOne | 08-09-2008
marketing plan for the olympics
Q&A Powered by:
More from Terry Detty
Internet Banking and Privacy Policies Information
By: Terry Detty | 20/02/2008 | ECommerce
Privacy policies and legislation all play a role in keeping your rights of privacy in a good place.
The Elements of Targeted Global Marketing
By: Terry Detty | 23/11/2007 | Online Promotion
If it is possible to send out the same message worldwide in a relevant and cost-effective way, it sure must be put into practice but the challenge is really big.
The Correct Way to Exploit Keyword Phrases at your Site
By: Terry Detty | 21/11/2007 | Online Promotion
The reality which many webmasters have seen in their own experiences is that if you aim for everybody you will most certainly end up with hardly anybody. The proper approach and use of keyword phrases on your site is bound to revolutionize your fortunes online.
How to Blend Adsense Ads With your Website..
By: Terry Detty | 20/11/2007 | Online Promotion
You have the ability to change the color, format, and style of the advertisements placed on your website. You also get to determine where they are placed. This makes the idea of participating in Adsense advertising even more appealing.
What is Adsense and How Can it Benefit You?
By: Terry Detty | 19/11/2007 | Advertising
The online help and customer service of Google Adsense will give you all the information you need to know as well as help you with any questions or concerns along the way.
The Importance of Google Adsense..
By: Terry Detty | 15/11/2007 | Online Promotion
Taking the time to educate yourself about Adwords and how they can promote your business in Google Adsense will be a great investment in the future of your business. The various tools available to help make the process easier should be taken advantage of.
The Corporate Image Speaks
By: Terry Detty | 13/11/2007 | Networking
For any corporation it is very important to create a distinct image in the market. This is known as Corporate Image which distinguishes the corporation from its competitors and provides a picture of it to the general public.
Make Targeted Adsense Results Easy
By: Terry Detty | 11/11/2007 | Advertising
As an advertisement host, Adsense is a great opportunity to make money. The key for both parties to benefit the most is by targeting the results. This includes using keywords and coding to get particular ads and to prevent advertising for something you don’t want on your website.
Advertising 
