Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Pay-Per-Click (PPC) or Paid Media advertising are essential tools for businesses to increase online visibility, attract and engage target audiences, and ultimately drive conversions. When combined effectively, SEO and PPC marketing create a multiplier effect, amplifying their impact while delivering improved performance metrics. Let’s explore how SEO and PPC work together, their benefits, and strategies to integrate them for optimal performance.
(Head over to this article to see how SEO and Content Marketing are also a Multiplier Marketing match.)
With SEO spending projected to increase 3x in 2025 alone due to AI integration with search engines, and B2B ad spend growth forecasted to reach 48% in 2026, compared to 45.6% this year, forward-thinking brands are ramping up efforts to get the most out of their SEO and PPC strategies.
SEO – A Brief Overvie
SEO involves optimizing a website’s content, structure, and technical elements to improve its ranking on search engine results pages (SERPs). By targeting high-performing keywords and providing valuable, user-friendly content, businesses can attract organic traffic, enhance user engagement, and build a lasting online presence.
Key elements of SEO include:
- Keyword Optimization: Researching and integrating relevant terms target users commonly search for.
- On-Page SEO: Enhancing web pages with meta tags and meta data, headings, and quality content. Learn more about the benefits of On Page SEO practices.
- Technical SEO: Addressing website issues such as duplicate content and broken links, usability, and indexability.
- Off-Page SEO: Building backlinks to boost domain authority.
SEO is a long-term strategy that delivers sustainable results, making it a cornerstone of effective digital marketing. Dive deeper into modern SEO techniques in this article on holistic white hat SEO.
PPC Advertising – A Brief Overview
With PPC (Pay per click) / Paid media advertising, businesses place ads on search engines, social media, and other platforms. PPC campaigns are highly targeted and offer instant visibility, making them a valuable complement to SEO. Below are a few of Google’s advertising platforms.
Each one can benefit from insights generated from SEO performance data. We’ll dig into the details in the next section. For now, let’s focus on the platforms themselves:
Google Paid Search
Google Ads’ Paid Search campaigns display text ads at the top of SERPs when users search for relevant keywords. By using effective bidding strategies and compelling ad copy, businesses can target users actively seeking their products or services.
Google Display
Google Display Network (GDN) enables businesses to run image and video ads across millions of websites and apps. This form of paid media is ideal for building brand awareness and engaging audiences at the top of the sales funnel.
Google Video
Google Video Ads display engaging video content across YouTube and Google’s Display Network. These ads can target specific audiences based on demographics, interests, and behavior, enhancing brand awareness and driving conversions.
How SEO and PPC Work Together
Using SEO to Enhance PPC Efforts
There are many examples of how SEO and PPC work together. Here are a few of the most common enhancements:
- SEO research uncovers high-performing keywords, enabling PPC campaigns to focus on terms with proven relevance and search volume.
- SEO insights also identify gaps in content, allowing businesses to refine ad copy and landing pages.
- Pages optimized for SEO can provide a better user experience, which is a factor in boosting Ad Quality Scores.
Using PPC to Enhance SEO Efforts
PPC campaigns generate immediate user behavior data, providing insights into high-performing keywords, user intent, and audience demographics. This data informs SEO and PPC program optimizations, ensuring both strategies align with business goals.
Like a key master and a gate keeper, new insights and benefits are unlocked when SEO and PPC join forces.
Below are a few common ways marketers can get SEO and PPC strategies working together.
Develop a United Keyword Strategy
- Both SEO and PPC services rely on strategic keyword selection. Developing a unified approach ensures your efforts complement rather than compete.
Identify Top SEO Keywords for PPC Bidding
- Search volume, trends, and geographies reporting in GA4 and Google Search Console (GSC) provide valuable insights. Marketers can then bid on keywords with high search volume and long-tail keywords that have lower search volume but higher purchase intent.
Use Data to Enhance Your PPC and SEO Strategies
- Combining data from SEO tools (like Google Search Console) and PPC platforms (like Google Ads) provides a holistic view of performance. This integration highlights opportunities to refine your campaigns and improve targeting.
Consider these approaches on how SEO and PPC can work together in unison.
Benefits of PPC and SEO Working Together
So far, we’ve reviewed how SEO and PPC work together, now let’s explore the advantages of unified SEO and PPC strategies.
Improved Visibility in SERPs
- Combining PPC and SEO ensures businesses occupy both organic and paid listings on SERPs, doubling their chances of attracting clicks and improving visibility.
- This allows you to take up more “SERP real estate” and offer more information as the message in the organic listing and paid listing can be different and complimentary.
Improved Brand Awareness
- While SEO builds credibility over time, PPC creates immediate and scalable brand exposure. Together, they ensure consistent audience engagement across channels. Emerging businesses can leverage PPC to jumpstart awareness while they execute their SEO strategy and while Google indexes their website pages.
Improved (More Consistent) Brand Experience for Users
- Integrated SEO and PPC management creates a seamless user journey, from the initial search to the conversion stage. Consistent messaging across ads and organic content reinforces brand identity.
Improved Conversion Rates
- Optimized landing pages tailored for both organic and paid traffic deliver a user-focused experience where the content on the page can match search keyword intent, boosting conversion rates.
Enhanced User Behavior Data
- Combining data from PPC campaigns and SEO tools like Google Analytics (GA4) provides a deeper understanding of audience behavior, helping refine strategies for better performance.
Improved Budget Management
- Insights from PPC and SEO working together help allocate budgets more effectively, focusing on campaigns and keywords that yield the highest ROI.
- If you are struggling to rank for certain keywords organically, you can use Paid Search to ensure you are being seen when a user or potential customer queries those keywords until your organic ranking improves.
How to Measure PPC and SEO Performance Data
To effectively integrate SEO and PPC marketing, it’s critical to analyze performance data:
- Keywords with high CTR on Paid Search are typically great candidates for creating more SEO-optimized content.
- Low conversion rates on paid landing pages might indicate that the copy needs to be SEO optimized for the keyword that drives traffic to the page
- Paid keywords that convert well could be adopted throughout both messaging and SEO content.
- Paid keywords that have a high CPC — representing good conversion potential — might need to only be used in organic search efforts, depending on your budget.
- Low-intent keywords that do not convert well on Paid should have a content cluster SEO strategy in a “learning” center or similar, in order to build SEO equity around these keywords.
- High search volume organic keywords typically represent more traffic potential and can be used in Paid Search or as audience indicators on Paid Social to help scale your site traffic.
This data can be readily found in Google Analytics (GA4). Get deeper insights into Google Analytics for SEO and PPC.
Leverage Technical SEO to Optimize and Support PPC
Technical SEO ensures your website is fast, secure, and mobile-friendly — key factors in enhancing user experience. A technically optimized site supports PPC campaigns by improving landing page load times (keeping users from bouncing), boosts paid keyword quality scores, reducing bounce rates, and driving conversions.
SEO & PPC Working Together Summary
Integrating SEO and PPC strategies is not just beneficial — it’s essential for achieving comprehensive digital marketing success. By leveraging the strengths of each, businesses can:
- Boost online visibility
- Enhance brand awareness and consistency
- Improve conversion rates
- Optimize budget allocation
Incorporating an SEO and PPC agency or consulting experts in SEO and PPC management ensures these strategies are effectively aligned. By being well-versed in how PPC and SEO work together and continuously analyzing performance data to refine efforts, businesses can maximize the ROI of their digital marketing investments.
If you suspect your SEO and PPC programs could be leveraging each other for better results, but could use an assist in getting there, we’ve got you covered. Firebrand’s SEO, Paid Media, and Content Marketing audits provide a deep dive into your strategies and data, coupled with a roadmap to bolstering SEO and PPC program successes.
Before this article wraps up, marketers should be aware that SEO and PPC aren’t the only dream team in town. Other marketing channels can also join forces, creating a similar multiplier effect. Learn about combining SEO and Content Marketing strategies to give your content the best opportunities for visibility and engagement.
Before this article wraps up, marketers should be aware that SEO and PPC aren’t the only dream team in town. Other marketing channels can also join forces, creating a similar multiplier effect. Learn about combining SEO and Content Marketing strategies to give your content the best opportunities for visibility and engagement.
About the Author
Shane is Vice President of Digital Marketing at Firebrand Communications. Bringing over 15 years of digital marketing experience he provides clients with strategic insight and program execution aligned to achieve measurable growth. Prior to Firebrand, Shane had led digital departments for PR and advertising agencies, delivering successful marketing programs for enterprise and consumer brands.
