To properly define which type of search strategy best suits my eCommerce or website, we need to know the main features of each one, the target audience we are addressing, what budget I have and the technical aspects of my website.
From a traffic-focused point of view, the most advisable approach is to combine both strategies. If you have a reasonably large budget, this combination is ideal for getting a high number of clicks.
Image source: http://unbounce.com/ppc/seo-vs-ppc-infographic/
SEO or pay-per-click campaign?
If our business needs to target highly competitive or very generic keywords, it is best to start with pay-per-click campaigns, whether search or display in all their forms, while working on the technical and content side so that Google gradually indexes and shows our pages in the organic results.
Now suppose that we have just launched a website or eCommerce store online and we need traffic because it is essential for the business to survive. Newly purchased domains that have just gone live face several handicaps, including the sandbox effect and the better reputation of others in the same sector, which have been online longer and rank well thanks to consistent SEO work. In this case, it is also advisable to start with AdWords campaigns while working on organic search, so that later, once the domain gains popularity and reputation, pay-per-click spending can be reduced or eliminated and the focus can shift entirely to organic.
If at a specific moment we need short-term visits, for example at a time of year when we have to make a particular product or service visible, the choice will obviously be a PPC campaign, since it can be set up in “little time” and generates visits immediately. SEO needs several months to achieve good, measurable results.
Sometimes, because of a website’s programming, the age of its code, or because the owner doesn’t want to or can’t invest in technical changes, an SEO campaign turns out to be impossible. In these cases where a website cannot be technically modified, all we have left is good old pay-per-click.
In short, we need to be clear about which strategy to choose based on the particularities of each one and on our goals or resources.
Main features of organic and paid search
- Timeframes: PPC for immediate traffic vs. SEO for medium- to long-term traffic
- Measuring results: PPC results are easy to measure vs. SEO, which is harder to measure, especially since “not provided” was introduced for keywords.
- Reliability: PPC is less reliable because “any” website can appear in the top results vs. SEO, which is more reliable because the website needs a set of features that build trust and present clearer content. It must also better define the features of its products or services to appear in the top results.
- Know-how: PPC requires less technical knowledge to generate traffic vs. SEO, which requires advanced technical knowledge to rank.
- Costs: PPC involves higher costs vs. SEO, which involves lower costs. Here we depend on goals, competition, CTR, clicks, CPC and other variables that can make a PPC campaign considerably more expensive.
We have shown you real examples to help you choose between an SEO or pay-per-click strategy, although the best way to decide is to consult a professional
