Google is the behemoth it is because their paid ads are often as useful as the organic results (unpaid) - in fact, it's easy to miss the "Ad" label, see the accompanying image.
Your Bid Price - What you are willing to pay for a click does affect where and if your ad appears but it is not the only criteria... a bad ad with a high click price will never be clicked and thus Google won't make money.
Your Ad Itself - Is your ad relevant to the search and is it high quality? A good ad with a lower bid price will appear above an ad with a higher bid price. Keep in mind, as Google gathers data about your ads they keep track of clicks - this is useful for you and helps them assess your ad's "quality".
The Experience AFTER The Click - Google wants users to be happy and find what they're looking for. If someone clicks on your ad, or your organic result for that matter, then promptly returns and tries another link that's NOT a good sign. A landing page that is directly related to your ad in terms of content, keywords and the offer itself is the best option.
Any ad that you place online - Google, Facebook, Banner Ads etc - should link to a corresponding landing page.
A landing page is simply a webpage with a specific message and purpose - you might call it a goal.Landing pages with ads may be where the customer downloads a coupon, learns more about the offer, or takes the next step to hire you.
Landing pages are important to ensure customers who click on an ad quickly and easily find the related information so that they can begin working with you.
Linking ads to your homepage or generic pages often leave customers confused and frustrated. As a result, a successful ad will fail to convert into revenue for you and your business.
