|
|
|
Search Engine Optimization and
Paid Search: What Should Your Philosophy Be?
By Scott Buresh (c) 2010 Medium Blue
As a search engine marketing company, we are often asked by
clients and prospects if there's a basic philosophy when it
comes to organic search engine optimization and paid search
advertising.
"Is one tactic more favorable than another? How do I know which
channel to pursue? Should I do both?"
Without a hard look at your company's goals and unique
situation, there really isn't a concrete answer to these
questions. The true test of pursuing either an SEO campaign or
PPC advertising (or both) is knowing that it all boils down to
your company philosophy, ROI objectives, budget, and countless
other monetary and marketing factors. To determine which, or
what combination of both, might offer the most bang for your
buck, let's examine five types of "models" that my search
engine marketing company often deals with.
|
1. SEO Only.
Some clients are strictly interested in kicking off an SEO
campaign, usually for a few basic reasons. They often have
tried pay-per-click and decided it didn't work, so they aren't
interested in trying it again in the foreseeable future (whether
the initial campaign was set up effectively and the channel
should be revisited is a subject for future discussion). They
also often feel that since they themselves ignore PPC ads on the
right hand side of the page, everyone else must do the same.
While there's nothing inherently wrong with pursuing search
engine optimization exclusively, it can take awhile to achieve
rankings for competitive, profitable keyphrases, and there's
simply no way for your search engine marketing company to
accurately predict (as they probably can with some degree of
accuracy with PPC advertising) exactly what the initial results
will be, and precisely when they will appear. However, for
companies which do not have an immediate sense of urgency in
their online marketing initiatives and who for whatever reason
do not want to pursue PPC, organic SEO still offers a great,
albeit slightly delayed, return on investment.
2. PPC Only.
Alternatively, a search engine marketing company may encounter
the clients who are primarily interested in PPC... and nothing
else. Even with a limited spend, clients can turn their
campaigns on and off as needed, making market segments easier to
control than with an SEO campaign. Pay-per-click also allows
clients to achieve a somewhat predictable ROI if the campaign is
managed effectively: "If I spend X, I'll get back Y."
The clients that fall within the 'PPC advertising only'
category may have worked with a search engine marketing company
before, pursuing SEO exclusively, and achieved less than stellar
results. Despite all the positive press hyping up what search
engine optimization can do for website visibility in recent
years, it still tends to be viewed as more voodoo than science
by most companies pursuing online marketing for the first time.
With such companies, organic SEO is usually a topic we broach
after achieving success with PPC.
|
3. SEO with PPC Stopgap.
The first and most common question a search engine marketing
company may hear concerning an SEO campaign is how long it will
take to achieve results. Naturally, clients want to be able to
see the investment almost immediately.
This is where the PPC stopgap approach comes in. Though a
client's budget is usually fixed, they are often willing to
spend a little more on the front end to see immediate results.
Once positive results are evident, PPC spending is scaled back
as SEO takes hold. An advantage of this approach to clients with
limited budgets is that it can be managed on a very granular
level. When top organic results are achieved for a given
keyphrase, PPC bidding for that term can cease. Over time, PPC
expenditures can theoretically be eliminated entirely. This
model appeals to those who want a wide range of coverage and
immediate results but have a fixed monthly budget that they do
not control.
|
4. Hybrid Model.
A hybrid model is similar to a stopgap model, except that the
client has no intention of eventually leaving the PPC arena
entirely. Rather, the client has their search engine marketing
company do a full on optimization AND paid search campaign at
the outset, with the expectation that PPC costs will be reduced
but not eliminated as the organic campaign takes hold.
In this model, a client recognizes that in an organic SEO
campaign, they will be limited in the number of keyphrases that
they can target by the amount of real estate on their website.
With a PPC campaign, however, there is no downside to targeting
thousands upon thousands of relevant "long tail" keyphrases,
that is, search terms that are comprised of longer strings of
words. Using the hybrid model, a company removes keyphrases
from the PPC campaign on a granular level as they achieve top
organic results for those phrases, but continue to bid on
keyphrases that the site does not currently target.
5. Full Out SEM.
This approach calls for both SEO and PPC initiatives running at
full speed. These types of clients are generally those that
consider these two efforts as separate 'beasts' and frankly
believe that showing up highly in both channels is a good thing
... as long as the return justifies the spend.
These clients are happy to spend as much as possible with
their search engine marketing company and do not usually have a
set marketing budget – just strict ROI objectives. As long as
each channel is performing within acceptable ranges, they are
happy to reap the benefits. Generally, they treat the two
disciplines as unique channels and monitor the results
independently.
Choosing the Right Model
Which approach is right? It depends (you weren't expecting a
definitive answer, right?). The decision between SEO efforts vs.
PPC advertising depends on means, goals, budget, comfort level,
corporate restrictions, and many other elements. Keep in mind
that these are only five possible models that we often
encounter. Many clients do not fit neatly into any of these
scenarios. Some clients may start out with one option and
evolve into another. Some switch back and forth depending on
their own ever-changing situation. The most important thing is
to be aware of your options and pursue a path that fits your
current goals.
About The Author
Scott Buresh is the founder and CEO of Medium Blue, which was
named the number one organic search engine optimization
company in the world by PromotionWorld in 2006 and 2007. Scott's articles have appeared in numerous publications,
including ZDNet, WebProNews, MarketingProfs, DarwinMag, SiteProNews, ISEDB.com, and Search Engine Guide. He was
also a contributor to The Complete Guide to Google Advertising (Atlantic, 2008) and Building Your Business with
Google for Dummies (Wiley, 2004). Medium Blue is an Atlanta search engine optimization company with local and
national clients, including Cbeyond, Oliver Wight Americas, and DeKalb Medical. To see how we can help you achieve
your online marketing goals, please contact us.
Printer Friendly Version of this
Article
|
Forums
