SEO VS. SEM: Is There Really a Difference?
To help determine the differences, we need to define both.
SEO: Search Engine Optimization
SEO is Search Engine Optimization. It is the process of optimizing web sites by refining both internal and external properties to ultimately increase traffic from search engines, like Google and Yahoo. When optimizing a web site, many elements need to be reviewed. Some of the common web site design elements that can influence search engine compatibility are; the title element, text links and having keyword rich body text on each page. Since SEO deals with designing a well written, well-structured web site, that is user and search engine friendly, you will need to start your online marketing program with SEO.
How Does Web Hosting Affect SEO?
One factor that needs to be contemplated, when optimizing your website, is the type of web hosting you are using. You need to be assured that your host will keep your site up and running, with minimal down time. Otherwise, your optimization efforts will be impacted. The other factor that could impact your site is your host’s server speed. If it is slow, your page will take too long to load and your potential visitors might click off before even seeing your site. We recommend doing some research on the various hosting programs available, and make some solid comparisons before you select one.
Hosting Windows – a type of hosting you can go for otherwise there are many hosting options available to you. Search “hosting plans” and compare them for the one that best fits your needs.
SEM: Search Engine Marketing
SEM is web speak for Search Engine Marketing. SEO is simply one piece of SEM. A solid search engine marketing program is the function of promoting a web site to ultimately drive traffic to it. Some options to incorporate in your search engine marketing plan include the following.
PPC: Pay Per Click Advertising
Pay Per Click is simply searching engine advertising. Pay Per Click ads are text ads that are displayed when your keyword phrase is typed into a search engine. An example of this type of advertising is Google AdWords. Yahoo offers a similar advertising program.
Pay per click campaigns allow you to select where you ad will appear. For example, you can have it appear only on Google SERPs (search engine results pages) or your ad can be shown on relevant websites throughout the network.
If you wish, you can restrict who sees your ad. You can filter the audience by language or country. You decide how much you wish to pay every time a visitor clicks on your ad. This form of advertising can become costly, however, it will increase you sites page rank very quickly.
CPM: Cost Per Thousand Advertising
CPC advertising is generally less expensive than PPC advertising and can be a good alternative. The difference is that you pay for the number of impressions your ad receives versus the number of times someone clicks on it. There are many advertising options available to you that are CPM based. Incorporating a CPM program into your mix will help increase the overall effectiveness of your search engine marketing plan.
Paid Inclusion
This is simply an option to pay a directory or search engine to be included in their database immediately instead of waiting for the search engine to find the site themselves. Some directories and search engines only offer paid inclusion. This may be a viable option for your site, but you must be sure that it fits within your marketing budget.
Link Building
Link building is a viable practice to drive traffic to your site and relevant links actually help increase your sites page rank. As long as you have interesting content on your site, people will link to it. A link building program can include simply asking your visitors to link to your site, start an informational blog, ask for links from highly relevant sites or submit your site to relevant directories. You should never purchase links or swap links with non-relevant sites.
The Benefits of a Solid SEM Plan
A solid SEM plan ultimately increases traffic to your web site. The benefits are extensive. The differences between each aspect of a solid SEM plan are sometimes very subtle. Combined, they will ultimately increase the visibility of your site.
You SEM approach can also give your business a competitive edge. It can influence your site visitors to choose your products or services over your competitors.
In Summary
Your SEM strategy starts with solid SEO techniques. You need to start with viable, interesting, keyword rich content, and your site should be search engine friendly.
Once you have your site online, you can start promoting it with a solid SEM strategy. It takes some work, but the rewards far exceed the investment of your time and money.