To place your business in a strong position within the market, you need to create one or more versatile marketing campaigns. The most common and important marketing tactics to know about are search engine optimisation (SEO) and pay-per-click advertising (PPC). Both strategies have the power to generate leads and high conversion rates; however, understanding their differences is crucial to determining which marketing tactic is better suited for your business. But what exactly are SEO and PPC, and why are they considered to be absolutely vital for driving traffic to your business website?
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
SEO stands for search engine optimization, a complicated name, but don’t let that scare you off. It is one of the easiest and most effective marketing strategies out there, and widely considered to be a secret weapon for ensuring online visibility. SEO defines crafting your digital footprint to meet the needs of search engines and ensure your website shows up in search results on Google, Bing or Yahoo. Think of it as a magical map that guides wayfaring internet users to the island that is your business.
It is estimated that there are 190,000 Google searches per second, and approximately 16.4 billion searches per day in 2025. Additionally, the number one organic result on search engines (SERPs) is ten times more likely to receive a click compared to a result ranked in the tenth spot. SERPs show query results chosen by the algorithm, and decide which ones to rank based on the given keywords. Results fluctuate when the algorithm updates, meaning it is important to stay on top of SEO and not fall behind. And now, with AI tools at your disposal, you can enhance your SEO content strategy at a much more efficient rate.
What are the pillars of SEO?
SEO website optimization involves several steps and is split into three primary pillars
- On-Page: The process of optimizing your website with relevant targeted keywords and creating a great user experience. Examples that make up this pillar include page content, images, headers, URLs, internal linking, page speed, and much more.
- Off-Page: Enhances your website’s search engine rankings and authority through outside activities, including Local SEO, backlink networks and social media.
- Technical: Behind-the-scenes work that is designed to help your SEO but has nothing to do with the content itself, such as effective site structure, submitting your sitemap to Google, and indexing.
Advantages of SEO
The benefits of utilizing SEO are numerous, but here are just a few of the main ones:
- Builds organic traffic: By placing keywords strategically across your web pages, you can ensure your content shows up on search engines, thus increasing traffic to your website.
- Little to no cost: SEO, for the most part, is completely free. A win-win, don’t you think?
- Improves trust: Which link are you most likely to trust? The one with the Sponsored tag next to it or the one that doesn’t? Many users generally view non-sponsored links as more credible.
- Ensures long-term growth: Though updating your pages is advisory, SEO can still drive traffic to your pages even if they haven’t been updated in a while.
Disadvantages of SEO
That being said, SEO isn’t without its drawbacks, so be sure to keep the following points in mind when strategizing your SEO tactics.
- Don’t expect immediate results: Search engines may take some time before recognising your pages as authoritative and ranking them at the top of the SERP. The important thing is to stay resolute and patient.
- High competition: The keywords you choose may be very competitive; therefore, it is more difficult to rank for them, especially if you are competing against more established websites.
- Shifting algorithms: The top-ranking website in a SERP may be replaced by a different website tomorrow, depending on factors such as seasonal trends, content quality, technical website performance and backlink authority.
- Time-consuming: SEO must be constantly updated and monitored, making it a rather tedious part of business marketing.
Pay-Per-Click (PPC)
PPC refers to pay-per-click advertising, a model for digital advertising in which web advertisers only pay for an ad when a visitor clicks on it. It is used on several different platforms and is recommended as a high-quality marketing strategy. Global ad spending in the search advertising market will reach approximately $351.55 billion in 2025, and 93% of marketers say pay-per-click (PPC) as a business marketing channel is “effective” or “highly effective” in terms of achieving results.
Keyword research, though time-consuming, is vital for PPC campaigns, and like SEO, must consist of short-tail and long-tail keywords. PPC campaigns must be managed regularly to ensure effective results, and costs vary depending on the platform and your budget. Cost-Per-Click (CPC) is a model that measures the cost to earn a single click from a PPC ad. Review underperforming keywords and switch them off to avoid wasted spend.
Refine your campaign by splitting it into smaller, more relevant ad groups — this improves click-through rates and creates more targeted ad text and landing pages. Use the results-focused model Cost-Per-Action (CPA) to measure the cost after users complete a specific action, such as a purchase or email subscription. Modern PPC platforms use AI to enhance your ad performance, audience targeting and improve your bidding strategy, and like SEO, AI can help you do keyword research, content writing, and much more.
Advantages of PPC
There are many reasons why you should look to PPC marketing as a tactic, but the primary benefits are:
- Targeted reach through keywords, demographics, location and device, now becoming more enhanced thanks to AI.
- Multiple platform options give you flexibility and allow you to expand your advertising strategies.
- Budget control allows you to set cost caps and carry out tests.
- Fast results, as PPC advertising is a quick way of achieving high visibility for your website.
Disadvantages of PPC
- Costly: When it comes to more competitive industries, higher CPCs are to be expected.
- Clicks don’t equal sales: you will need to convince the user to convert when they visit your website, so creating a compelling landing page is key.
- Waste risk: Poor, unplanned targeting or weak pages burn budget.
- Temporary visibility: Once you stop paying for ads, the SERPs will remove them.
Types of PPC Campaigns
There are various types of PPC campaigns available for marketers:
- Search - Appear in the top left or right-hand corner of SERPs and include a clickable title tag, URL and description.
- Display - Similar to search-based campaigns, but includes a visual element such as banners.
- Sponsored Social — Works similarly to search ads, allows you to customize audience reach, and is specific to each platform.
- Video - Available on search engines and social media platforms, featuring a headline, body copy, CTA button, and engaging video content.
- Shopping - Appear in a visual carousel format, showing users products based on their search or shopping intent. Each listing includes the product price, headline, and brand name.
What are the best platforms for PPC Ads?
Some examples of platforms supporting ads include:
- Google - The most popular ad platform with an estimated 98% share of PPC professionals worldwide. It is a search engine strategy for people actively searching for your products or services, and is ideal for capturing search intent and segmenting audiences.
- Bing - Run by Microsoft Advertising on the Bing search engine, they work similarly to Google Ads and even allow you to import campaign content and data from Google Ads to run similar campaigns on Bing.
- Meta - Effective for building interest in visual products, reaching impulse buyers, and targeting people based on hobbies, lifestyle, or behaviours. They can appear across all Meta platforms: Facebook, Instagram, Threads, Messenger, and WhatsApp.
- TikTok - Perfect for tapping into a highly engaged mobile-first audience, has advanced AI-driven targeting.
- LinkedIn - Focuses primarily on lead generation and B2B advertising, it is best for promoting to a more professional audience.
- YouTube - Used for video reach, performs very well for e-commerce advertising as well. Boasting an estimated 2.7 billion monthly users,
YouTube excels at efficient reach and demand creation to target high‑intent audiences from Google search terms, in‑market segments, and specific channels. - X/Twitter - Its micro-blogging format makes it great for promoting live events and other time-sensitive campaigns. X is built for immediacy around moments; ideal for time‑sensitive pushes and social proof.
PPC vs SEO: Which is better?
There are key differences between PPC and SEO, as outlined above, but the basic idea is that PPC involves paid outreach, while SEO define organic outreach. There is no real answer — it depends on many factors, such as what stage your business is at, your marketing goals, and so on.
The primary ways SEO and PPC differ are:
- Speed: Results from PPC are immediate, while SEO aims for long-term results.
- Cost profile: PPC has costs per click, but you can set your budget. While it is free, SEO costs time and resources.
- Durability: PPC stops when spending stops, and SEO keeps working even long after you publish.
- Targeting: PPC targets audiences and queries directly, while SEO targets by optimised content that ranks for queries.
- Maintenance: PPC needs frequent creative and bid tuning. SEO requires consistent content and ongoing technical maintenance.
- Measurement: Both have trackable metrics — PPC shows rapid feedback, and SEO shows trends over time.
How to use both effectively?
You can maximise the benefits of SEO and PPC by combining them. Using a PPC campaign to boost an SEO optimised page is ideal for getting your name out quickly. When you use the same keywords in both your SEO optimised content and in PPC ads, you can reach more people and grow your brand’s visibility. This process will give you access to more concise user data about landing pages and allow you to make more informed decisions. It will also allow better judgments regarding your budget and manage your time better.
FAQ
Is SEO or PPC cheaper?
SEO does not charge per click, but it requires content and technical investment if you want to achieve higher organic visibility, ie. Semrush and other similar SEO monitoring software have subscription tiers. PPC charges per click, depending on your set budget, but provides immediate visibility.
How long does SEO take to work?
In general, expect movement within weeks, meaningful gains in 3 to 6 months, and compounding effects after that.
How long does it take for PPC ads to work?
Effects are usually immediate, sometimes within days, especially with highly optimised ads. Access the Google Keyword planner for the best results.
Should small businesses do both?
Usually yes. Begin with a focused PPC campaign for quick wins while building the SEO foundation for evergreen demand.
Final Thoughts
SEO and PPC are both essential pillars of digital marketing, each offering unique strengths for building credibility and generating leads. The key takeaways are as follows:
- SEO builds long-term, sustainable visibility through organic rankings, delivering compounding returns over time without per-click costs.
- PPC provides immediate, targeted reach with precise audience control and measurable ROI, ideal for quick wins and testing.
- Neither strategy works in isolation. The most effective approach combines both: use PPC for instant visibility and data insights while building your SEO foundation for evergreen growth.
- Success requires consistent effort. Both demand thorough keyword research, optimized landing pages, ongoing monitoring, and strategic adjustments to maximize performance.
Whether you’re a small business just starting out or an established brand, integrating SEO and PPC into a unified strategy will amplify your reach, strengthen your market position, and deliver sustainable results in 2025 and beyond.
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SEO vs PPC: Which one is right for your business in 2025? was originally published in Creative by Black Pug Studio on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
