If your business hasn’t started marketing online then you could be missing out on a huge portion of the exposure that your business could be getting. The amount of sales and leads that a business can receive from something as simple as doing a little SEO is incredible. Many companies waste quite a lot of money on a marketing campaign without direction or trying to save money through a company that isn’t exactly reputable. The following are just a few of the things that you have to think about when marketing online.
Who Are Your Targets?
Online marketing that goes outside of the target demographic has a fraction of the conversions that more targeted campaigns do. It is important that you define who your customer base is and to market to that type of person. The demographic of your customers can impact the type of online marketing that you do as well. If it is an older demographic then you should concentrate on SEO rather than social media. SEO or search engine optimization ranks websites for certain keywords so doing SEO regardless of the demographic is important.
Should You Outsource Your SEO or Do It In-House?
Having an SEO expert on staff isn’t the luxury that many companies have especially if they are a small business. Building an SEO team can be expensive so considering outsourcing this is important. There are plenty of SEO gurus who can help you but it is important to make sure that they have references. Unethical SEO tactics can actually do more harm than good when it comes to rankings as Google can impose a penalty that can halt traffic. Consider the pricing and the reviews before hiring anyone. The best thing you can do is test a few companies on a small campaign to see who was the easiest to work with as well as who got the best results.
What Kind of Budget Are You Working With?
Nothing can cripple a great marketing team then shorting them on the budget. The budget can also increase especially if the ROI is high when it comes to sales or leads. This will allow a team to make a descriptive plan and implement it while staying on budget. If you do not have a large budget it is important to get the most out of free avenues like social media. Do not skimp on anything that has your brand on it online as this can show lack of care or can look unprofessional. Define the budget and increase it if the marketing has been working, if it hasn’t change your approach to see if you get any results.
As you can see there are plenty of things that you should consider before marketing online. Budgets can be decimated especially if you underestimate how much this marketing will cost. Do not allow a contractor or even an SEO on staff to give you qualitative data. Quantitative data is more important as the purpose of marketing is to get traffic to the website which eventually turns into sales or leads. Have a set plan when marketing and modify it when needs as you need to be flexible in order to convert at the highest level!