Pay Per Click (PPC) vs. Organic Search: Which method is Best?
One of the age old SEO questions that is frequently asked is, "Should I spend the time and money to improve my organic search ranking or foot the bill for an extensive PPC campaign?" In this article I will explore both of these options and discover which one seems to be a more viable option for most webmasters.
Organic Optimization
One major advantage to organic search is that it could cost absolutely nothing. I was always told "There is no such thing as a free lunch." Well, that may be so but as long as webmasters are willing to put in the time and effort to build a successful Organic search campaign, then there is such thing as free SEO. With organic optimization, you can develop a longer term marketing strategy. Organic search has results that last for years as opposed to PPC that lasts only as long as your bank account does. Organic optimization has been around about as long as the web itself. Like the web, organic search has evolved with the times. However, the constant evolution can make Organic optimization difficult and confusing.
Pay Per Click (PPC) -
Pay Per Click is the search engine's bread and butter. If we were to break down the earnings of all the major search engines at the top of the list of revenue drivers you almost always see PPC. The numbers speak for themselves; people would not continue to purchase PPC ads if they didn't convert into sales.
If you are a new business to the web and would like to see immediate results, PPC is the only way to go. PPC is the only search engine optimization strategy that can yield immediate first-page placement. Another benefit to using the PPC campaign is that you can set you own fixed budget. If you want to only spend $100 dollars a month, no problem, $10,000, go for it. Another advantage to PPC is that you can instantly track your conversion, and success rates through Google Analytics and other PPC management soft wares. Another advantage to PPC is that if you find a particular keyword or phrase is not working, all you need to do is make a few minor tweaks and your new target phrase has changed. In Organic search, changes could take months to take effect.
The Best Online Marketing Choice is...
When evaluating both of these online marketing strategies, I have come to the conclusion that they both play key roles in online marketing, yet organic optimization is the better solution for a long term, cost effective marketing campaign. Don't get me wrong; I definitely feel that PPC has its place in just about any SEO strategy, but as a secondary tool. It can also serve as a jumping off point for a brand new site that needs to see immediate results. A PPC campaign can serve as a temporary solution while an Organic campaign is being built.
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