Introduction
SEO and PPC are essential digital marketing strategies that help companies increase their website traffic. Before answering which one a company should invest in, it is necessary to determine what both of these offers.
Digital Googly, an SEO company in Kolkata, explains everything you need to know about SEO and PPC in the following section and answers which one is better.
WHAT IS SEO?
Search engine optimization or SEO is a set of practices that helps improve the ranking of web pages in organic search results.
Organic search results are unpaid listings on a search engine results page (SERP). The listing is made up of results that a search engine determines are most relevant to a user’s query.
A good ranking on the organic search results page is the best way for a company to get discovered by people and improve the quantity and quality of traffic to its website.
WHAT IS PPC?
As the name indicates, Pay-Per-Click or PPC is an online marketing model where a company pays to have its website’s advertisement appear on the top of search results.
The model allows advertisers to bid for placing their ad in a search engine’s sponsored links when someone searches a keyword related to their business. Whenever someone clicks on the ad, the company whose ad it is pays a fee.
For instance, if a company bids on the keyword “sports shoes,” their ad will appear at the top of the Google results page. An ad price depends on the competitiveness of the keyword (number of companies that are trying to rank for it)
PROS of SEO
- Credibility: SEO is the best method for increasing credibility. Consumers generally tend to trust the non-paid results of a search engine and hesitate to click on sponsored or promoted ads.
- Price: SEO is an ongoing process to optimize a website properly. Therefore, a company needs to work with SEO experts and periodically pay for the services they offer. Unlike PPC, a company will not have to pay each time someone clicks on its website’s ad in search results.
- Sustainability: SEO is a cost-effective way to generate leads without breaking the bank, says Digital Googly, an SEO service provider in Kolkata.
CONS of SEO
- Time: Like building anything credible and substantial, the process of optimizing a site takes time. This is one of the main differences between SEO and PPC. With SEO, a company will not see instant results. However, companies can gradually build a robust backbone for their digital presence with optimization strategies over time.
- Targeting: Extensive keyword research helps focus SEO efforts on the terms a company’s prospective buyers search. However, there is no exact way to target your SEO work towards a specific demographic.
PROS of PPC
- Targeting: The PPC model allows companies to target their ads to specific demographics, locations, and keywords to ensure that their ad spending goes to the target market.
- Time/Flexibility: Unlike SEO, PPC is flexible and can be turned on or off according to a company’s needs. Depending on their goals, a company can adjust the budget and how long they want the ads to run.
- Rankings: PPC ads appear on the top of search engine results. Therefore, they are always the first thing a consumer notices.
- Measurable: PPC campaigns can be easily measured to determine how effective or poorly the ads perform. PPC campaign data shows how many people viewed the ad, how many clicked, the cost of those clicks and how many of those clicks turned into leads. This data makes it easy to determine the return on investment (ROI) of a PPC campaign.
CONS of PPC
- Sustainability: Unlike SEO, PPC demands a constant flow of capital to generate traffic. For instance, if a company turns off a PPC campaign, all the traffic generated goes “poof.”
- Maintenance: A well-strategized and well-maintained PPC campaign can be cost-effective. However, a poorly run PPC campaign can make a company lose money without much return. Companies need to choose an experienced digital marketing company to plan and run their PPC campaigns. They must also closely track their PPC results to ensure that their ad spend is being used well.
So, Which is Better?
“A well-rounded digital marketing strategy should include both SEO and PPC for sustainable traffic, ” says Digital Googly, a digital marketing company that provides PPC and SEO services in Kolkata.
However, suppose a company wants quick results around a product launch or wants to rank for competitive keywords that are hard to do organically. In that case, PPC is the right option.
On the other hand, if a company aims to develop a robust digital presence and authority, SEO is the way to go. A well-executed and strategic SEO program help stimulate brand awareness and build and sustain traffic for years on end.