Nearly 70% of all web experiences begin with a search engine like Google. Unfortunately, only 0.78% of Google users look beyond the first page. If you’re not reaching the first page of results, you could struggle to reach customers.
With search engine marketing (SEM), you can boost your online visibility and Google ranking. SEM includes search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. These strategies can position you in front of more customers, helping you generate more business.
On the fence about using SEM? Here are 11 benefits of SEM to keep in mind. After discovering these search engine marketing benefits, you can make a better choice for your business.
Don’t miss a chance to reach customers! Boost your business with these 11 amazing SEM benefits today.
1. Boost Brand Awareness and Recognition
Google processes over 40,000 search queries every second. That’s about 1.2 trillion searches every year worldwide. With search engine marketing, you could appear each time someone searches for your product or service.
What is SEM, exactly? Search engine marketing involves a mix of digital marketing strategies. Both SEO and PPC fall under the SEM umbrella.
SEO involves on-page SEO, technical SEO, off-page SEO, and local SEO.
PPC involves text ads, display ads, remarketing ads, and geotargeting.
Using both SEO and PPC can help you rank higher on Google. With SEO, your organic website listings will appear. You can help people find blog posts, pages, and other content on your website.
With PPC, you can create eye-catching visual or text ads. Consumers can click on your ads to visit your website.
With both strategies, consumers can learn more about your business before converting on your site.
In order to experience the top search engine marketing benefits, you need to rank on the first page. A higher ranking will position you in front of more consumers. Each time someone searches for your product or service, your website could appear.
Consumers will see your brand before anyone else’s.
If you’re not ranking on the top of the first page, however, people might not realize you exist. Remember, only 0.78% of people look beyond the first page. Most consumers click on one of the first three results.
With a higher ranking, you can help people become more aware of your brand. In time, brand awareness will become recognition. The next time they need your product or service, the customers will remember you by name.
Then, they can go to your website directly.
As your ranking improves, your brand visibility will, too!
2. Generate More Website Traffic
About 51% of all website traffic comes from organic searches. In fact, search engines generate 300% more web traffic than social media.
If people aren’t visiting your website, they might not recognize your unique value. You could struggle to set yourself apart from competitors as a result. Instead, you need a way to generate more website traffic.
SEM benefits businesses that want to generate more traffic.
In fact, you can generate more qualified traffic to gather high-quality leads.
Precise Targeting
With SEM strategies, you can target customers based on:
- The keywords they use in a search
- Location
- Age
- Gender
- Household income
You can even create different campaigns for different buyer personas. Segmenting your audiences can help you personalize your content. Your blog posts or ads will better resonate with your customers.
When developing your search engine marketing strategy, it’s important to consider the user’s search intent. What are your customers hoping to find during a search?
Understanding the user’s search intent will help you appear for relevant searches. If you match the search intent, consumers will see the value in your content. The likelihood they’ll visit your website will increase as a result.
You can then show consumers you have the information, product, or service they’re looking for.
Precise targeting can help you avoid wasting time and money. Instead, you can use SEO and PPC to appear in front of your ideal customers. Better yet, you can appear when they have an interest in your product or service.
With outbound marketing methods, you likely won’t appear when people need you most. In fact, some outbound marketing tactics are intrusive. You could risk annoying customers.
Instead, experience the benefits of SEM like precise targeting and timing. You can appear in front of consumers who want your product or service. Then, you’ll have an easier time attracting them to your store.
3. Improve the User Experience
Consumers want fast, easy access to the products, services, and answers they need.
SEM can help you improve the user experience (UX) on your website. In fact, Google prioritizes websites that are fast and easy to use. Its Core Web Vitals considers websites that offer the best possible user experience, too.
There are a few different ways you can improve the user experience on your website.
First, run your website through Google’s PageSpeed Insights. Is anything slowing your site down? It’s important to make sure your content loads quickly.
Otherwise, consumers could leave without clicking around. Your clickthrough rate and dwell time will drop. Meanwhile, you’ll notice an increase in your bounce rate.
A higher bounce rate indicates people aren’t interested in your content. Your search engine ranking could drop as a result. If you’re using PPC, your ads could become more costly, too.
Instead, you can improve the UX on your website to improve your ROI.
Make sure your website is mobile-optimized, too. You can run your website through Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test to double-check.
Google uses mobile-first indexing to determine where you rank on search pages. If you’re not mobile-optimized, you’ll fall below the competition.
You can also improve the UX on your website by:
- Improving the navigation
- Improving the readability (short sentences and paragraphs, headings and subheadings, font sizes, etc.)
- Making sure forms are short and easy to use
- Adding negative space to give content room to breathe
- Maintaining brand consistency
You can work with an experienced marketing agency to make sure you’re up-to-date with the latest design trends. Updating your website will help you make a strong first impression with visitors, too.
Otherwise, your website could look old and outdated. Consumers might think your business is behind the times, too.
4. Establish Your Credibility
Remember, consumers are more likely to trust businesses that appear on the top of a search engine results page. These businesses appear more credible than those that appear on page 10. One of the great benefits of SEM is its ability to improve your credibility.
Without brand authority and credibility, you could struggle to generate brand trust.
Improving your ranking will show consumers you’re a helpful resource in the industry. Then, you can attract more customers to your website. As you generate more traffic, your ranking will improve even further.
Your link-building strategy will help improve your brand’s authority, too.
To improve your search engine ranking, you’ll need links from high-authority websites. Backlinks send readers from other websites to your content. As you gain backlinks from high-authority websites, Google will consider you a high authority in the industry, too.
Meanwhile, your content can demonstrate your experience and expertise. You can establish yourself as a thought leader in the industry. Then, more people will start to rely on your business for the answers you need.
5. Enhance Your Value
In order to improve your search engine ranking, you’ll need to appeal to Google’s search engine algorithm. The latest algorithm update, BERT, looks for website content that:
- Appeals to EAT
- Matches the user’s search intent
- Is unique and fresh
- Is high-quality
EAT stands for Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness. Appealing to EAT can improve your brand’s value.
You can appeal to EAT by using references from high-authority websites. You can also add a biography to your posts to demonstrate your expertise. Don’t forget to add customer reviews to your website, too.
6. Increase Leads and Conversions
About 82% of consumers consult their phones for purchases they’re about to make in-store. With search engine marketing, you can appear for these searches. Then, consumers can learn more about your product or service while they shop.
If they’re in another business’ store, they could see your value and decide to visit your shop instead.
SEM benefits your lead generation strategy, too.
Remember, you can use SEO and PPC to appear for a range of different search queries. People can then visit your website to see your value. Then, they can convert right on the page.
As you generate more leads and conversions, your ROI will improve.
7. Remain Competitive
Small businesses might struggle to keep up with large corporations that have huge marketing budgets. With SEM, you won’t have to worry. You can use SEM to remain competitive.
A successful SEO strategy requires high-quality content, audience research, and keyword research. PPC also relies on keyword and audience research. You’ll also need eye-catching visuals and strong landing pages.
SEM doesn’t have to blow through your budget. Instead, you can keep up with the trends to remain competitive. As you improve your SEM strategy, you can get ahead of huge corporations.
Then, consumers will see your business before anyone else’s!
8. Attract Locals
About 90% of consumers use the internet to find local businesses. You can use SEO and PPC to attract local consumers to your store.
For example, you can develop a local SEO strategy. Local SEO relies on location-based keywords.
You can also update your Google My Business (GMB) listing. Your GMB listing will make it easier for people to find your store. They can get directions to your shop, call, or visit your website.
You can also generate customer reviews to boost your brand’s online reputation. Reviews act as a form of social proof. Your SEO ranking could improve as a result.
You can also develop a PPC campaign that focuses on nearby consumers. SEM also includes geo-targeting and geo-fencing. These tactics can help you draw locals to your shop.
Then, you can boost brand awareness, sales, and your ROI!
9. Unite Your Marketing Strategies
Using search engine marketing can unite your entire marketing strategy. In fact, SEO and PPC often go hand-in-hand.
You can use PPC advertising to appear in front of customers right away. Your ads will help you draw high-quality leads to your website. Remember, generating traffic can boost your SEO ranking.
Then, you can reach even more traffic to your website.
As you create content for your SEO strategy, you can repurpose it for other marketing strategies. For example, you can send an email newsletter featuring your latest blog posts. You can also create eye-catching visuals for social media.
As people click on the links to your content, you’ll generate more traffic. Your search engine ranking will continue to rise!
You can also use PPC advertising to learn more about your customers. The data you gather from your campaigns can help you improve your SEM strategy. For example, what keywords are people searching to find your ads?
You can use those keywords as target keywords for your SEO strategy. Then, you’ll appear for even more searches that match the search intent!
10. Keep Up With the Trends
Google’s search engine algorithm changes throughout the year. If you want to improve your SEM strategy, you’ll need to keep up with the trends. That can actually work to your advantage!
Keeping up with the trends will show consumers you’re up-to-date and relevant.
For example, more businesses are creating mobile-optimized websites to improve their SEO rankings. Consumers expect to find a mobile-optimized website. If your website isn’t optimized, it could look like you’re falling behind the competition.
Instead, you can use SEM to remain up-to-date and relevant.
11. Experience Long-Term Benefits
SEO is a sustainable marketing strategy. Once your ranking improves, it can take time before someone knocks you down.
Improving your ranking will help you generate a constant flow of traffic.
Meanwhile, you can continue using PPC campaigns to draw in regular traffic as well. Either way, your reaching customers and improving your ROI.
Boost Your Business: 11 Amazing Benefits of Effective Search Engine Marketing
You don’t have to struggle to reach your target audience anymore. Instead, consider these 11 amazing benefits of search engine marketing. With SEM, you can boost brand awareness, website traffic, leads, and more!
Get a step ahead of the competition with a strong SEM strategy today.
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