Has Pay-Per-Click Advertising Made Search Engine Optimization Obsolete?

Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising involves webmasters and advertisers bidding on keywords and statements so that when a consumer types in your particular keyword, your site will appear at the beginning of Search Results. The higher you bid, the higher your site appears in search results.

Over recent years, it would seem that PPC advertising is all the rage. Businesses of all sizes, from multi-national corporations to stay-at-home mums, are utilizing PPC advertising for their businesses and their websites. The problem with the prevalence of PPC advertising is that it has led to many website owners forgetting about Search Engine Optimisation, to the detriment of their business.

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) involves optimizing your sites so Search Engines can find your site. Tools in SEO include such things as targeting keywords, utilizing meta-tags, ensuring correct site layout and targeted back links. SEO is vital for any website that you own to list highly in Search Engine Results.

Whilst PPC has its place in an integrated internet marketing campaign, the reasons you cannot ignore Search Engine Optimisation include:

Organic Traffic

There are many Internet Searchers out there who will not click on a PPC advertisement because they feel that they are only trying to be sold something. If your site can appear high in the non-paid results you are seen as an authority, and this can encourage people to buy because they think you are an expert.

Target Audience

With PPC you can target particular keywords, but with SEO you can target more particular phrases. The problem with PPC is that, whilst you should also get your target audience, your PPC ad may also appear at the top of search terms not related to your site. Whereas with SEO, the browsers clicking on your site are more likely to be the people you want to see clicking on your site.

Cost

This is related to the target audience point above. If your PPC ad is appearing at the top of search terms that aren’t fully-optimized for your target audience, you may have people who will never buy your product clicking on your ad if it appears at the top of the Search Engine page for the terms they are searching. Each time someone clicks on your page you have to pay money.

There is a place for PPC advertising, but it should never be done in isolation. SEO helps you establish the keywords and phrases you are looking at to target your audience and this can help you more effectively implement your PPC campaign.

Search Engine Optimization eBook gives you the edge.