Comparison with Paid Advertising

In this series of articles on search engine optimisation (SEO), we’ve looked at how higher search engine rankings can be very beneficial in providing visitors to a website over the longer term. Another way to get visitors to a site is through paid advertising. In this article we’ll take a look at what paid advertising options are available and how they compare with undertaking the search optimisation process.

Paid Advertising Options
There are several different types of paid advertising available on-line. Some of the most common types include:

• Paid Inclusion (for placement in certain search engines)
• Pay-Per-Click Advertising (e.g. Google Adwords)
• Pay-Per-Click Search Engines (e.g. Overture)
• Banner Ads
• Sponsorships (on other sites, newsletters etc.)
• E-mail Advertising
• Pop-ups (also pop-unders, fly-ins etc.)
• Classified Ads
• Affiliate Marketing

The Role of Paid Advertising
A massive amount of websites are developed around the world everyday but only a small proportion will be found by the average web-surfer. Paid advertising has an important role to play in getting visitors to a website particularly in the shorter term. It is important though to undertake a careful cost benefit analysis of any advertising approach or strategy. While many of these paid advertising options can provide visitors to a site, the actual cost can be relatively expensive. This may not be an issue if your site has a high conversion rate, but for the average site owner, the cost per sale can sometimes be exorbitant.

Paid Advertising Compared To SEO
The beauty of search engine optimisation, if undertaken successfully, is that it provides traffic that is both targeted and also free. Obviously there can be some cost involved in undertaking the SEO initially, but the visitors that come to your site after you achieve higher search rankings, do not directly cost you anything. Also, sites that achieve higher rankings based on good content are more likely to provide long term and consistent returns.

Businesses hoping to develop or expand an on-line presence need to take a holistic approach that encompasses a range of marketing options. However, the basis of any plan should involve the creation of quality content and the implementation of components necessary to be search engine friendly.

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