Digital marketing

Paid traffic

SEM

Search advertising

Search advertising means ads shown in search results when someone searches for specific keywords. They appear …

Display advertising

Display advertising consists of visual ads (banners, images, videos) shown on websites, apps and social platforms. …

AI-integrated advertising

AI-integrated advertising means ads that appear in or next to AI-generated answers, for example in ChatGPT …

Remarketing

Remarketing (also called retargeting) is advertising shown to people who have already visited a website but …

Google Shopping

Google Shopping ads are product ads shown with an image, price, the shop's name and often …

Custom audiences

Custom Audiences let a company target ads using its own data: customer lists, website visitors, app …

On this page

Why paid traffic?
Different types of paid traffic
Our approach to paid traffic
Common mistakes with paid traffic
When should you choose paid traffic and when should you choose SEO?

SEO builds organic traffic over the long term. But sometimes you need results now. That applies when a product launches, when a campaign starts or when you want to test new markets alongside your long-term investment in SEO.

That is when paid traffic is the right tool.

Paid traffic gives you control: you decide the budget, audience, message and measurement points. You see results within days, not months. And you can adjust continuously based on data.

But it takes know-how. It is easy to waste money on poorly configured campaigns. A good return requires strategy, technical expertise and ongoing optimisation.

Why paid traffic?

Fast visibility

SEO takes time. Even for established sites, it can take a few months to rank for new search terms.

If you launch a new product tomorrow, you can usually be visible in Google within one working day, because most ads are reviewed that quickly. If you start a limited campaign, you can control exactly when and to whom the ads are shown.

Use cases

Product launches
Seasonal campaigns (Christmas, Black Friday, summer)
Events and limited-time offers
Testing new markets

An investment you can control

With SEO, you invest time and resources but cannot guarantee exactly when or how much traffic you will get.

With paid traffic, you know

Exactly how much you are spending
Which audience you are reaching
Which messages are being tested
What return you are getting (if you measure correctly)

You can

Set a daily budget
Pause campaigns at any time
Increase the budget when something works
Switch off what does not work

Testing before long-term investment

Want to invest in a new product line? Not sure whether the market exists?

Test with ads first

Run campaigns for two to four weeks. See whether people click, whether they convert and which messages work. If it works, you can invest in long-term SEO with greater confidence.

If it does not work, you have saved months of effort and can change direction quickly.

A complement to SEO

Paid traffic complements SEO rather than replacing it.

SEO gives you

Traffic that lasts over the long term
Lower cost per visitor over time

Paid traffic gives you

Fast visibility
Control over message and audience
Coverage where organic rankings are missing

Together

SEO covers the keywords you rank for
Ads cover the keywords you do not rank for (yet)
Ads cover top keywords where competition is extreme
Remarketing picks up visitors from both SEO and ads

Different types of paid traffic

Search advertising

Ads in search results. They are shown when someone searches for specific keywords.

Advantages

High intent (people are actively searching for what you offer)
Measurable (a clear link between keyword, click and conversion)
Control over what triggers your ads

Uses

Transactional searches (“buy X”, “book Y”)
Competitors’ brand names as keywords, but not in the ad text
Covering keywords you do not rank for organically

Display advertising

Visual ads (banners, images, video) on websites in Google’s Display Network or other networks.

Advantages

Reaches people who are not actively searching (awareness)
Visual, so it can show a product or brand
Wide reach

Uses

Brand building
Launching new products
Retargeting (showing ads to people who have visited your site)

AI-integrated advertising

Ads in AI services. In November 2026, Swedish companies can buy ads in ChatGPT through self-service, while Google’s ads in AI Mode do not yet reach Sweden.

Advantages

Reaches users while they are comparing options
The ad is clearly labelled and kept separate from the answer

Uses

Reaching tech-savvy audiences
Testing a new channel on a small scale
A complement to traditional ads

Remarketing

Show ads to people who have already visited your site but did not convert.

Advantages

Reaches people who already know you
Reminds users of what they looked at

Uses

E-commerce (show the products they looked at)
B2B (remind them of the service they have researched)
Nurturing leads along the customer journey

Google Shopping

Product ads with an image, price and rating directly in the search results.

Advantages

Qualified traffic (people see the price before they click)
Good for e-commerce

Uses

Online shops
Product comparisons
Competing for transactional searches

Custom Audiences

Target ads at specific audiences based on data you hold: customer lists, similar audiences, behaviours.

Advantages

Precise targeting (reach exactly the right people)
Higher relevance gives better results
Less of the ad budget goes to the wrong people

Uses

B2B (target specific companies or roles)
Upselling to existing customers
Similar audiences (find new customers who resemble existing ones, for example with Demand Gen in Google Ads)

Our approach to paid traffic

Strategy before campaigns

We do not start campaigns without first understanding the business goals.

What we start with

Business goals

What should the campaigns achieve? Sales? Leads? Brand awareness?
What volume is needed?
What is an acceptable cost per conversion?

Audience analysis

Who is the buyer?
Where are they online?
Which message resonates?

Competitor analysis

What are competitors doing?
Which keywords are they advertising on?
Which messages are they using?

Channel selection

Which channels reach the audience best?
Where is competition lowest?
What suits the budget?

Only once we understand this do we create the campaigns.

Structured campaigns

Carelessly set-up campaigns waste money. We build in structure from the start.

Campaign structure

Separate campaigns for different goals (search vs display vs remarketing)
Clear ad groups per theme or product category
A carefully selected keyword list (positive and negative keywords)

Budget and bidding

The right bid strategy for the goal (manual CPC, target CPA, maximise conversions)
Daily budgets that match business goals
Allocating budget where ROI is highest

Ad creative

Several variants per ad group (A/B testing)
Relevant landing pages (higher ad quality can mean a lower cost per click)
Calls to action that match user intent

Continuous optimisation

Campaigns that are not optimised get worse over time. Competitors test, algorithms change, audiences shift.

We optimise on an ongoing basis

Weekly

Review performance per campaign and ad group
Pause underperforming ads
Increase the budget for those that overperform
Add negative keywords

Monthly

Deeper analysis of conversion data
Test new ad variants
Adjust audiences
Analyse competitor activity

Quarterly

Strategic review
New channels to test?
Major adjustments to budget or direction
Benchmarking against the industry

Transparent reporting

You should always know what you are getting for your money.

Our reports include

Performance data

Impressions, clicks, CTR
Conversions and conversion rate
Cost per click (CPC)
Cost per conversion (CPA)
Return on ad spend (ROAS)

Insights and recommendations

What is working well and why
What is working poorly and why
What we will test in the next period
Strategic adjustments

Business impact

How do the campaigns affect your business goals?
Which campaigns deliver the best ROI?
Where should you invest more or less?

No black box. You own the data and understand every decision.

Common mistakes with paid traffic

Mistake 1: No conversion tracking

Problem: You do not know which campaigns or keywords deliver results. You cannot optimise. You waste money.
Solution: Set up conversion tracking before campaigns start. Define what a conversion is (a purchase, a lead, a download) and measure it.

Mistake 2: Audiences that are too broad

Showing ads to “everyone” is expensive and ineffective.

Problem: Low relevance gives a low click-through rate (CTR), which raises the cost per click (CPC) and lowers the return on investment (ROI).
Solution: Narrow your audiences. Test different segments. Optimise for the people who convert.

Mistake 3: Poor landing pages

Even perfect ads fail if the landing page is not up to scratch.

Problem: High click costs but nobody converts, because the landing page is not convincing.

Solution

A landing page that matches the ad message
A clear call to action
Fast loading time
Mobile-friendly
Trust signals (reviews, case studies)

Mistake 4: Set and forget

Problem: Competitors optimise. You do not. Results gradually deteriorate without you noticing.
Solution: Set aside time for ongoing optimisation. At least a weekly review and a monthly deep dive.

Mistake 5: Ignoring negative keywords

Without negative keywords, you waste money on irrelevant clicks.

Example: You sell “premium dog food” and advertise on “dog food”.

But people searching for “cheap dog food” or “free dog food” are not your audience. Add these as negative keywords.

Solution: Review search terms reports regularly. Add negative keywords continuously.

When should you choose paid traffic and when should you choose SEO?

Use paid traffic when:

You need results quickly

A launch tomorrow
A seasonal campaign next week
An event in a month

You want to test something

Does a new product work?
Is there demand in a new market?
Does a new message resonate?

You do not rank organically

New keywords you cannot rank for yet
Competitors’ brand names
Extremely competitive keywords

You want to reach specific audiences

Remarketing to previous visitors
Similar audiences (for example with Demand Gen in Google Ads)
Geographic or demographic targeting

Use SEO when:

You want traffic that lasts over the long term

Lower cost per visitor over time
Traffic that does not disappear when the budget runs out

You want to build trust

Positioning as an expert

You have time to invest

The effect builds up over several months
Continuous work is required

Use both when:

You want to maximise results

SEO for a long-term base of traffic
Ads for rapid expansion and coverage

You are in a competitive industry

SEO alone may not be enough for visibility
Ads complement it where organic ranking is difficult

You have the budget

Invest in SEO (a long-term foundation)
Complement it with ads (quick results and coverage)

From strategy to results

Paid traffic delivers quick results, but only if it is done properly.

Our process

1. Strategy and planning

Business goals and KPIs
Audience analysis
Competitor analysis
Channel selection and budget

2. Setup and launch

Campaign structure
Keywords and targeting
Ad creative
Conversion tracking
Landing pages

3. Optimisation and scaling

Weekly monitoring
Monthly in-depth analysis
A/B testing
Budget reallocation

4. Reporting and strategy

Transparent data
Business impact
Recommendations
A long-term plan

Ready to get results quickly?

We help you build and optimise campaigns that deliver a return, not just clicks.

Want to know where you stand today?

Call us, or fill in the form and we will get back to you.