Articles in The 'Marketing-budget' Tag

My Business Is Not Right For Search Engine Marketing

by MoreVisibility

Some of you reading this may actually believe that headline. I come across too many small businesses that believe that pay-per-click (ppc) is not right for their business.

In 2008, all businesses should be taking advantage of ppc advertising and if you are having trouble convincing yourself or your team to try it, here are some ways to counter popular excuses.

We are a B2B company and most searchers are consumers

While many searches are conducted by consumers, B2B customers also use search engines to find vendors and services. More importantly, ppc advertising allows you to only target words used by your potential customers, limiting who will see your ad. Additionally, you only pay when someone clicks on the ad, meaning that they should be a qualified lead if you have good ad copy.

We don’t have the budget

PPC advertising does not require a large budget. You can start on your own for as low as $20 and grow from there. Your company must be able to spare a little money to test this medium and then calculate the return on investment. If the medium provides a good return, marketing dollars will be shifted there.

We don’t have an online store

PPC advertising isn’t only for companies with online stores. Many service companies use ppc to generate leads and you can do the same whether you sell physical products or a service.

We don’t know anything about PPC advertising and don’t have time to learn

That is why companies like MoreVisibility exist. Outsourcing makes companies more efficient and allows them to focus on their core competencies. It usually works out cheaper to outsource than to hire an in-house specialist.

We are targeting a very niche market

That is the perfect opportunity to use ppc to reach customers. No other advertising medium offers the kind of targeting and reporting that ppc does. With contextual and site targeting, you can also advertise exactly where your niche market is online.

We prefer display advertising to text advertising

While text ads are the most popular, ppc advertising is not limited to text. Google also offers display advertising (as well as audio and video). You will be able to place your display ads on websites of your choice.

I hope that the responses above help to convince you and your team that ppc advertising is a good fit for most companies.

Will Search Engine Marketing be affected by Economic Slump in 2008?

by MoreVisibility

It’s a new year, which for many companies means a new marketing budget. In past years, this fresh slate would be a perfect opportunity to try the new, latest-and-greatest marketing channels. However, with the current, vulnerable state of our economy, purse strings are tighter than ever. So how do experts see this affecting your Search Engine Marketing (SEM) dollars?

With Search Marketing continuing to experience double digit growth rates in SEM, we needn’t worry just yet. According to a recent report from Forrester Research, “Search marketing spend is expected to triple in five years.” In fact, some argue that since SEM is the safest channel, due to the ability to track precise ROI, it could just be your safest bet for 2008!

We are all expecting a challenging year, but with that in mind, it’s more important than ever to play smart with your marketing budgets. SEM is a strong channel that, if monitored properly, can show you immediate return!