The advent of the internet has given rise to a wide range of new marketing opportunities. Today, you can run social media campaigns, pay-per-click ads, Google ads, and so much more. However, there is a relatively older mode of marketing that technology has made so effective and valuable; pay per call marketing.
Thanks to the increased affordability of powerful mobile devices, pay per call marketing has become one of the most effective ways of attracting new leads and generating more revenue.
According to Pew Research, approximately 81% of Americans own a smartphone in 2020 up from 35% in 2011. Furthermore, a growing number of Americans now use mobile phones as their primary means of online access. In fact, at least one-in-five American adults are “smartphone-only” internet users.
Chances are, these trends will continue for many years as more consumers continue to embrace technology. Savvy marketers are already taking advantage of these trends to attract more leads to their businesses and generate more revenue.
Before we dive deep into the concept of pay per call marketing and how it can benefit affiliate marketers, let us start by defining what it is.
What Is Pay Per Call Marketing?
In simple terms, pay per call advertising refers to a marketing strategy in which advertisers pay publishers to generate qualified inbound calls. The marketing strategy leverages the power of the internet and smartphones to match buyers with sellers.
Pay per call marketing has its roots in the old-style paper advertisements that urged consumers to call a specified telephone number to purchase a product or service.
Publishers/ affiliates who participate in pay per call marketing earn a commission for every sale the advertiser closes or every phone call that lasts a specified minimum duration. Other parameters that advertisers may set before a call is paid for include caller location and keys pressed on an interactive voice response (IVR) system.
One of the biggest benefits of pay per call advertising is that it is relatively easy for advertisers to track their return on investment (ROI).
How Does Pay Per Call Work?
We shall use an example to illustrate how pay per call advertising works.
Let us say a solar installation company called Company Y wants to generate qualified leads via pay-per-call. Company Y will contact a performance marketing agency such as PALO specifying the number of calls they wish to receive.
Once the pay per call marketing agency receives the request, they create content and inform its publishers/affiliates set up ad campaigns with tracking phone numbers and forms targeting the right audience. Publishers will mostly rely on online channels to generate calls that will be directed to Company Y.
Now, let us assume you want to install a solar panel in your home and you come across Company Y’s pay-per-call ad. You will dial the number on the landing page, and your call will be forwarded to Company Y.
Alternatively, you can fill a form on the landing page, and the affiliate will forward your data to the company so an agent can call you back to gauge your interest in their services. The inclusion of an interactive voice response system can help qualify you further before your phone number is passed to the company’s sales team.
Typically, your call will pass through the agency’s tracking system before it reroutes to Company Y’s sales team who will take over from there.
Depending on the type of agreement the agency has in place, the publisher will then be paid a commission if the call lasts the required minimum duration.
In a nutshell, the pay per call advertiser is buying phone calls of qualified leads that have a high chance of turning into a sale.
What Compares to Pay Per Call?
You can think of pay per call as a natural progression of conventional pay-per-click, pay-per-lead, and pay-per-impression. However, pay per call is much more interactive and effective.
Many businesses are embracing pay per call thanks to the enormous advancements in telephone technology such as automatic call distribution, prefix routing, call management, call recording and the ability to use geo-targeting to reach users in specific locations.
Most pay per call systems make use of a virtual PBX hosted phone operation to track, forward, record and account for every call as well as track caller details. This means that calls can easily be forwarded as MP3 files to advertisers or publishers for verification purposes.
What Businesses Can Benefit from Pay Per Call Advertising?
Almost every type of business can benefit from pay per call marketing, but the strategy is highly effective for merchants who offer “high-touch” products and services.
They include law firms/attorneys, insurance, automobile, hospitality, credit repair, travel, mortgage, healthcare and financial companies. Basically, pay per call marketing can be helpful to any business that relies on inbound calls to generate revenue.
What Are Some of the Advantages of Pay Per Call Marketing?
Pay per call marketing is one of the most effective forms of digital marketing. In fact, affiliates can drive hundreds or even thousands of leads with one ad. It also produces better results than pay per click because users can click and exit out of a site within seconds.
However, when a prospect taps on the phone call button to make a call, he/she is genuinely interested in purchasing a product or service. Typically, it is faster to close a prospect who calls than one who clicks.
The other benefits of pay per call marketing include;
- The advertiser doesn’t need a business website since everything is set up by the affiliate.
- Advertisers don’t need to have digital marketing experience.
- No sign-up fee for advertisers
- Quick access to information
- Advertisers can speak to qualified leads in real-time.
- Pay per call eliminates the fear of click fraud from marketing campaigns because calls can be verified, tracked, and measured.
What Does the Future Hold for Pay Per Call Advertising?
Performance-based pay per call marketing is fast becoming one of the most sought-after forms of digital marketing. Companies are beginning to realize how effective pay per call advertising is, and the future looks bright.
Essentially, pay per call advertising is where pay per click marketing was a few years ago, but all signs are pointing in the right direction. With the increased demand for cost-effective and performance-based digital marketing strategies, pay per call marketing has been touted as the next big thing.
However, as the popularity of pay per call grows, affiliates should be prepared to up their game because every impression call or response will be scrutinized thoroughly for value.
A significant number of marketers have finally recognized that voice contact is no longer a customer service function but a lead conversion tool. This is another key pointer that pay per call marketing is growing into one of the most preferred forms of digital marketing.
Join PALO Pay Per Call Affiliate Program Today
If you are an affiliate looking to turn your traffic into money, then PALO offers you an incredible opportunity to do so.
Our publishers work with experienced account managers who understand everything about media buying. Our primary goal is to help publishers maximize their revenue. Talk to us today and let us get started.
