Warning: excessive use of acronyms below.

A business’ online success greatly depends on the traffic generated from its website. In order for you to grow, it’s important to draw your customers in organically, as well as take steps to attract them through ad campaigns and online marketing. You can accomplish these goals by utilizing effective techniques like SEO and PPC. Both are valuable aspects to any marketing plan, but which is the right strategy for your business?

SEO

You’ve probably heard the words “Search Engine Optimization” before, but do you really know what it means and how to properly use it? Essentially, SEO is utilizing targeted keywords and strategies to rank your page(s) higher on search results. This is important because nearly 80% of the online traffic you get is searched for on search engines like Google. Not surprisingly, people are more likely to choose the websites that appear near the top of the results page. Any ongoing marketing web strategy you have should include SEO to keep you in front of audiences at all times.

One major advantage of SEO is that it has been statistically proven to bring you better leads on average. Many of the organic leads that voluntarily seek out your services become long term customers and can spread the word to other future customers. In fact, many people have begun subconsciously ignoring “paid results” when browsing the web or searching on Google. “Naturally” ranking high on search engines establishes you as a credible and respected brand that consumers can trust. You can draw natural attention to your page just by effectively using keywords. For example, if you are a cleaning service in Jacksonville, you are going to want to put “cleaning service in Jacksonville” somewhere on your page to boost your search results towards the top.

PPC

It’s not all about SEO- Pay-Per-Click advertising is a valuable component of your online presence as well. PPC is a method of advertising in which you bid to have your ads appear in the “sponsored” results when someone types in a query including your keywords. It’s called “pay-per-click” because you have to pay for each user who clicks on the ad you are promoting.

The main advantage of PPC is yielding immediate results. SEO tactics take time to rank highly on search engines if you have a new or not-well-known site. With PPC advertising, you can put your company’s name and services in front of millions of people as soon as you make a payment. This strategy is perfect for announcing time-sensitive information like product launches, special offers, big events, etc. You can even target specific audiences for your ads, such as income, gender and age range. PPC can be very effective at boosting exposure in a short time and put your name on the map.

So, Which is the Best Option for Me?

The answer to this question is not so straightforward. Simply put, you need both SEO and PPC to increase your online presence to its fullest. Not only should you use both strategies, but you should know when to use them as well. Targeted SEO tactics are important to generate quality leads over time and create sustained traffic; while PPC is great for jump-starting your online marketing campaign and promoting specials.