Search engine marketing
Search engine marketing (SEM) combines the two disciplines of search engine optimisation (SEO) and search engine advertising (SEA). Both pursue the same goal: more visibility in search engines and therefore more visitors, enquiries and revenue. The difference: SEO improves positions in the organic, i.e. unpaid, search results. SEA places paid ads that appear above and below the organic results and in Google Shopping, and optimises them for conversions, click-through rate and costs. Because both are based on the same strategic question – how and what do my customers search for? – they are referred to together as search engine marketing.
Search engine marketing definition – in brief:
Search engine marketing covers all SEO and SEA measures that bring visitors to your own website via search engines.
Search engine marketing: THE pull marketing tool
The most important difference from many other marketing channels: SEM is pull marketing, not push marketing. Instead of interrupting people while they're doing something else – as with a TV spot or a social media ad – search engine marketing reaches people exactly when they are actively looking for a solution themselves. The customer comes to the provider. The provider's task is to find out what questions and needs potential customers have and how they search for them – and to position themselves there so that they notice the right offer.
Why is search engine marketing important?
For most people, the search for information, products and providers starts in a search engine. A large proportion of purchase decisions – online and in brick-and-mortar retail – are prepared by a search. Increasingly, AI assistants such as ChatGPT and the AI answers in Google Search are being added, which also refer to websites as sources.
For online shops and companies, this means: they have to be found where their customers are searching – among many competitors. Search engine marketing ensures that they become visible via organic results, ads and helpful content. Anyone who doesn't take care of this leaves these customers to the competition.
Even those who don't run a shop benefit: companies, service providers, publishers and blogs gain readers, enquiries and awareness via search engines.
Well-coordinated search engine marketing can achieve several goals at once. A well-optimised page and a matching ad appear high up for relevant search queries and bring visitors with concrete interest.
What happens next is crucial: if the visitor finds what they are looking for on the page and the visit leads to a conversion – a purchase, an enquiry, a newsletter sign-up – the search engine marketing pays off. That's why good SEM also includes convincing landing pages, a smooth checkout and clean conversion tracking that shows which search terms and campaigns actually generate revenue.
Search engine marketing reaches people at the right moment: when they are actively looking for a solution. Ads achieve visibility immediately, while SEO builds it sustainably.
The contribution of search engine marketing to business success
Whether the focus is on SEO or SEA depends on the industry, competition, budget and goals. The combination is usually most effective: SEA brings visitors immediately, quickly provides data on which search terms convert and covers terms for which there are no good organic rankings (yet). SEO builds long-term visibility without cost per click. The insights from both channels complement each other – for example when successful ad copy provides ideas for page titles or SEO data shows where ads are worthwhile.
What is SEO?
Search engine optimisation (SEO) covers all measures that help a website appear higher in the organic search results. The ranking itself is free but requires time, know-how and resources for optimisation. A distinction is made between on-page, off-page and technical measures.
On-page optimisation starts directly on the website: helpful content that matches search intent, suitable keywords in titles and headings, good internal linking.
Off-page optimisation covers measures outside the website, above all building high-quality backlinks and mentions that strengthen a website's trust and relevance.
What is SEA?
With search engine advertising (SEA), ads are placed in search engines. Since most people in German-speaking countries search with Google, Google Ads is the most important platform; there is also Microsoft Advertising for Bing. Advertisers determine which search terms and products their ads appear for and control costs via budgets and bids. Payment is usually per click. Careful keyword research is the basis here too.
Search engine marketing is indispensable
Search engine marketing is one of the most effective online marketing tools. With SEO and SEA, you reach people exactly when they are searching – and thanks to clean tracking, success can be measured very precisely.
The basis of both disciplines is careful keyword research. SEA can deliver results quickly, SEO usually takes a few months but has a lasting effect. Anyone who strategically aligns both channels gets the most out of search.