Even before this pandemic took hold there were many small businesses which were afraid of spending money on marketing as they feared that they would not see the level of return which would satisfy the level of investment. In fact I watched the brilliant William Seegmiller back in January give a passionate webinar discussing how small businesses quite literally risked going out of business if they refused to invest some of their capital into marketing.
Following the events of the last 6 months, small businesses are even less likely to want to spend money on anything, as most have survival on their mind and nothing more. Despite the tumultuous climate however, now is the best time for small businesses to look at doubling down on their marketing investment, and here is why.
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Digital Marketing Boom
During the last 6 months there have been some industries which have not only survived, but actually thrived, and one such industry is digital marketing. Admittedly the world of digital marketing had to change to meet new conditions, switching to more retail clients and altering the tone of their ads and their strategies. Nonetheless this is a booming industry and that is because of one simple reason, the number of hours which people are spending online. This already enormous market has become bigger than ever and more ripe than ever before too, the perfect place to pitch your small business.
Specific Marketing
In that webinar which Seegmiller gave, he spoke a great deal about one of the biggest reasons why so many small business owners wouldn’t invest in digital marketing was that they failed to grasp just how targeted the ads could be. We now have ways and means of directly advertising to our target market, right down to age, sex, location and common interests. This is something that we have never been able to do before, at least not with such precision. The result of this is of course more bang for your buck and a much bigger increase in both leads and sales.
The World Is Waiting
The big issue for so many small business owners which run an offline business, is that they believe there is little need for them to be online in any capacity. The reality is however that organic search numbers are through the roof because the consumer uses the web to search for absolutely everything. If someone wants an Italian restaurant they are going straight to their phone and Google Maps, if they are looking for a carpenter then they will hit social media or a search engine. We have to get away from thinking that because your business doesn’t operate online, that this means the web is something that should be ignored. The internet is the new high street and your business must ensure that it is conscious of this fact, and invests money into marketing online.
It may feel a bit risky, but now more than ever is the time to invest in a solid digital marketing strategy for your business.