Does Your Small Business Have Time To Get Online Marketing Right?
The fewer people a business has, the harder it is to do marketing right.
Most small and medium-sized businesses don't think they have the time or knowledge to manage their digital media efforts effectively, and believe me when I say "understandable."
70% of small businesses wish they could take better advantage of digital media to help them expand their businesses and reach. Just remember that it's not quantity that gets you noticed - it's quality of content. Your investment of even just a few hours per week will eventually pay off in the form of customers, followers, and the like.
Is a lack of time preventing you from being able to take care of the marketing strategy you'd like to employ? My general rule of thumb is be persistent - don't give up. The problem is most small business owners feel current marketing providers don't have their best interest in mind.
The biggest areas of anticipated growth are company websites, social media, mobile advertising, display ads, paid search, SEO, online video, and email marketing. Most of the categories with less anticipated growth are offline channels like yellow pages, radio, magazine ads, TV, newspapers, and outdoor advertising.
Don't be intimidated by big business who have huge budgets to pursue online marketing campaign - be assertive and consistent and eventually you will see positive results. Don't be fooled into thinking you need to spend a lot of money to get results.
Online Marketing vs Traditional Media: Let's Compare!
Here's what traditional media can't offer you:
Reduced Cost: The starting cost of online marketing is only a fraction of the thousands of dollars that Yellow Pages, television and radio ads cost. For example, you can get a free listing on Google Local that will be just as effective as a costly online Yellow Pages ad. In addition, while traditional ads may only run for a short time, a search engine optimization campaign can deliver long-term results.
Everything Is Measurable: When you place an ad in the newspaper or a magazine, it can be difficult to assess the direct sales impact for your business. With online marketing, everything can be tracked and illustrated in detailed graphs that illustrate traffic growth, leads and sales conversions from your specific search marketing campaigns. Using a free traffic analysis tool like Google Analytics, it is easy to calculate your return on investment (ROI) so you can appreciate the excellent value generated from your online marketing budget.
Brand Engagement: In the crowded market, you need to establish and maintain positive brand awareness and client loyalty. Apart from word-of-mouth and leveraging your personal relationships with your established clients, a website is the most important marketing tool a business can have. An updated website with good content to maintain interest is crucial and shows people your distinctiveness and how you offer the best value to your clients.
Demographic Targeting: The degree to which an online marketing campaign can target and measure the response from specific demographics and regions is often astonishing to business owners who normally use traditional media. Straight forward analysis allows you to specifically target the specific consumer demographics most likely to buy your products. In particular, if you want to target young people between the ages of 16-30, you'll need an online marketing strategy to reach them where they spend the bulk of their time: On the Internet and on social media sites.
Real-Time Results: With online marketing you don’t have to wait weeks to see a significant boost in your business. Results that enable you to fine-tune your marketing message to achieve your desired effect. If your marketing strategy isn't working effectively, real-time monitoring tools allow you to easily pin-point exactly where you are going wrong.
Long Term Exposure: The benefit of an organic search marketing campaign that optimizes a website for specific keywords is that you will achieve a long-term return on your investment. Once your website’s visibility is well-established with search engines, it is easy to do regular low-cost maintenance of your strategy. Those who take full advantage of the benefits of newer online marketing platforms like social media marketing will have a significant head start over their competition.
Product Information: Today’s savvy consumers want to compare reviews and opinions of friends, trusted bloggers and industry experts before they make a decision. If you can provide quality, linkable information that is what people are looking for, then the next step of converting users into paying clients can be very easy. With social media networks like Facebook and Twitter re-enforcing the value of positive word-of-mouth exposure, trust is more important than ever in the marketing field.
Well, I think you get the big picture. Aside from the obvious, namely economics, hiring a good website designer/developer is a good investment that will pay off for years to come. I'm not asking you to negate traditional advertising from your small business campaign - I'm just trying to prove which one will have a bigger impact on your overall strategy and finances.
Businesses not utilizing Facebook, Twitter, GooglePlus, LinkedIn, and so on more might be missing out on some serious clicks.
Is your business struggling with online marketing because of time and/or a lack of resources? Do you expect things to improve in the near future? Can you truly afford not to have a website, and take advantage of social media and related marketing campaigns?
Why not give CompuAssist a call @ 705-828-7411 or email us at info@compuassist.ca to find out how we can assist you in both giving your online presence a jump-start. Be sure to check out our newest product, Tap To Call Mobile, a guaranteed benefits to many small business owners offered FREE when you purchase one of our affordable web design packages.
Hope To Hear From You Soon - Brent Vanderham
Visit Us Online @ www.CompuAssist.ca
