Search engine marketing

What is search engine marketing?

Search engine marketing, or SEM, is a form of Internet marketing to promote websites via search engines. According to different definitions, it may involve only paying for sponsored listings that appear with search engine results, or it may include SEO (search engine optimization) and some other types of Internet marketing.
SEM and SEO compared

No consensus exists on how to draw the line between SEM (search engine marketing) and SEO (search engine optimization). The following are some generally accepted comparisons.

* The goal of both SEO and SEM is to bring targeted traffic to websites.
* SEO is part of SEM or is related to SEM, depending on the viewpoint. Either way, SEO and SEM work best when techniques for both SEO and SEM are used.
* SEO involves mostly on-site techniques such as researching and using suitable keywords in key places and making sure that search engine bots can access all the site content. (See Search engine optimization for a longer description.) SEM involves off-site techniques to promote sites via search engines.
* SEO helps sites do well in organic (natural) search results. SEM helps sites do well in paid listings and (depending on how SEM is defined) may contribute to improved positions in organic search results.
* SEM techniques are often included in discussions about SEO.
* SEM can have almost instant results, while with SEO, it takes time for results to be seen.
* Both SEM and SEO are ongoing processes if a site is to continue to do well or to improve in search engine results.

Search engine marketing techniques
Pay-per-click (PPC) ads

Every search engine has pay-per-click (PPC) listings that appear on the same page as search engine results. Their disadvantage is that they are paid listings, and people are less likely to click on these links than on organic search results. Their advantage is that with the right keywords and bid amounts, you can be almost certain they will appear on the first page of search results for target keywords. (Google factors in the click-through rate for ads, which adds an additional variable in where ads appear in sponsored listings.)
Paid inclusion

Many online directories require a fee for listings. Paid inclusion in directories is sometimes considered part of SEM. While being listed in a paid directory doesn't in itself mean that the site will appear higher in search results, directories that charge for inclusion often provide valuable backlinks to sites, which helps improve placements in search engine results. Also, the directories themselves may appear high in search results for target keywords.

Paid inclusion can also refer to the practice of some, mostly smaller search engines to guarantee immediate listings for a fee. Guaranteed ranking is not typically included in that fee.
Other online advertising

While not directly connected with search engines, other types of online advertising such as banner ads and contextual advertising are sometimes included in descriptions of SEM.