Is Organic SEO Better For Your Business?

The internet is always changing and evolving. Despite the constant trends and updated algorithms put in place, one thing is always for certain: the debate between PPC and SEO.

If you’re a digital marketing beginner and don’t have a clue about what these acronyms mean or how to choose which one is best for your business, continue reading.

PPC — inorganic search engine optimization

PPC stands for paid per click advertising, and is a method of buying visitors to your website by paying for ads that appear in Google search results. A small business can use PPC to land on one of the top three search results for a specific keyword, and once a consumer clicks that link, the company (you) pays a fee to Google.

Pros of using PPC:

• You will notice immediate website traffic and clicks.
• This method is scalable based on your budget, you can easily add or diminish from your budget if need be.
• PPC isn’t always affected by search engine algorithms. Typically speaking, if you have won an ad placement, it will always be there despite algorithmic changes.

Cons of using PPC:

• PPC clicks don’t tend to be high quality, and don’t usually result in conversions.
• PPC is not always budget friendly. Not only is PPC competitive when it comes to bidding for keywords, but paying for the results requires a lot of money upfront if you don’t have an appropriate marketing budget allocated.
• The minute you stop putting money into your ad campaigns, the results immediately stop.
• Most companies tend to forget their organic SEO efforts when they invest in PPC. So this means when PPC is stopped, their website goes from the top of the results to buried a few pages back.
• PPC is time consuming.

SEO — organic search results

SEO is considered “organic” search results, simply because the goal is to result in natural lead generation without paying any money. There is no outward advertising payment for SEO like there is for PPC, so the results are considered natural as the result of hard work and consistency.

Unlike PPC, where you pay for an advertisement that appears on the first page, SEO requires multiple pieces to make the puzzle work, which is why businesses often turn to outside SEO services like Link Graph. A good SEO strategy includes the following:

Link building: In order to show Google that your website is relevant to your niche, you want to link to other websites within your own website, and have them link back to you. This is called building a diverse link profile. The more high-quality, relevant websites you mention and have linking to you, the more Google will see that you are a leader in that industry.

Keywords: A keyword is the word or phrase that a potential client puts in the search bar when they look for a industry or service. It is best to put these keywords on your page surrounding by relevant, non-spammy content as an additional way for Google bots to note the relevancy of your page. For example, “HVAC Repair in Atlanta, Georgia.”

Content: You want to tell people what your business is all about, and the best way to do that is to create content for your website. This should be fresh, new, and includes keywords surrounding your niche.

Pros of using SEO:

• Very cost effective. If you are a good writer and networker, you can easily complete a lot of SEO best practices by yourself.
• It delivers quality conversions.
• It is a long-lasting and stable digital marketing technique.

Cons of using SEO:

• It is slow to see results. Experts say any beginner should give themselves about three to six months to fully see results.
• It is an ongoing process. You must always work at developing your SEO.

So what option is best for you and your business? Depending on your immediate and long-term needs, you may decide to choose one over the other, or a combination of both. PPC can be immediately helpful, but you should start laying the groundwork for a long-term SEO strategy.