Search Engine Marketing, also known as SEM Marketing and Search SEM, is the process of buying online advertising from companies such as Google, Bing and Yahoo.
Every time a person starts a search, they are exploring the Internet looking for a specific keyword or phrase. Search engines make money by selling targeted advertising at the top, bottom or on the side of search results pages, based on your search terms.
For example, if you search for the term “blue suede shoes,” you might find ads for websites selling blue suede shoes, music services offering songs by Elvis or even similar products such as blue suede hats and teal shoes. The more specific your search, the more targeted the ads.
It takes time, effort and a lot of content to earn organic links to your website using methods such as search engine optimization. Search engine marketing gives companies the opportunity to immediately jump to the top of search results.