Enhancing Sem Through Social Media - a Case Study

Introduction

Internet marketing is no longer an opt-in but a necessity for many businesses in a competitive environment. As search engines became the de-facto method to find information quickly, companies soon found value in promoting their websites and opened up the concept of search engine marketing. In more recent years, the explosion of the social media phenomenon has ignited even greater enthusiasm for Internet marketing, with many recognizing social media networks as a marketing platform with great potential and opportunities.

Definition of Key Concepts

Social Media, according to Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein (2010, p.61), can be defined as "a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of user-generated content." Simply put, it can be seen as any sort of online environment that allows social interaction, including blogs, social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook, social news sites like Digg and Reddit, and others.

Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is a form of online promotion and communications technique that involves the promotion of websites by increasing their visibility on search engine results pages (SERP). Conventional wisdom indicates this can be done through search engine optimization (SEO) or pay-per-click (PPC) listings.

SEO is the process of achieving the highest ranking on a search engine’s listing of organic search results after specific keywords have been typed in. PPC or paid listings are text ads with a link to the company page displayed on the SERP, which companies pay for when the hypertext link in the ad is clicked on.

Use of Social Media to Enhance Search Engine Marketing

There is reason to believe social media and organic search do complement each other when integrated successfully.

SEO is the key mantra for marketers seeking to leverage on search engines to generate quality visitors to their company...