The Internet has become a powerful instrument for answering questions and locating essential services. That’s why businesses have begun to leverage search engines for a multitude of marketing purposes. You’ll find several ways to do this, focusing on web results of two kinds: organic and paid.

The former refers to the “organic” results that reflect the content of a person’s search inquiry, whereas the latter involves buying advertisements that appear on the results page. Let’s look at some further examples of these concepts and why both are helpful for businesses.

Organic vs. Paid Search Results

Whenever we discuss organic searches, it revolves around matching the person’s search terms with Google’s algorithms. For businesses who wish to tap into the fountain of organic search results, they should focus on generating whatever Google deems “quality content.” Then, make sure it’s something one’s target audience (customers) would actually type into a search engine.

Paid search advertising focuses almost entirely on buying keywords, through either an SEO or Pay-Per-Click strategy. Here, the company would pay for effective advertisements (matched with relevant keywords) that appear at the top of the results.

If a potential car-buying customer, for example, searched for “used cars in Sarasota,” they would encounter organic results, featuring keywords “used cars” or “Sarasota,” along with paid advertisements. As a business, you can focus on attracting their attention by being one of the first results, the paid ads, or sometimes both.

Advantages to Organic Search for Businesses

• More Cost Effective – Earning organic search results doesn’t cost anything other than the time and effort it takes to produce quality web content.
• Organic Results = More Trustworthy – That’s because most consumers view search results as less “sales-oriented” than paid advertisements. Some users may even block ads with their browser software.
• Infinite Return – As long as you have a website, and it satisfies Google’s algorithms, you’ll enjoy limitless potential. Ads, however, cease to work once you stop paying for them.

Advantages to Paid Search for Businesses

• Faster Results – It takes much longer to develop a website or other online media worthy of organic search results (first page listing). Paid ads allow you to circumvent the long trek toward web viability. As soon as you buy them, they occupy prime real estate on the search engine results page (SERP).
• Proven Effectiveness – How well do paid acts work? Some studies suggest they can boost brand awareness by 80%.
• Easy to Track & Quantify – It’s now so much easier for businesses to gauge whether their ads are performing. Google Analytics, among other diagnostic tools, can help you evaluate different versions of your ads (through A/B testing), and discover which SEO keywords generate the most leads.

Want to Learn More? Partner with DigiSphere Marketing!

You might find some of the terminology or concepts somewhat overwhelming or too time-consuming to manage by yourself. Therefore, if you’d rather get back to running your business, and leave these marketing aspects to a professional, then we’re here to help. Our team executes both organic/paid search strategies for several small, medium, and large businesses.

If you’re ready to conquer the SEO goals for your business, then consider a partnership with DigiSphere Marketing. We specialize in everything from search engine ads and web design to conquest email marketing. Call us anytime to learn more about advanced SEO strategies at 941-803-4141.