SEO And PPC - Which Should You Use

Search Engine Marketing 101

Alright class, today we will be discussing the basic principles of what search engine marketing is. It seems there are different schools of thought about the theory of Search Engine Marketing (SEM), and my goal is to clarify any grey areas that may exist and to highlight the advantages and disadvantages of each form of SEM.

Some people believe that SEM involves Pay-Per-Click advertising exclusively, and others believe that SEM has to do with Organic Search results. Still, the fact of the matter is it includes both areas. If you are not familiar with the terms, PPC and Organic results don’t despair, because I will now expound on these elements.

Pay-per-Click (PPC) Advertising:

From the screenshot above, you will notice that I searched using the key phrase “search engine marketing,” and Google has generated specific results site loud tronix. At the top of the results page and toward the right, I have placed a red box around particular results.

A distinctive element about these particular ads is that they have been paid for by an advertiser who has bid on the keyword “search engine marketing.” And if you click on one of these ads, the advertiser is charged a certain amount for that click, hence the name Pay-Per-Click Advertising.

Advantages of PPC

• This adverting allows the advertiser to drive targeted traffic to his/her site
• The truck can begin flowing to the site minutes after an ad is placed
• It serves as an excellent resource to build a brand or an email list and can help generate sales at a rapid pace

Disadvantages of PPC

• It can be a costly investment especially for those who are inexperienced
• Higher competition keywords are almost impossible to bid on because they are too expensive, which limits the exposure for businesses with smaller advertising budgets
• Many people who click these ads are information seekers and not buyers

Organic Search Engine Results:

Using the exact search term as the example above, I have now highlighted an area in the screenshot that is directly below the PPC ads. These results are what are known as organic or natural search results.

Traffic generated from the organic results is highly valued in the eyes of webmasters because the traffic is virtually free. However, there will be cost attributed to gaining increased ranking in the search engines use what is known as Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

Advantages of Organic Rankings

• Traffic is free, and depending on certain competitive variables the traffic can become a passive stream
• Traffic can be laser targeted to the keywords your site is optimized for

Disadvantages of Organic Rankings

• Achieving organic ranking is an indefinite process
• The cost of hiring SEO firms can add up fairly quickly
• The stability of your rankings is never guaranteed

PPC and natural search engine rankings are the crux of what search engine marketing is. Both these traffic sources provide certainly benefits, but the approach you embrace in SEM will be dependent on your business needs as well as the size of your budget.

There we go, class; the discourse, as mentioned above, should provide the necessary knowledge to help you understand the two forms of Search Engine Marketing.

This article has been provided to us by Neil, who is currently working as the head of marketing for mobiles can, who are dedicated to offering their customers a solution that will help reduce paper processing as well as to cut their operating costs nbcsports activate. They are doing this by building a tailored solution around handheld units like the Motorola ES400 and printers Like the Zebra ZM400.