SEO and SEM are better together than apart. Learn why you should be doing both in this week’s Wednesday Workshop .

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Welcome back to another Wednesday Workshop from Happy Hao Car.

There is a long-running argument as to whether you should be using SEO or SEM. The answer is – you should be using both. But first, let’s understand the differences and why.

SEO, for those who don’t know, is the abbreviation for Search Engine Optimization. It’s the process of building and optimizing your site so that you appear at or near the top of relevant search results.

SEM, on the other hand, stands for Search Engine Marketing, which is a form of paid advertising that also helps you get to the top of search results. The difference being that if you pay enough, you’re almost always guaranteed to be at the top.

SEM results are clearly marked as an Ad. You select certain keywords and pay the search engine, probably Google, every time a visitor clicks on your link, this is also known as PPC or Pay Per Click advertising.

SEO is a more gradual process that never truly has an endpoint. And while PPC can deliver results quickly, it comes at a price.

Both SEO and SEM are largely based on keywords and phrases. The keywords that would lead an organic search to your site are the same ones you would be bidding on for your PPC ad.

Learning which keywords are right for you will help both strategies. Communication between your SEO and SEM teams is therefore crucial to optimize which keywords you’re targeting. There is a significant benefit to making sure the same agency is managing both services for you.

PPC ads appear at the top of every search result. Just being there increases your brand awareness. While that might not be the main reason you got the ad, it is helpful.

That said, if you want to eventually stop spending to be up there, or at the very least reduceyou are going to want to invest in a strong SEO strategy.

Your SEM data can be vital to your overall SEO strategy and vice versa. Some of your PPC ads will do better than others. Analyzing your highest performing ads will give you a good idea of what your customers want, and how they find you in their searches.

This can give you great information on what you should be doing with your page in the long term.

Your goal should be to stop thinking of SEO and SEM as an either/or proposition. Both are important for your overall online marketing strategy. More importantly, both work a lot better when done together.

That’s all the time we have for today’s workshop. As always, if you have any questions or comments, leave them below and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can. Thanks for watching. We’ll see you next week for another Wednesday Workshop from Happy Hao Car.

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