If you have an internet business, then one thing that is a must is traffic. You need people to see your offers of products and/or services. There are thousands if not millions of consumers that you can reach on the internet.
At the same time, the internet also poses a quite different challenge. The easy access that the internet provides also gives you as much competition as you can imagine. It is crowded and congested. The noise is high for many business owners trying to get their business noticed.
Just having a website is not enough to make your business successfully able to compete. You must make ways for the people to find your website beyond just putting content up and hoping to get found.
You have to advertise your website. Make it known. Make it visible. It needs to be frequently seen by relevant consumers and surfers who are interested in what you offer.
You must invest in marketing your internet site in one way or another. There are basically two options available to you, SEO and PPC. These are the two main strategies you can use to get traffic for your online business through search engine marketing.
SEO
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. Some research indicates that 60% – 70% of internet users use the Google search engine to find and locate websites and pages, for any topic they are interested in. SEO is the process used to make sure that the internet users will find your website when ranked among the top results of a search. This way you can make sure that you will be visible and can clearly stand out from the rest.
To use search engine optimization, you will have to build a site that has quality and valuable content. This should be content that people find useful enough to want to share with others. This shareable content should result in backlinks to your websites and pages. Google and other search engines see these backlinks as a type of vote that your site is relevant and helpful to end-users. This subsequently means higher search engine rankings and more traffic.
In SEO, there is no need for you to pay for the clicks you get although it will require you to spend time doing research to get a favorable combination of keywords and high-quality content.
The SEO process is a long-term strategy. It can require months, sometimes 6 months or more depending on the competition of the keywords you want to rank for. But once the goal is accomplished and you are ranking for heavily trafficked keywords, you will definitely have a steady source of traffic.
PPC
PPC means Pay Per Click. It gives business owners a way to advertise on search engines. For example, Google's advertising platform is called Adwords.
These are sponsored listings that are shown whenever a search query is made. There will be a charge whenever a searcher clicks on one of your ads. There will first be a bidding process. The highest bidder for the price per click will usually get the chance to be first listed in the search engine.
With this type of advertising, you can basically control your campaign as you get to create your own ad. You will also manage the target audience by keywords searched for and still stay within the constraints of your budget.
Most providers of PPC advertising allow you to specify the target market, either by topic, industry or geographical location, or other demographics. You can also regularly check on the status of if your ad gets shown at all and if it is competitive with the rest.
PPC Benefits
- PPC lets you get traffic to your offers almost right away. It is also relatively easy to set up.
- At first glance, PPC advertising may seem expensive. Could it possibly happen that someone out there will repeatedly click on your ad? If this causes concern, rest assured that there is protection for you. Networks use measures to recognize and minimize click fraud.
- You can also set a budget for a certain period. The moment your budget has been used up by your maximum allowed amount, your ads will no longer be displayed until the next period you want them to resume.
- You will also be able to test your ads and offers quickly based on how well they convert into leads or sales. Knowing this can support your SEO campaigns since they should convert as well or better than PPC traffic.
In deciding which of the two strategies will work right for you, think of your goals and of your resources. There are definitely benefits and advantages that will work with both strategies. The better way to approach these two is to evaluate according to your short-term and long-term plans. The smartest approach is to use both: take the PPC approach as your budget allows for your short-term goals and use SEO for long-term growth and brand building.
Conclusion
The world of search engine marketing is out there for you now. Just make sure you do what will work best for your entrepreneurial endeavors and goals. The secret to success lies in your hands. Just study your options well, take action, and you’ll be in a better position to win in your business.
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