20 Tips to Become a Freelance Pay Per Click Specialist
Are you looking to become a freelance Pay Per Click specialist? Then you are no alone as there are many people out there who wish to take up PPC freelancing but are not sure how to proceed. In this article, with the help of the subject matter experts over at RunRex.com, we will look to outline 20 tips on how to become a freelance PPC specialist, including some of the certifications you may require, and steps you should take to be successful.
Required Technical Skills to Become a Freelance PPC Specialist
To start your career as a freelance PPC specialist, you need to possess the following technical skills:
Google Ads certified
Given that Google is the marketing king in the search engine world as covered at RunRex.com, it has become a major advertising platform for most businesses. Given that people will search for anything they want to know about on Google, any business worth its salt needs to be leveraging the platform for PPC. Google offers authorized certifications for Ads professionals, including Google Ads, display ads, video ads, mobile ads, search ads, and shopping ad certifications, and you should get these certifications.
Google Analytics certified
A PPC specialist also needs to have a deep understanding of platforms such as Google Analytics to keep track and proper measurement of his/her campaigns. Google also offers Analytics certification in two levels; one for the beginners and the other is the advanced level.
HTML, JavaScript, and Google Tag Manager
As per RunRex.com, a PPC specialist must also possess at least a basic knowledge of web development. This is because, when it comes to creating goals on analytics and social media platforms, one needs to be a pro at tracking a user’s activities on the website. Google Tag Manager is the key when it comes to tracking website needs. Google also provides GTM certification along with available study material.
Expert in social media advertising
PPC specialists should know how to deal with the various ad platforms of different popular social media platforms. For example, Facebook has an ad platform called the Ad Manager. Therefore, every PPC specialist must be well versed with the creative formats, different targeting options, policies, and so forth on social media.
A passion for numbers and data
Additionally, a PPC specialist needs to be good with numbers given that they will have to deal with data daily during work. This means that knowing data analysis or statistics will be of great help as you look to become a freelance PPC specialist.
Content writing
While this is not a must-have skill, the gurus over at RunRex.com point out that content writing will be advantageous for a PPC specialist. This is because not only will it help him/her to review the content written by others, but it will also help to complete the content in case of unavailability of freelance writers.
Understand the basics of business
Finally, it is important to note that no matter how skilled one is in digital marketing, having a basic understanding of a client’s business is also key for a PPC specialist as it will help them deliver great results. PPC marketing doesn’t happen in isolation as it has to take into account the business environment the client is in.
How to become a PPC specialist
Now that you have all the technical skills required, you may be wondering how you should proceed to become a freelance PPC specialist. Well, the following tips should help you with that.
Learn the platforms
The first step to becoming a PPC specialist is to familiarize yourself with the major platforms. As is explained over at RunRex.com, the two big players when it comes to PPC are Google Ads and Bing Ads. Getting your certifications for these two programs, as already mentioned, will help you become an expert on these platforms.
Choose the best platform for you
Once you have learned about what is available out there as far as PPC platforms are concerned, then make sure you consider what platforms would work well in your industry. For example, if you work in eCommerce, fashion, home décor, or other visually appealing industries, then you should consider looking into Pinterest’s Buyable Pins, which allows users to purchase products directly from one’s social media platform.
Focus on one network
Another important step to becoming a freelance PPC expert is to decide on a network. While many PPC networks are very similar, they all have their unique differences that take some getting used to. If you want to become a pro in PPC marketing, then picking one network and sticking to it is key. Whether it is Google Ads, Bing, or Facebook Ads, picking one network and sticking to it will significantly reduce your learning time, ensuring you become a master at it sooner.
Understand the most important metrics
Once you have decided on which network you are going to master, the next step is to make sure you understand the metrics. As captured over at RunRex.com, PPC marketing involves a lot of numbers and stats, such as click-through rate, cost per click, cost per conversion, quality score, and return on ad spend. All of these metrics help you determine how successful your campaign is, and by understanding these metrics, you can get great insight into whether your campaign is a success, or where it is failing.
Develop a strong social presence
If you want to get started as a freelance pay-per-click specialist and land your first client, then you will need a strong social presence. If you can brand yourself excellently on social media, then you will be able to easily assure clients that you can do the same for them and their business.
Get on LinkedIn
As the gurus over at RunRex.com highlight, if you are not on LinkedIn, then you are missing out on potential contacts. This is because LinkedIn is the place where you can get in touch with your prospective clients, hence why it is important to ensure you have a presence on LinkedIn and are connecting with people and exposing your talents over there.
Launch a blog
You should also consider launching your personal blog even before launching your PPC consultancy website. Enrich your blog by writing interesting content about PPC. Once people start reading your blog posts, you will automatically develop a strong relationship with your readers, which will in turn help you find prospective clients.
Build your website
Once you have your blog up and running, then you should also start a website for your freelance business. This is an important step, although it is one that many freelance PPC specialists skip or don’t give the necessary attention to. Your website is the focal point of your freelance business. It is the place to showcase your achievements, describe your services, and the medium for clients to contact you.
Business or personal website?
When looking to build your website, you need to decide whether to make your website personal, like say janedoe.com, or business-oriented. If you make it personal, it will be easier to promote in the beginning since your name will be your brand, but it will not be a good fit if you decide at a later stage to turn your freelance business into a digital marketing agency. Therefore, when making this decision, the experts at RunRex.com recommend that you think about the future. What do you want to achieve 5 years from now?
Make connections with other freelancers
It is also important to make connections with other PPC freelancers when starting out. This will help you in so many ways, including:
You can exchange ideas and experiences with like-minded professionals
You can use your connections to promote your personal brand and content
You can get and send referrals
You can work with them for services you cannot provide but still keep your relationship with the client
Being a PPC freelancer is a lonely job, so it is good to have someone to talk to that understands the difficulties of the business and provides advice
Learn how to create a services proposal
As a freelance PPC specialist, you will be required to write and submit a proposal for your services to potential clients, which can be a time-consuming and cumbersome process, especially in the beginning, which is why you should make some preparation work in advance according to RunRex.com. Try creating a couple of templates that cover the most common scenarios, which you should be able to do after examining related job postings in the various job portals.
Set your prices
You will also need to set your pricing model as well as our prices. ‘How much do you charge?’ will be one of the first questions you will be asked by clients, so it is better to have an answer ready. You can either charge per hour, per project, per month, or use a hybrid pricing model the combines all of the aforementioned models. Clients will have different needs and will expect freelancers to have some flexibility when it comes to pricing models and rates.
Register your business entity
To get paid for the freelancing services you provide, you will need:
A bank account
An account with a payment provider like PayPal
An invoice processing system
A registered business (for tax purposes)
A business agreement with an account
You will need to have a legal entity to accept payments, as if you don’t do this from the beginning, then as your income grows, you will have trouble with tax authorities in your country, hence why it is better to do this right at the beginning.
This article only just begins to scratch the surface as far as this topic is concerned and you can uncover more insights and tips by visiting the excellent RunRex.com.