If you can’t attract visitors to your website, it will be hard to build a sustainable business. There are various traffic channels that can help you find visitors, but you need methods that will be reliable and long-lasting for the time and money you put in. One of the common decisions new businesses go through is whether to invest in paid advertising or try to rank organically with SEO.
Ideally, you will develop both channels, benefiting from a range of traffic sources. In the beginning, though, you may need to choose one option, focusing your attention and budget solely on a single area. So how can beginners work out whether to focus on SEO or paid advertising?
What Is Your Timescale?
The expected time to see results will play an important role in your choice. SEO is not a quick approach to marketing, with months usually required to solidify rankings. You will need to analyze the first page results for your target keywords, but most difficult search terms will have some tricky competition. Conversely, paid traffic is almost instant, letting you reach specific audiences after the ad is approved. Sites like Facebook and Google can offer targeted audiences, leaving your results down to the effectiveness and profitability of your offers.
What Is Your Budget?
Virtually every online marketing method will require some investment. The level of investment, though, can vary considerably. SEO is sometimes seen as a free traffic source, but there are costs for tools, content, and operations. If you can rank, though, the maintenance costs make SEO affordable and often very profitable. Paid advertising doesn’t necessarily require a high spend, but you will need to invest to reach a significant audience. The aim is to generate more revenue than you spend, allowing you to scale up and still profit. There are, however, risks with paying for traffic if your offer doesn’t convert.
Does Your Business Suit Content Marketing?
Some businesses are more naturally suited to the SEO process. If you, for example, work in the self-help and personal development niche, you can get good results from blogging and gradually ranking for many search terms. A general e-commerce store, though, might struggle to develop consistent content, so they can get better results from direct ads. Content is exactly what the search engines want, but not every niche will be able to deliver consistently.
Are You Good at Analyzing Data?
Every form of marketing will require an element of data analysis in order to optimize results. SEO, though, can be performed with less of a focus on this side of marketing. Paid traffic is different, requiring close attention to the data you acquire. An optimized ad and landing page can make the difference between a profitable campaign and a losing one. You need to be willing to adjust different elements, test page variations, and look at the data to see what is working.
There is no easy answer when it comes to SEO and paid advertising. Some businesses will naturally be attracted to the almost instant traffic paid ads can give. Others, however, will prefer to be patient and wait for the search engines to rank their site. Look at your goals and the resources available to you, assessing which option will suit you.
If you aren’t in a rush and are working with a limited budget, SEO will probably suit you best. If you can afford to spend money and gradually adjust your ads until they become profitable, paid advertising offers more immediate results. There are no easy answers when it comes to driving traffic online, but analysis of your goals will offer up the best answer.