7 Common SEM Myths Debunked

Digital Marketing has countless acronyms and terminologies which appear as jargon to people unfamiliar with the concept of advertising through online means. New Marketers and business owners are always looking for ways to enhance their brand presence to maximize outreach and visibility through not only real-life scenarios but also with the help of internet-based platforms and strategies. It is still a foreign concept for the majority of sellers who wish to use old-school and conventional forms of promotions. Most of these marketers have certain beliefs and misconceptions regarding the purpose and methods of digital marketing, and they refrain from availing otherwise harmless and cost-effective services due to their staunch assumptions. Some of their most basic concerns are associated with the field of Search Engine Marketing, otherwise known as SEM. In this blog, we will be debunking some of the most common myths and misconceptions regarding Search Engine Marketing.

1-    Paid Advertising or SEM is Fruitless

Logic suggests that if this was the case, then facilities like Google AdWords, or paid marketing campaigns would have become obsolete by now and paid advertisements wouldn’t be aggressively visible on significant online platforms. More than 80% of the most popular organizations in the world are using SEM to advertise their brand and it enables them to reach the right audience at suitable times as well.

2-    SEM doesn’t give much Return on Investment

Again, referring to the fact stated above, if the ROI from SEM was zero, it would have become a dead practice by now. According to statistics, SEM is considered to be amongst the top three most Digital Marketing Services in the world. Your campaign might require tweaking from multiple aspects as many factors need to be leveraged in Search Engine Marketing. So if anything, you need to optimize your campaign strategy or components of your ad to unlock the full potential of SEM.

3-    Organic Methods are Better than SEM

In the early 2000’s less than 19% of the clicks were known to be paid but now the ratio of paid vs organic clicks for search results has become 40% to 60%.

We cannot ignore the fact that paid advertisements contain the most targeted keywords and are tailor-made to grab the attention of potential customers. Marketing agencies are fully aware of the elements they need to maintain to make SEM work. Simply relying on organic techniques to get optimized ranking and traffic is not the way to go anymore, it is time-consuming and takes a lot of effort. Hence it needs to be combined with a reliable and affordable service like SEM to boost its outreach and impact.

4-    Keywords Should Remain Constant

With new products and new services being introduced constantly over the internet, keywords are bound to fluctuate and evolve with time. We cannot expect them to remain the same and therefore, to keep up with one’s competitors, one has to be consistent and refresh their keywords with proper research to stay ahead in the game.

5-    SEM is Self-manageable

SEM involves multiple complex features that need constant attention and dedication of SEM experts or staff designated towards the said cause. You can either learn it yourself to avoid getting help or you would have to rely on people with a fair understanding of the “Why’s” and “how’s” of SEM. Numerous vital factors need to be managed like updates, keywords, trends, utilizing tools and analyzing inputs along with wit results of campaigns. SEM is not as simple as it sounds and therefore only people with adequate knowledge of this field can utilize SEM to drive profitable results it is meant for.

6-    SEM is Meant for Specific Businesses Only

SEM applies for any and every business that exists on the internet as all brands would want to be recognized by their potential customers. Whether it’s B2B, B2C or specific niches, the diversity of businesses cannot alter the usability or benefits of SEM.

7-    Google is the Only Search Engine Worth Running Ads for

Your business advertisements are to be displayed over the internet through more than one medium. You cannot allocate the responsibility of driving traffic and visitors from ad campaigns on just one search engine. Bing, Firefox and Yahoo are some of the most popular search engines after Google itself and therefore you cannot neglect them by generalizing the idea of your targeted audience browsing with only one search engine.