Whether you’re new to the industry, or you’re a company wondering what could benefit your business, you might be thinking: “what is better, SEO or PPC?”
The fact is that both have strengths and weaknesses, and are quite different from one another. We’re going to discuss all of this and more in this blog post, so, if you want to learn a bit about each of these online marketing strategies, then keep reading.
SEO: Search Engine Optimisation
SEO is an umbrella term for all of the different ways in which you can increase organic traffic to your website, by increasing your ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs). The term ‘organic’ is important, because this is one of the main things that sets SEO apart from PPC. Organic means non-paid, so your result in the SERPs will be down to other factors and not because of paid-for tactics.
SEO encompasses many different areas, including upkeep of the technical elements of your site, content marketing, building links to your site from other authoritative sources and much more.
PPC: Pay-Per-Click
PPC stands for pay-per-click, which sums up nicely what it’s all about. Companies advertise their site at the top of the SERP and incur a fee every time their advert is clicked. These are called search adverts, which show up above organic listings.
Other PPC opportunities include shopping ads, YouTube ads, display ads and remarketing campaigns.
Pros and Cons
Cost
One of the major differences between these two strategies is their cost. SEO results in free clicks, whereas you have to pay when someone visits your site through a PPC ad. Therefore, this usually means that you need a large and continuous investment in PPC from the start. SEO is generally thought of as more cost-effective in the long run.
Timing
Using PPC means you will likely see instant results. The ability to place your ad at the top of a SERP for a good keyword can ensure more clicks, traffic and conversions, almost immediately. On the other hand, SEO takes time and is resource-heavy, but provides a gradual build-up of these things.
Results
Ultimately, PPC is going to provide you with the aforementioned clicks, traffic and conversions from the get-go! However, if you decide to turn the ads off, then your visibility is gone just like that. In contrast, your SEO efforts will show 24/7, especially if you work to consistently keep your rankings high. Plus, it’s pretty well-accepted that paid ads receive fewer clicks than an organic placement.
Let’s Sum Up
So, which should you invest in? It’s really up to you and your business. Think about whether you want to drive results quickly, or build brand awareness and focus on long-term gains. If possible, we recommend a combination of the two strategies, working together!
If you’re interested in upping your marketing game and think you could benefit from our services, don’t hesitate to get in touch, today.