Why Does Paid Media And Organic SEO Work So Well Together?

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July 11, 2023

You’ll often come across various posts online tackling subjects like: “Which is better between paid media and organic SEO?” – as if you automatically have to choose one or the other. But, what about implementing both to your broader digital marketing strategy instead?

In this article, we’re going to talk about why paid media and organic SEO work so well together and how you can get the most out of both – rather than having to play favourites!

Why does paid media and SEO work so well together?

For one thing, search engine optimization can take months to establish, whereas paid media grants you (more or less) instant access to new leads.

Of course, it takes time and research to master your PPC and there will be an element of split testing and dialling-in involved, however, the road to ROI is typically much shorter than that of SEO.

In other words, you can focus on your SEO in the background, building up your organic traffic, while using paid media to generate sales in the mean-time.

But that’s not all! Here’s a closer look at the other ways in with both modes of marketing can complement one another:

  • Test new keywords: if you wish to test new keywords using SEO, it can be very time and resource intensive. However, testing keywords with PPC is not only much quicker, but it is often easier as well. If a certain keyword performs well in your PPC, you can then consider adding it as one of your focus keywords for your broader SEO strategies.
  • Retarget organic visitors: getting organic traffic to your website is one thing; ensuring that as many of those visitors convert into business is another thing entirely. And while there are many onsite optimizations you can make to improve the customer experience and up those conversions, it’s also worth using PPC to retarget organic visitors who aren’t quite yet ready to convert.
  • Even more data to work with: both SEO and paid media can provide you with a wealth of valuable data. In collecting data from both marketing modes, you’ll have so much information to cross-reference and thus learn from. How much time are people spending on your website? What are your conversions like? What is your click-through rate?
  • SERP domination: many business owners assume that it should be “one or the other” when targeting keywords for paid media and organic SEO, however, using both in tandem can in fact increase your click-through rates and conversions. While less than 10% of Google users click on sponsored ads, 28.5% click on the organic #1 listing. In other words, when combined, you’ll be looking at almost 40% domination for just one specific keyword. 
  • Boost organic SEO posts: whenever you create an awesome, high-value blog post (which will invariably help to improve your SEO), you can enjoy instant traffic by promoting it using paid media. If this extra exposure leads to more engagement, shares, and organic backlinks, it will effectively super-charge the value of the content and help speed up your organic performance as well.

Conclusion: “The bigger the net, the more fish you’ll catch.”

You really don’t have to choose one or the other when it comes to paid media and SEO. Instead, look for ways to combine the two and maximise your online marketing potential.

As the saying goes: “the bigger the net, the more fish you’ll catch.”

For the best results, we recommend working with a well-established digital marketing agency that offers paid media services on top of traditional SEO.

We hope you’ve found this article insightful and wish you the best of luck with your future online marketing endeavours.