A tendency we have as marketers is to stick to our comfort zones with respect to the channels and types of campaigns that we run. That’s hardly surprising in that it’s not necessarily easy to find a channel that performs well, so once you do, it’s not always a top priority to research and experiment with additional ones.
Sometimes marketers, particularly in b-b industries stick with advertising channels like trade shows that are more comfortable (and old school) than they are trackable or income producing. Over time, as new competitors enter the marketplace and new prospective customers emerge, digital marketing can usurp the status quo in these industries and a “digital scramble” to catch up ensues.
Additionally, we’ve all tried tactics in the past be they digital or offline and seen a poor result, which often lessens the appetite for trying (or re-trying) something new. Sometimes it wasn’t actually a poor result, but rather a first step in a lengthier process that was halted too early. The easiest point to reference here is SEO (Search Engine Optimization). Unlike Interactive Marketing, the path to ongoing profitability is lined with small steps, many of which require effort and resources that are challenging to muster. Most marketers love adding content to their websites or social channels, especially when someone besides them is creating it.
If your organization is not making an attempt to gain traction in the Organic results in Google and your competitors are present for your important keywords, then an immediate opportunity exists to begin to close the gap and drive leads through SEO. It won’t happen overnight, but if you are able to gradually make inroads in the rankings, then you will ultimately be lowering your lead acquisition cost and developing a new customer acquisition channel as well.
Regardless of the tactics employed, the moral of the story here is to continue to devote time and energy to testing new channels. This will help lessen your reliance on any one tactic and ultimately increase the opportunity to drive additional leads cost effectively.
