SEO Versus PPC
One Goal, Two Approaches
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising are two methods to accomplish the same goal: find prospects who are already looking for you and convert them to customers. Both SEO and PPC use search engines (Google, Bing, etc.) who already have created trust with their audience, and they often lead to the same landing pages dedicated to conversion.
Which one should I target?
The choice between SEO and PPC is not always obvious. Here are some questions to consider:
- Whats your time horizon? Are you looking for a return in the next 15-45 days, or are you willing to wait 2-12 months?
- Whats your current conversion rate? A standard rate is about 2 percent; if you are signficantly below this, you will likely lose money in PPC.
- Can you access your website HTML? For marketers without HTML access, PPC will provide a faster way to realize revenue, as they can create landing pages using a tool like Unbounce.
- How diverse is your product line? PPC is best suited for a broad range of products, while SEO (in the short term) will focus on 1-2 products.
- Whats your allowable acquisition cost? Using PPC, can you achieve this cost consistently and reliably?
- How much traffic do you need to succeed? A general rule of thumb suggests just 10 percent of searchers will click on PPC ads. Looking at your niche, is this enough traffic to justify the effort?
Case Study: Priced out of PPC, Enterprise looks to SEO
I recently advised a B2B technology company on their online marketing strategies. For more than three years they had focused on PPC as their primary source of online leads, but increased competition raised the average price per click for their target keywords to more than $25 dollars. At a two percent conversion rate, thats $1250 per lead. They turned to me to evaluate their programs and identify a more cost effective solution.
I quickly identified one of their PPC keywords with an achievable page rank and a high level of search volume. After optimizing their on-page tags, we educated the team on off-page SEO considerations for PR and social media, and ran a small link building campaign.
Result: in less than a quarter, the client began to realize traffic from the SEO efforts, and is on pace to replace their PPC traffic, thus reducing the cost of an additional lead from $1250 to $0.
Case Study: Startup Launches with PPC, Sees Immediate Results
A B2C software client approached me to help with their SEO and PPC programs. They were launching a new product and wanted immediate market feedback on their pricing before an official launch just two months later. In other words, SEO would take too long.
I created half a dozen landing pages and built a PPC campaign to quickly generate traffic. The results were predictable: they realized immediate traffic, but the conversion rates suggested they could not compete with a low price position. Realizing this, they shifted to a premium pricing strategy. At launch, they have a repeatable PPC model for generating positive cash flow, and are in a position to consider adding SEO to the mix.
Take the Next Step
Are you still uncertain about what mix of PPC and SEO you should apply to your business? Contact me today for a free 30 minute discussion of your circumstances.
