What is SEO, SEM, and Web Analytics?

Starting in the early 1990s, online marketing made an amazing development from simple text-based websites, which offered product information, into highly evolved and complete online businesses promoting and selling their services over the Internet.

Nowadays, the Internet marketing industry has become a complicated and branchy science involving a great deal of theoretical knowledge working in combination with applied techniques. As a science, it ranges from browser-side /server-side programming and coding on one end to marketing /economics on the other.

Online marketing means the use of the Internet to promote the selling of goods and services. It includes Banner and Text Advertising, Social Media Marketing, Email Marketing, Interactive Advertising, Affiliate Marketing and Search Engine Marketing (including Search Engine Optimization and Pay-Per-Click Advertising).

Below is a sample of a typical  link-building campaign being used nowadays:

In the first stage, it is necessary to understand Search Engine Marketing (SEM) as a specific area of an online business. Mainly, its purpose is to increase targeted traffic from search engines via organic search engine rankings, paid listings and electronic advertising. Here you’ll be shown the main principles of Search Engine Optimization (SEO), link building, and paid advertising campaigns.

Actually, every successful search engine optimizer should be aware of top search engine demands and consider them while creating websites and improving on-page and off-page attributes. There are many important factors influencing search engine rankings for a particular web page, and  many different techniques for achieving success.

There are certain methods that go beyond SEM in order to improve your online visibility, and include creating /spreading a banner,  ad network  or paid link partnerships, as well as social media, email marketing and finally building affiliate relationships with other websites.

The Social Media Marketing stage is devoted to the numerous social media channels on the world-wide-web. Blogs and micro-blogging services, social networks, social news sites, media sharing sites, wikis, etc…,  also offer a valuable opportunity to moderate /share online content, and Social media channels are a perfect place to interact with existing or potential consumers. In addition, a good viral marketing campaign within the online community will create “buzz” around your brand and help build new inbound links to your site.

Email marketing is an independent branch that does not have much in common with SEM, and should therefore be dealt with separately. To be effective, such “email marketing campaigns” must follow well established guidelines and be accuretly targeted to your customer-base. These “banner networks” relate to SEM as long as they touch upon your link popularity ( another component of SEM).

Definetly the most vital part of any successful online marketing campaigns is Web Analytics, and it’s role CANNOT be understated. Infact this comprehensive tool is an essential measure  for continually improving web-site  performance, advertising campaigns, organic search engine results, ranking positions, etc….  Typically, Web Analytics deals with the traffic already generated at previous stages, and its primary goal is to improve overall traffic quality and enhance conversion.

If you would like to learn more about how to build integrated online marketing campaigns for your business or personal website,  please visit our custom online marketing training page and check on our in-house or online personal coaching courses.

Thanks for reading!

- The GNIM Media Team