Understanding the Difference Between Search Engine Marketing and Search Engine Optimisation (SEM vs SEO)
Understanding the Difference Between Search Engine Marketing and Search Engine Optimisation (SEM vs SEO)
Businesses are rapidly shifting to the digital space as it helps them reach a larger consumer base, that too, with a considerably low monetary investment. Various digital channels and online mediums are now available to reach online audiences. Some of the most commonly used digital marketing tactics are social media marketing, search engine marketing (SEM), search engine optimisation (SEO), content marketing, video marketing, email marketing, PPC (pay-per-click) services, etc. While most of the services are quite common and are clearly perceived by businesses, SEO and SEM often tend to create confusion. Read on to understand the difference between SEO and SEM and find out which one is more suitable for your business. And if you are looking for an SEO company or a search engine marketing company, head on to Interactive Bees’ website to seek best-in-industry services.
What are SEO and SEM?
SEO is a tactic that helps improve the search engine ranking of your website. In other words, if you want your website to show up in the top results when a user makes a search engine query using the keywords related to your business, you need SEO for that.
SEM is also used to increase search visibility, however, it primarily involves paid advertising such as PPC ads.
While SEO drives organic traffic to your website, SEM brings mostly paid traffic.
Which one is costlier?
While both the strategies are economical and value-for-money, SEO is comparatively cheaper than SEM. This is because SEM involves paid advertising. Note that both SEO and SEM can generate exponential returns on your investment, when done right. Also, the pricing for one strategy can vary from business to business depending upon their industry, nature, marketing requirements, the scale of SEO/SEM performed, and other factors. Hire an experienced SEO and search engine marketing company, such as Interactive Bees, to make the most out of your digital marketing budget.
Which one generates faster results?
SEM starts generating results as soon as you launch your ads. However, these results may not be at par with your expectations. It may require a few weeks to gather more data, like KPIs (key performance indicators), analyse them, and optimise the ads accordingly to generate desired results. SEO generally takes a couple of months to start showing results.
Which one should you pick for your business - SEO or SEM?
Both SEO and SEM have their own benefits and drawbacks. One can not replace the requirement of the other. For the best results, employ an SEM strategy that involves SEO since together they can enhance each other’s performance, leave a greater impact on your audiences and generate better results. Interactive Bees is one of the best branding agencies in Delhi that offers comprehensive and custom-designed digital marketing services for your business. The combination plans offered by them can help you drive traffic from multiple channels, viz. organic (search), paid and social, at the same time. Thus, for enhanced results, go for a holistic approach including both SEO and SEM.
If you are planning to start slow and pick only one strategy initially, consider your business requirements, marketing goals, budget, and overall situation to make a decision. For example, if you want to drive immediate sales and have the budget and resources to run paid ads, SEM is the best choice for you. On the other hand, if you want a steady flow of traffic without investing much and can wait for a few months to start seeing results, SEO is the answer. For expert services, you can hire established agencies, such as Interactive Bees, that craft the most profitable and comprehensive digital marketing strategies for your business and offer all the related services under one roof. Also, avoid making a hurried decision when it comes to online marketing since it needs a considerable amount of your time, money and resources.