CPC (cost per click) is a paid advertising phrase where the advertiser pays the publisher for each ad click. Pay per click is another term for Cost per Click (PPC).
The CPC option is the first iteration of what is known as performance-based models. This option will give you a wide budget oversight and attribution.
With CPC campaigns, you as an advertiser pay for a click and even attribute a conversion to said click.
The beauty of CPC is that you’re earning when someone clicks on your ad. This gives you plenty of space to optimize.
If you’re a newbie in affiliate marketing and just starting out with campaigns, a good idea is to run them on a CPC basis. Why is that? You will be paying only when a click occurs, which means you can start out with a smaller budget. This will lower the risk of failure while you’re figuring out how things work. Once you become more confident, you can adjust your campaigns and increase the budget slowly.
Even if you have more industry experience, testing campaigns on a CPC basis is a good idea. For example, you have a new offer that you’d like to test but are not completely sure if it will convert well. Testing with a small budget on a CPC basis is an excellent way to check.
In both cases, whether you’re testing your skills as a beginner or trying new products as an experienced affiliate, a rule of thumb is to start with smaller bids. Then, track the amount of traffic you will get, and adjust your budget accordingly.
A lot of traffic with a small bid usually means that traffic has a slightly lower quality, and the bid should be lowered. Sometimes, however, a small bid simply means you don’t have many competitors. This is something you’ll learn from experience.
Regardless of the amount of experience, when testing campaigns on a CPC basis, you should begin small. Then, optimize your campaigns according to the results you’re getting with them. The goal should be to get a satisfactory number of clicks for the amount of money you are willing to pay.
If you’re new to affiliate marketing, read what mistakes to avoid.