Many affiliates that are new to PPC frequently bid quite high trying to be in the top position on main keywords like “health insurance” or “car insurance.” But first usually isn’t best for a number of reasons.

First, you’re competing for that position against the major insurance companies, such as eHealth.com or Progressive.com, who can afford to bid much higher for a much longer period of time than any affiliate ever could.

Second, the top position draws a large number of clicks from consumers who are just looking and not necessarily ready to buy. Consumers that click on lower position ads have spent the time to consider each ad before choosing the one they really want.

Third, on Google and MSN, your quality score will affect your positioning, so bidding high isn’t a guarantee that you’ll appear first, especially if your click-through-rate isn’t strong.

Fortunately there are a few things you can do to control your position.

Yahoo is easy; just use the bid tool to see where you are ranked and what others are paying to be in their respective positions. MSN is toughest; control is limited to your bid amount and dependent upon each keyword’s CTR.

Google has a wonderful tool which makes it easy to control your position. From the All Campaigns page, select a campaign and click “Edit Settings.” Under the Advanced Options Section on the Settings page, you’ll see a check box for Position Preference. Checking that box and saving the change will allow you to set your rank by keyword anywhere from 1 to 10+. While this won’t push your ad higher than your quality score permits, it can prevent you from being in top position and paying big bucks unless the keyword warrants that spot.

I’ve enabled this function on my Google account, and while I don’t use it on every keyword, in certain instances it’s certainly helped me maximize ROI. Test a few keywords in various positions, and you’ll soon learn which position is truly first for you.