What is Search Engine Marketing (SEM)?
Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is marketing designed to promote websites in search engines.
Although both Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and Pay-per-click (PPC) are technically speaking types of Search Engine Marketing, SEM is more frequently used as a reference to exclusively paid marketing.
Traditional definition
Diagram by Search Candy
Modern definition
Diagram by Search Candy
What is the difference between SEM and SEO?
Search Engine marketing is a broader area of digital marketing, whereas SEO is a specific channel.
Whereas SEO refers to organic/unpaid traffic from search engines, SEM includes both organic SEO and paid/performance marketing ie PPC.
Using a definition that only sees SEM as paid marketing, there is a more direct split between SEO and SEM – where SEM refers to paid marketing vs SEO refers to unpaid/organic.
Search Engine Marketing Platforms
In the UK and US the main Search Engine Marketing platforms include Google Ads, Microsoft Ads (Bing) and Facebook Ads.