As is well known, the whole point of SEO is to have your website show up higher on Google searches. However, as strange as it may seem, sometimes search engine optimization can be achieved by something other than SEO.
Where search engines are concerned, we live under a virtual monopoly of one company – Google. While some internet users may, for various reasons, use a different search engine, anyone running a website will prioritize Google searches above any other, simply because the number of users is comfortably the highest.
However, an important distinction must be made between SEOand Google ads. They both have the same goal – to have your website show up higher on searches – but they achieve this in totally different ways. It should also be remembered that they are not mutually exclusive, and you can always use both. Nevertheless, Google Ads are not free, and neither are professional SEO services.
This is a relevant point simply because investing in SEO or Google ads is something that a company might have to choose between. One of the clearest indications that an ecommerce site is growing, for example, is that they begin to outsource SEO or invest in Google Ads. At the point where either of these become options, financial realities might necessitate choosing between the two.
That said, handling SEO yourself is free, and simply learning the rudiments can already take you some way. Where investment is concerned though, you may have to choose.
So,What’s the Difference?
As mentioned, SEO and Google Ads both have the same goal, but they achieve it in different ways. Understanding the distinction is vitalas it could well be the case that one or the other is best for your specific situation. Before you can make that callhowever, you need to know what the differences are.
SEO works by aiming to have your site appear higher on organic searches. The basic principle behind this is that your keywords match the search terms that people who would be interestedin your website would use. When you include the right keywords and internet users search for them, your site can appear on the first page. There is a bit more to it than that, but that’s the basic principle.
Google Ads are related to SEO insofar as they still make use of keywords, but only for inclusion in an ad. You then pay Google for the service of having your ad pop up (above all organic search results) whenever those keywords or phrases are searched for.
This is not free of course, but then neither are professional SEO services. Peak Design, a company specializing in SEO and web designer services out of Sacramento,advise that a solid SEO campaign can continue to return results for as long as those terms are being searched for. Google Ads is more of a one off investment that will have your ad pop up for a defined period of time.
Complimentary Roles
As mentioned, you can of course use both. Moreover, this can end up being a pretty good idea when the two investments can be made to mutually benefit each other. If you don’t have the site resources and reputation for effective SEO, Google Ads is a way to pay todisplay your marketing material to the group who search for those keywords. That ultimately makes your SEO more effective.
So, we might then conclude that you can use Google Ads when your site isn’t developed enough for effective SEO. Thereafter you can turn to SEO to optimize your site on organic searches. That said though, you can always just use both.