Search Engine Marketing

Your local small business SEM specialists

Probity Web Marketing are our local small business digital marketing specialists offering a range of online marketing solutions which includes comprehensive search engine marketing (SEM) services. We believe that your SEM strategy should be part of your overall online marketing which helps to provide definitive benefits for your business. Research shows that by having an Adword campaign running in addition to your website you can generate more clicks on your overall organic search results.

What is Search Engine Marketing?

Search Engine Marketing (or SEM) is essentially advertising on Search Engines such as Google and Bing. One of the most popular forms of SEM at the moment is Google Adwords.

Google Adwords are what you see at the top of the search listings in Google (see image below). Businesses pay to have their website listing show in either the top positions or the right column of the search page (SERP - Search Engine Results Page). Generally, you are charged every time someone clicks on your listing (advert) to go through to your website.

The main advantage of SEM is that you have control over when it runs and how much it will cost. So if you've got a lot of work on at the moment you can help manage the volume of bookings or sales by pausing the advertising until things quieten down. 

So is SEM just Adwords?

No, Adwords is just one part of search engine marketing. Another form of SEM which is gaining use for businesses large and small is Display Advertising. This is where you pay to have image adverts for your website or business displaying on a wide range of websites, rather than on the search results page like Adwords.

Search engines such as Google pay website owners to show ads on their websites. These website owners are paid every time someone clicks on these ads and you guessed it, as the advertiser you are charged by Google to cover this cost.

So while Adwords are targeted at people who are actively searching for something (eg. Plumber Brisbane), display advertising is targetted at people who are browsing websites. You can customise your advertising by choosing what sort of sites your ads will show on so you can use it to prompt a visit to your business or build your brand recognition.

SEM services we offer

Probity Web Marketing offer a range of SEM services for small businesses throughout Australia including:

• Adwords
• Pay Per Click Advertising
• Display Advertising

What about Retargeting and Remarketing?

Retargeting and remarketing is another form of Search Engine Marketing which is used with display ads. In a nutshell, this is where you can target your display ads to people who have already visited your website. When someone visits a specific page on your website they will download a cookie to their computer. This cookie will then trigger your display ads a certain number of times over a specified period.

You've probably noticed this process when you've visited a website and then suddenly start seeing ads for it everywhere you go on the internet. Done properly, this is a very powerful way to keep your product or service in front of a potential customer while they work through a purchase decision. However, done poorly, you can just look like a cyber stalker!

As for the 2 names: Retargeting is what it is called generally and Remarketing is what Google calls it.

Remember, SEM is not enough

Too many businesses get fooled into thinking that creating a search engine marketing program is all they need to do. However, like traditional advertising, you can't just spend money on a newspaper ad and think that all your sales problems will be fixed. You should also be looking at how you can maximise the sales you get from any enquiries generated by that ad. Furthermore, you could also be looking at advertising in a few other mediums to spread the potential effect.

Digital Marketing is no different. You should not only be looking to advertise in more than one area but should also be looking at how you can ensure that once someone visits your website it's clear and easy for them to buy your product or book your services. This is where search engine optimisation, social media marketing and website optimisation comes in.

Looking to get started on Adwords, display adverts or SEM?

Our digital marketing specialists can create an SEM strategy which caters to the requirements of your specific business. We work with each client to build and manage their online marketing to get the best result within their marketing budget. Give your business a boost with SEM by contacting our team at 1300 399 515 or complete our quick online SEM enquiry form today