SEO or Google Ads: Which is the best choice for you?

Although they are both displayed on Google search results, there are still differences between SEO and Google Ads, completely different ways of working. So should choose SEO or Google Ads: Which form of promotion is better? Below are the shares of Viet SEO on this issue.

Before deciding to choose one of these two forms of advertising on Google, you should master some of the following concepts.

Benefits of SEO

1. Low cost for online marketing campaigns

   SEO is one of the most cost-effective digital marketing strategies compared to other forms of advertising like paid ads on Google or social media. Once optimized, your website can attract organic traffic without requiring high maintenance costs, helping businesses save on their budgets.

2. Reaching the right target audience

   When your website is optimized for SEO, its content appears when users search for relevant keywords. This means you're reaching precisely those customers who need your products or services, increasing the likelihood of conversions.

3. Access to a large number of users

   With billions of searches conducted on Google daily, SEO allows your website to quickly reach millions of users worldwide. This is an effective way to expand your market and grow your brand.

4. Building customer trust

   Most users trust organic search results on Google more than paid advertisements. When your website ranks at the top of search results, customers feel confident and are more likely to choose you over competitors.

5. Not suitable for seasonal advertising campaigns

   While SEO offers long-term benefits, it is not the best choice for campaigns requiring immediate results, such as seasonal promotions. Keywords usually take about 1-3 months to rank on search results and may take up to 6 months, depending on the competition.

SEO not only helps businesses save costs but also builds a sustainable brand foundation, ensuring long-term growth in the online environment.

Benefits of Google Ads

1. Quick Results

   Google Ads provides immediate visibility for your business. Once your ad campaign is live, your website can appear at the top of Google search results, allowing you to attract traffic and potential customers instantly.

2. Targeted Advertising

   Google Ads enables precise audience targeting. You can define your audience based on location, demographics, interests, and search intent. This ensures that your ads are shown to the right people at the right time.

3. Flexible Budget Options

   With Google Ads, you have complete control over your budget. You can set daily or monthly spending limits and adjust them as needed. You only pay when users click on your ads (Pay-Per-Click), making it a cost-effective solution for businesses of all sizes.

4. Measurable Performance

   Google Ads provides detailed analytics and reporting tools to track the performance of your campaigns. You can monitor clicks, impressions, conversions, and return on investment (ROI) in real-time, allowing you to refine your strategy for better results.

5. Reaching a Wide Audience

   As the most popular search engine, Google handles billions of searches daily. With Google Ads, your business can reach a massive audience across the globe, increasing brand visibility and awareness.

6. Remarketing Capabilities

   Google Ads allows you to retarget users who have previously visited your website but didn’t convert. This feature helps you re-engage potential customers, improving the chances of conversion.

7. Versatile Ad Formats

   Google Ads supports various ad formats, including search ads, display ads, video ads, and shopping ads. This versatility allows businesses to tailor their campaigns based on their goals, such as increasing traffic, generating leads, or boosting sales.

8. Suitable for Seasonal Promotions

   Google Ads is ideal for short-term campaigns like holiday promotions or product launches. You can create time-sensitive ads that quickly generate traffic and conversions during critical periods.

Google Ads is a powerful tool for businesses looking to drive traffic, generate leads, and increase sales in a short time. Its flexibility, precise targeting, and measurable outcomes make it a valuable component of any digital marketing strategy.

Comparison between SEO and Google Ads

1. Appearance

For websites running Adwords will be displayed in the first 4 positions and the last 3 positions of the search results page on Google. Below these 4 positions are 10 positions of websites doing SEO. You can also easily identify websites running ads with symbols like Qc or Ad.

With this display, the website running ads will reach the number of potential customers.

2. Time shows up on Google

The peculiarity of Adwords no matter what your website is like, once you pay, it will appear right on Google. Ads will be displayed quickly, but if you run out of money, your website will not be displayed immediately.

As for SEO, it is different, you need to push keywords to the Top, including content such as:

• Good user experience
• Highly rated by Google
• Visibility on standard mobile devices
• Completely quality content, do not copy
• Regularly update new article content, optimize old articles
• Get targeted by many sites and link to.

Doing SEO needs to follow a process of at least 3-6 months for the website to be on the Top. When stopping or not doing SEO anymore, the website will not be lost immediately, but it may gradually drop to the Top if a stronger competitor pushes you down. However, if you do good SEO, your website can still maintain and stand at the top even if you stop SEO.

3. About the cost issue

For Adwords will stop showing if the account runs out of money and the cost is calculated per click on the ad. If the user clicks on the website, you will be deducted 1 fee.

For SEO, the opposite is true, the number of keywords is the criterion to charge. If the keyword is on the Top, you need to pay the SEO person, the more clicks, the more profitable you are. At this point, your website will be rated well, which means more people to contact to buy.

4. Level of risk

For SEO and Ads both contain certain risks. For Adwords, if the advertiser does not control all the links of the website, it will cost a lot.

As for SEO, the risk is for investors that you can't get a number of customers immediately, but have to wait about 3-6 months to optimize the website and maybe that keyword has not been to the top.

Should you choose SEO or Google Ads? Should both be used?

You do not need to make a choice to use only SEO or Adwords, you can carefully read the information that Mona shares below to be able to flexibly combine the two.

SEO is a job that needs to be long-term and continuous and is used in the long-term strategies of businesses.

Therefore, if businesses need to deploy some promotion urgently, they need to skillfully combine Adwords ads for short-term strategies. But if the budget of the business is limited and forced to choose, it should be based on the current strategic goals and make a decision.

There are many opinions that, if you get traffic from SEO, you don't need to use AdWords ads anymore. This is a wrong view, even if you are keeping the Top well, you also need to add Adwords to reach more customers for the same keyword.

You can completely measure the effectiveness of your Adwords campaigns, if it is profitable, you need to increase the budget for a higher campaign. What you need to do here is to follow Adwords closely to see the effectiveness and increase/decrease in costs.

SEO vs. Google Ads: Which Should Be Used for a New Website?

This is a common question among website owners, especially those just starting to establish their online presence. Many believe that since a new website lacks maturity and credibility in Google's eyes, it is better to focus on Google Ads (AdWords) initially. They often delay SEO efforts, assuming it won't bring much value until the site gains some traction—typically after three months. While this approach has its merits, there are critical factors to consider that could impact the website's long-term success.

1. The Problem with Ignoring SEO for New Websites

After designing a website, many businesses delay investing in SEO. This can lead to several issues:

• Non-SEO-Friendly Design: New websites are often not built with SEO best practices in mind, such as proper URL structures, fast loading speeds, or mobile responsiveness.
• Low-Quality Content: Without an initial focus on SEO, the website's content may lack keyword optimization and fail to meet the standards required to rank well on Google.
• Google's Initial Evaluation: When a website isn't optimized from the start, Google may undervalue it. This can create long-term challenges in improving rankings.

If SEO efforts are initiated months after the website launch, a significant amount of work is often required to fix existing issues, optimize content, and rebuild Google’s perception of the site. This process can delay the desired results, making it more time-consuming and costly to rank on search engines.

2. Why SEO Should Be Started Immediately

For new websites, starting SEO efforts from the beginning offers several benefits:

• Optimized Foundation: By focusing on SEO during the development phase, you ensure the website is structured correctly, making it easier for search engines to crawl and index.
• Quality Content Creation: SEO helps guide the creation of high-quality, optimized content that meets user intent and ranks better over time.
• Faster Keyword Rankings: When SEO is implemented early, keywords can start gaining traction much sooner, reducing the waiting period for organic traffic.

3. The Role of Google Ads in the Early Stages

While SEO is essential for long-term growth, Google Ads can play a complementary role for new websites:

• Immediate Visibility: Google Ads allows the website to appear at the top of search results almost instantly, driving traffic and generating leads from the start.
• Keyword Testing: Ads can help identify high-performing keywords that can later be incorporated into your SEO strategy.
• Brand Awareness: Running ads helps increase visibility and awareness of your brand while waiting for SEO efforts to show results.

4. The Ideal Strategy for New Websites

Instead of choosing between SEO and Google Ads, new websites should aim for a balanced approach:

• Invest in Basic SEO Early: Focus on setting up an SEO-friendly website structure, optimizing content, and targeting a small set of priority keywords. This creates a strong foundation and avoids the need to correct mistakes later.
• Run Google Ads Simultaneously: Use Google Ads to drive initial traffic and generate leads while your SEO efforts gain momentum. Ads can also provide valuable insights into audience behavior and keyword performance.

By combining both strategies, you can achieve short-term results with Google Ads and build a sustainable online presence with SEO.

For new websites, the debate between SEO and Google Ads is not about choosing one over the other but about using both effectively. Starting with SEO ensures that your website is well-optimized from the beginning, reducing the need for corrections later. At the same time, running Google Ads can help generate immediate traffic and establish a presence in your target market. A well-planned approach combining SEO and Google Ads will maximize your website’s growth potential and ensure long-term success.

How to Achieve Effectiveness from SEO and Google Ads

Many businesses invest in SEO and Google Ads to drive traffic to their websites but often fail to maximize their effectiveness due to common mistakes. These errors, such as using the homepage link for Google Ads campaigns or selecting overly generic keywords for SEO, can significantly reduce the return on investment. To truly benefit from these tools, businesses must adopt a strategic approach that goes beyond generating clicks and visits.

1. Avoiding Common Mistakes

One of the most frequent errors in Google Ads campaigns is directing all traffic to the homepage. While the homepage may provide an overview of your business, it often lacks the specific information users are looking for. Instead, ads should lead users to dedicated landing pages tailored to their search intent. For example, if your ad is about a specific product or service, ensure the landing page provides detailed information, pricing, and a clear call-to-action (CTA).

For SEO, choosing overly generic keywords might drive traffic, but it is often low-quality traffic. Generic keywords, like "clothing" or "SEO services," are highly competitive and lack intent specificity. Instead, focus on long-tail keywords that reflect what your target audience is actively searching for, such as "affordable summer dresses for women" or "SEO services for small businesses."

2. Understanding User Behavior

It’s important to recognize that not every user who visits your website through SEO or Google Ads will immediately convert into a customer. Users might be in different stages of the buying journey, such as awareness, consideration, or decision-making. A well-thought-out marketing strategy should address all these stages:

• Awareness Stage: Provide informative and engaging content to educate users about your brand, products, or services.
• Consideration Stage: Offer detailed product/service pages, comparisons, and customer testimonials to build trust and credibility.
• Decision Stage: Include strong CTAs, promotions, or free trials to encourage users to take action.

3. Optimizing the Conversion Funnel

Driving traffic is just the first step. What happens after users arrive on your site determines whether they convert into customers. To maximize conversions:

• Ensure fast website loading speed: A slow website can drive users away, increasing bounce rates and reducing conversion chances.
• Create user-friendly navigation: Make it easy for users to find the information they need with clear menus and a logical site structure.
• Design compelling CTAs: Use actionable language, such as "Buy Now," "Get a Free Quote," or "Sign Up Today," to guide users toward the desired action.
• Mobile optimization: With a significant portion of users browsing on mobile devices, ensure your website is responsive and offers a seamless experience across all devices.

4. Using Data to Refine Strategies

SEO and Google Ads offer valuable data insights. Use tools like Google Analytics to monitor user behavior, identify high-performing keywords, and track conversions. For Google Ads, regularly analyze metrics like click-through rates (CTR), cost-per-click (CPC), and conversion rates to refine your campaigns. For SEO, keep an eye on organic traffic, keyword rankings, and backlinks to identify areas for improvement.

5. Aligning SEO and Google Ads with a Broader Marketing Strategy

SEO and Google Ads are most effective when integrated into a comprehensive marketing strategy. Combine them with other channels like email marketing, social media, and content marketing to create a cohesive customer journey. For example:

• Use SEO to build a foundation of organic traffic and long-term visibility.
• Supplement SEO with Google Ads for immediate results and targeted promotions.
• Retarget visitors who didn't convert using remarketing campaigns on Google Ads or personalized emails.

By aligning these efforts, you can create a seamless experience that nurtures leads and encourages conversions.

Conclusion

Generating traffic through SEO and Google Ads is just the beginning. To achieve real effectiveness, businesses must focus on avoiding common mistakes, understanding user behavior, optimizing their conversion funnel, using data-driven insights, and integrating these tools into a broader marketing strategy. When executed correctly, SEO and Google Ads can become powerful engines for driving growth and maximizing return on investment.