Limiting your focus to high search engine rankings can take away from the bigger picture and your larger goal: clicks that translate into better site exposure, stronger branding and increased business. Top rankings are only one step in effective search engine marketing.
What SEO can draw from PPC Strategies
Historically, search engine optimization (SEO) and pay per click (PPC) were treated as separate entities. This is still often the case. However, search engine marketing (SEM) is evolving into a discipline that bridges organic and paid search strategies and market analysis to truly optimize SEM results. For example, if a PPC program has effective optimization for clicks, then the joint SEO efforts should incorporate some of what is working for PPC, perhaps using some of the PPC AdWord copy or keywords in SEO meta descriptions. We have also found that if measuring your Quality Score for a given keyword can help to guide your on-page optimization efforts or vice versa.
Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) starts on the Search Result Page
High organic rankings will not translate into high conversion rates unless you back up your SEO strategy with content. Gimmicks that only focus on generating search results will not lead to click-through or conversion. You need to support your high search ranking with a browser title and description that demonstrates how your site offers useful content. Then if you do achieve high click-through rates, your site content needs to fulfill the promise you made in your search listing, or you will lose the potential customers you worked so hard to attract to your site. The whole focus is not just on getting clicks, but making sure we’re providing a useful user experience.
Key Points to Keep in Mind
- Don’t focus only on high rankings, but how high rankings can translate into more traffic and better results.
- Integration is key. SEO, Social Media, PPC, CRO, AdWord copy, meta descriptions, website content and analytics all need to be considered in a holistic way to keep up in the ever-evolving SEM world.
- Gimmicks don’t work. Back up your SEO strategy with content; being number one for a term that produces no significant marketing results is not worthwhile.
How Can Zephoria Help?
Zephoria has always provided highly integrated and strategic online marketing services that convert high traffic into better results. If you’d like to discuss how the above topics can impact your business, please contact us.