In today's online landscape, businesses have a variety of marketing channels to choose from. Two of the most popular are search engine marketing (SEM) and conversion rate optimization (CRO). SEM is a paid advertising strategy that allows businesses to appear at the top of search engine results pages (SERPs). CRO is the process of optimizing your website or landing page to improve the percentage of visitors who take a desired action, such as making a purchase or filling out a form.
Both SEM and CRO are valuable marketing strategies, but they serve different purposes. SEM is primarily used to drive traffic to your website, while CRO is used to improve the conversion rate of that traffic. As a result, it's important to allocate your marketing budget between SEM and CRO in a way that makes sense for your business goals.
Which should have a higher priority?
In general, CRO should have a higher priority than SEM. This is because CRO is a more sustainable and cost-effective way to improve your marketing ROI. By improving your conversion rate, you can get more value out of your existing traffic, which means you don't need to spend as much money on SEM to drive new traffic.
Of course, there are some situations where SEM may be a higher priority. For example, if you're a new business that's trying to generate leads quickly, SEM can be a great way to get your name out there and start driving traffic to your website. However, once you've established a solid base of traffic, it's important to shift your focus to CRO so that you can maximize the value of that traffic.
How to allocate your marketing budget
There is no one-size-fits-all answer to the question of how to allocate your marketing budget between SEM and CRO. The best approach will vary depending on your specific business goals and situation. However, here are a few general tips:
- Start with CRO. Before you start investing heavily in SEM, make sure your website is optimized for conversions. This will ensure that you're getting the most value out of your SEM budget.
- Set clear goals. What are you trying to achieve with your marketing efforts? Once you know your goals, you can start to allocate your budget accordingly.
- Track your results. It's important to track your results so that you can see what's working and what's not. This will help you to optimize your budget allocation over time.
Conclusion
SEM and CRO are both valuable marketing strategies. However, in general, CRO should have a higher priority than SEM. By focusing on CRO, you can improve the value of your existing traffic and get more out of your marketing budget.
