SEO (search engine optimization) and contextual advertising are channels for attracting traffic to the site from search engines such as Yandex and Google.
When using both channels, visitors go to the site through a link from the search results. This happens as follows: the user enters a query into the search engine (for example, "buy a TV in Moscow") and gets the result in the form of a list of links to sites. This set of links is called search results. Search results are divided into pages for convenience. As a rule, on the first page of the issue there are 10 links to sites issued by the search itself (the so-called organic issue) and several advertising links (contextual advertising).
Picture 1.
The picture shows the beginning of the search results - advertising + the first 3 organic results. After 10 organic search results, a block of contextual advertising is again located in the search results, as a rule, from 2-5 link ads.
Finding a contextual advertising ad in a certain place in the search results generally depends on the price that the advertiser is willing to pay. The higher the ad is in the search results, the more expensive it is. Contextual ads are shown only when there are funds on the advertiser's account and the advertising campaign is in an activated state. Thus, the main difference between contextual advertising and SEO is real-time controllability (you can turn the campaign on and off at any time), direct dependence on the budget (the larger the budget, the higher the ads take places) and the same return on investment (with other equal conditions) regardless of how long the advertisement is given. That is, as soon as the advertiser's account runs out of funds, advertising is immediately turned off. And if an advertiser invests 30,000 rubles in one and the same advertising campaign in one month and receives 150 orders, then having invested the same 30,000 rubles in the campaign in another month, he will receive approximately the same number of orders.
Figure 2.
It is for this reason that many site owners prefer to give contextual advertising, as it brings instant results, and when ordering SEO, they often refuse the services of a specialist for 2-3 months without seeing the result.
To understand why SEO only pays off in the long run, you need to understand how search engines work.
Search engines actually "download" into their database all the sites that they manage to crawl. This base is called an index, and the process itself is called indexing. The search robot (program) enters the site, goes through all the pages, "downloads" into the index those that it considers necessary. The robot program is not perfect, and therefore sometimes the necessary high-quality pages may not get into the index, or vice versa, low-quality ones may fall into the index.
Indexing in Google PS is on average very fast, about a week, and sometimes almost in real time (depending on the site). In Yandex, indexing can take from 2 weeks to 3 months, on average - 1 month.
It is important to understand that search engines download into the index those copies of the pages that were on the site at the time of indexing itself. That is, if some page of the site is in the index, and after some time the owner of the site has made any changes to the page, then in order for these changes to affect the position of the site in the search results, the page must be re-indexed.
It turns out that there is a huge time gap between any optimization work and their impact on the position of the site. And that is why it is important to carry out all optimization work sequentially, and not randomly, in order to track their final result.
For any user request, search engines present results to him, ranking them based on their assessment. At the very top of the organic search results are the most authoritative, high-quality and useful sites that best respond to the user's query.
It is also important to take into account that the search engines, having indexed the site (even if it is of high quality and useful for users), will not immediately assign it high positions in the search results. For search engines, especially for Yandex, the lifetime of the site is important: the longer it is, the higher the trust in the site.
The above factors are the reason for the long payoff from SEO in terms of results.
After we figured out the difference between SEO and contextual advertising, it is important to mention the factors that affect the success of these channels.
- the more budget the advertiser allocates, the higher the position can be bought for the ad. The higher the position of the ad, the more often users click on the link in it. The ratio of clicks to ad impressions is called CTR. The higher the ad in the search results, the higher the CTR, and the more users will go to the advertiser's website
- the better the text of the ads in the campaign is composed, the more attractive the ads are for users, and the higher the CTR
- the better the quality of the site and the page to which the link in the ad leads, and the better this page responds to the user's request, the better the behavioral factors (users spend more time on the page / site, visit more pages of the site, less often return from the site to the search results ). Search engines are able to read behavioral factors and reduce the cost per click for an ad
The success of SEO (high positions in search results for targeted queries) is influenced by the following factors:
- as mentioned above, the age of the site plays a role in promotion
- correct technical setup of the site: setting up the main mirror, site loading speed, absence of pages with 404 errors and links to such pages, layout correctness, setting up robots.txt and sitemap.xml files, page nesting level and much more
- correct setting of meta tags
- quality content that is useful to the user. Informative texts, good product, bright images, interesting videos. Content is what the user comes for from the search results. Most important point
- text optimization
- quality natural link mass
- commercial factors - prices, legal information, brand awareness
- overall site quality - design, structure, usability
Thus, the success of search engine optimization depends not only on the SEO specialist, but also on the employees from the customer's side - webmasters, site administrators, content managers. It is very important for the site owner to provide the optimizer with quality content and improve the site according to his recommendations. Otherwise, the low quality of the site can negate all the efforts of the optimizer, and this cannot be fixed by a simple "infusion" of funds.
Download checklist for launching a store
Contextual advertising and search engine optimization are often used together to get the most out of online promotion. But in order to understand what is best suited for the tasks of a particular business, not torturing yourself with the questions “Does the agency impose services in order to rip off more money?”, It is better to learn a little about these channels and the difference between them.
Search promotion
- No guarantees. No one can say with 100% certainty that for such and such a keyword, by such and such a date, the site will take such and such a position. If the project is promoted by "gray" methods, then it is impossible to promise stability of the result when the algorithms are changed.
- Long terms. Positive dynamics is visible literally from the first optimization work, but it can take many months and even years spent, perhaps (see paragraph above) in vain waiting to conquer the top of the top. That's what Yandex.Direct is for 🙂
- Website development. For sure, serious intervention in all aspects of the project will be required, and this, again, is money and time.
- Slow rate of change. The issue is always the past: indexed copies of the site pages, positions taken are the result of past actions. It will not work to make urgent adjustments, quickly test options, etc.
Summary: search promotion is focused on the long term, it helps to bring traffic to niches that are difficult to advertise, but it takes a lot of time to get the effect, which can be frightening.
contextual advertising
- The fastest result. This is one of the most significant benefits of contextual advertising. I started working with the campaign - the impressions started. If you need customers yesterday, context is a great solution.
- Correction speed. Changing prices on the site, launching a new promotion, changing the assortment - these issues are resolved in just minutes, so it is easy to keep the information up to date in ads.
- Forecasting. You can more or less accurately calculate how many clicks will be on such and such words with such and such a budget and rates.
- Flexibility. A lot of settings help to accurately hit the target audience.
- Coverage width. This is another answer to the question of why contextual advertising is needed. When setting up campaigns in networks, you can catch those who use a different search engine, because impressions are not only based on the history of requests, but also on the content of the sites. Another opportunity for expansion is advertising on related topics.
In such cases, there are rarely random transitions, but the sitiar drops, which in turn affects the cost per click.
The second case is non-target impressions due to the fact that negative keywords have not been worked out. 
With non-targeted additives, not only sitiar falls, but there are often transitions, due to which the budget goes nowhere.
- Clicking. This used to be a really big problem. Now Yandex.Direct carefully analyzes user behavior and returns money to the account for questionable clicks. But with a strong desire, you can still click on a competitor, and most importantly, the goal will be achieved: he will run out of money at least temporarily.
- Transfer cost. Clicking on some topics can be quite expensive. With low conversions and low margins, this can lead to low returns.
In what cases is it better to choose
When is SEO better?
- with low incomes. If the click is expensive in the context, and the benefit from the transaction is small, advertising may not be profitable. And optimizing the site for search engines, most likely, will be able to provide cheaper traffic;
- with low demand. If most of the key phrases go under the status of "few impressions", there will be little sense. And low-frequency queries in the issuance, as a rule, are easy to promote;
- with perspective orientation. If you plan a long-term business activity on the Internet, search engine optimization of the site is simply necessary to save the budget.
- for limited time offers. Promotions, discounts, events. By the time they appear in the top, they may already be irrelevant 🙂
- if you urgently need customers. You can launch basic campaigns in Yandex.Direct or Google AdWords in just a couple of hours, and work on it later;
- to help create demand. Campaigns in YAN or GMS can be launched using near-thematic keywords, thus attracting the attention of potential customers who have not yet thought about it;
- one-pagers. It can be almost impossible to promote them in organic results for some topics.
In most cases, it is more profitable to use both contextual advertising and SEO site promotion. These channels complement each other perfectly: while site optimization is underway, traffic provides context, and as positions grow, you can gradually reduce the budget.
Many site owners think about what is better search engine optimization or contextual advertising? In what direction is it preferable to direct the budget of the site? In this article, we will try to answer these questions.
Contextual advertising and search engine optimization (SEO) are one of the most popular tools for promoting websites on the Internet. It is worth noting that context and SEO require certain costs, which are not always available to novice webmasters.
Promotion choice: contextual advertising or SEO
Context and SEO have some common features - the results are displayed in search engines and, accordingly, on the profit from the Internet project. These tools are aimed at attracting a motivated target audience to the site.
In addition to similar points, there are also big differences.
Aspect of time
You can, for example, do:
- finalize pages (optimize, add text);
- improve usability;
- change snippets;
But you will not see changes until a month later.
Setting
SEO does not provide such fine tuning. This leads to a higher percentage of non-targeted visits and bounces. But given the fact that you don't pay for each click from the search results, this is not so critical.
Relevance to the query
Contextual advertising management systems make it possible to edit ads and completely change their text. This means that during testing, you can find the most converting variants of the ad text that will best match the user's request.
Conversion
Contextual advertising is a marketing tool with one of the highest conversion rates. This is due to the wide range of customization and targeting options. Search engine optimization, as a rule, cannot boast such a high conversion rate.
Monitoring
An advertising campaign in the context involves constant vigilant monitoring. This is due to the fact that the cost per click and position can constantly change. The fact is that the number of ads for your queries may increase or decrease by competitors, which will change the position of impressions. To optimize costs, you need to regularly intervene in the initial settings of the campaign.
SEO promotion does not require such careful monitoring. However, in the course of search promotion, it is necessary to constantly engage in analytics and monitor changes in search engine algorithms and competitor strategies.
Switching cost
The cost of attracting the target user to the site in contextual advertising is quite stable. If there is a need to increase the number of transitions, then you need to proportionally increase the budget. In addition, you should consider the possibility of increasing the cost per click, which will lift your ads above the competition.
At the first stages of search seo-promotion, the cost may seem quite high. However, over time, this indicator will decrease significantly and will be significantly lower than the cost of attraction through contextual advertising.
effect persistence
When you use up the entire balance on your account, contextual advertising will immediately cease to be displayed. If you stop funding search SEO promotion, then the results will stay in their positions for some time and then gradually begin to decline, as competitors become more active.
What is better contextual advertising or SEO
Advice
It is better to act like this: after launching a commercial project, for a quick effect, you need to use contextual advertising. So, you will be able to attract the target audience to the site in a short time. In parallel with the context, it is necessary to engage in search engine SEO promotion.
In the process, it will be possible to gradually reduce the cost of contextual advertising, but it all depends on each individual case and budget. Sometimes this is not advisable. By reducing the cost of context, you reduce the number of converting users, which means you deprive yourself of additional profit.
Owners of commercial sites often face such a choice. Comparing these two tools is not entirely correct. Both approaches have their pros and cons, both can be effective and fail. They are just designed for different purposes. In the article below, we will analyze in which cases it is better to choose SEO, and in which context.
To bookmarks
Theory
SEO is a set of measures to raise a site in search results. They include analytical work (evaluating the project and its competitors, creating a promotion strategy), developing a sitemap and writing texts, technical actions (correcting errors on the site, adjusting the code according to SEO criteria, improving usability, creating additional functionality), internal and external optimization ( selection of landing pages and meta tags).
So, as part of the promotion, competitors' sites are evaluated and a strategy is developed. After that, text content is created, errors on the site and in the code are corrected, usability is improved and new features are introduced. In parallel with this, work is underway with landing pages, meta tags and link mass.
SEO just serves to ensure that your site goes to the best places.
To set up a campaign, you need to:
Example 1
You have a flower shop. You have organized delivery around the city or established cooperation with partners in other regions, so you decided to set up online sales. To do this, you have created an online store. It does not rank high in search results because no SEO work has been done. There is no traffic, and the influx of buyers coming from the search engine is not expected. But applications are urgently needed, as Valentine's Day and March 8 are just around the corner.
Example 2
You are the owner of a site with training courses. You want more course purchases, preview views, and overall more visitors than there are now. Your target client is a person who decided to get into distance education not spontaneously. Before buying online courses, he will study the offers that the search results will give him. And in this case, it is necessary that your site, with excellent graphics and readable texts, catches his eye among the first.
Solution: SEO promotion
Using this approach, be prepared for the fact that the results will not be visible immediately, but after 3-6 months. Sometimes this period can stretch for a year - it all depends on the state of the site and external factors. But the effect obtained will be fixed for many years and will not require large financial investments from you. It remains only to maintain what has been achieved (this is not difficult).
The examples show well the main differences between the two tools. If you saw yourself in one of these situations, then use the solution provided. This will help you spend your budget wisely. But we also recommend that you study all aspects of these approaches in order to correctly place emphasis in the future.
To increase the flow of visitors to the site is traditionally used search promotion (SEO) and/or contextual advertising.
Business owners, not fully understanding the essence of each of the services, often remain dissatisfied with the work of the contractor because of their own high expectations.
Differences between contextual advertising andSEO
Search Engine Optimization(SEO, SearchEngineOptimization, search engine optimization) is a set of actions with the site to improve its position in the search results (in Belarus and Russia, the most popular search engines are Yandex and Google). It may include the development of a semantic core, writing SEO texts, working with meta tags, link building, etc.
contextual advertising- displaying ads in Yandex and Google search results, as well as on Display Network sites at a selected time, in specified positions and relevant to the business target audience. The service is in high demand among the owners of young sites, as well as for notifying potential customers about promotions and discounts.
|
Evaluation criterion |
Context |
|
|
First results |
Improvement of positions on promoted queries in about 1 - 3 months. |
An increase in site traffic is observed immediately after the launch of the campaign. |
|
Visitor cost |
Fluctuates: depending on the competitiveness of the topic, the frequency of selected queries and the initial level of optimization - both the promoted resource and the sites of competitors in the TOP-10 (5, 3) of the issue. |
Fluctuates: the more competition, the higher the cost per click. |
|
Focus on the target audience |
Medium or high. |
High: with proper targeting, ads will be shown only to interested users. |
|
Campaign Management Control |
Fluctuates: the result of the improvements made is delayed in time and is not immediately noticeable. Because of this (and other factors), it is sometimes difficult to determine exactly which actions caused specific changes in the traffic flow/. |
High: Changes can be made at any time, tracking the effectiveness of each action. |
|
The need to improve the site |
As a rule, you need to refine the software component of the site, rewrite / add texts, work with media content and site usability, etc. |
Rarely. |
What to choose? Understanding with examples
The considered marketing tools complement each other; it often makes sense for commercial and information-commercial resources to invest in both contextual advertising and SEO at the same time. However, if it is necessary to dwell on one thing, a number of examples can be mentioned, when is it better to usecontextual advertising Yandex.Direct or Google.Adwords:
- You need to urgently / within a limited period of time advertise a promotion (sale, special offer).
- You offer a product or service to a narrow target audience (for example, you sell only Mango brand dresses or only Gerda doors).
- You are doing business in an environment with high levels of supply and demand.
- There is a possibility that the site will fall under the “filter” or “ban” (especially relevant for resources such as online sex shops, casinos and some other topics).
Megapolis Media offers you services for creating and running an advertising campaign in Yandex.Direct and/or GoogleAdwords. We guarantee you a professional approach when developing an advertising strategy, launching, analyzing and adjusting a campaign, as well as regular reports and evaluation of the effectiveness of the campaign for the selected reporting period.
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