Growing your business online means understanding digital marketing, its many different channels, and when to use each for the best results. In this article, I will explain what SEM and SEO are in digital marketing so you will better understand where to spend your marketing resources.
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What are SEO and SEM in Digital Marketing and How are They Different?
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, and SEM is an umbrella term for Search Engine Marketing.
SEO comes under SEM, but the SEO process varies so significantly from other SEM strategies that it deserves its own category. When marketers refer to SEM, they usually talk about paid advertisements, such as Google Ads.
The primary difference between SEO and SEM is that SEO generates organic traffic. SEM relies on visitors clicking on ads you have paid for, such as a Google ad that shows alongside the organic search results.
SEM marketing results bring in instant traffic, while SEO can take months before you see the fruits of your efforts.
“Organic traffic” is visitors who arrive on your site by clicking on a link that appears in the regular search results.”
More Differences Between SEM and SEO
- SEO results can include featured snippets, but SEM ads can have featured extensions
- Website owners pay for clicks on SEM ads, while clicks from the search results cost nothing
- SEM only adds value while you continue to pay for the campaign. SEO increases the value of a website over time.
Similarities Between SEM and SEO
- The campaign goal for both SEO and SEM is to attract high-quality traffic to websites
- Both strategies require an understanding of your audience
- The success of both SEM and SEO relies on good keyword research
- Both strategies require constant testing, analysis, and optimization
How Much Do SEM and SEO Cost?
SEO is often portrayed as a free marketing option, but this is not entirely accurate.
Doing everything yourself with free tools will cost nothing except time, which is a limited resource.
Tools are available to make SEO research more efficient, but most are only available with a monthly subscription fee. However, a good keyword tool is one of the most mission-critical SEO tools you can have in your arsenal. You will significantly reduce your time researching profitable phrases to target.
Keyword tools like SEMRush and AHrefs are leaders in the field, but the learning curves are steep, and even the cheapest plans put them out of reach of most small business owners.
WriterZen is a more affordable option with a broad selection of useful add-ons. The software has a decent keyword research tool, an SEO checklist, and a content optimization tool to help you craft better content than your competition.
Other software that will help you craft content that will rise in the SERPs includes SEO content writing software like NeuronWriter, NeuralText, and Blogely.
My favorite tools include WriterZen and Ubersuggest for keyword and topic research.
Although WriterZen does have a robust SEO content optimizer good enough for those who prefer to stick with one tool, I prefer NeuronWriter because of its focus on competitive analysis for a given phrase.
It analyses the search results in-depth and gives me all the information about what my articles need to beat the competition.
Depending on what tools you use regularly and how much content you are producing, expenses for SEO could range from less than $100 a month to hundreds of dollars for prolific writers.
Another option for small businesses wanting to up their SEO game is to partner with an SEO agency that handles everything for you.
Do your due diligence when researching SEO agencies, as the industry has many shady operators. Expect to pay anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand a month, depending on your needs and marketing budget.
When using PPC as part of an SEM campaign, you control the budget and set a daily limit. Your paid ads will keep showing up until the budget is spent. You compete with other advertisers for the top spot, so the more competitive your targeted keywords are, the more you will pay per click.
A complex algorithm decides which advertisers show up in the results, which includes a quality score assigned to your ads and the content they link to. Ensuring you link to high-quality content that delivers on the advertised promise can improve your click-through rates and campaign results.
SEM vs. SEO: Which is the Better Option?
SEO is a part of SEM, but it depends on your goals as to whether you will stick solely with SEO or incorporate other SEM strategies, like PPC, into your marketing campaign. Both have their place and offer benefits to your digital marketing strategy.
What is SEO Digital Marketing?
SEO stands for “search engine optimization” and refers to practices that help your site rank in the search engines’ organic results for a given search term.
Unlike an SEM PPC campaign, where you pay to appear in designated ad spots, you do not pay the search engines directly for an organic listing.
Instead, you earn it by delivering great content and exceptional user experiences. Search engine bots crawl your site to catalog the content and report back to Google’s algorithm with the results.
The complex algorithm sorts through billions of websites and ranks them against the many quality metrics Google employs to score a website.
Accommodating an advanced algorithm makes SEO complicated. Google uses more than two hundred closely guarded metrics to rank each website with the goal to deliver the best and most relevant content to the user
There are other cogs in the digital marketing machine, including off-page optimization strategies like backlinks, technical SEO like page speed (faster is better for the visitor), social media, and others.
However, good SEO starts with great content that builds your authority and improves your brand recognition. The more Google views your site as an authority, the more terms your content will rank for and the higher up the SERPs your site will go.
SEO is not a quick fix. It’s a long-term strategy of content planning, creation, and optimization that can take months or years to show results. Still, it is a critical part of your marketing strategy that requires constant vigilance. In contrast, a successful PPC SEM campaign will generate instant traffic for as long as you pay.
What is SEM?
As you know, SEM is a general term that covers a variety of digital marketing strategies, including:
- PPC (Pay Per Click)
- Display advertising (banners, videos, images)
- Remarketing or retargeting
Unlike SEO, using PPC with search engine marketing can be a quick fix to your traffic woes. If your website is new, branded search advertisements can get the ball rolling in establishing your business online.
Paid SEM strategies are an excellent option when your website is new, and you need to generate traffic and attract leads into your sales funnel.
Businesses with an already established online presence could use an SEM campaign that focuses on improving CRO (Conversion Rate Optimization).
When to Use SEO Vs. SEM
If you were to pick one to start with, I recommend SEO.
SEO creates a reliable traffic source over the long term that does not need a regular injection of cash. Digital advertising is an excellent strategy, but it’s volatile if it’s your only traffic source for generating leads and sales.
It depends on your goals as to whether a paid or organic campaign will be better for your situation.
For the best results, create a digital marketing strategy that uses SEM and SEO to build your brand, as more channels mean a diverse audience for growing traffic and filling your sales funnel.
SEO is preferred in many cases because you do the work once, and it will continue to generate traffic while you focus on other things. SEO works best when:
- You want traffic that doesn’t come with a monthly ad spend
- Waiting 3 to 6 months for the traffic to start flowing isn’t an issue
- You’ve got the time or the resources to manage your SEO strategy
In contrast, a paid SEM approach is better when:
- You need to appear in the search results for highly competitive phrases and can’t wait years for SEO traffic
- You need an immediate influx of leads and sales
- You have the budget for a paid marketing campaign
As you can see, your strategy will depend on your circumstances. Both channels will complement each other if you have the resources to manage an omnichannel campaign.
Another significant advantage over a paid SEM campaign is that you can access a large and diverse audience. Unlike SEO, you can constantly tweak and experiment with your message to reach different demographics over many channels.
The data you collect from your campaigns is invaluable in deciphering your audience’s behavior and getting clues about how to craft ads they will find more appealing and “clickable.”
In contrast, SEO is more set in its ways. Changes you make to your content can take months to show results.
High-quality, relevant content that answers a user’s search intent is the foundation of every SEO strategy. If you are struggling to fill your business blog with affordable SEO content, get in touch today to learn more about how I can help.