Do Ecommerce Sites Need Both SEO and PPC for Growth?
If you need free traffic and a long-term growth strategy, SEO is your way to go; if you want fast results and paid conversions, PPC is your best option.
In today’s crowded online marketplace, getting noticed is everything. Whether you’re just starting out or have been selling for years, you need smart strategies to make sure customers find you first. That’s where SEO and PPC come in.
SEO builds steady, long-term visibility by helping your pages rank naturally in search results, while PPC gives you an instant boost by placing your ads front and center. In this post, we’ll show you how using SEO and PPC together can drive more traffic, more sales, and more lasting success for your online store.
Do ecommerce sites need SEO and PPC?
Using SEO and PPC together is like having a full-service marketing team. PPC advertising quickly increases your store’s visibility—much like a booster rocket—while SEO serves as a beacon on the web, making it easier for users to find you when they search.
Whether your audience is local or global, combining SEO and PPC ensures the right people notice your store and become customers.
Understanding SEO
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is essential for any business with an online store. By improving your site today, you set yourself up for long-term success. SEO helps your pages rank higher in organic search results—those listings displayed in groups of ten without the “Ad” label—without paying per click.
Key SEO Types for Ecommerce
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On-page SEO: Optimize product titles, descriptions, image alt text, metadata, and page copy for relevant keywords—while maintaining readability and structure.
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Off-page SEO: Build backlinks from reputable websites to improve your site’s authority and trustworthiness.
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Technical SEO: Optimize site structure, improve page speed, and ensure mobile responsiveness so search engines can crawl and index your store effectively.
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Local SEO: For brick-and-mortar or service-area businesses, optimize geo-targeted keywords, manage online reviews, and complete your Google Business Profile.
Benefits and Drawbacks of SEO for Ecommerce
Benefits of Choosing SEO
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Cost-effective: Ultimately, SEO is more economical than PPC, which charges for each hit. Search engine traffic is essentially free after your website becomes well-known, despite the initial time and effort commitment.
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Long-Term, Durable Outcomes: SEO is a long-range approach. It is a better investment since you might be able to keep getting organic traffic without paying for it if your website does well in search results.
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Increased Organic Traffic: SEO increases traffic by optimizing for relevant keywords without requiring advertising expenditures. The more naturally occurring traffic your website receives, the better it ranks for relevant queries.
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Improved reputation and brand trust: In addition to attracting new clients, a high search engine ranking improves your company's reputation because people are more likely to trust companies that show up prominently in search results.
Drawbacks of SEO
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Slow Outcomes: SEO is not a magic bullet. To rank highly on the first page of search results, it might take months for your rankings to alter considerably.
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Strong rivalry: There is a lot of rivalry for prominent keywords; therefore, everyone is vying for them. Because so many companies are competing for the same search phrases, ranking well is increasingly difficult.
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Regular Algorithm Changes: Your ranking may change due to search engines' frequent algorithm changes. Adapting to these changes and holding onto your position will demand ongoing effort if you want to stay at the top.
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Time-consuming and effort-intensive: Creating content and understanding how to arrange it for better ranking are just two aspects of the time-consuming and ongoing process of search engine optimization.
SEO stats for ecommerce
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Organic search is the main source of traffic, accounting for 53% of the website traffic of the majority of CT clients.
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It may take anywhere from four to twelve months to observe noticeable SEO impacts, depending on the level of competition and expenditure.
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In e-commerce, the average conversion rate for organic search is 2.8%, higher than the average for sponsored search.
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Over time, SEO yields an average return on investment of 500–1,000% as organic traffic and rankings increase.
Exploring PPC for Ecommerce
Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising places sponsored ads on search engines and partner sites. You pay only when someone clicks your ad, guaranteeing instant visibility for chosen keywords and audiences.
PPC Ad Types
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Search Ads: Text ads at the top of SERPs—capture ready-to-buy customers.
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Display Ads: Banner ads on the Google Display Network—ideal for brand awareness and retargeting.
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Shopping Ads: Product cards with image, price, and description—perfect for showcasing inventory.
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Video Ads: Short commercials on platforms like YouTube—engaging for storytelling.
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Social Media Ads: Targeted ads on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, etc.
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Gmail Ads: Appear at the top of Gmail’s Promotions tab—look like regular emails.
Benefits and Drawbacks of PPC for Ecommerce
Benefits of PPC
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Instant outcomes: PPC allows you to observe outcomes right now. Your ad is displayed to a large audience practically instantly after you place your bid for ad space. PPC is the best option for companies who want to increase awareness rapidly.
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Audience Reach: Picking the appropriate keywords will ensure that your advertising is seen by the people who are most likely to be interested in your products or services since PPC allows for exact targeting.
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Leading Search Results: Among the first things consumers encounter when they arrive at search engine result pages (SERPs) are PPC advertisements, which increases the possibility that they will click and complete the conversion.
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Measurable Return on Investment (ROI): PPC gives you total control over your ad spend and ROI.
Drawbacks of PPC
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Expensive Over Time: Managing a PPC campaign, particularly if it's a long-term approach, may get costly. Each click costs money, and expenses may mount up rapidly, especially in markets with intense competition.
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Uncertain Profits: Since rivals may outbid you for the same keywords, there is no assurance that your PPC advertisements will always rank well. Furthermore, 94% of visitors disregard sponsored results, so even if your ad does appear, it will be more difficult to get lucrative clicks.
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Temporary Visibility: When you stop paying, your ad visibility vanishes, in contrast to organic traffic. Without consistent investment, your website's exposure will decrease as your place in the SERPs disappears.
PPC stats for ecommerce
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With an average ROAS of 4.6x, Google Shopping advertisements bring in $4.60 for every $1 invested.
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Although it varies by sector and competition, the average cost-per-click (CPC) for e-commerce PPC is $1.16...
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Because PPC may produce a return on investment in as little as 30 days, it's perfect for testing and rapid sales.
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Google Ads' average e-commerce conversion rate is 1.91%, which is a little less than that of organic traffic.
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A significant portion of ready-to-buy customers are attracted to PPC, as evidenced by the fact that 65% of all high-intent searches end in a click on a sponsored advertisement.
Which One Is Better: Difference between PPC and SEO
Here's a short table comparing PPC and SEO:
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Criteria |
PPC (Pay-Per-Click) |
SEO (Search Engine Optimization) |
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Speed of Results |
Immediate results with paid ads |
Takes time to build organic visibility |
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Cost |
Pay per click for each ad |
Initial investment, but cost-effective long term |
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Visibility |
Quick visibility boost |
Sustainable presence over time |
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Credibility |
Immediate impact but paid |
Builds credibility over time |
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Targeting |
Precise audience targeting |
Relies on algorithm and content optimization |
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Long-Term Impact |
Short-term wins |
Builds lasting online credibility and presence |
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Adaptability |
Easily adjustable campaigns |
Requires ongoing adaptation to algorithm changes |
|
Competition |
Immediate exposure in competitive markets |
Gradual build-up, but competes effectively |
|
User Intent |
Targets users actively searching for products |
Captures users at various stages of the buying cycle |
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Budget Control |
Clear control over spending |
Ongoing SEO efforts determine the investment |
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Keyword Strategy |
Keyword bidding for immediate relevance |
Strategic keyword use aligned with user intent |
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Analytics & Reporting |
Immediate data on ad performance |
Ongoing analysis focused on organic search data |
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Local vs Global Reach |
Effective for both local and global targeting |
Global reach may require local optimization |
|
Brand Awareness |
Quick brand exposure through paid ads |
Gradual brand recognition build-up |
How can SEO and PPC work together?
PPC advertising is a great way to quickly improve website traffic and visibility. Combining PPC with SEO can make your marketing efforts more successful. This approach gives your brand an instant lift and makes it more visible to potential customers.
As your website gains traction and your brand becomes more well-known, you can shift focus to SEO to improve organic rankings. Over time, SEO will attract more organic, cost-free visitors. By using effective SEO techniques, you can steadily increase your organic visibility and gradually reduce your dependence on paid advertisements while still driving traffic.
Strategies for Combining SEO and PPC for Ecommerce
Why choose between PPC and SEO when both can deliver powerful results? Many successful e-commerce businesses use both strategies to improve their online visibility and boost sales.
Here’s how to leverage the combined strength of PPC and SEO:
Use PPC Keyword Data to Enhance SEO Campaigns
PPC advertising offers valuable targeting information. You can improve your SEO strategy by analyzing the keywords that perform best in your PPC ads. Use these insights to better align your content and meta descriptions with user intent.
Improve SEO with A/B Testing of PPC Ads
You can use PPC to A/B test your landing pages and ads. The results will help you determine the most effective offers, calls-to-action, and headlines to increase conversions and optimize your SEO efforts.
Remarketing to Boost SEO Traffic
Remarketing helps increase SEO traffic by targeting users who visited your site via organic search but didn’t convert. Showing them relevant PPC ads can bring them back to complete a purchase.
Seasonal PPC Advertising Strategy
To ensure quick visibility while your organic SEO delivers long-term results, combine your SEO efforts with PPC campaigns during high-traffic seasons or promotional events.
Key Considerations for Choosing the Right Strategy for Your Business
Business Objectives: Define your primary goals: Do you need long-term organic visibility or immediate traffic and results? Your objectives will help determine the best strategy.
Budget: Consider your financial situation. PPC offers immediate results but requires ongoing spending, while SEO involves more upfront effort with longer-lasting benefits.
Timeframe for Results: If you need quick visibility, PPC is the better option. SEO takes time but delivers sustained growth over the long term.
The Competitive Environment: If ranking organically is very difficult in your industry, PPC can provide a temporary boost while your SEO efforts develop.
Target Audience: Understand where your audience is in the buying journey. PPC works well for ready-to-buy users, while SEO supports those in the research phase.
Brand Awareness and Image: PPC gives you instant visibility and control, while SEO builds trust and reputation gradually. Choose the mix that suits your branding goals.
Geographical Targeting: If you serve local customers, combine local SEO with location-targeted PPC ads to effectively reach your audience.
Analytics and Measuring: Ensure you have the right tools and expertise to measure both PPC and SEO performance. Accurate tracking is essential for optimization and ROI.
The Availability of Resources: Choose SEO, PPC, or both based on your team’s capabilities. Evaluate whether you can run effective PPC campaigns or maintain consistent SEO work.
Conclusion
To grow your business online, it's smart to use both SEO and PPC. PPC helps you get quick results and reach the right audience fast. SEO takes longer but brings steady, long-term traffic without ongoing ad costs. When used together, they make your marketing stronger and help boost your traffic, visibility, and sales.
If you’re ready to grow your e-commerce brand with a smart SEO strategy, Ecomx Agency is here to help. Our expert team will create a custom plan to get you real results—fast and long-term.
Contact Ecomx Agency today and let’s build your success together!
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