SEO vs PPC - Which Is Right For Your Business.

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Welcome to the November issue of the Redback Studios eNewsletter. You can always view these online as well as all past editions, which has some very useful and helpful business marketing ideas and tools. Click here>>

Business of all sizes are realising the importance of online marketing, the main portal being through search engines. Global reports show that about 81% of users find their desired destination through a search engine.

So the way to get in front of your target audience is to have a strong presence in the search engines. (Although there are other search engines Besides Google, it is still such the dominant search engine that concentrating on Google, is certain to redeem better ROI than spreading your budget thinner to cover more search engines. Plus the flow-on effect will no doubt also help in the other engines anyway.)

So the big question is whether to use SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) or PPC (Pay-Per-Click ads) to get the best bang for your buck to be in front of your target audience?

What is the Difference Between PPC and SEO?

Pay per Click (PPC) advertising is a paid online advertising model, such as Google Adwords. Pay per Click results typically appear as "sponsored links" above or beside the normal (aka Organic) Search Engine results.

SEO/Organic search engine results are the natural search engine results that are determined by the Search Engine. These are generally varied and contain a lengthier description of the web page they are presenting. Employing an SEO strategy is the number 1 method to achieving the best organic results

Done correctly, both can get you on page one of Google for your targeted terms and in front of your target audience, yet each has its corresponding benefits and costs.

A recent article on SEOmoz showed that organic results are 8.5x more likely to be clicked on than paid search results! That is a huge difference! I believe this is because people are becoming more internet savvy and are more aware of what are paid and what are natural results, and thus feeling natural results are a more trusted source or simply training themselves to ignore paid marketing.

It also showed that PPC has a slight advantage of 1.5x the conversion rate, but this is also because if done correctly, PPC will have unique landing pages tailored to the term used and the audience.

So taking a look at these numbers, the potential from SEO/Organic results can be 5.6x that of PPC.

Some Pros and Cons of PPC and SEO?

Looking at the above you might say organic is overwhelming the better choice over PPC. But it isn’t always that straightforward. Simply the fact that PPC means you only pay when the ad is clicked can be attractive to some businesses, especially on a very tight budget.
To see any worthwhile results for most SME businesses, PPC needs a budget of at least $50-$100 per day on clicks. Spending less may risk not getting an adequate return on your investment. Remember: Not every person who clicks your Ad is going to convert into a lead or a buyer.

PPC is also more immediate and can often result with your ads on page one within a day or two.

PPC is a more controlled system on terms, per-click budget and management fees.

Although as we mentioned SEO is overwhelmingly the more logical choice, it is a long-term strategy as SEO is about constantly innovating and adapting to get the best results and then to hold/maintain these positions for your desired terms. To rank on Page One of Google is not easy and can take months in a highly competitive industry.
Yet the benefits and ROI on SEO are much greater.

Summary

We now know SEO reaps much higher volume of quality clicks, yet takes some time to achieve this. So yes, if you are serious to grow your leads and sales, then your business should invest in on-going SEO and if you can also afford to run a PPC campaign alongside, then great.
Or if you want to get some immediate results while building your Organic results, it can be a great help.

Also you can do both in-house, but whether you do it yourself or employ a company to do it for you, it does cost as your time has a price also. Both do have a steep learning curve, especially SEO, so be aware of a lot of research and reading will need to be done, and a lot of growing pains and mistakes.

I believe all businesses should test-out PPC and watch it closely, because if it is making you money why wouldn’t you run it and keep it running.
But for the long term and greater results, put SEO as a standard part of your monthly marketing budget and get that SEO campaign underway.
Long term SEO is going to bring you more and better traffic and the most qualified leads. Plus, as a result of your SEO work on your website, can help your PPC results as Google likes to reward "good PPC buyers" with lower Cost Per Click and higher Quality Scores in Google Adwords.

Google Fun!...

Type the words "blink html" into Google search box.
The words 'blink' and 'html' will all blink down the page.

Type the below address " into Google Maps search box.
Then click on 'Street View'. Slightly to the right is an old style telephone box. Hover your mouse near that to get a 'x' shaded icon. Click and step inside the Doctor's Tardis.

Type the words "atari breakout " into Google search box ín 'Google Images' section.
All the images are turned into the old Atari game... play away!

Type the words "do a barrel roll" into Google search box.
The screen will do a complete barrel roll for you.

Type the words "zerg rush" into Google search box.
Google will attack the results (it is a gaming term for a massive attack).

I hope you found today's topics useful and enjoyed a bit of Google fun.

If you have any topics you would like me to address in these newsletters, or have further questions on this topic or anything else, please don't hesitate to contact me on support@redbackstudios.com.au or Reply to this mailing. Or if you would like to talk to me about setting up Google Webmaster and Analytics for your site and how to better utilise these, please don't hesitate to contact me.

Warm regards

Laurence

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