Confirmed. Google Ads ranked our website without any SEO!

[lepman]

Hi All,

Not sure if anyone has commented on this topic in the past and I apologize if I'm creating a duplicate here.

but...

About a year ago we launched a new ecomm site. The client never had the budget to do any SEO. Zero. No on-site, no off-site. Product descriptions copied straight from the manufacturer. Category pages with zero text. Page speed not the best. Just the basic settings with Yoast.

I was under the impression that given the nature of the keyword difficulty of most terms we would never rank without unique content or backlinks. So the initial plan was to run Google Ads(first standard shopping then smart shopping) in order to drive traffic immediately. Of course, everybody wants a good ROI and start seeing results the next day

After about 6-7 months of running Google Ads($25k spent) I started noticing even the most difficult branded terms started popping up on the first page. Some made it to top 3. Now, the organic traffic is outperforming the paid traffic.

Long story short, I have always wondered if running ads would have any positive effect on keyword ranks. In this case, 100%. Mind blown.

Just wanted to share my excitement and wish you all good luck in your journey.

 

[ThemeWave]

Has the site gained backlinks naturally over that time? Maybe it has gained more authority than the sites that are ranking.

What's the backlink profile like from then till now?

 

[mindmaster]

This is interesting.

However, I wonder how much is about user experience (since google sends the traffic and can see how it goes) and how much is about the actual adwords budget spent there (if there is such a signal in their algorithm).

In case there such a signal integrated in their algorithm that is fucked up. And if anyone can prove it I think they can have some legal challenges.

 

[lepman]

Has the site gained backlinks naturally over that time? Maybe it has gained more authority than the sites that are ranking.

What's the backlink profile like from then till now?

Good question! The website did gain a few backlinks naturally. A few directories and coupon sites. Mostly junk though. 37 referring domains to be exact. The interesting fact is the highest ranking keywords are the same ones we spend the most buck on Google Ads.

 

[mudbutt]

Traffic ranks. It’s not AdWords specific.

 

[Stuffedegg]

This is interesting.

However, I wonder how much is about user experience (since google sends the traffic and can see how it goes) and how much is about the actual adwords budget spent there (if there is such a signal in their algorithm).

In case there such a signal integrated in their algorithm that is fucked up. And if anyone can prove it I think they can have some legal challenges.

I cant see why spending on ads would increase ranking directly. If G used spending in their algo, surely they would work it the other way so that they kept getting revenue?

Unless I misinterpreted what you said?

Traffic, UI, and time spent on-page will though, no matter where the traffic is coming from.

 

[lepman]

This is interesting.

However, I wonder how much is about user experience (since google sends the traffic and can see how it goes) and how much is about the actual adwords budget spent there (if there is such a signal in their algorithm).

In case there such a signal integrated in their algorithm that is fucked up. And if anyone can prove it I think they can have some legal challenges.

You are right. I don't think it has to do with budget spent. Maybe user experience. Especially, if Google Ads also created enough brand awareness for people to click on our organic search results vs others. That's probably giving some signals to google to rank that page/keyword.

I once ranked "city name + web design" #2 by telling our SEO leads on the phone that we appear on the first page. They all wanted to verify to see our credibility. The more people who searched that keyword and clicked on my site actually helped it rank higher

 

[hardgainz]

No surprise, it’s the same with the google play store. The apps that pay for ads are in the top ten for there respective keywords and there app never drops rank.

 

[mindmaster]

I cant see why spending on ads would increase ranking directly. If G used spending in their algo, surely they would work it the other way so that they kept getting revenue?

Unless I misinterpreted what you said?

Traffic, UI, and time spent on-page will though, no matter where the traffic is coming from.

I don't think it influence ranking directly. Or at least I want to believe that.
Otherwise it would be crazy.

 

[lepman]

Traffic ranks. It’s not AdWords specific.

Why not? I have another ecomm site for comparison. Same situation. Except no Google Ads traffic. Not ranking for shit and has been up for a year. That's why I'm saying Google Ads helped this one rank.

 

[mudbutt]

Why not? I have another ecomm site for comparison. Same situation. Except no Google Ads traffic. Not ranking for shit and has been up for a year. That's why I'm saying Google Ads helped this one rank.

there are a lot of factors when it comes to ranking with traffic, it helps it pop - but if you don’t have the required on page metrics the ranks are not sticky causing a slide back to original position.What metrics? It depends on each vertical. AdWords may have a better advantage because it feeds data directly to G, but ranking with traffic in general is not AdWords specific.

 

[Dolan]

there are a lot of factors when it comes to ranking with traffic, it helps it pop - but if you don’t have the required on page metrics the ranks are not sticky causing a slide back to original position.What metrics? It depends on each vertical. AdWords may have a better advantage because it feeds data directly to G, but ranking with traffic in general is not AdWords specific.

Can you suggest any other cheaper traffic methods other than Google Ads that will help with rankings? Does it have to be traffic from tier 1 countries or will any country work?

 

[mudbutt]

Can you suggest any other cheaper traffic methods other than Google Ads that will help with rankings? Does it have to be traffic from tier 1 countries or will any country work?

its not just about traffic for traffic sake, rather traffic that will boost on site metrics. we havent tested geo specific traffic so don't know the answer to that.

 

[hriups]

Thanks for sharing this, but the $25k budget you spent on ads is a lot. You got results though

 

[FWA]

yes the problem is were to fing 25k my friend

 

[lepman]

there are a lot of factors when it comes to ranking with traffic, it helps it pop - but if you don’t have the required on page metrics the ranks are not sticky causing a slide back to original position.What metrics? It depends on each vertical. AdWords may have a better advantage because it feeds data directly to G, but ranking with traffic in general is not AdWords specific.

Got it.

Thanks for sharing this, but the $25k budget you spent on ads is a lot. You got results though

Well, over the course of 6-7 months. The budget increased over time as we started getting decent amount of sales from Smart Shopping Campaigns. The trick is to generate enough conversion data. Then, the G algorithm does the rest.

 

[dexterseo]

is a good result and i think is based on the behavior of the users, but we never will know how much do you need on linkbuilding to rank these website xD if you need more or less than 25k on guest post and more

 

[someone12321]

Most likely your site is better and more relevant to your niche. Ads help people discover it and start the snowball, your site engages the user and helps the ball grow.
Massive traffic does help, but if bounce rate is high and engagement is low, it wouldn't juice up your site much.

Well done on your site by the way. Been running ours for 4 years now. Organic is still only 20% of traffic.

 

[Chielou June]

Client never had budget for seo but spent 25k$ in ads? Are those thresholds?

 

[GenesisOne]

If you had positive ROI on ad spend, this is a good method indeed!!!