Many people are confused because there are two phrases in the Internet Marketing community working together and they are often used interchangeably. They are SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and SEM (Search Engine Marketing).
There is a big difference between SEO and SEM. SEM (Search Engine Marketing) is a broader term; it includes all the strategies for promoting your website on the search engines. SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is a method of getting a website ranked in the organic or natural search results.
There’s 3 types of SEM;
Organic SEO
This is a process of improving your website’s rankings naturally. Some considers this as part science and part art. It prepares a web page to be found for certain keywords and key phrases. Organic (natural) SEO uses keyword phrases prominently on the website page itself (body text, headings, links, etc). This is usually coupled with a link building strategy.
Local search
This also uses organic SEO methods mixed with state, zip codes and city. These geo factors bring in searchers looking for local business. This can include Google’s directory and profile listings as well as other local directories.
Pay Per Click (PPC)
This the advertising on Google and other search engines. These advertisements come up based on the keyword query and they appear under the sponsored results. You only pay for visitors that clicks through to your websites. This includes Yahoo!, Bing (Microsoft adCenter) and Google Adwords.
There are other types of Internet Marketing that can be used to promote your website and business with the search engines.
Social Media Marketing
SMM (social media marketing) includes blog marketing, Micro blogging (Twitter), social networking and more. You can set up profiles on popular social networking (Web 2.0) sites like Facebook and LinkedIn. You can publish your own blog or participate in online discussions as an expert.
Article marketing
Write and publish educational articles and place them on article syndication websites. Other website owners can publish them on their websites. Links in the bottom resource box will lead interested people to your website.
To get the best results from your Internet marketing efforts, multiple SEM and SEO methods should be used. Traffic strategies needs to be devised when a website is in the planning process. Search Engine Optimization works best when it is planned into the website structure rather than added later.
Francois, Nice clarification of the difference between the terms.
The information is really good that I understood the differences between SEM and SEO on one read . I appreciate the author who wrote this article . Am so thankful to you . Keep writitng number of articles.
Thank you very much for this usefull seo information.
Thank you very much for this usefull seo information.
put simply SEO is just a part of SEM
i commend you for an easy to understand post
good luck mate
Thanks for explaining this concept. Some people really mix these two up. But the important thing to know is that, if you have a budget to do it, it is better to apply both to your online marketing campaign to get better results.
ReputationManagementConsultants.com
Nice information. Its usefulness and significance is overwhelming the way you covered all the basic necessary information is really impressive, good work keep it up.
Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is a type of Internet marketing that SEM experts undertake to promote a website on search engines result pages (SERPS) and their properties. Search Engine Marketing could refer to search engine optimization, Pay per click (PPC) advertising, and/or paid inclusion. However, SEM is mostly known as the practice of pay per click ad management.
Search Engine Optimization, SEO, is the process of optimizing your website undertaken by SEO Experts so that it gets a high ranking for your targeted key phrases.
SEM means Search Engine Marketing SEO is search engine optimization. SEO is based on success in the search for natural and long-term SEM through sponsorships, advertising, banners and pay per click, which will help website owners to create immediate results recognizable.
Search Engine Optimization is used for the method of getting a website ranked in the organic or natural search results. SEM search engine marketing have a some parts ,used to pay per click and social media marketing and locial search , article marketing .To get the best results from your Internet marketing efforts, multiple SEM and SEO methods should be used.
Indeed. That is what is explained above ^^
Your article explains the difference of SEM and SEO clearly:)