This is the 12th post in the SEM Intermediate Series, a collection of posts intended for search engine marketing (SEM) professionals looking for guidance in monitoring and adjusting key performance indicators (KPIs) and other aspects of campaign management that help determine PPC success in Microsoft adCenter. This series is a continuation of the SEM Beginner Series.

In the world of SEM we are constantly looking at the data: how can I get the most from what I have? How can I be smarter with my business? How do I get the results I need? This logic can be applied to your budgeting as well; understanding budget methods and how they fit your business goals are absolutely essential to successful campaigns. However, in order to comprehend what your budget means to you, there are some key questions to ask yourself.

In this series of posts on budgeting, I’ll attempt to illustrate logic you can use to best optimize your budgets within SEM using some key questions that I ask my own clients. Keep in mind that there is no black and white answer--your business needs could require an assemblage of many answers--however, this should help you reexamine your focus for each campaign and use your budgets wisely.

I typically start with three questions: What are your business goals? How do you define success? And, what will your budget allow for? These questions can apply to your entire adCenter account or a specific campaign; you may benefit from a mix of all of the examples below.

  • Fitting your business goals: What do you want to accomplish with SEM? What action from our audience are you looking for? Who are you looking for?
    • Results Driven: Are you looking for a specific action or transaction to occur... purchasing a product, getting site impressions, or signing up for a newsletter?
    • Branding: Are you trying to get your brand name and company or product value proposition into the marketplace?
    • Lead Generation: Are you looking for a specific lead generation action to take place, such as collecting personal information for a service consultation or generating sales leads for a specific type of business?
  • How do you define success?
    • What are your specific KPIs?
    • A certain ad position or click volume goal?
    • A number of leads per week or impressions on your site?
    • A CPA (cost per acquisition) or CPS (cost per sale) goal?
  • What will your budgets allow for? Be realistic!
    • Do you have any flexibility in your budget given results you receive?
    • Do you have the time and resources to monitor your budgets to make sure your campaigns stay up and running?
    • How can you get the best return-on-investment (ROI) for the budget you have to work with?

In upcoming posts, I’ll dive into each type of budget and examine how it fits into the specific business goals outlined above. As you navigate through this Budgeting Series, keep in mind your own particular definitions of success and what your budget will allow for; these will be helpful factors in using your budget as a tool to meet your overall business goals.

In the meantime, check out our posts on budgeting types to get a refresher: Managing Your adCenter PPC Budget Effectively by Paulo and Budget Paused: Demystifying Downtime in Your adCenter Campaigns by Tina.

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