Clients often ask us whether they should invest first in SEO or PPC.
PPC (Pay Per Click) search marketing is where you pay for your ad to appear within the sponsored listings at the top and bottom of a search engine results page. SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) is where you optimise your website/online properties over time to rank highly against search queries that are relevant to your business.
There are benefits to both, and the answer to what to invest in first will depend on your objectives.
Benefits of SEO
In most instances, our recommendation for SMEs is primarily to invest in SEO. SEO should be part of your long term digital marketing strategy as research shows that many users trust an organic listing over a paid advertisement. This is why organic search results claim a higher percentage of clicks than paid listings. It is important to ensure that your website is ranking well in natural search results against the terms that your customers are searching for, which takes time but is worth doing well.
Benefits of PPC
However, whereas SEO is the long game, PPC can bring you immediate results. If you need to guarantee traffic to your website then PPC can deliver this. This is particularly important for a new product launch or tactical/seasonal campaign message that might be time sensitive. Paid search can deliver you clicks incremental to the volume that you would receive through SEO, and allows you to deliver a targeted message against specific keywords at a specific time. PPC is a cost efficient, highly accountable form of digital marketing and should always be considered against your objectives.
Research shows that other marketing activity increases the volume of search queries, as search is often the last touch point that a user will have with your brand before visiting your website. Even if a user already intends to visit your website, they are likely to type your brand name into the search bar and click on a paid or organic listing, rather than type in your exact URL. And if they aren’t already aware of your company, then search allows you to become part of their consideration set by presenting you to people searching for your product or service. This is why SEO and PPC should always be a consideration in your marketing mix.