Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Search Engine Marketing (SEM) are often pitted against each other, but the two strategies actually work in tandem to deliver in-market consumers to your website.

SEO is the practice of increasing the quantity and quality of traffic to your website through organic search engine results, while SEM is the practice of gaining website traffic through paid efforts, such as paid search and display advertising.

Overall, SEO and SEM refer to the strategies and tactics related to making your business visible to consumers who are in market and looking for your product or service. We have found that you can get the most out of SEO and SEM when the two are used together.

So, you know what SEO and SEM are, but how can they help your business? Find out below:

SEO can help your business:

• Improve user experience
• Increase traffic
• Connect with customers
• Increase brand awareness and equity
• Gain a competitive edge
• See organic results that last for an extended period of time

SEM can help your business:

• Easily target an audience that is already interested in your market, including your product, information, or service
• Gain a competitive advantage
• Increase visibility
• See fast, purchased results that bring in targeted traffic

Together, SEO and SEM:

• Bring in quick sales that can be converted into loyal customers
• Drive traffic to your website
• Help your business reach short-term and long-term goals
• Produce a strong digital marketing campaign

We have found that SEO and SEM truly help small businesses grow, as both can enhance brand awareness and visibility, which can increase online leads and sales.

In our opinion, a sound holistic strategy is to audit your website, see which keywords your website performs well for organically and develop campaigns to conquest those terms or queries for which your website is struggling to rank. 

To learn more about SEO and SEM and how your business can achieve digital marketing success, click here to set up a free consultation.