What is SEM?
SEM, or search engine marketing, is a form of online marketing that involves paying for ads to appear in search engine results pages (SERPs). When someone searches for a keyword or phrase that is relevant to your business, your ad may appear at the top of the search results. This can help you to attract new customers and grow your business.
Why start with SEM?
There are several reasons why you should start with SEM before other marketing channels.
- Intent. Prospects using a search engine are telling you their explicit intent with their search query. No need to push 100 impressions to 99 people who are not interested in your product/service. With SEM, you can get your ad in front of the specific queries, at the right time, in the right location – every time.
- It’s a quick way to get results. With SEM, you can start seeing results almost immediately. You can set your budget and start running ads, and you’ll start seeing traffic to your website within a few days.
- It’s targeted. You can target your ads to specific keywords or phrases, so you’re only showing your ads to people who are already interested in what you have to offer. This can help you to save money and get better results.
- It’s measurable. You can track the results of your SEM campaigns so you can see how effective they are. This information can help you to make adjustments to your campaigns and improve your results over time.
Other marketing channels can be more expensive.
Other marketing channels, such as social media marketing, display, print, radio, etc., can be more expensive than SEM when measuring cost per acquisition (CPA). With SEM, you only pay when someone clicks on your ad, so you can control your spending. Other marketing channels like print, radio and TV may be more focused on awareness, which will drive your overall CPA.
SEM can help you build your brand.
When people see your ads in the search results, they’re more likely to remember your brand. This can help you to build brand awareness and attract new customers. While not a traditional awareness tactic, SEM provides impressions (your ad) for free, only charging on a pay per click (PPC) model, for traditional ads. SEM can also be used to remarket those that have visited your site at a higher frequency that normal ad frequency.
SEM can help you reach your target audience.
With SEM, you can target your ads to specific keywords or phrases, so you’re only showing your ads to people who are already interested in what you have to offer. This can help you to save money and get better results. You can also apply audience segments to help you narrow or expand your targets appropriately.
Conclusion:
SEM is a powerful marketing channel that can help you to grow your business. If you’re not already using SEM, I encourage you to give it a try. It’s a quick, targeted, and measurable way to get results.
Here are some additional tips for using SEM effectively:
- Do your research. Before you start running SEM campaigns, it’s important to do your research and understand how the platform works. This will help you to create effective campaigns that reach your target audience.
- Choose the right keywords. The keywords you choose will determine who sees your ads. Make sure to choose keywords that are relevant to your business and that people are actually searching for.
- Write effective ad copy. Your ad copy is what will convince people to click on your ad. Make sure your ad copy is clear, concise, and persuasive.
- Track your results. It’s important to track the results of your SEM campaigns so you can see how effective they are. This information can help you to make adjustments to your campaigns and improve your results over time.
By following these tips, you can use SEM to grow your business and reach your target audience. If you’d like more information, please reach out to our team. We manage paid campaigns, including SEM, for companies of all sizes who are looking to grow.
