Search engine optimisation (SEO) and pay-per-click advertising (PPC) are two of the most common digital marketing strategies used by businesses to increase traffic to their websites as well as increase that sweet bottom line. Coincidently, they are also the two services that we offer but let’s not make this an article about us and how great we are at delivering results ( pretty damn good 😉 ). Let’s instead try to understand what SEO and PPC are and how they can work together to supercharge your marketing efforts.
What is SEO?
Right, so to kick things off, what is search engine optimisation? SEO, rather simply, is the process of optimising your website so that it ranks higher on search engine results pages (SERPs). The higher your website appears in the search results, the more people will click on it which results in more potential customers for your business.
SEO is often split into on-page and off-page SEO. For someone who is less experienced in SEO, the difference between on-page and off-page SEO may be confusing at times. Here’s a concise explanation of them both:
On-page SEO – This is the optimisation of various front-end and back-end components of your website with the aim of getting it to rank higher on search engines. This may include writing new content for your website, applying header tags, changing the URLs, or altering the alt text for your images. This also includes technical SEO which involves the optimisation of things such as HTML, CSS, or Javascript.
Off-page SEO – Anything that doesn’t involve your website directly but instead another website or platform. Examples of off-page SEO include external link-building or social media marketing.
What is PPC?
Pay-per-click advertising on the other hand is exactly what it says on the tin – you pay for every click to your webpage. Search engines reserve the very top of SERPs for advertisements. So you would create an advert on Google and it would be displayed in the advertising spots (Where exactly it is displayed is determined by the quality of your ad and how relevant it is to the search query, as well as a whole lot of other factors); and you would pay Google a certain amount for every click on your ad. The advantage of PPC is that you only pay when someone actually clicks on your ad, so it can be a cost-effective way to drive traffic to your site.
When done correctly, PPC can lead to incredible ROIs (Return on investment). For example, you may pay £5 for a click on your advert, which seems like a lot, but that click may convert into a sale of £500 – giving you an incredible ROI of 9,900%!
How do SEO and PPC work together?
So to get to the meat of this article, how do SEO and PPC work together? Once again, that’s a pretty simple one to answer: they complement each other. A strong SEO strategy will help you get organic traffic from Google, while a well-executed PPC campaign can help you get even more traffic from the search engine. Utilising both creates a powerful marketing combination that will help your business grow as you smash through your goals.
It’s great to know that SEO and PPC are a match made in heaven but what can you actually do to make sure they complement each other? Here are a few tips
1) It all starts with SEO
I understand the allure of PPC – driving traffic straight to your website. But I urge you to start with SEO. The reason for this is simple. Having a kickass website that’s been optimised for search engines will not only be cheaper but it will also work wonders for your PPC campaigns. At the end of the day, PPC is all about getting the click and once you have your potential customers exactly where you want them, it’s time for SEO to take over and secure that conversion. Make sure the webpage matches the intent of the customer and that you serve them exactly what they are after. Remember to include some CTAs (calls to action) to give them a friendly nudge.
2) Use PPC to test keywords
One of the great things about PPC is that it allows you to test different keywords to see what works best for your business. You can use the data from your PPC campaigns to inform your SEO strategy and vice versa. By testing different keywords, you can figure out which ones convert the best and then focus your SEO efforts on those keywords.
By keeping a close eye on your results you will see which paths to follow and which to stay clear off. You can use tools like Google Analytics and Search Console to track your traffic and see how your SEO and PPC campaigns are performing. By monitoring your results, you can make changes as needed to improve your results.
Summary
SEO and PPC are two of the most popular online marketing strategies. When used together, they can provide your business with a powerful boost. By following the tips above, you can make sure that your SEO and PPC campaigns are working together to help you achieve your goals. If you would like to talk to us about how we can help you grow your business through SEO and PPC, feel free to drop us a line.
Want to learn more? Check out the following articles:
SEO Techniques that should be avoided