PPC Vs SEO

Most search engine positions are NOT for sale. About 60% of the top search engines' screen real estate is devoted to non-paid, "organic" listings - which means 60% of your search engine visibility depends on SEO, not PPC or other paid placement. On average, about 70% of clicks from search engines come from SEO, and SEO clicks convert at about a 25% higher rate than PPC clicks (BusinessWeek, 5/06).

PPC campaigns usually require nearly as much labor to set up as SEO requires, in addition to the click charges you pay after set up is complete. PPC requires ongoing management, whereas SEO, when done right, is done once and performs superbly in perpetuity. PPC prices are constantly increasing, often beyond positive ROI for your most important phrases, while SEO listings are free. (Note that in 7/06 average PPC click costs finally showed a downward trend, presumably because more firms are managing their campaigns more wisely.) Finally, PPC is increasingly beset by varieties of "click fraud."

PPC is the second most cost-effective form of web marketing, after SEO. Therefore, your first priority is to ensure that your site has optimum inclusion and rank within the non-paid, "organic" or "editorial" parts of Google, Yahoo, MSN, AOLsearch, and the other top search engines. Your second priority is PPC.