Month by month we would like to gradually introduce you to the full Sayu team. Since the launch of our newsletter in December 2007, we have introduced you to many of our account managers.

Working closely with our statisticians, our account managers are responsible for handling our clients’ PPC campaigns.

In our final feature on our account managers, we would like to introduce you to Lauren.

In this interview, Lauren shares with us her experience of the adwords system, what attracted her to the fast moving arena of paid search and gives us some handy tips for anyone considering PPC for their business.

15 questions, for your 15 minutes of fame

1. What five words best describe you?
Friendly, positive, adventurous, understanding, organised

2. How long have you been working for Sayu?
3 months

3. What attracted you to the role of becoming an account manager at Sayu?
I first entered the world of sayu as a Sales Exec and then jumped at the chance to become an Account Manager when a position came up. My previous work experience is very marketing orientated so the role suited my interests. In my last job I worked as an Events Organiser which involved a lot of organisational skills and i knew this was a key element of the role. I have always been interested in e marketing and IT and achieved high grades in related modules in my degree. I like learning new skills and helping people achieve success.

4. What training was involved in becoming a Google Adwords Professional?
I read until my eyes got blurry! I watched power point presentations, made notes and then tested my knowledge through quizzes on the Google Adwords Learning Centre. It took a month of preparation before I was ready to sit the Google Adwords Professional exam. I also practised on example accounts to get a working knowledge of the system.

5. And how difficult was the exam?
The exam is multiple-choice and made difficult by offering extremely similar answers perhaps with just one word that changes. You can be 100% certain of an answer then read the other ones offered and feel not so confident.

6. -what did it involve?
116 questions in 90 minutes – which leaves no time for toilet breaks! There is the option of marking a question so that it pops up again at the end, so if you get time you can go back to it.

7. What are the key responsibilities of a PPC account manager?
Communication is the key! Understanding the client’s goals, setting realistic objectives and monitoring and reporting on all aspects of the campaign is essential.
Every account is different so the key is to listen to the clients needs and guide them towards reaching the potential of the campaign.

8. So far, what do you enjoy most about this industry?
I enjoy helping people get the most out of the service. It is pleasing to see that through our help, clients are reaching their online advertising goals, whether that is to drive more traffic to their website or to increase profits.
Also, being part of an industry that changes every day, means I am constantly learning.

9. In the near future are there any improvements or changes you can foresee occurring in the search engine's PPC programs?
Technology and the media capability of consumers' computers and mobile devices is ever evolving, and therefore the future of online advertising is sure to evolve in unison.
Video ads, image ads and gadget ads are recent examples of how the pay per click arena is staying up to date, and the recent trademark changes show Google's constant aim to help advertisers reach their target audience.

10. When optimising a PPC account, what does it involve?
The 3 key points I find myself repeating all the time are:

• Separate – adgroups!
• Specific – text ads!
• Relevant – landing pages!

We also expand keywords with filler terms, add exact and negative keywords. Test multiple text ads. The bid optimisation software helps us with effective bid monitoring. Sayu Conversion Tracking provides great insight into keyword performance. Monitoring, reporting and adjusting are ongoing processes.

11. What affect do these techniques have on a PPC account?
Separating keywords into specific adgroups means you can create more specific ad texts and attract customers who want your specific product/services, thus are more likely to convert. Specific text ads and relevant landing pages are essential in helping the customer find exactly what they are searching for and this gives you a good CTR and improves your quality score. Expanding keywords with filler terms can get you a cheaper CPC and a customer who is more ready to buy as oppose to a general browser. Using exact match keywords tends to result in a higher CTR and could reduce your CPC. Negative keywords are used to avoid unwanted traffic.

12 What are the benefits of working for a small/ medium sized business?
In a constantly evolving and changing industry it can be useful in that decisions and changes can be made quickly. Also the atmosphere is relaxed and you get to know your colleagues and can support each other.

13. What advice can you give to anyone considering PPC for their business?
The more time and effort you put into structuring the account – will save you time and money in the long run. Research into types of keywords that you can use and don't forget negative keywords. Ensure that your text ad is relevant to the specific products/ services and that the ad links through to a relevant landing page on your website.

14. What are the obvious pitfalls to avoid?
People tend to group many keywords together and have 1 general text ad to cover a range of products/ services. This is too vague and iv said it before and ill say it again – be specific!
People often assume that the best position is number 1. However, the optimal position might be further down – where you are paying less for more traffic. Its useful to trial different positions over a time period and work out what is most successful depending on your campaign goals.

15. Finally, for those interested in mastering the complex (and growing) arena of Pay Per Click themselves, is there any on-line resources that you found helped quicken your learning curve?
I found the Google adwords learning centre to be extremely useful. Google have many tools in your account which are there to help you optimize your account, analyse your ad performance, optimize your website, and even manage your account offline. The Common Questions section in the Reports tab were of particular use to me when trying to analyse trends in an account.