One of the most important things a web designer does is try to drive traffic to that website. There are a few ways to do that to increase your traffic both organically (meaning that you got searched hits that you did not pay for) or by paid per click searches.
Getting picked up by more search engines for higher hits in organic can be hard. A lot of businesses turn to the "paid per click". There are many companies out there will help you set up the paid per click for a fee and usually its not cheap. Really if you take a hour or so you can learn how to set up the paid per click yourself, its really not that hard and easy to do plus it will save you tons of money. One of the best paid per click programs out there is Google Adwords. One great thing about Google is they offer all of these free classes (online) that will show you all the steps and give you great hints as what will help you increase the traffic and get the most for your dollar. I use google adwords on one of my business website, its a local business so I only target customers in my area. Here are some of the classes they offer for google adwords:
What you will learn: The first step to generating business with AdWords is creating your account. In this course, you'll learn the AdWords basics and we will show you step-by-step how to create a successful AdWords account.
Who should watch: This course would suit everyone just starting out with AdWords, or interested in learning more about AdWords before creating an account.
How long is it: 15 minutes
What you will learn: So, you've created your AdWords account but what do all of the terms mean and how do you navigate through your account? In this course you'll learn how to make the most of your account by understanding how to move around your account and what everything means.
Who should watch: This course will suit all advertisers who are just starting out with AdWords and who want to understand how to work with their account.
How long is it: 17 minutes
What you will learn: Understanding the basics of AdWords will help you create a winning account. This course includes how your ads are ranked, how to review and understand your performance and how to make sure your visitors are turning into customers.
Who should watch: This course will suit all advertisers who want to understand the AdWords fundamentals and how to use this knowledge to build a successful account.
How long is it: 14 minutes
What you will learn: Follow the same steps our own Google specialists use to find out quickly why you might not be able to see your ad. We will walk you through identifying the issue and getting your ads back up and running. We'll also provide you with more detailed explanations for the main reasons you may not have been able to see your ad.
Who should watch: This course would suit advertisers who are unable to see their ad on Google and would like to walk through how to identify the issue.
How long is it: 20 minutes
What you will learn: Learn about how to improve your AdWords account, including tips on how to structure your campaigns, manage your keywords, and write effective ad texts. We'll also take you through how to approach making improvements when you have a specific goal in mind.
Who should watch: This course would suit all advertisers who are interested in maximising the performance of their AdWords account.
How long is it: 22 minutes
What you will learn: Learn how to identify and implement custom keyword, budget, and bid suggestions in the Opportunities tab of your AdWords account. Hear how other advertisers have improved their performance by using the Opportunities tab.
Who should watch: This course would suit advertisers who want to learn how to identify and implement custom suggestions found in the Opportunities tab of their accounts.
How long is it: 18 minutes
What you will learn: With Google's free Website Optimizer tool, you can test different lay-outs for pages of your website, and measure exactly which one generates the most sales or leads. We will provide you with an introduction to website testing, including how you can set up Website Optimizer and get testing yourself.
Who should watch: This course would suit advertisers who are actively tracking their websites conversions and who are looking to make further site changes to improve their conversion rates.
How long is it: 10 minutes
What you will learn: Use the reporting and analysis tools within AdWords to get more value out of your campaigns. After completing this lesson you’ll be able to quickly find and optimize the parts of your account that have the biggest impact on your success, then monitor them regularly to ensure continued strong performance.
Who should watch: This course is best suited for advertisers new to AdWords reporting tools such as segmentation, filters, and custom alerts.
How long is it: 21 minutes
What you will learn: Learn how to set and manage your bids to get the best possible return from your investment in AdWords. We'll show you how to calculate your Value per Click (i.e. the most you can pay for a click) and how to experiment with different CPC bids to find the most profitable.
Who should watch: This course would suit AdWords users who are already measuring their ROI and want to improve it.
How long is it: 12 minutes
What you will learn: Save time and increase your profits with Conversion Optimizer, a free AdWords bidding feature that allows you to set a maximum cost-per-acquisition (CPA). Join the product team for an overview of how Conversion Optimizer works and learn how you can get more conversions at a lower cost for your AdWords search and Display Network campaigns.
Who should watch: This course would suit advertisers who want to focus on maximizing conversions through AdWords.
How long is it: 13 minutes
What you will learn: Learn about Google Analytics and how it can provide valuable insights into your online business. This course will show you how to create a new Analytics account, how to link it to your AdWords account, and how to install the Analytics code on your website to begin tracking visitor activity and conversions.
Who should watch: This course would suit AdWords users who are not currently using Google Analytics or users who are new to the product.
How long is it: 9 minutes
What you will learn: Correct set up of Google Analytics is essential to ensure that you are making decisions based on accurate data. We will cover advanced implementation issues that will give you the confidence to make effective decisions on where to spend your marketing budget and areas of your site that could be improved.
Who should watch: This course would suit advertisers with more complex websites, such as subdomains or 3rd party shopping carts.
How long is it: 7 minutes
What you will learn: Increase your online profits by starting to track and understand the results from your advertising investment! We will show you how to better convert online clicks into profit for your business using AdWords Conversion Tracking, including how to analyze your return on investment, make informed bid decisions and identify areas for improvement.
Who should watch: This course would suit advertisers who are new to tracking their AdWords return on investment.
How long is it: 9 minutes
What you will learn: Use the Google Display Network to target your ads to sites across the web. Whether you want to create brand awareness or elicit a direct response from potential customers -- the Google Display Network can help you reach that goal. Learn what the Google Display Network is, the benefits of using it, and how to get started today.
Who should watch: This course is best suited to AdWords advertisers who are new to the Google Display Network.
How long is it: 10 minutes
What you will learn: There are now 4 billion mobile phone owners globally. Half of all new internet connections come from mobile devices, and by 2014 it's reported that there will be more mobile internet users than desktop internet users. Google offers a number of innovative ad formats to help you reach mobile users looking for products and services.
Who should watch: This course is suitable for anyone wishing to learn more about mobile advertising.
How long is it: 18 minutes
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