In the digital marketing world, we love three letter acronyms. SEO, SEM, PPC, ROI, KPI, you name it, we’ve got an acronym for it. And some of these acronyms can usually be found in pairs; such is the case with SEO and PPC. SEO stands for search engine optimization, while PPC stands for pay per click.
At Snap, we’ve been exploring the field of SEO and PPC for years. Our team spends countless hours researching new digital trends and market data to ensure that our digital SEO and PPC offerings are the best of the best for our Minneapolis clients and beyond. From Boston to California, and every state in between, we take pride in helping businesses be seen through organic marketing and paid ads. But just what exactly is SEO and PPC, and how do the two work together?
What is SEO
SEO, search engine optimization, is the process of optimizing your entire digital presence to better appeal to search engines and visitors alike. By adding features to your website that search engines “like”, we’re able to help your business rank higher and more reliably for keywords that are pertinent to the services or products offered by your business.
By using these SEO techniques to improve your website, we can help improve your website’s ranking, which in turn will result in increased website visits, conversions, and sales. From local businesses to international corporations, we have tested methods that are sure to make your business improve within search rankings.
From obvious assets like blogs or new landing pages to more behind the scenes modifications like link building or meta description editing, SEO services are meant to modify every aspect of your online presence to put you in front of the people you want to target the most. B2B, B2C, or eCommerce, it makes no difference. SEO services can take your website from obscure to outstanding.
What is PPC
PPC is the process of acquiring ad space that puts your company in front of potential customers at the right moment in their search cycle to expand your online reach. Within the realm of PPC, we utilize text, display, and video advertising in a space where expense is accrued on a per click or impression basis. In today’s digital-first age, creating an AdWords account is not enough to get in front of your most valuable customers. You need a PPC manager to optimize your ad spending to ensure that you’re only putting money into pursuits that result in conversions.
The end goal of all PPC pursuits is to put your goods or services in front of the most qualified web traffic. With keyword research, ad creative testing, bid management, optimization, and constant testing, PPC managers are able to make sure that your goods or services are only being put in front of those who have already entered the conversion funnel or who are looking to begin their buyer’s journey.
How SEO and PPC Work Together
There are many similarities between SEO and PPC, yet the two often work in parallel to one another, providing the perfect balance to the other’s needs. Here are just a few of the ways that SEO and PPC can work together to strengthen your brand and your digital performance.
Keywords 
For SEO, specialists will focus on long tail keywords that are more relevant to your brand then popular short tail keywords. These long tail keywords are typically easier to rank for but have a higher intent value. Alternatively, PPC specialists will primarily focus on highly desirable short tail keywords. With dedicated ad spend, PPC can be used to help your business to rank for some of the most desirable short tail keywords in your industry. Between SEO and PPC, you’ll have all of your bases covered when it comes to keyword strategy. Below is an example of an SEO keyword strategy vs. an PPC keyword strategy.
SEO Keywords: Minneapolis digital advertising agency, SEO services in Minneapolis, Minneapolis digital marketing services
PPC Keywords: SEO Agency, Full Service SEO Agency, SEO Services
ROI
One of the greatest benefits of SEO and PPC services are their very easily identifiable ROI rates. With both pursuits culminating in measurable results, all you need is the right equation and data set to precisely calculate your ROI for either SEO or PPC. Between SEO and PPC, you’ll be able to plainly see where all of your advertising dollars are going. While ROI may be calculated in a multitude of ways, here’s the simplest equation we use to find SEO and PPC ROI for our clients.
Revenue – Expenses / Expenses = ROI %
E.g. $100,000 revenue – $24,000 expenses / $24,000 expense = 316% ROI
For every $1 Snap receives, we provide back $3.16
Traffic
There are two ways to get traffic online; you can either earn it, or you can buy it. With SEO, your aim is to craft original content that users will find via organic search results. And with PPC, you create ads that will appear in front of users at the most opportune time, leading to a click. Both forms of marketing are executed with the end goal being traffic to your site. The two make the perfect pair by covering both primary sources of potential traffic for your website.
Bringing Together SEO and PPC
SEO and PPC are sort of like the tortoise and the hare. With PPC being the fast, straight line route to results while SEO is more of a gradual progression that will sustain your business in the long run. Finding the perfect balance between SEO and PPC can be hard. Put too much effort into one and the other suffers. Lucky for you, we have some seriously awesome PPC and SEO experts on our team that will be more than willing to help you find your way in the world of digital marketing. Whether you’re just launching a startup or want to reinvigorate your established brand, our SEO and PPC experts can help you to reach new audiences and surpass your own expectations for success in the digital world.