When it comes to growing your small business, you need a solid search engine marketing strategy. Two popular options are SEO and PPC, but which one should you invest in first?
You can think of SEO and PPC as two shipping options. SEO is like freight shipping; a steady and reliable way to transport valuable goods (leads) over time. PPC is like air shipping; fast and flexible, delivering priority packages (leads) quickly.
Just like freight shipping, SEO builds a strong foundation for your business, driving steady growth, increasing credibility, and attracting valuable leads. With SEO, you can:
● Build trust with your target audience
● Drive consistent traffic to your website
● Outshine your competitors
PPC, on the other hand, is like a turbo boost for your business. It’s a fast and flexible way to drive targeted leads, increase brand awareness, and get instant results. With PPC, you can:
● Reach your target audience quickly
● Drive conversions and sales
● Stay ahead of the competition
● Make an Informed Decision
What is SEO and How Does it Work?
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of improving your website’s visibility and ranking on search engine results pages through various techniques and strategies. The goal of SEO is to increase quality traffic by ranking higher for specific keywords or phrases. The goal of SEO is to increase the quality and quantity of website traffic by ranking higher in search engines for specific keywords or phrases
Benefits of SEO for Your Business
SEO is a long-term strategy that produces sustainable results. With proper optimisation and maintenance, a website can rank higher in search engines while driving consistent traffic and generating leads.
Websites that rank higher in search engines are perceived as more credible and trustworthy by users: This is because search engines are seen as neutral third-party authorities that only recommend the best and most relevant websites. A UK e-commerce site that ranks high for keywords like “buy electronics online in UK” can establish more trust with potential customers than less-ranked companies.
SEO is also a cost-effective marketing strategy compared to paid advertising. While paid ads may produce quick results, they need ongoing payment to maintain visibility. SEO, on the other hand, produces long-term results without ongoing payment. A small business in UK can allocate a one-time budget for SEO and enjoy long-term benefits.
Common SEO Techniques
1. Keyword Research: Keyword research is the foundation of SEO. It involves identifying and selecting relevant keywords and phrases that your target audience uses to search for your products or services. This can be done by targeting keywords and analysing search volume, competition, and relevance to determine the best keywords for your content.
2. On-Page Optimisation: On-page optimisation involves optimising website elements to make it search engine-friendly. This includes:
● Optimising title tags, meta descriptions, headings, and content with relevant keywords
● Using keywords naturally throughout the content
● Optimising images and media
● Ensuring a mobile-responsive design
3. Link Building: Link building involves acquiring high-quality backlinks from other websites to increase your website’s authority and ranking. Businesses can build links by:
● Guest blogging on other relevant websites
● Participating in online communities related to their industry
● Creating high-quality content that attracts links
4. Creating High-Quality Content: Creating high-quality, relevant, and authoritative content is the number one driver of search engine rankings. The best way is to Identify and target specific keyword phrases for each page and use them naturally throughout the content.
5. Regularly Updated Content: Regularly updated content is viewed as one of the best indicators of a site’s relevancy. You can audit your website content on a set schedule (e.g., quarterly) and make updates as needed. Introduce new sources, make additions and modifications, and keep your content fresh for your audience.
6. Metadata: Metadata can be implemented by optimising title metadata to include relevant keywords e.g. “UK news today” or “latest UK music”. Description metadata is the textual description that a browser may use in your page search return. Keyword metadata is rarely used to tabulate search engine rankings, but it doesn’t hurt to add them.
Definition of PPC and How it Works
Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising is a digital marketing model where advertisers pay each time a user clicks on their adverts. PPC platforms, such as Google Ads and Facebook Ads, operate on an auction-based model, where advertisers bid on keywords or audiences to display their adverts.
Benefits of PPC
1. Quick Results: PPC advertising offers timely results, allowing businesses to quickly target traffic to their websites. Unlike organic SEO strategies, which take time to optimise and rank, PPC campaigns can produce immediate results.
2. Targeted Advertising: PPC advertising enables businesses to target specific audiences based on location, demographics, interests, and behaviours. This level of customisation ensures that adverts reach the right people, increasing the likelihood of conversion.
3. Measurable ROI: PPC advertising provides measurable results, allowing businesses to track their return on investment (ROI) and make data-driven decisions. With PPC, businesses can monitor their ad spend, conversions, and revenue, ensuring optimal results and cost-effectiveness.
Common PPC Platforms
1. Google Ads: Google Ads is the most popular PPC platform, with over 80% of businesses trusting it for their pay-per-click campaigns. Google Ads operates on a keyword-targeting model, where advertisers bid on specific keywords to display their adverts on search engine results pages (SERPs).
2. Facebook Ads: Facebook Ads is another popular PPC platform, with over 92% of social media marketers using it for advertising. Facebook Ads operates on an audience-targeting model, where advertisers target specific audiences based on demographics, interests, and behaviours.
Key Differences between Google Ads and Facebook Ads
1. Targeting: Google Ads target users based on keywords, while Facebook Ads target users based on audiences. This fundamental difference affects how businesses approach their PPC campaigns.
2. Ad Formats: Google Ads offers text-only adverts, whilst Facebook Ads offers various ad formats, including video, image, and carousel adverts.
3. Cost: Facebook Ads are generally cheaper than Google Ads, with an average cost-per-click (CPC) of $0.97 compared to Google Ads’ $1-$2 CPC.
How to Choose the Right PPC Platform
1. Consider Your Business Goals: The choice between Google Ads and Facebook Ads depends on your business goals, target audience, and industry. If you want to target leads at the point of buying intent, Google Ads may be the better choice. If you want to increase brand awareness, Facebook Ads may be more suitable.
2. Understand Your Target Audience: If your target audience is actively searching for products or services like yours, Google Ads may be the better choice. If your target audience is more passive and needs to be reached through targeted advertising, Facebook Ads may be more suitable.
3. Consider Your Industry: Some industries, such as e-commerce and retail, may perform better on Google Ads. Other industries, such as entertainment and media, may perform better on Facebook Ads.
Key Differences Between SEO and PPC
1. Speed of Results: When it comes to speed of results, SEO and PPC have distinct differences. SEO is a long-term strategy that requires ongoing effort and optimisation to improve your website’s visibility and ranking on search engines. It can take weeks, months, or even years to see significant results from SEO efforts. On the other hand, PPC provides immediate results. With a well-designed campaign, you can start driving targeted traffic to your website within hours of launching your adverts. This makes PPC an attractive option for businesses that need quick results, such as promotions, product launches, or seasonal marketing campaigns.
2. Free vs. Paid: Another significant difference between SEO and PPC is cost. SEO is essentially free, aside from the time and resources invested in optimising your website and creating high-quality content. Once you’ve optimised your website, you can enjoy long-term visibility and traffic without incurring additional costs. PPC, however, is a paid advertising model. You pay each time a user clicks on your advert, and the cost can add up quickly. Whilst PPC can be an effective way to drive targeted traffic, it requires a budget and ongoing investment to maintain and optimise your campaigns.
3. Organic Search vs. Targeted Ads: SEO and PPC also differ in their target audience. SEO focuses on organic search results, where users search for specific keywords and phrases. By optimising your website for these keywords, you can attract relevant traffic and increase your visibility. PPC, on the other hand, uses targeted adverts to reach specific demographics, interests, and behaviours. You can target specific keywords, locations, languages, and devices to ensure your adverts reach the right people at the right time.
4. Measurement and Tracking: Finally, SEO and PPC differ in their measurement and tracking capabilities. PPC provides easy-to-use dashboards and analytics tools that allow you to track your advert performance, conversions, and ROI in real time. SEO, however, can be more challenging to measure and track. Whilst tools like Google Analytics provide some insights, it can be difficult to attribute specific actions or conversions to SEO efforts. This makes it essential to set clear goals and track key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the success of your SEO campaigns.
SEO or PPC: Which is Right for You?
So, which is right for you – SEO or PPC? The answer depends on your business goals, target audience, and resources. If you need quick results and have a budget for advertising, PPC may be the better choice. However, if you’re looking for long-term visibility and cost-effective results, SEO is the way to go.
If a small business owner wants to promote their new product launch. They need quick results and have a budget for advertising. In this case, PPC would be the better choice, as it provides immediate results and targeted advertising capabilities.
On the other hand, a small business owner wants to increase their website’s visibility and drive organic traffic. They have a limited budget and resources but are willing to invest time and effort in optimising their website. In this case, SEO would be the better choice, as it provides long-term visibility and cost-effective results.