Melissa Duko
Throughout history there have been many memorable pairings: peanut butter and jelly, Captain Kirk and Spock, Puff Daddy and Mase. And now we welcome the dynamic duo: PPC and SEO.
Pay per click advertising (PPC) and search engine optimization (SEO) are two strategies that every company should have in its advertising arsenal because they give companies a competitive edge. Why? Well, think of PPC and SEO as peanut butter and fluffernutter. Separately, they’re delicious. But together they’re a sinfully delicious, diabetic inducing, peanut butter and fluffernutter sandwich. (In my opinion, it’s way better than jelly.)
When you pair PPC and SEO together, you’re essentially creating a high-quality traffic combo. It would be foolish not to consider using such a successful strategy for your company.
Here are four reasons why your company should jump on the PPC and SEO bandwagon. And don’t worry, unlike Oregon Trail, this “wagon” won’t leave you dying from dysentery.
1.) Maximizes Exposure for Keywords
Using PPC and SEO together captures high competition phrases and maximizes exposure for high performing keywords. So, mom was right: sharing is caring!
But unless you’re in a South Park episode, you can’t go from “step 1: collect underpants” to “step 3: profit.” So how do you get from point ‘a’ to point ‘b’ in SEO or PPC? Do a little rhyme with me – just kidding. You use shared keyword data. Shared keyword data comes from testing a keyword with PPC, trying it out with SEO, and dumping what doesn’t convert and bolstering what does. To gather accurate data, follow these steps.
Once you know which keywords work for you, it’s time to use those words to increase your company’s online visibility.
2.) Increased Online Visibility
The only time being invisible is cool is when Harry Potter is sporting his cloak of invisibility. Outside of Hogwarts, and in the digital advertising world, it’s all about visibility.
In advertising, your company should be at the forefront, the quintessential leader of the pack. When PPC and SEO join forces to maximize exposure for your brand, they in turn increase your company’s digital visibility with added exposure on search engine results.
Here, PPC helped raise the awareness of Levi’s paid search keywords while SEO raised Levi’s organic search results. Used together, PPC and SEO have given Levi’s the chance for higher conversion rates and “domination above the fold.”
3.) Produces Higher Conversion Rates
Many industries, like retail brand Levi’s, have both PPC campaigns and SEO for the same keywords because they increase visibility above the fold. In 2014, 71.33% of Google searches resulted in an organic click on page one. But, pages two and three only got 5.59% of organic clicks? That’s a stark difference.
By pursuing both PPC and SEO campaigns, companies are grabbing a larger chunk of the search engine results on keywords they care about.
However, by using both PPC and SEO on the same keywords, you might have keyword overlap or cannibalization. Keyword overlap is paying for the same keyword more than once because it shows in both PPC and SEO. But don’t worry, it’s a risk worth taking because you’ll have a better return on investment than if you just used one or the other. Why? Page one results increase your visibility, therefore converting better.
4.) Reaches More Consumers
Did you know that higher conversion rates don’t always equate to sales? Bummer. So what’s the good in all this data if you can’t use it to target the people you’re actually looking to reach? Enter retargeting.
Ever wonder why your abandoned shopping cart from Apple haunts you on your Facebook news feed? Well, you’re being “retargeted.” Retargeting reconnects potential customers with your brand.
When you visit a website, your online activity creates a ‘Hansel and Gretel trail of crumbs’ for Apple. And like the witch from Hansel and Gretel’s story, Apple will stalk you. However, Apple won’t throw you in the oven for eating a gingerbread wall. Instead, Apple will give you a gentle nudge, a reminder if you will, that you left a product behind in your shopping cart, or at the very least, researched this item.
PPC and SEO can help your company reach people at different stages of the shopping process, too.
For example, let’s consider how Apple could market its iPhone 6 using PPC and SEO:
- PPC is for people who are ready to buy a product (iPhone 6), and
- SEO is for people still considering whether that’s the product (iPhone 6) they want to purchase.
Breaking it down even further Apple will use:
- Ads: Apple’s PPC ads will be more visible above the fold.
- Articles: Gathering iPhone user related articles and reviews that have certain keywords, ranking them higher in an organic search.
Together, PPC and SEO will appeal to both types of customers: buyers and researchers. And the end goal for Apple? Lots of iPhone 6 purchases, that is of course until the iPhone 7 comes out.
Conclusion
PPC and SEO are well worth the price of admission. Using these powerful advertising strategies will give your company maximized keyword exposure, increased visibility, higher conversion rates, and more customers, too. Of course, this is just the start. There are many other ways using PPC and SEO together can help improve your branding and your bottom line.
What benefits have you discovered using both PPC and SEO together? Share with us your thoughts below.
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