If are serious about your online presence, you must pay attention to your positioning in the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs). Organic searches are likely to bring in the largest volume of new visitors. And it’s also the most likely traffic source to drive a healthy number of conversions.
Unfortunately, you have to be patient with Search Engine Optimization because it takes time to boost traffic.
For more immediate traffic, your best bet is to deploy a PPC (Pay Per Click) campaign, a.k.a. Search Engine Marketing (SEM).
So, to get the most out of your marketing efforts, you need to learn how to combine SEO and SEM. Read this guide throughout — and you’ll own the Google SERPs in no time.
SEO and SEM Must Work Together
No matter how big your marketing budget is or how you spend it, you need to make sure your SEO and SEM strategies work with each other. It’s the right practice, and you should follow it to boost your chances of success.
Now, to understand both sides of this coin, let’s take a moment to explain what SEO is exactly.
Search Engine Optimization is the process of working on your site to make it rank better in organic searches.
So, when people type in queries related to what you do, your website should pop up. In essence, the better and more relevant your content is, the higher you’ll be able to rank.
But on top of it, you have to make sure that your user experience is good, and you also need to build links pointing at your pages. This process may sound simple enough. But it’s a lot of work, even if you’re following all the new SEO trends and strategies.
Furthermore, getting to the top of the organic SERPs takes a long time. It’s not a viable option if you want to quickly promote a product or induce a spike in your sales.
What can you do when you launch a new site and want to draw as many people as possible to it?
Well, that’s what SEM is for. It’ll boost your visibility and get your brand out there, but you’ll have to pay for it.
Let’s see what it’s all about.
How Does SEM Work?
As the two biggest search engines in the world, Google and Bing have developed great advertising platforms. And the way it all works is beautifully simple.
You pick the keywords you want to rank for, choose your demographics, pay the price, and just like that — you’re at the top of the SERPs. However, there are a few tricky things you should be aware of.
Keyword Research
You don’t want to rank for generic terms, as these are expensive.
They do bring a lot of traffic, but you’ll have to compete with all the biggest names in your industry. Meaning you’ll have to pay a lot, and you won’t get that many conversions.
Instead, think of what you’re selling. Come up with enticing keywords that will only get users searching for the exact thing you offer.
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
In addition to thinking about keywords, you also have to set your KPIs to know how successful your campaign is. KPIs are metrics you select up front that will benchmark whether or not you’ve reached your campaign goals and objectives.
So, getting things right with PPC advertising is actually a big job. A very big job. If you’re new to all of it, it would be best to team up with experts, at least until you learn more about the inner workings of PPC.
You can tell them what you need, and they’ll tell you what it takes to get there.
How to Combine SEO and SEM for Vicious Results
Once you audit your technical SEO to make sure your site is well-optimized and set up your SEM campaigns, the results will start rolling in.
However, before you jump into trying to combine SEO and SEM, take a note of what’s happening in your Google Analytics. Learn where most of your traffic is coming from and who your most loyal customers are.
Then, use that knowledge to shape your SEM and SEO tactics. You want to reach people who are the most likely to convert, so focus on your target audience.
Now, if you’re running a new website, you’ll need to focus on PPC at the beginning. Try to take as many insights into your audience as possible in this phase.
Look at which keywords they respond to. Also keep track of the demographics for your biggest buyers.
When you know more about them, you can start adjusting your PPC ad copy to suit them more. Go with the things they like to see, and they’ll visit your site much more often.
Moreover, use these insights to drive your SEO strategy as well. Create content your buyers want to read. When you share something valuable with them, they’ll think of you as an authority in your field.
If you work on your SEO while your paid ads are running, you’ll see plenty of benefits coming from it. Your click-through rates and conversions will grow, while your bounce rate will decrease.
People will know about your brand. If you keep pumping out relevant content, you’ll climb your way up the SERPs.
The Bottom Line
Both SEO and SEM require a full-time dedication if you want them to succeed. However, they’re both vital for your business success. You will need to put effort into shaping them.
Luckily, their goals are the same — driving traffic and increasing conversions. And the more you work on them, the more they’ll deliver to you.
Keep in mind that you should aim for SEO to become your driving force for internet traffic in the long run. But until it kicks in, spend as much time as possible with the best PPC keyword research tools, and work on your SEM efforts. The more people you bring on board early, the easier it will be when SEO starts taking the lead.
Even when you’re in full swing and geting plenty of organic traffic, there’s no reason to avoid PPC. Combine SEO and SEM, and you can maximize your overall traffic as well as conversions from search.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions stated in this post are that of the author, and Return On Now may or may not agree with any or all of the commentary.
Feature Image courtesy of free stock art website Unsplash.com.
John Smalls
Latest posts by John Smalls (see all)
- How to Combine SEO and SEM to Own The Google SERPs - April 12, 2022
- Why You Need a Content Marketing Consultant - October 19, 2021
