Is in-house or external paid search (PPC) the best fit for your business?

Paid search has become an essential component in digital marketing strategy. Being able to generate qualified leads and actionable insights into the effect of marketing investment are just two of the benefits of integrating paid search. For most organisations, PPC is often outsourced and this can generate some excellent results. However, with many large companies starting to bring this in-house, is it time to reevaluate whether in-house or external paid search is the best option?

The importance of flexibility in PPC

Important to note is that there are different types of PPC and not all are ideally suited to being handled in-house. While it’s fairly easy to switch to in-housing some PPC methods if you have the staff and resources, others require an investment in technology and time that most businesses are simply not willing or able to make. For example, when looking at whether to outsource ad tech or handle this in house, for most enterprises the more sensible option is to continue to outsource this.

There are substantial costs involved in creating your own ad tech for the business and it’s usually much cheaper to rent a portfolio based bidding tool, as opposed to paying to create your own. You’re also much more likely to have access to more effective and sophisticated technology with a far lower up front cost when opting for outsourced.

PPC strategy and handling

Creating and carrying out PPC strategy is often the part of paid search that is under review when it comes to whether this should be handled in-house or externally. There are a number of different factors to consider here.

The size of the budget

For organisations with a large budget, currently paying high costs to outsource PPC strategy and execution, it may be more economical to bring these functions in-house. An agency will usually charge around 12-15% of media spend so businesses with a £250,000 or more monthly spend could see cost reductions from moving to an in-house model. For budgets below this it tends to make less sense.

Access to knowledge

Before moving any PPC function in-house it’s important to identify whether there are disadvantages that could compromise any cost savings. For example, if your PPC is outsourced to an agency you’re also getting the benefit of specialist expertise and the experience of a PPC manager working on a variety of different accounts, which wouldn’t be the case in-house.

Best practice standards

If you’re considering bringing PPC strategy and handling in-house then it’s crucial to ensure your team will have a way to maintain best practice standards and stay on top of the latest industry recommendations and requirements.

Data management

Whether you outsource or not it’s crucial that you have control of your own ad accounts so that you retain ownership of the data within these accounts.

In-house or outsourced, PPC is an essential part of digital marketing strategy for every business. Whether you opt to hand over this function to specialists, manage it in-house, or select a hybrid model that blends the two options, it’s important to ensure that paid search features in your plans.

Get in touch with the Iconic Digital team today on 0207 100 0726 to see if we could help make your PPC campaigns more targeted.