Search ads FAQ: can search ads and SEO work together?
Yes. End of post.
Just kidding, but honestly, search advertising and SEO can be a powerful combo when you want to boost your website’s discoverability.
Today's post in my series on the most popular questions I get asked about search advertising, I'll cover three of the top ways that SEO and search advertising can work together to supercharge your search marketing strategy.
Fill discoverability gaps
SEO takes time. That’s just a fact. It's a long-term investment in the competitiveness of your website in a digital-first world. But what if you don't have time to wait? What if you need to get your business in front of potential customers now?
Enter search ads. By bidding on the right search terms, you can get instant visibility from your ads and let your SEO is work away in the background to move your site up Google’s rankings in time.
I hear you ask: do people actually click on search ads? 62% of searchers do according to Search Engine Land's research. If your ad is relevant to the searcher and shows that your product will solve a pain point or achieve their goal, you can drive people to your website to find what they are looking for.
Search ads and SEO can be a powerful combination when you want to boost your website’s discoverability.
Identify keywords trends
What terms are people using to find your website? Which ones are more likely to generate more clicks? The reports generated from search advertising can tell you.
Use them to find information on which terms are popular with your customers and enjoy a higher click-through rate. This can then be given to the SEO team to help guide their keyword optimisation efforts.
Reports from search ads can also unearth long-tail search queries that don't have enough search volume to justify bidding on them, but they are prime candidates for blog posts. For example, if you're a fashion brand you may not want to bid on: "trends for faux leather autumn jackets 2020" but the SEO team can work it into a blog.
Sadly, Google has recently taken away some of the data available to advertisers, but there’s still enough information there to help your SEO efforts.
See the bigger picture!
You can never have too much data! Monitoring SEO and search ads trends side by side can help to inform your marketing strategy. The insights gained will help you identify the impact of seasonality, consumer trends, when to promote different products, and consumers' purchase journey.
Get in touch for a chat if you're keen to find out more about search advertising or SEO; the first consultation is free!