Skip to main content

What Is Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?

SEO is short for search engine optimization. It means improving your website so that it appears in Google, Microsoft Bing or other search engines, whenever someone searches for:


  • Product you sell.
  • Services you provide.
  • Provide information on subjects in which your expertise or experience is deep.


Your pages will be more easily found and click on if they are visible in the search engine results. Search engine optimization's goal is to bring in website visitors, who can then become clients or customers.


What will you learn from this guide?


What are the differences between SEO, SEM and PPC SEO?


SEM (Search Engine Marketing) and PPC (Pay Per Click) are also terms you’ll see and hear a lot on Search Engine Land, and in the wider search marketing community.

Continue reading to find out more about SEO and these terms. 



SEO vs. SEM


Search marketing is commonly known as SEM (search engine marketing).


It is one of the types of digital marketing. The term SEO/PPC is used as a collective for the activities that combine SEO with PPC to generate traffic from organic search or paid search.


In a nutshell, search marketing involves gaining visibility and traffic through search engines using both paid and non-paid methods.


What are the differences between SEO and SEM? The two are technically the same - SEO is just one half of Search Engine Marketing:


  • Search Engine Optimization = increasing organic traffic through search engines.
  • SEM is a term used to describe the organic and paid search engine traffic.


Here's where it gets a little confusing.


SEM is often used interchangeably with Pay-Per-Click (which we will discuss in the next section).

SEO seems to be undercut by this notion. SEO is marketing just as PPC is.


The best way to approach SEO and SEM is


Imagine SEM as a single coin. The SEO side is the coin. PPC represents the inverse side.


SEO vs. PPC


The term PPC is short for Pay-Per-Click. This type of marketing involves charging advertisers every time one of their advertisements gets clicked.


In essence, advertisers place bids on certain keywords or phrases for which they wish their ads to be displayed in search engine result pages. Advertisers' ads will be displayed when users search for those phrases or keywords.


SEO, on the other hand, is the free side of the coin. PPC, however, is the paid-side.


This is not an "either-or" question. Choose both, if your budget permits. Choose both if your budget permits.


SEM is used interchangeably with PPC in the industry, as mentioned earlier. Search Engine Land isn't like that.


We use the term "SEM" to refer both to SEO (organic) and PPC ("paid search").


You can read more about this history in these articles if you are curious as to why "SEM", or "SEO", was changed into "PPC".


  • The Wikipedia Guide to Paid Search
  • Does SEM = SEO + CPC Still Add Up?


Why SEO is important?


SEO can be a powerful marketing tool. The organic search is responsible for 53 percent of the traffic to websites and Social Media services.


The global SEO market is expected to grow by a whopping $122.11 Billion in 2028. SEO is a powerful tool that delivers tangible business results to businesses, brands and organizations.


Search engines are the first thing people do when they want to find out information, buy something or go someplace.


Today, the search landscape is disjointed. Users can search using traditional search engines like Google or Microsoft Bing, social platforms such as YouTube or TikTok and retailer websites.


Amazon is the first place that 61% of U.S. shoppers begin their online product searches, as opposed to Google, which receives 49%. The same research also revealed:


  • Walmart.com: 32% of the sales will begin on this site.
  • 20% start on YouTube.
  • 19% start on Facebook.
  • 15% start on Instagram.
  • 11% start on TikTok.


Each year, trillions of searches occur. The search engine is the most important source of website traffic.

Increasing your search ranking and visibility can improve your business.


The SERP (search engine results page) is a highly competitive environment, with many search options (and ads). SERP features can include:


  • Knowledge panels.
  • Featured snippets.
  • Maps.
  • Images.
  • Videos.
  • Top stories (news).
  • Some People Ask
  • Carousels.


SEO has another important reason for businesses and brands: unlike some other marketing channels it's sustainable. The traffic will also decrease when the paid campaign has ended. The traffic from social media is unreliable at best, and only a fraction what it used to be.


All marketing efforts are important, and SEO is the basis of this holistic approach. When you know what users are looking for, you can implement this information across:


  • Campaigns, paid and organic.
  • Website content.
  • Social media properties.


SEO can help you achieve your key business objectives, such as conversions and sales. This also helps to build trust. Google will reward websites that rank well with higher rankings if they are deemed authoritative and trustworthy.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

8 SEO Benefits that will Boost Your Business

When SEO is used effectively, it can offer businesses many benefits including an increase in web traffic as well as more qualified sales leads. SEO, at its heart, has the ability to attract more organic attention for your business. This means that it won't cost anything. By understanding the fundamental principles of SEO, you can create high-ranking appealing content in order to attract your target audiences.  Implementing SEO practices and understanding them will result in increased growth for your business and higher levels of engagement. Learn more about the SEO principles that can benefit your company, or jumpstart a new job with this knowledge  seo services online . What is SEO? Search engine optimization refers to a series of practices which any creator of web content can utilize to increase the visibility of their website in search results. (Or, to bring content nearer to the very top of any site that hosts a search, making it more accessible to users, who are likely to...
Post a Comment
Read more

Social Media Customer Service Strategy

Introduction Customer service via social media is on the rise and can be a powerful tool for building positive brands' image. Supporting consumers through various social media outlets like Facebook or Twitter has become the norm. It is important to respond as quickly and efficiently as possible. You may think the best way to help your customers is by providing social media customer support, but they do not use this platform all the time. In order to make a good social media plan for fast customer support, it is important to keep in mind many other aspects. Here are a couple of tips you can use to create an effective strategy for online customer service  benifites of SEO . This article will cover the next topic. Top 3 Practices To Make Best Possible Social Media Strategy There is no doubt that you are a part of several social media networks like Facebook and Twitter. There is no reason to be surprised if this is true. Online is a part of everyday life for almost all people.  Co...
Post a Comment
Read more

Social Media marketing: What are the benefits and what is it?

What is Social Media Marketing Marketing through social media is the use of platforms, channels, and other social channels in order to advertise a brand, its products, or services. Today, social media marketing is a crucial part of digital marketing. Due to the growth of social platforms and their large audiences, a good social media marketing plan is crucial to a business's success online. A business can use both free as well as paid social media marketing to increase online visibility for its offerings. Social media marketing by definition is a social venture, so it is unwise to not use its social capabilities. All actions within social media are social behaviors of online target audiences  web development service online . In order to get the most out of social media you need engaging content. Regardless of the platform. Let's dig into the social media marketing and its benefits for businesses. Increase Traffic Online With Social Media Marketing The use of social media market...
Post a Comment
Read more