In recent years, search engine optimization, or SEO, has become a familiar term to many in the business world, especially for website designers and content writers. Alongside SEO, there has evolved another term, known as SEM, or search engine marketing.Search engines use keywords to tell it what a particular site is about, and categorizes it accordingly. If a particular site is for a company selling custom furniture, then it might use the keywords “custom built table.” Web developers and content writers take advantage of the search engines by inserting keywords in the site content. These keywords, relevant to the site, snag the search engines so that they come up in results when someone does an internet search for those terms. This is known as “search engine optimization.”SEM takes it a step further, actively using keywords and search engines to market the website. Search engine marketing, sometimes shortened to simply “search marketing,” works to publicize a website and make it more visible so that it gains more traffic. Search engine optimization is the first step. Used effectively, SEO can noticeably increase a website’s traffic. Internet surfers perform a search using a particular set of terms, which bring up a list of relevant websites. Proper use of SEO increases the chances of a particular website to not only show up in the results, but to appear high in the listings so that the user is more likely to see it. Continue reading →