PPC

PPC - Pay Per Click, an advertising payment model in which you pay not for displaying an ad, but for each click on it. Synonymous with CPC traffic purchasing model. In Russia, “PPC” is often used as a generic name for contextual advertising in Yandex Direct and Google Ads - historically, both tools work precisely on this model.

Unlike CPM (cost per 1,000 impressions), PPC theoretically protects against “empty” impressions: you pay only when the user has shown interest and clicked. In practice, this is not so obvious: click fraud and “random” clicks eat up 5–20% of the budget, depending on the niche.

PPC vs CPM - the choice depends on the task. For generating leads and e-com PPC it is more convenient: a transparent chain of clicks → lead → sale. For brand awareness, CPM is better: you care about reach, not clicks. In most performance projects, I start with PPC, accumulate data on converting audiences, and only then use CPM strategies to expand reach.

In Yandex Direct, PPC is implemented through three models: search (pay-per-click), YAN (pay-per-click on an online banner), video ads (both CPC and CPV are possible). It is important not to be confused: even in “smart” auto strategies, the algorithm can purchase impressions based on CPM internally, but for the advertiser the counter still goes by clicks.