Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Advertising

Pay-per-click (PPC) describes an advertising payment model, not a guarantee of customer inquiries. In a typical search campaign, an advertiser chooses goals, targeting, creative, and budget, and a platform determines eligible ad opportunities through its delivery or auction system. Charges are linked to eligible clicks under the applicable pricing setup. The resulting cost per click (CPC) is a metric; PPC is the larger campaign and buying approach.

A local electrician might run search ads for emergency repair queries in serviceable areas. A strong campaign still needs truthful ad text, a relevant landing page, call handling, conversion measurement, and a plan for excluding unsuitable searches where supported. Paying for clicks can generate website traffic without bookings, so performance should be assessed through qualified leads, appointments, costs, and revenue—not just clicks.

Not every digital advertising product uses PPC; some charge for impressions, leads, or other outcomes. Google Ads provides multiple campaign types and bidding strategies, and account configuration changes how costs should be understood. PPC should therefore not be used as a synonym for all paid advertising. The existing Cost Per Click glossary entry explains the price metric, while this entry describes the advertising model and decisions around it. Do not promise fixed auction prices or guaranteed positions.