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Although there are many different approaches to this, two main strategies are receiving much attention now. Content marketing is one of them, which entails blog posts and other informational resources that customers can read. The other is pay-per-click (PPC) marketing, which will have a more direct call to action for potential clients.
Both of these strategies are good to implement in a business, especially when working with professionals in the field like On The Map Marketing or similar agencies. However, there are some distinct differences between the two, and these differentiations can help you determine which approach to focus on.
1) Compare The Cost Of The Campaigns
Not all companies will have the same budget for their marketing needs, and it will largely depend on the size of the business to determine how much they are willing to spend. With this said, companies that invest in PPC would need a slightly more significant amount to run these advertisements than content marketing.
Although PPC may have a higher cost to the company, the results from a well-run campaign could be worth the spend, while content could convert the potential customers who click on these ads. Creating high-quality content may cost less, but it is equally crucial to a company’s marketing strategy as the PPC campaigns.
2) Consider The Brand Interaction Rate
Most consumers tend to pay a lot of attention to visual marketing tactics that immediately grab their attention. For this reason, PPC would ensure that potential customers interact with a brand daily and much more so than content marketing.
On the other hand, even if PPC grabs the most attention initially, it could be content marketing that will seal the deal for many consumers. This is because they’ll have more information on the required products or services after reading the articles or blogs on a target website. In turn, it can help create more trust in the brand and drives them to feel connected and thus more loyal to a specific brand resulting in more consistent sales.
3) Choose A Time Frame For Results
Depending on the company’s needs, some would prefer a quicker turnaround time for their marketing conversion rate. If that is the case, PPC is the way to go, but if the company wants to relate more to its customers and add more value, it should opt for content marketing.
Managing a PPC campaign could be more time-consuming, but the results are almost instantaneous, and companies can see a sharp increase in the amount of traffic visiting their website. In contrast, content could attract customers throughout the entire sales funnel and not only in the initial stages of the process.
4) Contemplate Using Professional Services
Companies will all have their preferences on how they want to manage their marketing campaigns, with some instead outsourcing the task than tackling it in-house. Costs will again come into play here, as some agencies could require a hefty fee for their assistance.
In the long run, the professional costs for each type of campaign will add up, and this is where content marketing wins the race. With its usually cheaper rates, it has become a great strategy you can implement long-term, whereas PPC could be a short-term strategy to curb exorbitant costs.
For both strategies, a professional will have all the necessary knowledge to churn out a great PPC ad or top-class article. Still, companies will have to decide which costs they can manage using internal resources or which ones they would like to outsource.
5) Consider The Return On Investment
The main intention of any marketing campaign is to increase the company’s bottom line. No business will continue to invest in a marketing tool, agency, or strategy if it doesn’t give them an excellent return on investment. For a more significant investment, one would expect to see better results, while it may be the continuous income that could keep the company afloat.
That is also one of the main differences between PPC and content marketing. PPC may be more expensive and give a higher return on investment, but content marketing will ensure a steady income by providing constant, additional value to the customers.
The Final Verdict
To summarize the discussion of content marketing vs PPC, it is worth noting that both are needed to achieve the maximum results for a business and its brand. Where to start, however, remains the preference of the company. After all, each will have its own urgency, goals, strategies, and budget to consider.