When you purchase visitors or "clicks" from a search engine,

this is called "pay-per-click" (PPC) search engine

advertising (or PPCSE). Pay-Per-Click Search Engine

Advertising allows you to quickly get top search engine

placement by "bidding" (paying) for keywords related to your

product or service.

"Organic" or "Natural" search engine optimization (SEO) is

accomplished by optimizing your web pages and by increasing

your "link popularity" by acquiring links pointing to your

web site. These "in-bound" links are critical for achieving

high rankings at the Search Engines for your chosen search

terms.

In this article, we will explore the strengths and

weaknesses of both methods of search engine marketing. Plus,

I'll show you the best resources and tools for improving

your search engine rankings for long term success.

"Natural" Search Engine Optimization

Today, there is a big myth that natural search engine

optimization is inexpensive and easy. For example, if you

wanted your web site to rank high for the keyword phrase

"life insurance" or "debt consolidation" you're going to

need to budget a minimum of $50,000-100,000 a year!

Yet still, natural search engine optimization usually gives

you a much higher return on investment than pay per click.

This is true for two main reasons:

1. More searchers click the natural search engine results

versus the pay per click ads, so you'll get much more

traffic for less.

2. One of the biggest factors to improving your rankings

with natural search engine optimization is by boosting your

"Link Popularity" by acquiring or paying for links that

point to your web site. These links give you lasting results

by giving you top rankings and traffic from the search

engines. Plus, the links themselves will provide a

significant boost in long term traffic.

With that said, the biggest weakness of natural search

engine optimization is the time required to generate links

and "tweak" your web pages and keywords to get those prized

high rankings you so desire. For the more competitive

keywords, it can literally take 3 months or more to start

realizing the benefits of your search engine optimization

campaign. For less competitive keywords, you can see the

benefits in just a couple weeks.

Pay Per Click Search Engine Advertising

The biggest benefit of pay per click is the fact that it

will provide you with an immediate boost of qualified

visitors, lead and sales giving you fast results within just

hours or days. In fact, a pay per click advertising program

is your best option if you seek fast results and a good

return on investment while you are waiting for your Search

Engine Optimization (SEO) program to "ramp up."

Depending on your traffic goals, you can budget $100 or

$100,000. PPCSEs also give you the added benefits of being

able to quickly test your web site and track your conversion

rates (leads, opt-ins, and sales) and turning keywords

(visitors) on and off easily.

So, as a short term strategy pay per click gives you the

clear advantage over SEO.  But, the disadvantage is the cost

involved. Depending on the market demand for your keywords

and clicks, your PPCSE campaign can generate tons of traffic

and can cost hundreds, even thousands per day or month. With

various optimization strategies you can lower your costs,

but over the long term natural search engine optimization

will give you a higher return on your marketing dollar.

In Conclusion

The golden rule in marketing is that you should constantly

strive for maximum results and return-on-investment (ROI)

for your budget. In other words, if your marketing is making

you a profit - even if it's a thin profit - it's worth it.

By this model, pay per click is worth doing, but overall pay

per click will leave you with thinner margins.

The reason for conducting a natural search engine

optimization campaign is to significantly increase your

margins over the long term.