Full disclosure, we are an agency (in case you hadn’t noticed). But we didn’t start out that way. We were selling our own products on Amazon for over 8 years before we decided to share our knowledge and process with other sellers.
There’s no one-size-fits-all solution. We’re just here to break down some facts about the true cost of using software to try and manage PPC yourself.
Meet Bobby. He’s an Amazon Seller
This is Bobby. He’s been selling his products on Amazon for a few years now. He just started learning more about PPC and someone recommended that he try out a popular software.
It only cost $500/month so Bobby thought…why not?
He started seeing some great returns on his ad spend and was pretty pleased with himself.
Soon, he found that he had to spend more and more time using the software in order to stay on top of his campaigns. By now, he had to spend at least 8 hours a month doing things like adjusting his bids, adding new keywords, and pausing unprofitable keywords.
It was definitely not the “set it and forget it” type of solution that he had been hoping for.
How Much is Your Time Really Worth?
As the owner of the business, what Bobby didn’t realize was that his time is incredibly valuable.
In fact, in Bobby’s case, it was just him and his wife running the whole show. Without Bobby, half of the whole company would be missing!
A basic calculation of the value of your time might look something like this.
Value of time = Total net earnings / Number of hours worked
Let’s say Bobby works 50 hours a week and his busines earns him $12,650 a week (around $657k per year). So, the value of Bobby’s time is $12,650 / 50 = $253 an hour.
What’s the True Cost of Using Software to Manage PPC?
Remember, Bobby spends about 8 hours per month managing his PPC using a popular software.
Let’s break that down based on the value of an hour of Bobby’s time
Oof…I guess it’s really not just $500 per month. Not even close!
This is a made-up example and Bobby isn’t a real person but I think you get the idea that trying to manage PPC yourself isn’t necessarily a cheaper alternative (even with relatively inexpensive software).
And that’s not even considering that every hour that you’re spending trying to manage PPC on your own is an hour that you could be using to…
- Develop a new product
- Create a training manual
- Find a new supplier
- Make a new social media campaign
- Get better financing terms on a business loan
So, what do you think? Is trying to manage PPC yourself really the best use of your time? Or would you rather leave it to the experts?
Did anything in this article spark your curiosity or bring up a question? Comment below or email us at Howdy@PPCFarm.com. We love talking about PPC!
