Technically Speaking

Paid search and organic search engine optimization (SEO) are powerful tools that, when implemented together and properly, will help grow your business. To all of my clients who have ever asked “How do I get to the top of Google?”, followed by a lengthy story about how your competitor is at the top somehow but they really shouldn’t be because their business isn’t as good as yours. Listen, I hear you! And nine times out of ten, I already know that you’re better than your competitor and I want to help you grow your business…that’s why I’m sitting there talking to you!

It’s important to remember that you can’t control what your competitor is doing online. But you CAN control your business assets, reputation, owned and operated media, and business strategy. How your website performs in search is in your control more than you think, so today we’re going to fly over the answers to the burning question and help you differentiate between two types of search campaigns that will help boost your site in search.

Paid Search

It’s the fastest way to buy your way to the top of search. A Google Ads (formally Google Adwords) or Microsoft Advertising  (formally Bing Ads) campaign makes people feel good about spending those advertising dollars. You select the keywords, you write the ads, you pay the money, you see your site served at the top of the results. You can feel it, see it, and you only have to actually pay for it if somebody clicks on it. These paid ads appear in the search results just like the other results, and they’re at the very top with the word “ad” next to them. This short-term solution to a long-term problem is great for businesses that have a lot of churning inventory, very specific keywords, or a digital strategy and budgeting practices that will allow you to determine what an appropriate investment is for each click you receive.

Organic Search (Often called Search Engine Optimization or SEO)

A major aspect of this type of search optimization can be built right in to your website and often times, and you don’t even have to pay extra for it. If you’re partnered with the right agency, the technical aspects of your SEO will be built right in to your website. Page speed, optimized images, proper sitemap, Google Search Console submission, content and keywords and several other factors are critical to where you appear in search. So, start there before you go out and begin paying for things that you may not be ready for or even need yet. Start at the most basic level which is your technical/on-page SEO.

There is no point in paying to drive traffic to a website that the search engines aren’t indexing properly, so ask the hard questions of your web partner. Make sure your site is set up to invite traffic by having a strong foundation and building blocks. After that, there are paid ways to optimize yourself in search, but we can chat about that after your technical SEO is stable and correct! We don’t expect you to be an expert, but it’s important to know that there’s a difference and that your overall web strategy will be the determining factor about which type of campaign can bolster you to that coveted first page position of the search results.

For a little more information on the Google Search Console, click here! Or… if you need help or would like to chat through some of your ideas, you know where to find me!