Organic Search vs. PPC
When using a search engine you get two kinds of results on each page. The organic results are in the list of web pages surrounded by the paid advertising results. Usually, the paid results are listed according to how much each advertiser will pay when you click on their product’s link. The more they are willing to pay the closer to the top you will find their ads. Sometimes what they have paid for is what you are already seeing, then it has called a PPM or pay per impression campaign.
I searched for some cheap airline tickets recently. The results I got were almost a textbook version of online advertising techniques. The top 5-7 organic web pages were also the top paid ads. There was a lot of repetition, which shows just how dominant a few companies are in this particular industry.
The question to ask here is why a company that gets the top organic results (which are free) would also spend the money to have their PPC ads on the same page. At first glance, it would seem to be a waste of money. According to Yahoo, clicks for “cheap airline tickets” should cost you over $1.10 each. That is cheaper than a simpler, “cheap tickets” which will cost over $2.15 per click. These prices must be paid whether or not they make a sale when someone clicks-through to their website. By the way, if you think these are high, the prices are really bargain basement compared to some other industries. When I was researching for a CPA client, I found several search terms that cost $8-$10 per click.
The answer has to do with a desire to be market dominant. If all you see are results from a couple of companies the chances are you won’t be doing business with someone else. A second reason is the edge that repetition gives to one company. If you combine a strong advertising campaign in TV, newspapers, magazines and radios with an equally strong Internet focus your common message will tend to dominate. You could probably name the few companies that came up in my search without much trouble if you watch much TV or read magazines regularly.
Another reason to use organic website design is to determine how many visitors it takes for you to make a sale. If you know that it takes 50 visitors to get one sale then you also know what you can afford to pay in PPC charges. High PPC costs do not need to be a deterrent to you using an online marketing plan. The per-item cost of your product and the amount of advertising cost per-item gives you the broad range of what you can afford to find a potential customer.
This is a very simple approach to marketing and ignores that most sales are made after someone visits the website 5-7 times. However, it is a good place to start from to create new demand for your goods and services.
Mile Myklin is an author, lecturer, and e-business owner who specializes in Internet Marketing and Search Engine Optimization.
I searched for some cheap airline tickets recently. The results I got were almost a textbook version of online advertising techniques. The top 5-7 organic web pages were also the top paid ads. There was a lot of repetition, which shows just how dominant a few companies are in this particular industry.
The question to ask here is why a company that gets the top organic results (which are free) would also spend the money to have their PPC ads on the same page. At first glance, it would seem to be a waste of money. According to Yahoo, clicks for “cheap airline tickets” should cost you over $1.10 each. That is cheaper than a simpler, “cheap tickets” which will cost over $2.15 per click. These prices must be paid whether or not they make a sale when someone clicks-through to their website. By the way, if you think these are high, the prices are really bargain basement compared to some other industries. When I was researching for a CPA client, I found several search terms that cost $8-$10 per click.
The answer has to do with a desire to be market dominant. If all you see are results from a couple of companies the chances are you won’t be doing business with someone else. A second reason is the edge that repetition gives to one company. If you combine a strong advertising campaign in TV, newspapers, magazines and radios with an equally strong Internet focus your common message will tend to dominate. You could probably name the few companies that came up in my search without much trouble if you watch much TV or read magazines regularly.
Another reason to use organic website design is to determine how many visitors it takes for you to make a sale. If you know that it takes 50 visitors to get one sale then you also know what you can afford to pay in PPC charges. High PPC costs do not need to be a deterrent to you using an online marketing plan. The per-item cost of your product and the amount of advertising cost per-item gives you the broad range of what you can afford to find a potential customer.
This is a very simple approach to marketing and ignores that most sales are made after someone visits the website 5-7 times. However, it is a good place to start from to create new demand for your goods and services.
Mile Myklin is an author, lecturer, and e-business owner who specializes in Internet Marketing and Search Engine Optimization.
posted by Mike Myklin at 5:55 PM
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