Search engine marketing is amongst the top practices in digital marketing. While there are many in digital marketing that are skeptical of investing in paid search ads, this skepticism is primarily due to a lack of knowledge and not any intrinsic attribute of SEM itself.
In a digital marketing campaign, SEM can be used to meet a number of marketing goals. From common marketing goals such as lead generation and revenue appreciation to other long-term goals related to branding, SEM can be a useful technique for all such objectives.
Many small businesses and startups rely more on SEO than paid search ads run through SEM. This is because SEO is a completely organic technique not needing any additional monetary investment. Lows costs and long-term returns make SEO the preferred digital marketing technique for startups and small businesses.
However, SEM can be extremely useful when used properly. It allows advertisers to reach the top of a search engine page even if the SEO-optimality of a website is not up to the mark.
From an MNC executive to a student at a digital marketing course in Delhi, knowing SEM and the trends part of the field is crucial. In this article, we will discuss the top SEM trends in 2020.
Audio Search
A large part of SEM is driven by keywords. Brands looking to take out search ads on popular search engines have to choose keywords that are likely to be searched by their target audience.
With audio search becoming a large part of search engines, there is about to be a change in the way searchers use platforms like Google. Keywords popular in text search may not be as frequently used in audio search.
One obvious change in search behavior will be an increase in highly specific long-tail searches. People using voice search tend to be very specific in what they are looking for. Thus, targeting more long-tail keywords will become common in SEM trends. The importance of negative keywords will also be important in order to make sure the ad budget is not wasted on irrelevant searches.
Mobile Focus
An increase in the use of mobile phones is good news for search ad marketers. In desktop searches, it is relatively easy to segregate paid ads from organic listings. This makes it harder for advertisers to make searchers click on ad links.
On mobile though, a smaller screen ensures paid ads are not as clearly separable from organic results. This means more people are likely to click on paid ads.
Thus, SEM professionals have to adjust content factors such as title and description in order to better attract a mobile audience. Short titles and direct messaging through description is a way to make a paid search ad mobile-ready.
Artificial Intelligence
AI has long been touted as the future of technology. As for it being an SEM trend, there is way AI will play a role in helping marketers create successful paid ads.
Through AI, marketers will be able to analyze keywords and demographics their competitors are not looking at. This ability will change SEM forever, making paid ads much more relevant and contextual than ever before. Marketers will be to specifically reach an audience that is most likely to be converted.
In Conclusion
In conclusion, this article covers three key SEM trends bound to shape the scope of paid search ads in 2020.
About the Author – Richa Arora is a well-known tech blogger and author of two books on digital marketing. She is an alumnus of DelhiCourses, an & well known digital marketing institute in Delhi. The institute is also known for other programs in cybersecurity and business analytics.
