Importance of SEM in your overall marketing strategy

So you’ve put up a website, but can anyone find it? Many people have spent thousands sometimes even tens of thousands of dollars putting up a fantastic looking website. However, they usually have not given much consideration as to how to market that website and how to get a steady flow of visitors to the website. This is where Search Engine Marketing (SEM) comes into play.

Everyone can agree that the acceleration of online activity over the past five years has been nothing short of phenomenal. Our global society has witnessed unprecedented growth in the area of online activity from conducting research to shopping and everything in between. This growth has spanned not only desktop but mobile technologies as well. So why is it that some businesses, or industries for that matter, may still fall behind a bit when it comes to prioritizing SEM into their overall marketing strategy? Perhaps many don’t have a solid grasp of what it is and how it can work for them, so we’d like to help with that.

What exactly is SEM?

First, what exactly is Search Engine Marketing? It’s a term that we hear tossed around quite a bit these days, but nevertheless, it’s important to have a good understanding of what it is. Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is the entire set of techniques and strategies used to generate more visitors from search engines to your business or marketing website. SEM seeks to promote websites by increasing their visibility in search engine results pages. This is accomplished through the use of paid search, contextual advertising, and organic placement.

Paid Search

Paid search refers to the text ads that show up in search engines such as Google or Bing, which are targeted to a user’s keyword search. Paid search is very targeted advertising, and when supported with strong analytics, can be very useful in determining ROI. Paid search can also be referred to as search marketing, pay per click (PPC) or cost-per-click advertising.

Contextual Advertising refers to text ads that are the targeted to writings on the web such as blogs or news articles.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Organic Search or Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the results that come up via a generic search. In order to have your business site rank high in a search, it is important that you optimize HTML code, web page copy, site navigation and more. The higher your site appears in a search, the more likely consumers will click on it. So, how can SEM work for you and your business? Well, as stated above “SEM seeks to promote websites by increasing their visibility in search engine results pages through the use of paid search, contextual advertising, and organic placement.”

Good SEM will literally drive business to your site. To break it down into a few specifics, here are four ways that SEM can support your overall marketing strategy:

SEM can increase and enhance your brand awareness.
SEM can sell products, services or content online.
SEM can generate online leads and increase sales.
SEM can provide informational and educational content.

Digital Marketing Conversion Rates

Remember all digital marketing come with a price. As a Netrepreneur you will need to analyze the potential cost and revenue for each method. It is also vital to do a break-even analysis and see at what point you start seeing a profit. Most companies experience traffic conversion rates of .5% to 2.5%. However, the conversion rate depends on how well you target your audience, and the marketing medium you use to reach that audience. Some of our clients have experienced 8% conversion rates. These accomplishments were via our search engine optimization efforts due to how we targeted their keywords to reach their intended audience.

No matter what your marketing mix, in the end, you must deliver excellence to your customer. The customer must be the focal point of your business. When your customer feels they are getting their money’s worth, they will not only buy from you. They will refer other clients to you as well. Word-of-mouth advertising is the least expensive and most effective way of securing business.

Looking to Optimize your SEM?

Overall, SEM really should be an integral component of your digital marketing strategy, not just an after-thought. If you’re not sure that you are optimizing your SEM or looking to improve your digital strategy, give us a call 206.476.3013. At S9 Digital, we love helping businesses increase brand awareness, generate leads and increase sales. We’d love to help your business as well. Contact us today, we look forward to working with you.