At one time, pay-per-click (PPC) was considered one of the building blocks of any successful online marketing strategy. Now, given the growing popularity of social media advertising and the need to target advertising closely to a specific audience in order to achieve an optimal ROI, is it now time to concentrate on other forms of advertising rather than go down the PPC route? Ultimately, the decision to use PPC has to be based on consideration of the advertising portals which are most likely to deliver the biggest return for your money. If you're debating whether PPC should form part of your marketing activities in 2019, consider the following questions: Has PPC delivered a good return historically? If PPC has worked for your business in the past few years, there is no reason to think that it won't in 2019. Take a look at how the business accrued from PPC has progressed over the past few years. If you've been enjoying a reasonable return in 2017 and 2018, chances are PPC will continue to serve you well in 2019. Have you considered a local search? A PPC campaign with a national reach is great for goods which are shipped nationwide, or even internationally. For service-based operations or products with a local emphasis, using the Google Ads local targeting feature could give you the added return you're looking for. Is the entire customer experience as good as it possibly can be? Whilst PPC can encourage people to click through to your site or other online media, whether they stay and behave as you want them to is ultimately connected to the user experience after their click on a Google Ad. If you want to optimise the chances of a customer not just clicking through, but also taking advantage of what you've got to offer, it's vital that your site, media platforms and other outlets are as inviting and engaging as possible. Like any other form of paid advertising, PPC still has the power to generate traffic. Its strategic placement next to content that appeals to your target audience can provide the exposure that your business needs. That being said, ensuring every aspect of the marketing timeline works for your potential customer is essential if the best results are to be obtained.