SEO vs SEM | Do you know the Difference?

I was recently interview regarding SEO (Search Engine Optimization), or so I thought. The person interviewing me, kept referring to SEM (Search Engine Marketing) but was using terms and ideas that relate to SEO.

As is the norm, with me, I corrected him. I’m not so sure he liked that.

SEO referrers to the practice of using keywords, detailed text optimized for “said” keywords, use of free techniques for optimizing your business for search engines.

SEM referrers to efforts used in marketing, typically and usually paid techniques such as PPC (pay – per – click), Social Media advertising, banner advertising, and is all developed with the ideal market audience and their habits to capture them as a prospect.

While SEO and SEM appear to the naked eye as a similar practice for optimizing exposure of your business, they are vastly different.

If you are familiar with the techniques of Search Engine Optimization, you can typically get away without paying a fee to an agency to manage your SEO, and all your techniques are organic and not related to payment.

If you are not familiar with techniques of Search Engine Optimization, you can invest a fee to an agency to optimize and setup for you.

SEO and SEM are critical elements to your business marketing and optimization, this also includes your visibility as a business owner.