As the year draws to a close, many companies are conducting year-end recaps and planning for the new year. They’re examining budgets and determining how much to invest in every area of their business, including marketing.
There’s an old adage that you have to spend money to make money, and that is very true for marketing. But good marketing is measureable marketing. Digital marketing offers excellent opportunities to test, measure, and improve marketing ROI. It is data-driven marketing that can help small-business owners generate more leads and sales from every dollar invested in marketing.
Every business is unique, and every digital marketing plan is unique. It should begin with an examination of the current market landscape, customer wants and needs, and sales goals. From there, a strategy can be created that encompasses many of the following marketing channels.
Small businesses focused on growth can look to the following marketing tactics to help them get started on their new year marketing budget. Each is highly measurable and effective if handled correctly.
Email Marketing
Email marketing continues to deliver the highest ROI among digital channels. Because email is inexpensive and easy to measure, it is ideal for testing different subject lines, offers, and audience segments. Personalized campaigns consistently outperform generic ones, underscoring the importance of segmentation and automation for maximizing returns.
How do you get started? By building a permission-based email list. It is vitally important to market only to those who grant permission to receive your emails. Dashboard can help you strategize and enact a campaign to develop your email list and market to it effectively.
Pay-Per-Click Advertising
Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising provides immediate, measurable results. According to Google, businesses can expect $2 in revenue for every $1 spent. PPC works best for targeting customers who are ready to buy, making it an ideal option for small businesses seeking quick leads. Testing ad copy, keywords, and targeting options allows owners to refine campaigns and maximize ROI.
Search Engine Optimization
Search engine optimization (SEO) offers exceptional long-term ROI. Positive ROI typically appears within 6-12 months, but the compounding effect of organic traffic makes SEO one of the most sustainable investments. Testing different keyword strategies and content formats helps identify which efforts generate the most visibility and conversions.
AI search optimization is an important component of SEO and should not be overlooked. Investing in revisions to your existing content can help breathe new life into existing resources so that it appeals to ChatGPT snippets and other AI-enabled search platforms.
Social Media Marketing
Social media has evolved into a vital channel for small business marketing. While the reach of organic social media posts has declined, paid social advertising continues to offer a solid return on investment. More than 70% of businesses invest in social media advertising, with 83% saying Facebook is the best channel for their business. (What works for you may vary.) Consider including social media advertising that supports your overall marketing strategy and is tailored to your customers—in other words, advertise on the platforms that your customers prefer to visit.
Short-Form Video Content
Short-form video is popular and continues to dominate social media. It’s fairly easy to get started and offers the opportunity to help customers get to know your business quickly through stories. Testimonials, product demonstrations, behind-the-scenes at the business, and similar shorts tend to do well on many platforms.
Local Listings and Reputation Management
Do you provide service only to local customers? If so, investing more in local search marketing makes sense. Ensuring your Google Business Profile, Google Maps information, and other local directories feature your company prominently goes a long way to supporting local sales. Positive reviews often serve as the deciding factor for new customers. Testing different approaches to review requests and monitoring feedback strengthens reputation and attracts new business.
A Focus on Your Business’ Marketing Strategy
It may feel overwhelming to consider the many possible marketing channels and their costs. Dashboard Interactive Marketing can help you refine your digital marketing strategy and prioritize your small-business marketing based on your unique strengths, goals, and our 20+ years of experience. Together, we can creat and implement a marketing plan, test and measure it, and continue improving it to get the most value for your marketing dollar. Call us at 763-242-2454 to get started.