PPC success doesn’t always come easy, but there are steps you can take to position yourself to generate a positive return on investment.

If you’re going to spend money on PPC advertising, it’s imperative to get into the habit of testing and tracking everything. The more you do this the easier it is to understand what is and isn’t working.

Here are three simple tests you can start running today:

•    Title: Run two ads at the same time, with everything identical except the title. Don’t be surprised when you find that one title outperforms the other. From there, you can continue to do this until you’re comfortable that you’ve found the perfect language.
•    Copy: Just the same as the title, run several variations of the ad text. Maybe you ask a question in one ad, but provide more succinct details in another. The choice is yours as to the type of copy you use and how many variations you test.
•    Ad network: Many people slip-up here, because they assume that there’s only one ad network that will work for them. For example, if all your competitors use Google Adwords, you may assume it’s the best approach for your company. This may be the case, but you shouldn’t hesitate to experiment with other networks. It’s possible that Facebook (among many other options) gives you the return you’ve been dreaming of.

Don’t shy away from PPC advertising because you assume it’s too much work to reach the desired result. It often takes trial and error, which can eat into your time, but it’s well worth it in the end.

If you’re ready to give PPC advertising a try, start with the basics and then run these three tests to see what generates the best results. This will lead you in the right direction.