12 min read
PPC and SEO: Pros And Cons Of Each
When it comes to digital marketing, most people frequently ask what is PPC or SEO and, most importantly, which strategy is better. The core difference between the two is that Search engine optimization is a free tool that may take time to give results. On the other hand, PPC costs some money and brings an immediate outcome.
The answer to which strategy is better depends on your marketplace, objectives, and your current situation. For instance, new businesses may not achieve the desired outcome using organic ranking, but paid advertisements can pay off much quicker. Here is a detailed guide to help you make an informed decision.
What Are The Advantages And Disadvantages Of SEO Compared To PPC
Search engine optimization is the process of gaining traffic from a free listing in search engines. You need to modify your page appropriately so that it ranks higher. Your position will depend on your content’s relevance, the popularity of your links, and user experience in your site. Search engine spiders should easily understand your webpage to rank higher than your competitors.
Advantages
It’s Free
You don’t need to pay search engines to show your content. However, it will help if you commit yourself to improve your site so that your page achieves placement on merit.
Still, you may have to spend a considerable amount to pay content creators and other experts, but it’s nothing compared to PCC cost. Once you make that initial investment, there is no ongoing cost to attract traffic.
It Promotes Brand Credibility
Most customers avoid ads due to distrust issues. There is a perception that anyone can pay to be at the top of search engine results. Thus, when your website appears organically, it improves your perceived credibility from the customers searching for your brand.
It Guarantees Better Click-Through Rates
Most people are more likely to click on organic results generated on search engines than on PPC results. Therefore the efforts you put into developing organic traffic will continually lead to sustainable clicks. Your site can attract a considerable amount of traffic to drive sales and conversion rates as long as you can convince people to buy your products. The image below shows just how important organic traffic is. Take note that the organic traffic is the dark green while paid searches is the red section with a much smaller percentage:
(Image Credit: Zero Limit Web)
It’s Delivers Long Term Results
If you keep sharing relevant content that generates backlinks, chances are, you will continually rank high. Unlike paid marketing, your content won’t disappear after you stop paying. Your site will thus continue to attract traffic indefinitely.
It Derives Targeted Traffic
In search engine optimization, you can use long-tail keywords to refine the search terms. Using local tools can also help you improve localized traffic. It also gives you a chance to avail useful information more quickly to a specific segment of target customers. Remember that most people use Google to search for an immediate solution for their particular problems. Therefore, search engine optimization gives your brand exposure to people looking for the solution you offer.
It Helps Set An Authority In Your Niche
By regularly availing of helpful content, you establish yourself as an expert in your industry. Most people will begin to turn to you for advice or more information concerning a specific issue.
Your consistent presence in search results will make you a respected voice in your niche. Therefore, you have a better chance to be selected when a client has no idea which brands to choose.
It Expands Your Reach
People often search for information online before purchasing anything. They first go through reviews and other useful guidelines. When you provide content that meets your clients’ expectations, you are more likely to rank higher. As a result, you can tap into a vast network of potential clients beyond the local and national level. More people across the world will know about your business, and you can therefore reach people who have never heard of your products but might need them. For example, if you are selling shoes and you want to build trust with the customer so they will come again, think about writing an article about shoes. This example shows an article that can teach you how to measure your shoe size. To the right they have links to buy their products after trust has been built and they have provided you with information.
It Guarantees Higher Return On Investment
When done correctly, search engine optimization has the potential to yield excellent results. It plays a vital role in establishing a robust online presence for your business, which ushers better business growth. Besides, you are more likely to attract high converting traffic and increase your business’ competitiveness.
You Might Also Like
We can set-up and optimize your Google Ads for you but let’s also test your website’s SEO potential. Takes 60 seconds!
Paying for traffic is an important way for many businesses to grow but ranking naturally in Google for your important keywords is free. While Diib helps 1000s of businesses grow with Google Ads management, Diib is also one of the best SEO tools in the world and uses the power of big data to help you quickly and easily increase your traffic and rankings. Diib will even let you know if you already deserve to rank higher for certain keywords. As seen in Entrepreneur!
- Over 500,000 global members
- Keyword and backlink monitoring + ideas
- Built-in benchmarking and competitor analysis
- Easy-to-use automated SEO tool
- Speed, security, + Core Vitals tracking
- Too busy for SEO? Diib’s Growth Experts can set-up and optimize your ads!
Used by over 500k companies and organizations:
Syncs with 
It Gives Small Business Leverage
Small business owners should be in the first line of investing in search engine optimization. It’s a very affordable and effective way of securing a top position in search results. With the right strategies in place, it offers you a fair playground with other, more prominent companies. Therefore, you have an equal chance to grow your brand without any hindrance from the big brand monopoly in your industry.
Disadvantages
It Takes Time To See Results
While comparing SEO vs PPC statistics, it might take time to gain rewards from a search engine optimization strategy. A single blog won’t be enough to earn you a better ranking since search engines require some time to index your content. Depending on how well you optimize your site, it can take anything from a month to a year. In PPC, you will begin to see results immediately.
It Requires Ongoing Maintenance
To stay ahead of your competitors, you need to do more than basic keyword research. The strategy requires regular content updates, tracking metrics, and attracts substantial backlinks. If you operate in a very competitive niche, you might need to solicit external help in optimizing your site.
Changing Algorithms
Google algorithms pose high uncertainty. You may be ranking high at one time, but you might drop massively on the other moment. All efforts you put into getting your website at the top page of search results could be affected if Google releases a new algorithm change. There are ways to track Google algorithm changes in “weather” for example, SERoundtable:
(Image Credit: Grow With Studio)
It Has No Guarantees For Results
You can update your content and other vital website features and still not land on the first page of research results. Remember that most users are not likely to scroll beyond this page. Nonetheless, search engine optimization doesn’t guarantee a high ranking.
You Have No Full Control
This strategy doesn’t give you control over the type and level of traffic you will generate from your marketing efforts. What you might be thinking matters in search results ranking may deliver opposite results from what you expect. Only Google has total control.
You Risk Penalization
Search engine optimization requires you to always be at the top of your game and adjust to new Google requirements. For instance, you might get penalized if you fail to upgrade your site to be more responsive.
Stiff Competition
Most businesses utilize this digital marketing strategy. In a very saturated space, the competition may seem somewhat stiff for starter businesses. You, therefore, need to brace yourself for a constant race. A top listed company can find itself far below as the competitors continually use other wiser strategies.
Advantages And Disadvantages Of PPC
Before diving into the merits and demerits, it would be best first to understand what a PPC is. It stands for Pay Per Click, an online marketing strategy that lets you place ads on a site, but you pay a fee each time a user clicks on it. The technique has its own set of advantages and disadvantages as discussed below;
Advantages
It’s Cost-Effective
Based on the PPC meaning outlined above, you only pay for the clicks you earn. While using this strategy, wastage is very minimal since you pay when visitors click on the ad and get directed to your site. It thus guarantees value for your money.
It’s Easily Adjustable
Sometimes, you need to put more effort into the areas that work best for you during your marketing campaigns. While using PPC campaigns, you can easily make necessary revisions to match new trends and developments within your field.
You Can Take Full Control Of Your Campaigns
PPC gives you full control over what will be on your ad, the audience it will reach, and its contents. Additionally, you can choose the right keywords that match your campaign. Therefore, it enables you to filter out unnecessary traffic, optimize the user experience, and reach your target market both locally and internationally.
It Generates Traffic Quickly
As soon as an Ad goes live, it can generate traffic to your site in the shortest time possible. Thus, it’s a better option, especially when you want to see fast results in your marketing efforts.
You Can Control Your Budget
PPC campaigns have budget-friendly models that allow you to set a particular amount that you intend to use. Therefore, the strategy attracts even small business owners since you only spend what you are prepared to pay for each ad.
Better Positioning And Visibility
Pay Per Click Advertising allows your ads to appear on high traffic sites. You can thus market your products or services in popular web portals, search engines, and social networks. For example, here is a PPC advertisement that has been positioned at the top of the search engine results page:
Disadvantages
It Doesn’t Guarantee Success
It’s worth noting that PPC marketing will not always guarantee an increase in your sales or conversions. Therefore, you need to know how to manage it properly to attain your campaign goals.
It Can Generate Junk Traffic
In some cases, your competitors might click on your ads to rack up your expenses. The number of clicks may be appealing in terms of statistics, but it’s terrible for your goals and finances. Keep in mind that website owners and search engines don’t consider whether you have generated profit. You will still pay depending on the number of clicks. Therefore, PPC campaign management is critical to know whether you have the right conversions and audience.
It May Cost You A Lot If You Don’t Manage Your Campaign Properly
As much as PPC can generate conversions cost-effectively, it can also exceed your budget. In most cases, this happens when you get into a bidding war with your competitors over keywords. Despite making all necessary efforts to get a top spot in ad listings, you shouldn’t spend more than your estimated cost. You can decide to use specific keywords that are less costly and target your desired market instead of the widely searched terms. Therefore, you will end up sticking to your initial budget.
It Requires Great Time Investment
While using PPC marketing techniques, you have to invest ample time in optimization to achieve the best results.
Requires Skills
Note that it can take some practice to set up an effective marketing campaign. Still, various SEO vs PPC career fields provide a great platform to instill advertisers’ necessary skills. In some cases, you can also consider a specialist agency.
We hope that you found this article useful.
If you want to know more interesting about your site health, get personal recommendations and alerts, scan your website by Diib. It only takes 60 seconds.
SEO And PPC Integration
If you have the capabilities, it would be best to combine PPC marketing with search engine optimization. Most times, people prefer starting with PPC for immediate results. However, you will miss out on organic ranking benefits if you don’t integrate it into your digital marketing plans. Still, if you solely rely on search engine optimization, you might miss out on substantial selling opportunities through PPC advertisements.
Although search engine optimization seems rather powerful than PPC in the long run, the latter is a great way to gain quick initial traffic and to keep your position consistent. Both strategies have their merits and demerits, but instead of picking between SEO vs PPC career, it would be wise to focus on both.
When used together, you get the chance to enjoy the strengths of both strategies while offsetting the negative qualities. Here are the benefits of SEO and PPC integration.
It Leads To Better Keyword Targeting
Keyword research is an essential part of PCC and search engine optimization. Both strategies use different tools to determine the right keyword strategy for your campaign. The most significant benefit of combining the two methods is that you will gain better insights into the best keywords to use. For instance, you can use organic ranking data to determine the most appropriate keywords to make your PPC campaigns more effective. Here is a tool that can give you recommendations for your PPC keywords:
(Image Credit: SEMrush)
It Doubles Your Site Visibility
If you have PPC and SEO working together, you increase your search engine presence. As previously mentioned, if you optimize your page appropriately, you are more likely to rank higher. On the other hand, PPC also allows your ads to appear on the top page when someone searches for services or products related to yours. Hence when you combine both strategies, your brand dominates search results, and you will attract most searcher’s attention.
It Increases Your Click-through Rate
PPC can help you recover missed search engine clicks and interest from searches that you would have otherwise missed using a single strategy. The increased exposure enables you to generate more clicks from both paid and earned search engine rankings.
PPC Advertising Helps Bring Back Your Organic Visitors To Your Site
You can create a PPC Campaign to target those customers who landed on your webpage organically but didn’t convert. Come up with a remarketing campaign to remind the visitors of a purchase they didn’t complete or offer them attractive discounts. Remarketing keeps you ahead of your competitors and increases conversions. For instance:
(Image Credit: Search Engine Journal)
It Reduces Cost
By comparing SEO vs PPC statistics, you can use the data to reduce unnecessary expenditure. If you are on a tight budget, choose to rank organically for the expensive keywords. You can also use SEO data to determine the highest performing keywords and use them in your PPC campaigns. If you notice that you generate a significant amount of traffic from a particular location, you can adjust your PPC ads to target this customer segment more effectively.
The Most Applicable strategy In Different Situations
Neither strategy is better or worse than the other. Yet, PPC and SEO working together tend to bring in the best results. Nonetheless, in some situations, one strategy may make more sense than the other. For instance, if you have a one-time offer, you may want to consider PPC. Search engine optimization may take longer, and your intentions may be over before you even rank. Still, opt for PPC if you wish to build awareness, introduce an innovative product, or need quick results.
On the other hand, if you aim to get consistent results, search engine optimization will help you achieve sustainable traffic. It also works best when you want to build an authority site to cater to a specific niche. You can also use it to increase your site’s value, especially if you plan to sell it.
Buyers prefer an optimized site since it doesn’t require active monitoring of the campaign like in PPC.
Diib® Comprehensive PPC and SEO Metrics Today!
Both PPC and SEO make great digital marketing strategies. With organic ranking, you don’t need to pay for website traffic or to come up with new ads. On the other hand, PPC campaigns will give you immediate impact at a cost. Based on the SEO and PPC meaning outlined above, both strategies differ, but they work best while combined. After all, it would help if you leveraged all the marketing channels that suit your business for optimal results.
Diib Digital offers a comprehensive dashboard with actionable insights into both your SEO and PPC campaigns. No more worrying over which strategy is right, let the data tell you! Here are some of the features of our dashboard we’re sure you’ll love:
- Keyword, backlink, and indexing monitoring and tracking tools
- User experience and mobile speed optimization
- Bounce rate monitoring and repair
- PPC monitoring, including CTR and conversion rates
- Social media integration and performance
- Broken pages where you have backlinks (404 checker)
- Technical SEO monitoring
Click here for your free scan or simply call 800-303-3510 to speak to one of our growth experts.
FAQ’s
Most business owners falsely believe that SEO and PPC are separate in any marketing campaign. However, these two are best when used synergistically. Both add different dimensions to your overall campaign.
PPC, or pay-per-click, is an advertising format that requires payment only when someone clicks on your ad in a search engine. On the other hand, SEO, or search engine optimization, is the process of optimizing your content to rank higher on the SERPs.
Adwords is a more immediate result platform than SEO and takes less time to complete. Whereas SEO will work better in the long run for organic ranking.
This is a frequent question. PPC does not increase your SEO ranking directly, although, indirectly it helps to increase traffic to your site which will improve SEO ranking.
The term “organic SEO” refers to organic methods of ranking higher on Google. This is usually used to describe non-paid methods of advertising and improving the optimization of your website.
See how to easily grow your traffic!