The difference between organic search and paid search is that while organic search focuses on unpaid rankings in search results, paid search focuses on paid rankings. In the case of organic search, companies use SEO to optimise the visibility or ranking of their site in search results. From marketing gurus to business owners to the college intern next door, everyone seems to use the terms natural SEO and organic SEO these days. However, the words "natural" and "organic" are practically synonymous in some grocery aisles and have minor - but significant - differences in others (think natural vs.
organic). So what is the difference between the two and why should you care? To continue with the grocery shop analogies, if you take a moment to look at Google (as well as YouTube, Facebook and Amazon) as the supermarket of web search, organic SEO is a staple - Google's bread and butter compared to the fancier, but not as essential, toaster pastry. Simply put, it is what Google does best. Google must interpret what users intend to find with an organic query and deliver relevant pages that adhere to SEO responsive design (i.e., take the time to make sure that the pages are relevant to the user's search query).
In other words, taking the time to show Google (and, by extension, your users) precisely what you have to offer will return more relevant traffic made up of users who will stay. In an ideal world, you would employ both paid and natural SEO techniques. This way, you can get the benefit of immediate results while building a solid foundation for the future. Share and tag on social media.
The main difference between organic and local search is that local seo has a geographic component. The main difference is that search engine optimisation (SEO) focuses on optimising a website to get traffic from organic search results. On the other hand, the goal of search engine marketing (SEM) is to get traffic and visibility from both organic and paid search. Local searches come from people who are actively shopping for a product or service near them.
They specifically include the type of product, service or business and the name of their city or the term "near me". They have every intention of choosing a business and making their purchase, usually that same day. Local SEO is an extension of organic SEO. It is not optional for any brand that wants its business premises to be found online.
Organic SEO drives traffic to your website, local SEO drives traffic to your shop. When 28% of local searches on mobile end in a same-day in-store purchase, local SEO is just as valuable, if not more valuable, than organic SEO. SEO is an essential marketing strategy for brands trying to attract attention, drive website traffic and grow their business. But SEO can be a difficult strategy to manage if you don't know how SEM compares to organic SEO.
The tactics may seem the same, but they are two very different approaches to search optimisation. If you use the terms SEM and SEO interchangeably and don't know the differences between the two, you won't be able to communicate a clear and effective strategy for improving your search visibility. You will also discover the fundamentals and strategies of SEO and SEM that will help you improve your search visibility and performance. Take a look at our SEO vs.
SEM infographic to help you visualise your search strategy. SEM to help you visualise the differences between the two. The main difference between SEM and SEO is that SEM is a paid strategy and SEO is an organic strategy. SEO, or search engine optimisation, is the part of search marketing that uses ORGANIC tactics to gain visibility in the SERPs.
With SEO, brands do not pay to appear in the SERPs. Instead, they use a variety of tactics that cause search engines to display their content near the top of the SERPs because the result is valuable and authoritative. SEO includes hundreds of tactics that can help a brand increase its search rankings. These white hat SEO techniques are typically grouped into three categories.
A solid SEO plan doesn't focus on just one of these three types of SEO, but combines all three strategies to get the best results. Both help a brand appear in search results. One of the fundamentals of SEO and SEM is that they both aim to help a brand appear in prominent positions in the SERPs. The goal of each tactic is to help a brand appear in search results when users search for specific terms related to the brand's industry, business or offerings.
Both use keyword research to uncover popular search terms. The first step for both SEM and SEO is to conduct keyword research to identify the best keywords to target. Research includes examining keyword popularity to determine the top keywords or buying keywords that your ideal audience is searching for. It also includes keyword competition research to see what other brands are targeting the same keywords and determine what you will need to do to compete with those other companies.
Both require testing and ongoing optimisation. As for SEO, you should know that neither is a set-it-and-forget-it strategy. Both require continuous testing, monitoring and optimisation to increase performance. SEM search positions include an "ad designation".
Search results that appear as a result of SEM or SEO look different in the SERP. Paid ads that receive placement through SEM tactics are often identified as an advertisement (e.g., SEM search results have ad extensions. SEO search results have featured snippets. SEO, you will also find differences in the appearance of search results.
SEM search results may include ad extensions, which may add additional links, phone numbers and calls. On the other hand, SEO results may appear with featured snippets in the search. SEM results are shown to a select target audience. While successful SEO and SEM strategies are driven by a plan to connect with a select audience, you can only specify that target audience through SEM.
Through SEM, you can (depending on the publisher) select which audience you want to see search results by assigning filters based on age, location, income, habits, etc. With SEO, you cannot choose specifically who will see your search results. SEM is better for testing than SEO. Since you can turn paid SEM ads on and off immediately, it's a great strategy for testing.
You can quickly revise your ad copy, target new audiences and change landing page content to test your new tactics. This flexibility allows you to immediately see the differences in your strategies. This cannot be achieved with SEO, as it would take too long to make changes and monitor differences in results. SEM is only active as long as you pay for your results to be displayed.
As soon as the ads are turned off, the SEM strategy is over. SEO strategy grows and compounds over time and leaves lasting results. Now that you have compared SEM with SEO, it will be easier for you to decide. With SEO, it will be easier to decide which tactic is right for your marketing strategies.
To decide which is right for your brand, use what you know and consider the following. Consider how well you know your industry. If you've been in business for a while and already know what your customers want and how best to reach them, you may want to start building a long-term SEO strategy that provides value over time. If you are unsure how customers and competitors will respond to your offerings or content, you may want to consider an SEM campaign that allows you to test your ideas, products and services.
Use these sites to conduct market research to better understand your target audience and your position in the industry. Consider the age of your business. If you've just opened your business and launched your website, it's going to take time to develop your SEO and start appearing organically in search. While this doesn't mean you shouldn't develop an SEO strategy, it does mean that you could benefit from an SEM strategy until you build your SEO.
SEM is an effective way to attract traffic while building organic SEO. To get a full review of your website's SEO, use Alexa's SEO Audit tool. Enter your site to get a detailed report on the status of your site in relation to on-page, off-page and technical SEO elements. You can also download this free SEO audit report to help you chart your current SEO performance and create a roadmap for long-term success.
SEO, there is no quick formula or simple answer. There are many factors to consider. Some companies may choose to focus on SEO. Others may choose to focus on SEM.
And sometimes the right approach is to apply a combination of SEO and SEM strategies. It all depends on your business and your goals. But now that you know the similarities and differences between SEM and SEO, you'll be better equipped to decide how each can help your brand achieve its goals. Get new tips on SEO, content marketing and competitor analysis delivered straight to your inbox.
In addition, local SEO is about being present or listed (with consistent citations) in all the other places a potential customer might look, including niche directories, forum, etc. Before we get into the difference, let's do a quick overview (for more details, see the RankWatch learning section) of both types of organic and local SEO. In the case of local SEO, you obviously need to make sure that your business name, address and phone number (NAP) are consistent in local directories and on your website. When done correctly, both local and organic SEO efforts will help improve your website's ranking, but when done incorrectly, both can have a hugely detrimental effect on your digital marketing efforts.
Any local SEO study will tell you how it helps you attract more customers in your area to your brick-and-mortar shops. Local SEO is simply the practice of creating reliable and relevant signals around specific locations. SEO shouldn't be specific to just local or just organic, if you want your brand to be found online you need to optimise for both. Every part of local SEO is about ensuring that your local, brick-and-mortar business appears higher in location-based searches.
Local SEO focuses on getting higher rankings on Google Maps, Bing Places, Apple Maps, Yelp searches, etc. Both organic and local SEO play their part in making your brand visible online, so let's look at exactly how they do it. If your brand is looking to improve its local SEO strategy for multiple locations, Chatmeter has the tools to help.
