what is sem marketing

Introduction:-

In this guide we’ll dive into what SEM is and how it works, why SEM is need in marketing, types of SEM, Features of SEM we,ll also break down methods and tools, techniques.

What is SEM?:

Search engine marketing (SEM) is a combination of techniques and marketing methods that aim to make your company dominate the search engine results page for a particular set of phrases, questions, and keywords. This is done in two ways: Search engine optimization (SEO) and with paid search ads (PPC).

Why SEM is important?:

SEM is one of the most effective and important marketing tools for businesses online. Moreover, businesses make sure that their brand name will pop-up at the right time/place in search engines with paid ads. This is why SEM is used for marketing brands.

How does SEM work:-

SEO and SEM should be fundamental parts of your online marketing strategy because the algorithms that power search engines are becoming more sophisticated by the day. That means a well-thought-out paid search advertising strategy has become an absolute necessity if you want to ensure high rankings in the searches relevant to your business. This proves to search engines like Google that your website is an authoritative source, which can in turn boost rankings

Types of SEM:-

Search Engine Marketing can be categorized into three types. They is SEO, Search Engine Advertising, and Paid Submission

1.SEO:-

SEO is also known as Search Engine Optimization. In fact, it is a way of boosting the quality and quantity of traffic to your website. And that can only be achieved by organic results in search engines. Moreover, SEO deals with both creative and technical aspects. These aspects drive traffic to your web page. It also deals with improving rankings and increasing awareness in search engines.

2. Search Engine Advertising:-

Search engine advertising is PPC. There are organic and inorganic ways to increase traffic and attract new customers to the business. SEO techniques are focusing on both Organic and inorganic approaches. One of the most commonly used advertising methods by many companies is display advertising. Pay-per-click advertising is an excellent method to increase CTR on the business.

3. Paid submission:-

Paid Submission is a method of listing a company’s information (including its website) to paid online directories. These directories have editors who manually review submissions. Once approved these submissions are permanently listed and can help increase a company’s online citation which can affect its visibility in search engines. The website owners should submit a consistent NAP (Name, Address, and Phone Number) across all directories. This is the best way to improve the accuracy of data that search engines can index about a certain business online

Advantages of SEM:

• It helps to promote websites by increasing their visibility in different SERP’s.
• Furthermore, this helps in bringing or driving qualified leads to your business.
• Finally, it increases your visibility in search engines.

SEM strategy:

SEM strategy comes down to optimizing paid search ads with a specific goal in mind. In order to create a good strategy, you must understand how paid ads platforms works and effectively manage variables that affect performance such as keywords, budget, and copy.

Types of SEM keyword:-

When you set up an SEM campaign, you choose the keywords you want to target and/or avoid. There are four types of keywords you can use in your SEM campaigns.

1. Broad match keywords target variations of a term. This includes similar phrases, singular or plural forms, misspellings, stemmings, or synonyms of the target term. For example, when targeting the broad match keyword virtual assistant, a campaign may also target virtual assistants, online assistant, and virtual team.
2. Phrase match keywords target the exact phrase, plus any phrases that have words that come before or after the target keyword. For example, when targeting the phrase match keyword virtual assistant, a campaign may also target best virtual assistant, find a virtual assistant, and hire a virtual assistant.
3. Exact match keywords target words that are very closely related to the target term. This includes misspellings, singular or plural forms, stemmings, abbreviations, reordered words, paraphrases, or closely related words with the same of the search intent exact match term. For example, when targeting the exact match keyword virtual assistant, a campaign may also target virtual assistants, virtual assistance, and virtuals assistant.
4. Negative keywords exclude terms that you don’t want to target. Negative keywords are variations of broad match, phrase match, and exact match keywords that you don’t want to use in your campaign. These terms may be semantically related to your keywords but unrelated to the search intent of the target term, your campaign, or ad copy. Examples of negative keywords for the target term virtual assistant may include virtual assistant salary or virtual assistant training. If the ad were trying to target companies looking to hire a virtual assistant, the intent for those terms wouldn’t be relevant; therefore, they should be excluded from the campaign.

Search intent:-

Search intent is the reason behind a searcher’s query on search engines. It represents the objective the searcher is trying to accomplish. For example, someone might want to learn about something, find something, or buy something. Creating content that satisfies search intent is important to the success of your SEO, PPC, and content marketing efforts. By aligning content to search intent you:

• Make yourself relevant to your audience,
• Boost brand awareness,
• Increase share of voice,
• Drive conversions and retention.

When performing keyword research, consider search intent in addition to keyword popularity and keyword difficulty.

How to Build an Effective SEM Strategy:

The steps to build an SEM strategy are pretty straightforward:

• Conduct keyword research
• Select those keywords that are related to your business and have the right intent
• Open Google Ads and set up a campaign
• Select the keywords that are most relevant
• Create an ad that will be displayed in the SERPs
• Choose a bidding strategy and pay for each click you get.

SEM allows you to place an ad in front of users that are in the right phase of the marketing funnel. In other words, customers who are ready to convert. But to ensure that your search marketing campaign will have the highest ROI, you’ll need to target the right keywords, as well as watch out for a few more things.

Let’s look at these more in detail

According to Google Ads guidelines, there are 3 main factors that they consider during an ad auction:

• Maximum bid: The maximum amount you’re willing to pay for a click on your ad
• Quality Score: The formula that Google Ads uses to determine the relevance of your ad, or how useful it will be for the user
• Ad extensions: The additional information you provided in your ad (phone number, links to specific pages, etc.)

Search Engine Marketing Account Structure:

Another crucial aspect that is essential for the success of a search engine marketing campaign is the account structure.

Logical keyword grouping and account structure can help you achieve higher click-through rates, lower costs-per-click, and generally stronger overall performance of the campaign.

An optimally structured account is comprised of five distinct elements:

1. Ad campaigns
2. Ad groups
3. Keywords
4. Ad text
5. Landing pages

Search Engine Marketing (SEM) Platforms:

An SEM platform is a search engine where a brand can place search ads that are displayed when users perform a search. The most common SEM platforms are Google and Bing

Google Ads:

Google AdWords (now Google Ads) is one of the most popular SEM platforms in the market. One reason for its large market coverage is that it’s developed for the highest-trafficked search engine globally and all you need to get started is a Google account (which most people already have). The other is that Google has built a name for itself as a data analytics powerhouse, and its analytical capabilities certainly live up to it.

Bing Ads:

Bing Ads is another prominent SEM platform and generally offers a cheaper Cost-Per-Click (CPC) than Google. One can assign campaigns to different time zones, which is perfect for those who want their campaigns to reach international audiences. You can also adjust your settings for an ad group without having to change your campaign.

A/B Testing in Search Engine Marketing

A/B testing (or split testing) is experimenting and comparing two variations of a campaign asset like landing page, ad text, call-to-action, or creative.

By displaying two variations of your campaign assets, you can see which one attracts more conversions from your customers. By checking customer response on the variations, you’ll be able to alter your strategy to create better campaigns.

Using A/B testing to experiment with marketing those characteristics to find the ideal combination for your customers not only provides them with better experiences, but it also breeds trust and confidence in your brand. When visitors begin to trust your company because of the value you provide, increased sales and customer loyalty are a natural result.