“How should I spend my marketing budget?” is one of the most important questions a company leader can ask – especially for a small business. Making the most of your marketing dollars doesn’t always mean having the lowest bottom line; it means having the best ROI. The initiatives that bring in the most leads at the lowest cost per lead, especially when compared to similar efforts, are the ones you’ll really want to focus on when it comes to answering this question. Today, we’re breaking down the most cost-effective (and effective-effective) strategies your business can leverage to grow its reputation and its client base. Let’s get started.

SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is the process of making sure your website turns up as high as possible in search results for relevant keywords. For example, if you run a Tampa-based catering business, you’d want to be a top result for Google searches like “best Tampa caterers” or “Tampa event catering.” SEO is fantastic because, when done correctly, it can help your website be seen by thousands of people who are already interested in the services you have to offer – and you don’t have to pay a time for advertisements or boosts. With that said, the thing that’s difficult about SEO is that it’s never-ending; there are always more ways to optimize your digital presence, and there are always plenty of businesses competing for the same coveted spots on the first page of Google results. The best way to boost your SEO is to work with a professional to make sure it’s always optimized (more on that later), but you can start making some improvements to your website right away through consistent, targeted content. First up, research popular keywords in your industry and area. Then write out blog posts, web pages, eBooks, and other types of website-based content that includes those keywords (generally, it should be one keyword per post). Be consistent and thorough with your content development.

Content production is one of the most important things you can do yourself to bolster not just your SEO, but your website visitors’ experience. Make sure that your website copy is engaging, concise, and results-driven: each page of your website should be focused, topical, and should incentivize visitors to set up a call, request a quote, or otherwise take an action that brings them closer to becoming a paying customer. Your digital content can also be leveraged to build your reputation as a thought leader in your industry. Think about your ideal customer: what are their demographics, buying habits, and values? With this person in mind, think about the types of questions that your customers are likely to have related to your industry. Then, produce content pieces – whether they’re as simple as blog posts or as elaborate as professional videos – that address these pain points. Content doesn’t have to be fancy in order to be useful; just sharing your expertise with your audience in useful, relevant ways is enough.

While SEO is the process of helping your website turn up higher in search results organically, SEM (search engine marketing) is the use of paid ads to do the same. For the sake of brevity, today we’re going to focus on one specific component of SEO: Search Network ads, also known as Google AdWords. When you search for a term on Google, you might notice that the first couple of results are labeled “ad,” despite looking very similar to the other results beneath them. This is because the companies to which those ads belong have paid to have their website displayed there. This doesn’t necessarily have to break the bank. By running AdWords advertisements – especially on niche terms that are both commonly searched and very specific to your area of expertise – you can get your website in front of the people who want to see it most. The great thing about AdWords is that you can set a maximum ad spend. Every time a viewer clicks on your, you are charged a dollar amount. You can cap this amount off daily at any budget that works for you, and your ads won’t be run that day once that maximum budget is reached. AdWords strategies are complex and ever-evolving; running them effectively can be a full-time job on its own. We recommend consulting with a professional before moving forward with AdWords, but it’s worth knowing the basics to understand that, when done correctly, this initiative can give you a really solid ROI.

We know – it’s not very credible to hear a marketing agency talk about how worthwhile it is to work with a marketing agency. Here’s the thing, though: we really, truly mean it. All of the initiatives we mentioned above can be extremely effective, but not if they’re done sparsely, inconsistently, or without a baseline of knowledge. SEO, SEM, and content strategies work best when they are contextualized into holistic campaigns that measure data, make pivots, and are constantly evolving. A great marketing agency allows you to have full access to a team of experts at a fraction of the cost it would take to hire a similar team in-house. It allows you to reap all of the benefits of a data-driven, comprehensive campaign at a manageable price point, all the while setting the foundation to bolster your digital presence and bring in leads. When it comes to ROI, there’s nothing better.

“How should I spend my marketing budget?” may be a difficult question to answer, but we hope this has been a useful resource as you continue to evaluate the options available to your business. If you’re interested in learning more about what a full-service marketing agency has to offer, don’t hesitate to set up a free consultation with us.