You will be buying ads on Google SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages) using Google's AdWords system.
How it works:
Use Google AdWord's Keyword Planner tool.
You decide when you want your ads to appear by choosing a list of keywords that, when someone enters those keywords, your ad will appear.
You decide :
- Geographically where you want your ads to appear.
- How much you're willing to pay per click (CPC = Cost Per Click; PPC = Pay Per Click)
- How much you want to spend per day.
- Your start and stop dates.
- Whether or not you want your ads to appear on non-search pages, such as this:
You need :
Access to AdWords. You'll have to set up a free account: look for the "Start Now" button, click it, and then follow all of the instructions.
Be sure you click the "Skip the guided setup" link, or else you'll be in a perpetual limbo where Google will continuously ask for your credit card information before it lets you access the AdWords tool you need to determine CPCs for your keyphrases!
Next, check CPC and traffic estimates:
To determine the cost per click (CPC) of keywords in Google's AdSense program, follow the following steps here (you'll have to sign up for a free AdSense account).
Click the area that reads:
"Get search volume for a list of keywords or group them into ad groups"
Then, type in all of the keywords/keyphrases you're considering, separating them with commas.
You can search for the exact volume and cost for each of your three cities, but this is not actually required for your assignment.
Then click "Get search volume"
You'll see a chart that indicates both volume, and the estimated cost per click (CPC).
