SEO vs. PPC: The Never Ending Battle

Took special interest in the MediaPost email this morning, titled "SEO Or PPC" because our agency engages with this on almost a daily basis, whether with current clients, or new business. Do more people click on the top listings regardless of a sponsored link (PPC) or organic listing? According to a new study by Engine Ready, PPC performed 50% better (2.03%) when leading users to a retailer's site for a purchase versus users coming from an organic listing (1.26%).

The study measured the 4 major traffic source categories:

• Direct access and bookmarks
• Paid listings
• Organic listings
• Other referrer

Most likely to buy are consumers who navigate directly to a retailer's site by typing in a URL or clicking on a bookmark (7.38% conversion rate). Consumers who came to an e-commerce site from another site or an e-mail converted at 6.58%.

Although a lot can be said about SEO, PPC according to this study can target more people in the purchase funnel, searching out products/services. PPC allows advertisers to test and optimize their campaigns based on keywords, descriptions, offerings (free shipping, promo codes,etc) all on a budget. PPC is one of the first things we reccomend to any client, current or new. SEO is definitely part of an overall strategy, when PPC is typically campaign focused. The best fit is when you can have your SEO and PPC working in tandem, being listed high in both.

To read more from the MediaPost "SEO or PPC", click here

or to read about it on Internet Retailer click here

Google Dominates U.S. Searches

Search engine power player Google accounted for 72% of all U.S. online searches conducted in February, an 8% increase compared to last year, according to Hitwise.

Google towers over its competitors:

• Yahoo! (17% of all U.S. online searches, down 17% from a year earlier)
• MSN (6% off all searches, down 20%)
• Ask.com (4%, down 10%)
  

Having such control in the search engine marketplace makes Google the best destination for companies new to online adverising especially Search Engine Marketing (SEM).  Google's Pay Per Click (PPC) model allows advertisers to only pay when their ads are click on, not just served.

Reaching 72% of all searches, and only paying when people select your product offering; Two compelling arguments to get in the SEM game.   

Source:

BtoB Daily News Alert: "Study: Google grabs 72% of U.S. Internet searches"