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Definition: Search Engine Marketing, or SEM, is a form of Internet Marketing that seeks to promote websites by increasing their visibility in the Search Engine result pages (SERPs).
Search engine traffic (visitors coming to your website through searches performed at search engines like Google) can often mean the difference between success and failure. Whether you sell online, promote online or just use your website to let your customers and prospects know you exist, everyone benefits from search engine traffic. Why?
- Targeted Visitors. Traffic generated by search engines, providing your website is properly optimised, will be targeted to your business offering, whether that be a service or tangible goods. In other words, those searching for you will want/need the products or services you're offering!
- It's Free. Apart from the investment of time and effort, there is no charge to appear in the search engines "natural listings", i.e. the search results that haven't been paid for. Return on investment is therefore much higher than pay-per-click and other advertising/marketing efforts.
- Used by prospects. A potential customer will use search engines over any other method (online business directories, traditional hard copy directories etc) to research businesses who could potentially offer them whatever they're looking for. Will they find you and what you have to offer? They could if you have a sound Search Engine Marketing strategy in place!
