People tend to think of SEO and PPC as completely different strategies – and they are. But when used together, they can actually work in harmony to create more successful campaigns.

Not sure how search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising can work together to help you achieve your business goals? Let’s take a look at how both of these strategies function, both independently and in unison, to drive traffic to your website and improve conversion rates.

What is SEO?

SEO stands for search engine optimization, and it refers to the process of optimizing your website so that it ranks higher in search engine results for keywords or phrases related to your business.

Several factors impact SEO, including site performance, page titles and meta descriptions, and the number of inbound links from high authority sites.

What is PPC?

PPC advertisements are the ads that appear at the top and to the side of search results on Google, Bing, and another search engines, as well as on sites that are part of display advertising networks. Many social media platforms also offer PPC platforms. The unique advantage to PPC is that as an advertiser, you only pay when the ads are clicked.

While some keywords are quite affordable, others can cost hundreds of dollars per click depending on how many companies are competing to rank for that term. But regardless of cost, PPC is a great way for companies to improve site visibility while establishing organic rankings.

How can SEO and PPC work together?

Let’s look at a few benefits of using SEO and PPC together to improve your company’s marketing strategy.

Visibility

Using SEO and PPC together increases your website’s overall presence in search engine results. Optimizing your site increases your company’s rankings in organic search results, and purchasing PPC ads for the same keywords and phrases allows your ad to appear near the top of the page when someone searches for those terms.

Recover missed clicks

While your site may already rank in a top position for certain keywords, PPC will help you reduce the chances that searchers click on other sites. In other words, PPC ads ensure that people don’t skip over your site in the search pages.

This means that even if you already rank in a top spot, PPC can be beneficial. In fact, a Google study indicated that when PPC search ads were paused, approximately 89% of the traffic generated by these ads was not recovered by organic search results.

So even if your site ranks in a top spot organically, PPC ads can generate additional traffic and improve the chances that searchers become site visitors.

Remarketing campaigns

When you use PPC ads, you can target them to users who have already visited your site as a result of your SEO strategy. For instance, if someone searches for a keyword that you rank well for and clicks through to your site, but does not make a transaction, there’s not much you can do to get them back with SEO.

But with PPC, you can target your ads directly to the people who’ve already visited your site. As they browse the web, they will see your ads directing them back to your site to complete their purchase.

Test keywords for SEO

PPC also lets you test keywords for SEO. While SEO takes time to produce shifts in rankings, PPC offers rather quick results, allowing you to test the viability of keywords for SEO.

By monitoring the competition and search levels of certain keywords, you can determine whether or not you should attempt to target them with your SEO strategy.

Data analysis

Combining SEO and PPC efforts allows you access to a larger source of data. This is helpful for determining which keywords are most effective for generating sales.

It also allows you to examine similar metrics from your SEO and PPC campaigns including clickthrough rate, bounce and exit rates, time on site, and conversion rate.

The larger data pool will enable you to make smarter marketing decisions and help you evaluate future website changes.

Why should I combine SEO and PPC?

SEO and PPC are two sides of the same coin, designed to improve your search strategy. Combining your SEO and PPC efforts better enables you to drive traffic to your site, generating more leads and revenue for your company.