The Search Engine Optimization 80/20 Rule

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This article is about the fact that organic search results get more clicks than paid ads…and why this is important for business owners to know and understand.

1st I will define ORGANIC SEARCH RESULTS: When a person searches (on Google, for example) for something online, they get a list of search results. On this search results page (SERP), there is often a group of listings (results) at the top of the page which are notated as Ads.  Google sells these spots to businesses who are willing to pay for this space on the search results page. The results beneath the Ads are called Organic Search Results. These are placements which Google considers the most relevant search results. That is, the search results most likely to meet the needs of the person searching.

The higher a website or a web page ranks in the organic search results, the more likely the person will click and visit the website.

If you’ve been in business for any length of time or at least studied business or even personal development in any capacity, you’ve probably heard of the 80-20 rule also known as the Pareto Principle.  The core of this principle is that 20% of your activities make up 80% of your productivity. It also usually means that 20% of your customers represent 80% of your income. It could also mean that 20% of your Investments produce 80% of your positive results.

Comparing Search Engine Optimization to Google Adwords (Paid Traffic)

This post compares building a better, search eingine optimized website to investing cash into Google Adwords (also known as pay-per-click or PPC).

This morning I was watching a webinar  talking about Google search results and  the relationship between paid advertising online and organic search engine optimization and how the 80/20 rule applies.

In most cases where people are looking online for  a local business, for example a plumber, an electrician, an attorney, an accountant, a chiropractor,… The search results will almost always yield about 7 search results on page one which are paid ads. These are also known as AdWords ads. These are usually in a group of three or four at the top of the page and three or four all the way down at the bottom of the page. They are indicated by a specific emblem which indicates these are ads.

Between the ads are what we call organic search results. These are the search results which are generated by Google and are determined by a number of criteria,  many of which can be influenced by search engine optimization techniques. These are NOT paid ads.

Organic Search Results Get 80% of the Clicks

It’s a well-known fact, and you can look it up, that organic search results get more clicks and therefore more visibility than the AdWords ads. And guess what the ratio is.  You got it… 80% organic and 20% ads. Therefore, out of every 1000 searches, the ads get 200 clicks, and the organic ads get 800. Both marketing tactics have their advantages. Read on!

Advantages of Using Adwords

The advantages of using AdWords are

1. You will drive traffic to your website and your message.
2. You only pay if people click on your ad and visit your website. If no one clicks you don’t pay.
3. You can set a daily, weekly, monthly budget and a maximum price you’re willing to pay per click.

Disadvantages of using Adwords:

1. Clicks can be expensive. Depending on your industry and the competition fighting for those High positions on the search rankings you could pay anywhere from $0.50 per click to over $20 is per click.
2. Clicks don’t necessarily mean customers. You will pay for a lot of clicks which never become customers. Only a fraction of them will.
3. Advertising with AdWords is a process and very much a science. The average person cannot possibly hope to optimize their AdWords campaigns effectively. Yes, you may meet with success but hiring a trained and experienced expert will yield better results. Therefore you are looking at  adding a professional fee on top of the cost of the ads.

 Advantages of investing in organic search engine optimization

1. For every 1,000 searches for a business like yours if you occupy a spot on the organic search results, you have an 80% better chance of being selected over the adwords ads. As I said above 80% of the people choose from the organic listing and only 20% of the people choose among the ads.
2. A click on your organic listing cost you nothing. This is a gift. Google helps businesses with good websites and good search engine optimization show up in the search results.
3. The investment you make in time to learn and Implement search engine optimization where the money you spend to get an expert to do it for you will continue to work for you almost indefinitely. Yes, there is a cost to this either to pay an expert or to spend the time and money to learn this skill but the payoff is enormous.  In many respects, search engine optimization gets even better with time.
4. If you are optimization is exceptionally good (and with a little luck) and you are the first search result under the paid ads, statistics show that this position gets 40% more clicks than all the other search results on the page. So out of 1000 searches for a product or business like yours, you could potentially get 400 website visitors.

Disadvantages of Organic SEO

1. Slower results. Once you start paying for AdWords you are almost certain to start showing up on search results and getting traffic to your website. Not necessarily so with Organic search results.
2. Nothing worthwhile is easy. Search engine optimization is a process. It’s actually a continual process.  It takes time and time is money.

In my personal and expert opinion I think search engine optimization is one of the best investments you can make in marketing your business. Search engine optimization can work in conjunction with almost every other marketing investment and activity you engage in. Including social media, blogging, video, and even offline marketing efforts such as print ads, sponsorships, radio ads, Adwords campaigns and any other Grassroots marketing you may do will all be enhanced by the efforts you make in building a better website with content that will  be a benefit to your potential customers, clients, or patience.

The FASTEST way to get people to your website is by paying for the traffic. Adwords works.

The best LONG TERM MARKETING INVESTMENT is a methodical and well-planned investment in search engine optimization.

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