Search Engine Marketing (SEM) Bournemouth, Dorset

SEM Search Engine Marketing Bournemouth Dorset

What is SEM or Search Engine Marketing?

Search Engine Marketing or SEM is essentially marketing in search engines like Google and Bing. This is often confused with Search Engine Optimisation referred to as SEO, SEO is the practice of getting your search results seen organically without paying for ads.

Why use Search Engine Marketing?

When starting out or working in a competitive sector search engine marketing can be a great way to get your business seen. Search engine marketing is a really effective form of advertising because the people seeing your ads are motivated buyers. You know this because they are searching under the keywords set by you. So rather than targeting someone’s interests, for example, you are targeting something they are actively looking at. This makes them much more likely to convert.

Does SEM work?

Yes, search engine marketing can be hard and depending on your niche can be expensive. But if you know your numbers and take the time to invest in the platform, it can yield some excellent returns. A lot of people dismiss search engine marketing after trying it themselves and not optimising the ads correctly, it takes time and refinement to succeed.

Is SEM (Search Engine Marketing) expensive

The cost of SEM or Search Engine Marketing works on CPC (cost per click) which varies in cost, depending on what market space you are advertising in and how competitive it is. For example, if you want to take a new product to market, you may be able to do that relatively cheaply (under 50p a click) depending on your target audience. But if you wanted to compete for financial services, for example, you could be spending upwards of £5 a click. Although it is also possible to use search marketing for brand awareness through channels like the display network and YouTube.

So the first part of your budget goes here on ad spend, it is just a case of working out the right type of ad/s for your business or product. Ad spend is generally covered by the client at an agreed budget each month.

The second part of the budget goes on creation and management. The ad creation costs vary depending on the number of ads you run and what type of campaigns you use. A search ad is the simplest to set up, as it requires no new assets to be created, just a bit of relevant copy. A video ad tends to be the most complex to get right from asset creation to delivery but the results can be worth it when you get it right, especially in the long term. The management part of the cost covers the ads, keywords, and audiences being tweaked to optimise ad spend. Well optimised ads can cost less in the bidding stage, resulting in a lower ad spend or more reach.

Is SEM better than SEO?

No, not necessarily. Search engine marketing will create very quick results whereas search engine optimisation is more of the long game. But once you have done the hard work with SEO, you essentially get a lot of eyes on our business for no ad spend. In most cases, I recommend that people focus on both to some degree, as one can positively affect the other.

What to know more about how search engine marketing or search engine optimisation can benefit your business? Get in contact using the form below or call me on 07878178336.