When creating content such as websites and blogs, you naturally want to aim for high rankings in search engines such as Google.
For many sites and blogs, search inflow is the main pattern of attracting customers, and if you aim to be displayed as high as possible when searched with a specific keyword, it will have a large impact on PV and conversion.
There are two ways to attract customers to such sites and blogs: SEO measures and advertising. This time, after explaining the details of each method, we will introduce the differences and the points of proper use.
Two ways to attract customers from Google search
The following two measures are effective in getting many people to see the page with inflow from Google search.
- SEO
- Listing advertisement
I will explain each one in detail.
SEO
SEO is a word that is frequently used as the foundation of the foundations of website/blog management. This is an abbreviation for ” Search Engine Optimization “, and it means making it easier for your site or blog to appear in the search results of search engines such as Google.
As anyone who has searched the Internet knows, the search results will list a large number of sites. The results are constructed from data stored in the search engine’s database, and are basically displayed in order of the sites most relevant to the keyword searched.
When you create a site or blog, it is important to aim for the top display as much as possible if you are aiming for search inflow . Naturally, the lower the ranking of the search results, the lower the probability of being clicked, and the second and subsequent pages are almost never clicked. Therefore, in order to increase search inflow aiming for high-ranking display, it is essential to create content after understanding the mechanism of Google well as an SEO measure.
In the past, when it came to SEO measures, it was considered fair to include as many keywords as possible in the content, but in recent years , high-quality content is more likely to be highly evaluated by Google. They tend to be easier to obtain. The reason for this is that content that is written with only keywords in mind tends to be of low quality and can be a factor in causing troubles and problems. Google’s robot technology is also much better than it used to be, so bad content like that is quickly relegated to the bottom.
Therefore , it is currently considered the basics of SEO measures to produce high-quality content with high usability while being conscious of keywords to some extent. By taking such measures, you can expect to obtain high rankings and increase search inflows.
Listing Advertisement
Listing advertisements are advertisements that are linked to search, and are displayed mainly at the top of search results according to the keywords searched by users .
For example, if you search for “recruitment agent recommendation”, search engines such as Google and Yahoo! will basically display sites that introduce recommended recruitment agents in the search results. Listing ads are displayed at the top of the search results as a frame different from the search ranking.
Listing ads are mainly displayed as “advertisements”, but they are characterized by the content matching the searched keywords and the format being very similar to the search results. Therefore , the advantage of listing ads is that they are easy for many users to see and lead to clicks.
Therefore, if you publish a listing advertisement for the site you created, you will be able to attract customers at the most prominent position in the search results, and you will be able to overwhelmingly increase search inflow.
Unlike normal search results, listing ads can be said to be attractive in that they can promote the site in a special frame, so to speak.
Read Also: What is web analytics (web analytics)?
Difference between SEO and listing ads
The difference between SEO and listing ads is as follows.
Let’s sort out the differences.
Cost
First of all, there is a cost difference between SEO and listing ads. SEO can be done for free or at low cost, and listing advertising is paid and tends to be expensive .
If you aim for a higher display by implementing SEO measures, you will have to pay for staff with knowledge about SEO and SEO consulting, but if you can get a higher display result, then the cost will be low. Also, if you can improve the quality of your content by studying SEO on your own, or improve your internal links, and if you can achieve a high ranking, the cost may be free.
On the other hand, in the case of advertisement publication, there is always a publication fee. It can be said that advertising costs are likely to be high because they are basically required permanently unless operations are stopped. Also, advertising management consulting tends to be more expensive than SEO consulting.
Immediate Effect
There is also a big difference between SEO and advertising in terms of immediate effect.
In the case of SEO, even if you take measures, it will not be immediately reflected in the search results. This is something that Google’s search engine system can’t do anything about, so you need to be aware that it won’t lead to results immediately when you take SEO measures.
Google uses a robot called a crawler to collect and evaluate the data on the pages of the website, and it will be reflected in the ranking of the search results. It often takes several months to complete this series of steps.
On the other hand, listing ads can be displayed at the top as soon as you pay the ad placement cost. Listing ads have a higher immediate effect, so if you want to get results quickly, you should consider advertising rather than SEO.
Ranking
Whether or not you can set the position is also a big difference between SEO and advertising.
SEO results are ultimately reflected in Google’s evaluation, so you can’t decide the search ranking yourself. It’s not uncommon for rankings to change frequently due to competition, timing, and Google updates. No matter how much you ask an excellent consultant to improve the content, there is no guarantee that it will be displayed at the top, so you may not get the results you expected.
On the other hand, in the case of listing ads, it is possible to set the order according to the bid amount. The more you spend, the higher you will be displayed, so it can be said that listing ads are easier to predict the effect .
Target Audience
In SEO and listing advertisements, the target group mainly aimed at changes.
SEO mainly targets people called the latent layer. These are people who are “worried whether to buy” or “are considering using the service but do not understand the details of the service”. It corresponds to the layer with the characteristics of “I’m interested”.
On the other hand, the main target of listing advertisements is people called the actual layer. This is a layer characterized by a high willingness to purchase, such as “I want to buy immediately” and “I want to know recommendations because I want to use it”. The reason why listing ads target the actual layer is that since it is expensive to place ads it is necessary to increase conversions and obtain returns.
It can be said that it is important to understand the differences in target groups and design content according to the measures.
Differentiate between SEO and advertising according to purpose
It is important to decide whether to use SEO or listing advertisement according to the purpose and problem, and use it properly .
If you want immediate effect or want to efficiently attract customers in a short period of time, listing ads can be said to be effective . For example, when you want to attract customers at once according to the campaign period, listing ads are more suitable because SEO takes time and cannot be smoothly attracted.
On the other hand, SEO is considered to be more suitable than listing advertisements when aiming for wide recognition of products and services and increasing the number of customers over a long period of time . If you can improve the quality of your content and maintain high rankings for specific keywords, it will take time, but it will lead to a long-term increase in attracting customers.
Effects of combining SEO and listing ads
I explained how to use SEO and listing ads properly, but you can also use both.
However, there is actually no direct relationship between SEO and listing ads.
Even so, it is clear that if you publish listing ads in conjunction with SEO, the chances of the site you want to be displayed at the top will naturally increase in the eyes of users. Even if you can’t get inflow from listing ads, it will be easier to increase your name recognition, and you can expect it to lead to nominee searches. In addition, there is a possibility that backlinks from SNS and other sites will increase.
Keeping in mind that there may be an indirect impact, let’s consider using SEO and listing ads together.
Summary
There are two ways to aim for higher rankings on search engines such as Google: SEO and listing advertising.
Both should be actively considered in order to achieve efficient customer attraction, but the method you should choose will change depending on your purpose, the issues your company faces, and your budget. Therefore, it is important to first understand the difference between SEO and listing ads, and compare the benefits and risks of each .
No matter which method you choose or use together, knowing how SEO and listing advertising work is essential for attracting customers to your website. Choose a more effective method and aim to attract customers smoothly.