What Makes Local Seo Services Differ From Google Adwords Campaigns

People use Google to find solutions to their problems and learn new things. This makes it necessary for you to determine whether search engine optimization (SEO) or a Google Adwords search engine marketing (SEM) campaign is the most appropriate tool for your business. Many people make the mistake of using the terms "SEO" and "SEM" interchangeably, however even though they are both digital marketing tools, they are entirely different. This means that SEM is not a replacement for local SEO services. The question is: what makes the two different?

Difference between Local SEO and SEM

SEO has traditionally been thought to be a component of the term search engine marketing (SEM) encompassing both the paid and the organic tactics. However, today SEM refers to only the paid tactics which help to increase the visibility of a business. Therefore, a business increases web traffic through paid advertisements such as Google Adwords campaigns.

SEM activities

Paid advertising gives you control over your results. For example, if you are not receiving enough leads, increasing your ad budget can reflect the number of leads you get. SEM is often a great choice for fast short-term results. There are a number of activities that need to be accomplished in order to launch a successful SEM campaign on any platform. These include:

• Launching ad campaigns targeting specific audiences in a specific geographic area
• Create ad groups with varying target keywords
• Writing directly related ad copy using the selected keywords
• Setting a budget for the ad
• Monitoring how the ad is doing through likes, clicks, and the average cost-per-click

Local SEO services

Local SEO services take time, ongoing effort, and constant adaptation due to Google algorithm changes. SEO is the process of increasing web traffic by free, natural, and organic search. This requires that web developers keep up with Google’s ever-changing algorithms in order to remain visible on search engines. These services have two activity pillars which are on-page and off-page.

On-page Local SEO services include:

• Speed optimization of the page
• Simplification and proper formatting of page URLs with specific keywords
• Optimization of metadata which includes page title tag, meta description, heading tags, and image ALT tags
• Optimization of a well-written page copy with target keywords
• Integration of social sharing within the content

Off-page local SEO services include:

• Attracting attention through bookmarking sites like Digg and Reddit
• Backlinking through relevant online directories
• And finally social media sharing

Both Local SEO services and SEM rely heavily on keywords to drive traffic to a website. Although the technique used for each is different, they are both focused on bringing traffic to your website. Application of all this can be confusing especially if you are just starting out.

If you are in need of local SEO services, get in touch with us today, and we will help you get started.

Lynne Motkoski, Marketing Strategist

Specialty: Online Marketing Strategies
Education: MA Communications & Technology, BComm [U Alberta]
Author: The Online Marketing Handbook for Busy Entrepreneurs (coming soon)

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Lynne is known for her strategic approach to marketing communications, technologies, and lead generation. She has a passion for education, keeping up with current marketing trends and practices, and helping clients keep ahead of their competition.

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