Sometimes, for small business owners, the right marketing decision begins with considering the benefits and drawbacks of organic versus paid marketing for your business.
Many businesses in a stressed economy will grapple with the choices of marketing their brand via organic mediums (i.e. social media, email marketing, content marketing, etc.) versus advertising based promotion. And for some, the answer to the question of which approach is best for their business, timeline and budget doesn’t always come easily.
Organic marketing is often much less costly and engenders trust in your brand much more effectively. However, as the name suggests, it takes time for organic efforts to mature to a real ROI.
Advertising can be quite effective in getting a wide audience very quickly, but it can be a costly approach and crafting an ad campaign that engenders the trust effective organic marketing campaigns do so well, can be difficult even with seasoned professionals in your corner.
The things to keep in mind are those three considerations: what’s best for your business as it is today, your budget (can you sustain the cost of an advertising campaign until it is able to generate revenue at a reasonable pace to justify the spending), and your timeline (can you afford to wait the time necessary for organic efforts to mature.
The fact is organic marketing yields longer term benefits when done right (and consistently). Remember, organic marketing generates trust in your brand and trust goes a long way with a consumer.
If your business is in its nascent stage and has the cash flow necessary to operate for a lengthy period before needing marketing initiatives to produce revenue, a longer termed organic campaign may be the best route to pursue because it provides for growth and can be self-sustaining with little cost but lots of effort.
For a business that has cash flow but needs a quick burst of visibility (a new product launch, for instance), advertising may be the best approach, targeting your message to a demographic best suited for it and producing results right away. Just keep in mind that those results aren’t always self-sustaining. To keep those numbers high, you have got to continue to stoke the fires with more ad budgets.
So before diving into the deep end of the digital marketing pool, in addition to your budget, consider: (1) your specific marketing needs and what you are trying to accomplish; and (2) the duration of your goals, whether long term or short term returns are what you’re aiming for.
Making your decisions based on your goals and not just your budget can insure that the marketing dollars you do spend don’t go to waste.
If you would like to talk with a Proctor Digital consultant about your marketing needs, please call us at 773.245.7226. We love helping our clients gain massive visibility in the digital marketplace.