When it comes to growing your business by leveraging digital marketing, there are a lot of options to consider. But which one should you choose? Search engine optimization (SEO) or pay-per-click (PPC)?
The answer is: it depends. Both SEO and PPC can be effective digital marketing strategies. But which one will work best for your business will depend on your specific goals and objectives.
To help you make the best decision for your business, we’ve put together this guide that covers everything you need to know about SEO and PPC, including the pros and cons of each strategy. Should you go for SEO services or hire a PPC advertising agency? Let’s find out in this in-depth comparison video.
What is SEO?
SEO is the method of optimizing your site to rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs). The goal of SEO is to increase organic traffic to your site.
Organic traffic is the traffic that comes to your site from unpaid, or “natural”, search results. This means that when someone searches for a keyword or phrase related to your business on a search engine, like Google, your website appears as one of the results.
SEO is a long-term strategy and it can take months or even years to see results from your SEO efforts. But once you do start seeing results, the traffic you get from SEO is usually very high quality.
This is because people who find your website through a search engine are already interested in what you have to offer. They’re actively searching for a product or service like yours and they’re more likely to convert into customers or clients. Opting for professional SEO services can drive you more traction and leads.
What is PPC?
Pay-per-click (PPC) is a digital marketing strategy where you pay to have your ad appear on search engine results pages. With PPC, you bid on keywords that are relevant to your business.
When someone searches for one of those keywords, your ad appears at the top of the SERP. If they click on your ad, you pay the amount you bid for that keyword.
PPC is a short-term strategy and it can take days or weeks to start seeing results from your PPC campaigns. But once your ads are up and running, the traffic you get from PPC is usually very high quality.
This is because people who click on your ad are interested in what you have to offer. They’re looking for a product or service like yours and they’re more likely to convert into customers or clients. When you hire a PPC advertising agency, you can be sure that they can bring rapid growth in a short time.
Now that you know the basics of SEO and PPC, let’s take a closer look at each digital marketing strategy and see how they compare.
When to use SEO?
Regardless of the business type, business owners need to implement SEO to ensure that their website is visible on the internet. SEO should be used as a long-term digital marketing strategy. This is because it can take a while to start seeing results from your SEO efforts.
Once you start getting results, it improves your website’s domain authority. It means, over time, you are more likely to rank higher for more keywords because Google sees your website as an authoritative source of information. Therefore, if you want to increase organic traffic to your website, SEO is the way to go.
When done properly, SEO can result in more traffic, leads, and sales for your business. It’s a great way to improve your visibility online and grow your business over time.
When to use PPC?
PPC is a digital marketing strategy that can be used by businesses of all types. If you want to see results from your digital marketing efforts quickly, PPC is the way to go.
PPC is a short-term strategy and it can quickly bring results from your PPC campaigns. It’s a great way to boost your visibility online and get more leads and sales for your business.
PPC is also a great way to test different keywords and see which ones convert into customers or clients. Once you know which keywords are converting, you can use those keywords in your SEO campaigns to get even better results.
SEO vs PPC: Which is cheaper?
There is no such direct answer as to which one of these two is cheaper and the fact is that both of them have their own set of advantages and disadvantages.
However, if we look at the big picture, SEO is a lot cheaper than PPC in the long run. This is because SEO is a long-term strategy and the results stay for a longer time once you keep optimizing your website.
If you’re a startup and you want to promote your product to a new audience, then going for PPC would be the best option. Once you have established your brand, you can start working on your SEO to get better results in the long run.
On the other hand, SEO will ensure whenever someone searches for your product after seeing the ad, they can easily find you in SERPs. Moreover, if you are already receiving a good amount of organic traffic, then optimizing your website for a few more keywords shouldn’t be a problem and it would be a lot cheaper than setting up a PPC campaign from scratch.
What is the correct way to use SEO and PPC?
The ideal way to take advantage of both of these methods is to use SEO for long-term growth and PPC for short-term acceleration. The combination of these two will help you achieve the best results for your business. If you want to see quick results, then PPC is the way to go but if you want to build a sustainable online business, then you need to focus on SEO.
How to find the right agency for SEO or PPC?
As there are several agencies listed, it becomes difficult to find the best PPC advertising agency or a professional company for SEO services. You can easily find the best company for your growth by considering these points:
Their experience:
Check how long they have been in the business and if they are new, then it might be risky to hire them as they don’t have much experience. Moreover, you should also check their clientele and see if they have worked with similar businesses in the past.
The size of their team:
The larger the team, the better they will be at handling your project. Make sure to ask them about their team size and see if they will be able to handle your project without any problems.
Their reviews:
Check their reviews online and see what their past clients have to say about them. This will give you a good idea about the quality of their work and if they are worth hiring or not.
Their pricing:
Last but not least, you should always compare the pricing of different agencies before making a decision. Make sure to get a detailed quote from them and see if their pricing is in line with your budget.
Wrapping up!
Both PPC and SEO are excellent digital marketing strategies that can help you achieve your business goals. However, it’s important to understand the difference between these two methods and use them accordingly.
