There is not much difference between SEO and SEM. SEO focuses on optimizing your website to rank higher in search results so you can drive in more regular traffic. SEM focuses on paid strategies like Pay Per Click (PPC). Both are advertising to increase the organic and paid traffic to your website.
What is SEM?
SEM is a generic term that includes SEO and various paid advertising strategies used by search engines. On the Google search engine, marketers are using keywords that users can search, see and enter, when they can search for some products or services. This is giving the advertiser the see and show their ads with organic search results for those search terms. The most popular search tool which is working with paid advertising is Google Ads.
Five popular SEM strategies include:
1.
PPC
2.
Local SEO
3.
Display advertising
4.
Shopping or advertising products
5.
Remarketing
Oftentimes, companies will select the SEM strategies they would like to use according to their specific needs.
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A company that just launched its website can focus on branded search advertising and PPC to gain a foothold online as early as possible, while a company that has been online for 10 years can focus on converting existing traffic with CRO.
What is SEO?
In fact, SEO is the practice of making your website as easy to use as
possible. When you do this, Google and other search engines will notice that
your site is of value to your visitors. They will then start ranking you ahead
of your competitors in search results. This increase in your rankings will
attract more users who have a great experience and show search engines that you
are a valuable and useful resource in your industry. This cycle continues as
you work on your site, especially when you follow best SEO practices.
What
are the benefits of SEM over SEO?
Some of the advantages of SEM over SEO:
● SEM has an immediate impact
One of the key benefits of paid SEM strategies is that they can have an immediate effect. You have complete control over your PPC campaigns: who sees your ads, how much you pay, when your ads are shown, and more.
● SEM provides targeted advertising
A large-scale SEM strategy is great for businesses looking for targeted campaigns for a large audience. You can create unique promotional messages for different groups of people in different environments.
However, most companies will be fine with only a few strategies. Small, medium, and even large companies usually don't need to use every SEM strategy at once.
●
SEM serves
as a cost-effective strategy
Another key part of SEM's appeal is its profitability. When you partner with an agency, you can pay several hundred or thousands of dollars for the services provided. However, the payoff is enormous. This is also fully tracked using analytical software.
This gives SEM a big advantage over traditional marketing. SEM is more affordable, economical, and traceable than something like a billboard or TV ad.
While you can continue to use traditional SEM advertising, many companies are finding that they can simply use SEM and succeed.
For companies looking to make great strides in their marketing, there is
always the opportunity to use SEM and traditional advertising together.
What are the
disadvantages of SEM versus SEO?
Some of the disadvantages of SEM over SEO:
●
SEM requires monthly advertising
costs
In addition to the costs of developing and managing SEM campaigns, you should also set aside funds for running advertising campaigns or monthly advertising costs. If you don't have monthly ad spend, your ads won't run, which can lead to a sudden (and instant) drop in traffic, leads, and sales.
● SEM targets users at the bottom of the funnel
While businesses like the willingness to buy from users at the bottom of the funnel, limiting yourself to that section of the purchase funnel can lead you to miss out on valuable users in the top and middle of the funnel. With SEO, for example, you can attract these users and turn them into your next buyer.
When it comes to SEM, it offers your business a quick way to generate income. The problem, however, is that SEM requires a constant investment of your time and money to generate this kind of income, which can reduce your ROI.
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