So if you are getting 65% of your traffic organically from Google for free, should you pay for the other 35%? This is one of the questions posed by a member on High Rankings Forum about whether they should continue to pay for PPC ads for the keyword they already rank #1 for. I don't see why you wouldn't want to pay for it, but there are plenty of good reasons for not paying. Sometime the costs these days are so high in the top position not including other barriers to entry that it doesn't make sense for the average webmaster.
Some of the members have some excellent thoughts on why it would be benefical to keep paying for that extra paid traffic:
There is one theory that having top results in both organic and PPC listings can help build the credibility of the site (Customer: "Hey, these guys are all over this page! They must be the industry leader" or something along those lines.).Also:
Studies have shown that multiple exposures increases CTR. I've even seen a study that asserted that while banner ads may not provide direct benefit in many cases, customers were more likely to buy when exposed to a company's brand in multiple places.
I tend to agree with what they are saying. High rankings in those position will not always warrant high click throughs. Its best to cover your bases. Sometime paying for PPC is not an option, as its too cost prohibitive or not in the original marketing plan for the business. Other times the PPC ad itself can be more successful than the organic listing. Whatever the case, if you are a small business or in a very niche area, branding can be very impactful to your customers and users to see your dominate the area for your search terms. This adds credibility and trust to name and product which can lead to bigger profits or better business oppourtunities.
Discussion at High Rankings
