Although natural Search Engine Optimization (SEO) should be the cornerstone of your search engine strategy, it’s not always enough. Today, there are only four important spidering search engines left: Google, Yahoo!, MSN and Ask.
Google AdWords, which appears on both Google and its content network, can help with getting your site’s name out, especially if your website is newly launched. Other paid programs to consider are Yahoo! Advertising (formerly Overture), Yahoo! Search Submit Express (formerly Inktomi), MSN’s new pay-per-click program, and Ask’s Sponsored Listings.
Keep in mind however; SEO has one big advantage over PPC (Pay-Per-Click). SEO is strategically better because if you are able to somehow find an edge or advantage, you’re likely to hold on to this competitive advantage longer with SEO than you would with PPC.
The argument comes down to this: Since PPC is based on a near real-time auctioning process, it’s really hard to build advantage and keep it. Once you put in all the brilliant hard work to get leads and customers via SEO, it’s much harder for others to take that advantage away. And, even if they do, you’re much less likely to be completely blind-sided by it, as you would be with PPC.
For many businesses, PPC is a great way to get profitable traffic through the search engines, although over the longer-term, an investment in SEO will likely yield better results and more sustainable competitive advantage.
