In that Unbounce-led Q&A, Microsoft’s Senior Manager of Global Engagement, Purna Virji, was tasked with the “A’s.” Her conversation with Marketing Manager of Content Creation at Microsoft, Jennifer Pepper, dove mostly into two different but interrelated facets regarding the future of PPC: AI and voice. Virji thinks that AI will have huge benefits for audience targeting while voice could enhance local campaigns. “You’ll want to think about the queries relating to your business that people may ask if they’re in a hurry or on the go,” she clarifies.
Speaking of Unbounce and their CTA conference, one of the speakers there was Andy Crestodina. Crestodina devoted the conclusion of his talk to Quara, a platform that allows experts to answer questions related to their expertise. Think Yahoo Answers, but with a PhD. So, we decided to hop on there and see what the “Quarans” had to say about the future of PPC. Luckily for us, there was a post dedicated to this exact topic. Even better, it looks like the future is bright.
Search Engine Journal followed a similar method to Quara, connecting with experts to showcase the future of PPC. They sat down with directors, VP’s, CEO’s and the like to narrow down the top trends for PPC in 2018. Some hit on the same topics that Pepper and Virji did in the Unbounce Q&A. Others, though, brought forward some additional ideas. A rise in programmatic bidding, the continued growth in the importance of mobile as it relates to paid search and advertising on Amazon name a few of the trends.
The trends and advancements across digital marketing have a direct impact on those working with it. Search Engine Land took a stab at pinpointing this impact. The key to keeping up in the highly innovative world that is the future PPC? Focus on the fundamentals. Contributor Frederick Vallaeys claims “that that those with the strongest fundamentals will have the best opportunities for career advancement.” His reasoning is that the rise in automation means machines will be making the call. So, it’s who has the best understanding of how to operate this that will succeed.