PPC advertising has seen a boost in popularity recently, as more small online companies with limited advertising budgets recognise the value of paying for results and finding out where your business is coming from.
Such bonuses do not come with advertising in the Yellow Pages, for example. Here, even if you receive no business or interest from your advert, use must still pay.
Businesses can also withdraw or alter their advertising campaigns in accordance with success.
Laura Betterly, an online marketing consultant with In Touch Media, told the San Francisco Chronicle that with PPC "you can compete wit the big guys and not break the bank".
New companies are now twice as likely to use PPC advertising than they were ten years ago.
Greg Sterling of Sterling Market Intelligence, said: "Within five years, ten per cent of small and medium business advertisers will be do-it-yourself pay per click.
"Anecdotally, it's clear to me that more small businesses are trying to pursue online marketing and paid search is a subset of that."
Businesses are advised not to view PPC advertising in isolation but to employ it as part of a larger advertising campaign.
