Both SEO and Google Ads put your business on the first page of Google. But they work differently, cost differently, and deliver results on different timelines. Here is how to decide where your money goes first.
How each one works
SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) improves your website so it ranks higher in Google's organic (unpaid) results. It involves optimising your website content, building your authority through content and links, and maintaining your Google Business Profile. Results build slowly over months, but once you rank, you get traffic without paying per click.
Google Ads places your business at the top of search results as a paid advertisement. You pay each time someone clicks your ad. Results are immediate - your ad can appear within hours of setting up a campaign. But the traffic stops the moment you stop paying.
The cost comparison
Google Ads: you pay per click, typically $2-50+ depending on your industry and keywords. A monthly budget of $1,000-3,000 in ad spend is common for local businesses, plus management fees of $300-500/month.
SEO: you pay a monthly retainer for the ongoing work, typically $300-1,000/month for local businesses. There is no per-click cost - once you rank, the traffic is free. But it takes 3-6 months to see meaningful results.
Over a 12-month period, the total cost of each is often similar. The difference is in the timing and sustainability of the results.
Choose Google Ads first if...
- You need leads this month, not in six months. - You are launching a new business and have no existing online presence. - You want to test which services or keywords generate the most enquiries before investing in SEO. - You have a seasonal business and need to ramp up quickly for peak periods. - Your customer lifetime value is high enough to justify the per-click cost.
Choose SEO first if...
- You are thinking long-term and can wait 3-6 months for results. - Your budget is limited and you cannot sustain ongoing ad spend. - You are in a market where organic trust matters (medical, legal, financial). - You already have a decent website that just needs optimisation. - You want to reduce your dependency on paid advertising over time.
The smartest approach: both
The businesses that grow fastest use both. They run Google Ads for immediate lead generation while investing in SEO for long-term sustainability.
Here is the typical progression:
1. Launch Google Ads targeting your highest-value services and locations. 2. Simultaneously start SEO work - optimising your website, building content, improving your Google Business Profile. 3. As your organic rankings improve (3-6 months in), reduce ad spend on keywords where you now rank organically. 4. Reinvest saved ad budget into targeting new keywords or expanding to new service areas.
Over 12-18 months, this approach builds a sustainable lead generation engine where SEO handles the bulk of your traffic and Google Ads fills the gaps.