Have you ever wondered what type of marketing traditionally gives the best return on investment? Some might tell you that it’s radio. Others will contend that it’s newspaper. Don’t believe any of them. Those answers might have been true 10 or 20 years ago. Things are different when marketing in a recession. These days we’re operating in a whole new economy. We’re operating in an economy where people are getting most of their information from the Web. Therefore using the Web is a must. Luckily, search marketing has been proven to provide the highest ROI compared to all other forms of marketing.
So what is search marketing?
It’s the process of getting your message in front of people who are searching the web. That can mean that your site shows up in the ads displayed in the side bar of Google or it can mean that you site shows up in the free listings on MSN. It’s all about search results and where your site places in the results. It’s been demonstrated that 97% of all the Web’s traffic visits the top 8 listings on Google and the rest receive little if any traffic. In fact, did you know that 96% of the Internet has never been seen before? That’s like the amount of the world that had been discovered by the year 500 B.C.. That means that there’s a lot of the Internet left to be discovered. Why are there so many pages floating around in oblivion without ever being seen? Because people don’t understand how to drive traffic to their pages. They fall victim to the myth that you can build a site, go live and wait for the rush of traffic to flood in.
I remember an IBM commercial a few years back that showed a similar scenario where a group of geeks were waiting for the site to go live and then they watched as the first order rolled in. Then two, three, 300, 5000 and then the server crashed from overload. Unfortunately, that scenario just doesn’t happen unless you’re running a Superbowl ad.
The reality is that you have to dedicate as much effort to marketing your site, as you do to creating it. However, most people just build a site and let it loose. They wait, nothing happens and they lose faith because of the lack-luster results. Many great sites are lost in cyberspace. Many great sites sit there never getting any traffic because of an improper attempt to market the site.
So how do you handle marketing in a recession for your website?
There are dozens of tactics but perhaps the most cost-effective means is search engine optimization. By intentionally creating the site to be found in the search results of Google, generally a site can ignore all other means of advertising because search traffic can deliver more than enough customers on a day to day basis.
The benefits of search engine optimization are amazing. With most advertising, you’re attempting to break through the clutter and get your message to sink in at a time when your customer is avoiding your message. Let’s face it. People are busy. They’re bombarded with thousands of marketing messages everyday and it’s nearly impossible to break through that clutter. How can you compete for someone’s attention when they’re thinking about what to make for dinner or who’s picking Bobby up from soccer? But when someone is searching the web for something, the tables are turned. They’re actively engaged. They’re searching for you. Rather than forcing your message down their throat, you’re providing them with what they want, when the need it. As a result, your prospects are well-qualified. They’re much more likely to buy from you. The sales cycle is shorter. The benefits just go on and on. It’s an amazing alternative to traditional marketing. The only other thing that can rival search marketing is the yellow pages. However, the yellow pages are a dying breed. Fewer and fewer people are using them. They’re turning to the Web for their information and now you can be there front and center, if you take advantage of search engine optimization. Give Red Rocket a call to discover how reasonable the rates can be to promote your site on Google. Our number is 970-674-0079. I hope that helps you with your marketing in a recession.
Chadd Bryant
Red Rocket Media Group, LLC
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