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Definition: It is the process of optimizing a website to rank higher in search engine results.

Explanation:

Many eCommerce companies often rely on search engine marketing to reach their target audience.

This type of marketing has become necessary especially in today’s world where people are always using the internet to look for something.

Search engine marketing is a type of digital marketing strategy that involves the promotion of a company’s products and services on various search engines.

This strategy aims to attract customers by increasing the visibility of the company’s website on search engine results pages.

For example, a company that is targeting sports car owners can make content around this topic or products related to these types of cars.

In doing so, they will be able to connect with people looking for information about sports cars. 

Why is it important?

Search engine marketing is important because it is the most cost-effective and efficient way to reach your target audience.

With so many people using search engines to look up information, businesses are always aiming to appear at the top of the list.

The more frequently your site appears on these sites, the more traffic will come to your site.

This can lead to increased sales and lead generation.

What are the 3 main search engine marketing products?

The types of Search Engine Marketing (SEM) include pay-per-click, local SEO, and organic SEO.

Each type has its own benefits and drawbacks.

Pay-Per-Click (PPC)

A PPC campaign lets companies promote their products and services on the internet, at a cost per click

This can be done by paying to advertise on search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo, and others.

Pros: Helps you rank higher and is more targeted

Cons: Costs a lot

Local SEO

This strategy involves ranking high on Google Maps results. 

It also allows your company to be found by people who are looking for a local business in their area, not just in general search queries.

Pros: Limited competition

Cons: This doesn’t guarantee SERP visibility.

Organic SEO

Organic SEO is a strategy that can be employed by small business owners to gain more leads and conversions without the need to invest in costly advertising campaigns. 

The organic route uses tactics such as producing high-quality, relevant content, optimizing for search engines with title tags, meta descriptions, and keywords.

Pros: Doesn’t cost anything

Cons: Takes time to rank high

SEO and SEM Compared

SEO and SEM are two similar terms to describe the process of using these tools to drive relevant traffic to a website, which can result in either organic or paid results.

These two terms are often confused and thought to be the same, but SEM stands for search engine marketing.

SEO is a part of SEM and includes on-page optimization while some aspects of SEM include pay-per-click campaigns, etc.

What are keywords in SEM?

Keywords are a powerful tool for search engine marketing. 

These are what people type into the search engine to find products or information related to their search. 

It can be an entire phrase, like “incoming flights” or it can also be just one word, like “airfare”. 

The goal of SEO is to rank high in search engine results pages (SERPs) for the keywords that a company wants to rank for, based on the different search queries entered by customers

If you want to rank higher online, you need a good SEM strategy that will get your business noticed by potential customers.

What is a good SEM strategy?

Having a good SEM strategy is essential for businesses that want to rank well in the SERPs.

It gets more people to look at your business and increase revenue, while also reducing costs. 

As a result, SEM often yields a high return on investment for small and medium-sized businesses.

Here are a few ways to make one ‘s website stand out from others:

Keyword Planning

Keyword planning is a technique used to plan and execute strategies for achieving better rankings in search engine results pages (SERPS).

It usually starts with keyword research, which provides insights into the terms that people are searching for on Google. 

Conduct A/B Testing

Conducting A/B testing can help marketers analyze how different versions of a page will perform before they implement any changes.

With this method, marketers can test designs, calls-to-action, content, or anything that could potentially impact performance. 

Measure Campaign Performance

Measuring campaign performance is an important part of running a successful campaign. 

Campaigns can be measured in a number of different ways, but by far the two most popular metrics are cost-per-click (CPC) and cost-per-thousand (CPM). 

Optimize Search Campaigns

Companies that employ search engine marketing (SEM) techniques to optimize their search campaigns can see an increase in conversions and in traffic.

Poor optimization can lead to decreased rankings, costing the company money and limiting marketability.

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