If you’re part of the marketing team for a B2B SaaS company, driving demos is likely a vital priority for you.
And, as a savvy marketing professional, you know that the best way to drive demos is by implementing a holistic strategy. You need to address your prospective clients at the top, middle, and bottom of the sales funnel.
In the competitive world of SaaS marketing, leveraging both SEO and paid advertising can be a powerful one-two punch for hitting your targets. Each tactic plays a distinct role in the sales funnel, working together to guide prospects from awareness to conversion.
SEO: Building Authority Across the Funnel
When trying to gain awareness and establish credibility for your software, SEO is crucial. Did you know that 80% of consumers rely on search to find their preferred products and services? Yet only 29% of marketers use SEO on their websites and blogs to attract and convert leads!
What if your company is missing out on 51% of prospects simply because you aren’t getting – and staying – in front of your audience?
You want your prospects to know you before they need you. Once they know you, you need them to trust you. And SEO can help. Establishing your digital footprint enhances your authority position and leads to increased awareness and credibility. By optimizing your website and creating consistent, valuable content, SEO helps you get in front of potential buyers while they're still in the consideration phase. That way, when they’re ready to buy, you’re already the preferred choice in their minds.
Benefits of SEO:
- Increased Visibility: SEO helps your website rank higher in search results, making it easier for prospects to find you. When you’re findable, you’re also credible.
- Authority Building: Consistent, high-quality content positions your company as a thought leader. Educating your audience builds trust and confidence.
- Long-Term Results: Unlike paid ads, the benefits of SEO grow over time, leading to sustainable traffic. In fact, the average increase in traffic for year 1 of executing an SEO strategy is 21%. On average, year 2 sees an additional 49% increase in traffic.
Key SEO Strategies:
- Content Creation: Develop blog posts, articles, and resources that answer common questions your prospects have.
- On-Page Optimization: Ensure your website is optimized for search engines with proper meta tags, headers, and keyword usage.
- Link Building: Build a network of high-quality backlinks to boost your site’s authority.
SEO is key when it comes to attracting potential buyers who are exploring their options and researching solutions. SEO is a powerful tactic that can provide air cover across the various stages of your sales funnel.
Paid Ads: Converting at the Bottom of the Funnel
While SEO casts a wide net across the funnel, paid ads are particularly effective at the bottom when your prospects are ready to buy. Paid advertising ensures that your software is front and center when prospects are making their final purchasing decisions.
Benefits of Paid Ads:
- Immediate Impact: Paid ads deliver instant visibility and traffic to your site.
- Targeted Reach: Advanced targeting options allow you to reach specific audiences with high buying intent.
- Measurable ROI: You can track and measure the effectiveness of your campaigns in real-time (Hello, serotonin boost!)
Key Paid Ad Strategies:
- Search Ads: Target high-intent keywords to capture prospects who are ready to purchase.
- Retargeting: Re-engage visitors who have shown interest but haven't yet converted.
Paid ads are a great way to drive sales once a prospect is ready to buy. Paid ads should be part of a holistic strategy, ensuring that the interest and trust generated by your SEO efforts turn into sales.
The Power of Integration: SEO and Paid Ads Working Together
Integrating SEO and paid ads creates a comprehensive strategy that covers all stages of the sales funnel, leading to more demos, better leads, and faster sales.
Synergistic Benefits:
- Consistent Presence: SEO builds your presence over time, while paid ads provide immediate visibility.
- Data Sharing: Use insights from paid ad performance to refine your SEO strategy, and vice versa.
- Full Funnel Coverage: Reach potential buyers at every stage of their journey, from awareness to conversion.
Practical Integration Tips:
- Unified Keyword Strategy: Align your SEO keywords with those used in your paid ads for maximum impact. Note that this works best when keywords are aligned, not identical!
- Complementary Content: Ensure your paid ad copy and SEO content reinforce each other.
- Cross-Channel Analytics: Monitor performance across both channels to optimize your overall strategy.
Conclusion
For SaaS companies, a balanced approach to SEO and paid advertising can be a powerful combo. SEO excels at building your company’s authority and visibility across the sales funnel, while paid ads are key to driving conversions at the bottom. By integrating these strategies, you can effectively guide prospects through the entire sales funnel, driving more demos, ensuring qualified leads, and ultimately closing more sales.
