Managing Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Advertising: In-House vs Agency. Which is better?
January 30, 2024Pay-per-click (PPC) is a form of online marketing where the advertiser pays a certain amount to the publisher when a user clicks on their ads. The publisher could be a Search Engine like Google and Bing or a website like Amazon Advertisement.
To start with PPC, advertisers start by bidding on keywords that they believe drive maximum clicks, traffic and conversion. That being said, PPC can help a company drive faster and large-scale traffic to their website cost-effectively and measurably.
While PPC ads allow you to reach a targeted audience, and improve chances of clicks, managing it is pretty complex today. You need to have significant expertise, tools, and resources. While going for PPC in-house may appear cost-effective, it is still risky to invest in something where you have little to no expertise and hands-on experience. Meanwhile, A PPC ad agency brings expertise by managing hundreds of PPC accounts but can be expensive for a long-term goal.
Today, we will weigh all the pros and cons to answer the most popular question asked by businesses worldwide- Is hiring a ppc ad agency worth it, or should I do ppc in-house?
PPC In-house vs. Agency, which one is better for you?
We have broken down this into several factors and weighted each factor on their pros and cons.
Experience
A successful PPC needs advanced techniques such as keyword research, ad copywriting, bid optimization, audience targeting, and campaign analysis. You will get more experienced minds when you hire a PPC ad service provider compared to doing it in-house. This is because, when you do things in-house, you are only focused on one speciality, meanwhile, a person doing this for years may have experience in several specialities and fields. As a result, they know more about ad strategies, research and analysis.
With an in-house team, there is a high chance you won’t be able to attract the same talent as an agency can provide. While companies can provide training programs to their employees, as well as hire experienced professionals, they still need at least months to achieve a level of perfection.
Tools and Technology
You need to leverage the features and functionalities of tools and technologies for better ROI in PPC. This requires additional costs for licenses, integration, and maintenance, putting a strain on limited in-house marketing budgets. Security and privacy protocols can further restrict access to valuable data and algorithmic recommendations.
Even though businesses going for in-house PPC opt for these expensive subscriptions, they still need to provide accurate training to employees to use the tools to their full potential. Most importantly, companies also need to weigh their budget and potential ROI before investing in advanced tools.
Meanwhile, marketing agencies work with several projects at a time, so investing in multiple tools doesn’t hamper their budget. Plus, their team is well aware of how to utilize these tools to reap maximum benefits.
Adaptation
Google, including Google Ads, is dynamic in nature. It keeps on introducing new algorithms, features, and audience tools. That’s why you need a team that can swiftly adapt to the new changes, failing which can significantly disrupt your campaign results.
While agencies handle the workload of implementing changes across multiple accounts, in-house teams face the challenge of incorporating new learning curves while managing ongoing campaigns. The constant requirement to optimize every aspect of a campaign including management, testing, and optimization can lead to inefficiencies for people with institutional knowledge.
Agencies, on the other hand, possess broader exposure, and diverse specialization, and have all the skills to rapidly adapt to the ever-evolving landscape of PPC advertising.
Consistency and Discipline
You must acknowledge that PPC and other forms of paid ads campaigns are independent of other forms of campaigns. That means, whoever managing PPC ads needs uninterrupted attention and discipline to successfully execute, monitor, report and optimize the campaign.
Agencies have dedicated management capacity that can work without distractions, while this kind of luxury may not be available for in-house employees as they might get pulled into other work.
Security
You might think that doing ppc campaigns in-house is more secure compared to getting it done through ppc agencies. Well, you would be surprised to know the results. When you work in-house, you are more likely to divulge your personal info to third-party advertising platforms by granting them accessibility when registering for a site or a tool. This, in turn, gives them access to your internal data, networks, and servers, which increases your security risks.
Conversely, agencies need to follow more advanced protocols and access permissions. They are required to adhere to necessary compliance requirements, providing you with more security and protecting your data from third-party advertisement sites.
Results
Business leaders often have a natural inclination to trust internal teams more when it comes to managing initiatives that are central to revenue generation. This trust can lead to a preference for managing PPC in-house, despite potential gaps in capabilities. Internal teams offer greater visibility into ongoing processes and change management, which aligns with the trust inherent in internal operations.
While internal teams offer transparency into ongoing processes, the specialized nature of PPC management can be challenging for executives not directly involved. Agencies, to justify their strategies, need to provide strong analytics and take responsibility for results. Balancing internal transparency with external expertise is crucial in the decision-making process.
Cost Commitments and Models
An agency usually costs around 15-20% of ad spend and may even go higher for big accounts. However, an in-house team will cost you more, as you need to invest in hiring, training, salaries, medical benefits, and other expenses. Hence, losing a team member impacts your organization even more in terms of costs and skills.
There are several PPC agencies, including Dzinepixel Webstudios that are quite creative with their fee structure, combining both fixed and variable pricing. They provide valuable PPC ad services in locations such as Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, and Mumbai at affordable prices.