SEO and SEM are both used almost interchangable, they commonly are bandied by webmasters. Is there really a difference? If there is a difference, what is it?
For starters, SEM is an abbreviation for Search Engine Marketing, and is a broad label that covers pretty much anything that will get your site listed more visibly in search engine results. This can range from utilizing back links to deliberately submitting your URL to search engines. By contrast, SEO is narrower, and stands for Search Engine Optimization. SEO is a subcategory of SEM, but any individual SEM operation does not necessarily contain SEO.
It?s important to know the difference between the two terms; make sure you ask for all information if your unsure before going and spending money on a SEO or SEM package. For example, a company offers you a package, if you don?t ask and get all the information, you might be buying into a package that merely is the company submitting your website URL to a few search engines, something you can easily do yourself.
Information that would be good to gain would be what they plan on doing to increase traffic to your website. So they are submitting your URL to search engines? Which ones? Have them give you a list of those search engines. What about the use of keywords? Ask about keyword optimization of the website. Ask about META and ALT tags.
The main importance is not if it?s a SEO or a SEM package, but rather, what exactly are the methods in the service they are offering? SEM is a more valuable option, as SEO can be included as a marketing strategy, but it?s also important to remember that a SEO can be nothing more than sticking your URL in a few search engines. To get the best value for your money, do your homework. Look for reputable websites and ask for specific information on the services they provide. That way, you can make a much more informed decision between using a SEO vs SEM.
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