So are days of 5 cents a click now just a distant memory? Not at all, there are hundreds of thousands if not millions of keyword phrases out there for minimum cost, all it takes is a little more effort to use them. To understand how this can be done, with Google AdWords in particular, it is first necessary to understand how ad positions are determined.

Google's PPC program, like their core search engine, places a great deal of emphasis on advertisment relevance. When a web surfer types keywords into search box, Google wants ad that most closely matches that phrase to be shown nearest top of list - not just ad bidding highest amount of money. It mutiplies bid price by keyword relevance, and that means that by careful selection of your keywords, it is possible to be placed above competitors and pay only 1 cent more than they are (Google doesn't necessarily charge maxium amount you bid, only enough to put you ahead).

There are three simple ways you can trump your competitors with your keyword selection:

Personally, I think you should ignore what experts say, and strive to achieve as high a conversion ratio as possible. You should never be satisfied. You should always be looking for ways to improve your conversion ratio. My website consistently converts anywhere from 3 to 5 percent, and often converts as high as ten percent!

Unless you're selling a big-ticket item and making $100 or more per sale, it's extremely difficult to make any real money with only a one percent conversion ratio.

Of course, there are exceptions to every rule, and if your website is attracting hundreds or even thousands of visitors a day, then obviously you can do quite well with a one percent or lower conversion ratio.

But what if you don't have that kind of traffic--and most websites don't. Then what? What if you're selling a $20 e- book and you're only attracting a hundred visitors a day to your website? With a one percent conversion ratio, that means your website is making a measly $20 a day. And believe me, that's much more common than you realize.

However, what if you could improve your conversion ratio to 3 percent? 5 percent? All of a sudden, you're making $60 to $100 a day with same amount of traffic. Improve your conversion ratio to ten percent and voila, that $100 a day turns into $200 a day!

So, how do you go about improving your website's conversion ratio? Here are some tips that should help:

1. Make sure your visitors know what you do, instant they land on your website. Don't make them have to guess. Tell them right up front with a benefits-laden headline.