Choosing Pay per Click Networks

Ask any Internet marketer to name a PPC network, and there's a good chance that you'll hear the name Google Adwords. It stands to reason that since Google is the number one search engine, its pay per click offering is one of the most popular. Many affiliates make their first foray into PPC with Adwords, and they often stick with it.

Adwords has the potential to bring you lots of traffic. But it's not the only PPC network that's worth using. There are many others to consider, including:

Microsoft Adcenter - Displays ads on the Bing search engine and the Microsoft content network.

Yahoo Search Marketing - Displays ads on the Yahoo search engine.

7Search - Supplies search results and ads to over 500 search engines, blogs and websites.

Adbrite - Supplies ads through a content network.

Bidvertiser - Supplies ads through a content network.

After Google, Microsoft and Yahoo are the next biggest players in the pay per click game. But that doesn't mean that all other networks are a waste of time. Smaller PPC networks have an advantage when it comes to pricing. On average, advertisers pay less per click than they would on the "Big Three." So if you're on a tight budget, you may do better to give them a try.

Each PPC network has rules that advertisers must follow, and it's imperative that you read over them carefully. Some do not allow advertisers to use direct affiliate links. Some have minimum deposits that you must make. And all have certain guidelines for the ads themselves. You can save yourself a lot of headaches by making sure that you understand the terms fully before placing your first ad.