Newsstand

August 6, 2011
Learning the Basics of SEM [DMA11]

Multichannel marketing relies heavily on search engine marketing to fly. The thing is, the concept of search engine marketing (SEM) scares people – well, some people, anyway. Those that are fearless in their quest of the ultimate multi channel marketing strategy will tell you there’s really nothing to it but to do it. But for the uninitiated, learning search marketing can be an intimidating prospect. Here are a few of the most commonly used SEM methods.

• SEO – Search engine optimization is different from search engine marketing in that it relates to the architecture of your website. Optimizing your site for high placement in the search results page of a given search engine includes ensuring frequently updated, keyword-driven content.
• Pay Per Inclusion – This is the practice of paying to be included in the search results of a search engine. In reality, the major search engines don’t charge and anyone who does can’t be considered a “true” search engine, and is more of a directory listing than anything else.
• Pay Per Click – This is an expensive method of placing high in a search engine’s results, and is an advertising method where you pay a search engine a set amount for every click that you get on your ad. Your ad appears on the search engine page based on specific keywords you’ve pre-selected.
• Banner Ads – Similar to pay per click, you can set banner ads to appear on affiliate websites and pay for every unique click your ad receives.

Learning search marketing is a gradual process that you can’t really expect to “get” overnight. But there are ways that you can increase your chances of doing so, and one of those methods is attending as many multi channel marketing seminars and conferences as possible. This way you’ll not only be able to take specifically targeted workshops, but you’ll also be able to network with others like yourself who are interested in learning as much as possible about digital marketing in a condensed timeframe. The DMA2011 Conference & Exhibition taking place in Boston this October is a perfect opportunity to do just that.

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