Marking a Google presence for your business is essential but choosing the right marketing techniques is equally important. To make your business visible on Google you will need to incorporate Search Engine Marketing strategies. SEO and PPC are two important ways in which you can attract traffic to your website.
Search Engine Optimization & Its usage
SEO is a search engine marketing (SEM) practice through which a user can gain information about the specific product and service he is looking for on Google. In a technological world, we are more prone to search for everything on Google, be it buying something or using a service, we always want to know as much as possible instantly.
With the availability of immense information online, it is of utmost importance to get your content ranked on top of the Search engine page (SERP). So that when a user needs information about something related to your business, your content will be visible to the user.
This process of being ranked at the top of Google’s search page organically isn’t easy because of the existing excessive competitiveness with countless pages vying for the top rank.
Factors responsible for the SEO process
- Keywords: The use of SEO keywords lets you connect with the potential users searching for your content. The right use of keywords makes it possible for users to see your content in the search results.
- Search Intent: Search Intent in SEO implies the intent with which the user searches a query on Google. The search intent can be based upon various factors including:
- Whether the user is simply searching for something on the website
- Whether he has any intention of learning more about a topic
- Whether he is trying to purchase something
- Whether he is gaining more information regarding a product or service before making the final decision on its purchase.
Relevance of SEO in Digital Marketing
- Businesses receive validation through a strong presence built online and this is possible when your website is visible to a larger target audience. Hence, SEO has a big role to play in this.
- The products and services provided by your business must reach potential prospects so that they understand your brand and what it has to offer. Hence, SEO is crucial in creating brand awareness among the right people.
- An in-depth connection with the target audience is crucial for any business to grow. It is only when one connects with potential customers that one builds a successful relationship with them and entices them towards their brand by becoming loyal customers.
- Off-Page Ranking and On-Page Ranking are also effective factors in SEO. Off-Page Ranking implies the activities taking place externally, other than on the Webpage whereas On-Page Ranking implies improving the content of the webpage such as the title, headline, tags, meta description, etc.
PAY PER CLICK (PPC) & Its Role In Digital Marketing
PPC implies paid advertising through which you’re able to create space for your business or brand to have top ranking on the search engine result pages (SERPs).
Pay-Per-Click means paying as per the clicks on the ads. You will be required to pay only as per the number of clicks on your ads. You pay for the space and position you desire to hold on the google page. Other than attaining organic reach, you can pay for driving traffic to your website.
PPC provides you with an opportunity to decide how much you want to pay depending upon where on the page you’d like to be ranked.
The reason why PPC holds ample significance in digital marketing is that SEO can take a long time to get you a google ranking may be months or years. PPC is best for generating quick results when it comes to page ranking and conversions.
PPC Advertising can be practiced both as a long-term and short-term strategy. Businesses that are focused on revenue generation must use PPC because of its large contribution to KPI.
Comparing SEO and PPC: What is more effective?
SEO & PPC Cost
- For SEO you don’t need to pay and it is meant for organic ranking but it is a time-consuming process and you never know how long will it take for you to get the ranking.
- SEO requires acute investment and ample effort to get the organic result. SEO experts or SEO companies will need to be hired and they will demand a fee.
- SEO experts (in-house) might demand $80 to $130 per month whereas PPC campaigns can be scaled up and down according to the budget with a maximum spending bar set daily. As soon as you reach the maximum limit your ads will stop running on google.
- On average, PPC campaigns can cost around $9000 to $10000 for small businesses.
- For an effective PPC campaign to result in huge amounts of revenue for your business you will also need to invest on a larger scale.
SEO or PPC-Who has more control?
- Even though you can control the PPC cost as per your budget, reducing the cost would pause your ads a bit too early.
- You might as well put in a lot of effort for your SEO titles and the meta description yet Google might decide to not use them and recreate them on its own.
- PPC has more control in that case, as PPC campaigns provide you with an option to choose certain keywords which you want Google to use while showing your ad. With PPC, you might also choose keywords that are negative so that those keywords can be avoided in your ads.
- PPC also allows you to decide the ad design precisely the way you would like it to appear.
- PPC also gives you the authority to decide the audience for your ads and the time you would want them to see the ad.
SEO or PPC- Which takes more effort?
- Whether you opt for SEO or PPC, both require an effort but SEO takes a lot more than PPC.
- PPC requires the optimization of one or two pieces of content whereas SEO requires the optimization of the entire website along with the other pages. From blogs, and guest posts to link building and social media, etc. Nearly all of the off-page content needs to be optimized in SEO.
- Regular evaluation of your posts on the site will need to be done for SEO.
- Regular SEO Audits will need to be conducted.
When is SEO more beneficial than PPC Campaigns?
SEO is more advantageous than PPC campaigns in terms of receiving far more traffic on websites.
PPC can be utilized while you wait for your SEO to show some magic on your website. This will be a smart technique without wasting much time.
Who shines better in terms of CTR?
- SEO’s organic result on a desktop is 65 % CTR while for mobile, it is 40 %.
- PPC CTR results are 3 and 4 % for desktop and mobile devices respectively.
- It has been observed that approx. 80 percent of people who search on Google prefer organic results. SEO takes the cake for this!
What is more trustworthy among people: SEO or PPC?
- As per standard reports, 65% of people prefer organic results much more than paid ones. Not to forget that there are people who have no idea about the difference between PPC and SEO.
- To display your brand as trustworthy among the target audience, SEO seems a better option.
Using Google Analytics for both SEO and PPC
Google Analytics is best suited for both SEO and PPC marketing practices.
For SEO, Analytics will inform you about the following:
- The traffic is generated from organic results.
- Information about the pages with the best performance.
- Ranking of the target keywords used.
With the above information through Analytics, you will be able to tweak your practices for improvement.
- For PPC, Analytics will provide updates about the performance of the ads.
What about combining SEO and PPC?
- PPC will prove to be beneficial while you intend to create brand awareness among the audience.
- PPC ads will get your brand name on top of the pages and this will enable potential customers to retain your brand.
- Once they’re able to recall the brand name it will be easy to get your brand recognized amongst the target audience.
- Hereafter, SEO organic results will also end up getting more traffic.
Focusing on Local Leads
- Irrespective of your business, if you’re looking to grasp the geographical area you will need to attain local leads.
- PPC ads play a major role whenever a user starts to search for businesses in the local nearby area.
- Also, there are listings on Google My Business that help you gain more visibility.
Choose your Target Audience
Unlike SEO, Paid Ad Campaigns will let you choose your audience based on their geographical location, age, and interests.
Increase Visibility with SEO and PPC
Both SEO and PPC have the potential to increase your brand’s visibility.
Enhancing Brand Image
Control how your brand appears before others, that is your brand’s image with the combination of SEO and PPC marketing tactics.
Using SEM Practices To The Fullest
Combining your ads with the right optimization techniques, and content practices using keywords and Data Analytics to analyze the performances will help you upscale your marketing strategies with better results.
While SEO is a strategy for the long-term, PPC works at a faster pace with quick revenue generation. It would be wiser to combine the strengths of both SEO and PPC, keeping in mind their weaknesses.
