Search Engine Marketing (SEM) and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) are two crucial digital marketing strategies that are used to drive traffic to websites and improve online visibility. While both techniques aim to achieve these goals, they have different approaches, techniques and tactics.
SEM primarily focuses on paid advertising on search engines, while SEO is focused on optimizing a website’s content and structure to rank organically in search engine results pages (SERPs).
In this blog, we will be diving deeper into the differences between SEM and SEO and how they can be leveraged together to achieve the best results for your online presence.
All About SEM & Its Tactics
Apart from being the large umbrella that includes SEO, Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is a digital marketing strategy that strictly promotes a website through paid advertising on search engine results pages. Involving various tactics such as pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, cost-per-impression (CPM) advertising, and shopping ads, SEM is an ultimate method that drives highly targeted traffic to a website and generates leads or sales for a business. In PPC advertising, advertisers pay each time a user clicks on one of their ads. In CPM advertising, advertisers pay each time their ad is displayed 1000 times.
Speed & Cost of SEM
The time and cost required to achieve results with Search Engine Marketing (SEM) can vary depending on several factors such as the competitiveness of the keywords being targeted, the budget allocated for the campaign, and the overall marketing strategy.
Speaking of time, SEM campaigns can start achieving high traffic and conversion rates within one or few days of launch, yet few weeks to several months to obtain positive ROI.
As for cost, SEM operates on a bidding system where advertisers compete for ad placement on search engine results pages (SERPs). The cost of a campaign can depend on the cost per click (CPC) and cost per impression (CPM) of the keywords being targeted. The cost can also be influenced by the industry, competition level, and the budget allocated for the campaign. On average, small businesses can expect to spend anywhere from a few hundred dollars to several thousand dollars per month on SEM campaigns. However, the cost will ultimately depend on the specific goals and strategies of the campaign.
All About SEO & Its Tactics
Contrary to how paid advertising, the main focus of SEM, works, SEO’s sole approach and goal is to increase a website’s visibility and drive organic traffic by ranking high in search engine results for relevant keywords. Moreover, SEO involves several tactics such as keyword research, on-page optimization, off-page optimization, link building, and content creation.
On-Page Vs. Off-Page Optimization
Since SEO mainly focuses on organic website traffic and conversions, two subcategories of SEO are usually required to ensure you effective, organic results.
On-page optimization involves optimizing elements such as the title tag, header tags, meta description, and website content to improve its relevance and quality for search engines. On the other hand, off-page optimization improves the website’s authority and credibility through tactics such as link building and social media marketing. Link building involves acquiring high-quality links from other websites, which signals to search engines that the website is valuable and relevant.
Speed & Cost of SEO
Unlike SEM, SEO is a long-term strategy that takes time to show significant results. It typically takes anywhere from several months to a year to see significant improvements in search engine rankings, although some small changes may be noticed sooner.
Speaking of cost, since SEO drives traffic and conversions organically, alot can falsely assume that SEO is completely for free. Although SEO doesn’t involve cost-per-click, the cost of SEO can range from a few hundred dollars to several thousand dollars per month, depending on the specific goals and strategies of the campaign, as well as the resources and expertise required. Ultimately, the cost will depend on the desired level of investment and the expected return on investment (ROI).
When To Choose Either of Them
Consequently, SEO will probably be your ultimate go-to if your budget is limited, if you’re planning to rank for informational keywords, if you can wait as long as you can for effective results, and if you’re good at link-building.
However, in case you have a consistent Ad budget, can manage Google Ads account, and are able to launch and test landing pages, SEM or paid advertising will definitely be the ultimate choice.
How To Blend Both Together For The Perfect Outcomes
Both SEO and SEM rely on keywords to drive traffic to websites and pages, aiming to improve traffic flow and marketing activities.
To improve long-term visibility, you can incorporate SEO for free, organic traffic, and SEM for paid, targeted ads.
For SEM to be successful, the website must first be optimized for SEO. For new websites, PPC campaigns can be prioritized first, but SEO should not be ignored during the process.
