The ability to provide a remote option for conducting activities became paramount to reduce the risk of spreading the virus amid the COVID-19 pandemic. As such, businesses were prompted to let their staff telecommute instead of working onsite.
In addition, consumers relied on digital means of getting the products and services they needed in place of making in-person visits to establishments. They also increased their dependence on mobile usage to access online platforms more conveniently than using desktops.
With more and more people migrating to the online realm, players in the marketing industry also needed to recalibrate their plans. They had to devise strategies that better suit the current environment, such as strengthening their search engine marketing (SEM) efforts.
Search engine marketing has been gaining traction among industries in recent years. It was propelled during the COVID-19 pandemic as the world shifted towards a digital-first approach. This technique is mainly driven by paid ads, pay-per-click (PPC), and search advertising. This is contrary to another online marketing strategy known as search engine optimization (SEO), which largely relies on organic traffic.
In 2021, search advertising constituted the majority of the market share and is projected to increase digital advertising expenditures in the following years. There has also been greater automation and artificial intelligence (AI) applications in search engine ads. These new features allow marketers to optimize particular aspects of their ads, making them lean more toward search queries of targeted audiences.
As mentioned before, mobile-centric approaches also played a crucial role during the global health crisis. With this, marketers needed to leverage mobile internet advertising to get the brand to the consumers.
Many more trends arose this year, which is why numerous firms decided to outsource digital marketing services instead of doing them by themselves. This option is advantageous, especially if the business cannot spend the enormous time and money often required for handling the task in-house.
When organizations outsource digital marketing agency to aid in their SEM campaign, they can rest assured that these professionals will deliver favorable results.
To know more about SEM and its emerging trends in 2021, see this infographic provided by Digital Marketing Philippines. 
