What’s the difference between SEM and SEO. Do I need SEM?
A very good question!
In a (very basic) nutshell – SEO is all about getting you visits from organic search. People search for you, they find you.
SEM is almost always focused on paid results. Google Adwords basically. It’s just a fancy way of selling Pay Per Click to people. Personally I’ve never liked it–Adwords has an average ROI of something like just 2%. Pitiful.
You will find people that sell it as a mix of organic search and paid search results, but really in my experience every single SEM person is focusing on the latter. Or just doesn’t know enough about SEO to really push that aspect properly–and that’s where you’re going to get the best return on your investment.
yeah, I tried adwords over and over….I’d spend $$$$ for very little return
In my experience, and that of everyone I’ve known who has tried it, using Google Ads is not a very effective strategy. This conclusion is based on the feedback from well over 1,000 people who have given it a go. It’s unfortunate, but that’s the reality.
To put it into perspective, Google’s search tool was already a highly successful and useful platform even before they added ads. Selling ads was just an afterthought, a way to capitalize on their existing user base. However, it was a very knee-jerk reaction, akin to a newspaper selling advertorials that are clearly marked as ads. People tend to distrust such ads and view them as a way for the platform to make money rather than to provide value to users.
The success of Google’s search tool was built on its ability to find services and products, which is why it was successful in the first place. Adding ads was more of a bolt-on, which is why it’s not as effective as one might think. Unfortunately, this has been the experience of many people, including myself, and is something to consider when evaluating advertising options.
I hope that helps!
Cheers,
Peter Mahoney
WordPress SEO Expert
