This is a Guest Post by Craig Kilgore. Craig is an SEO with Mainstreethost. Craig has been practicing SEO for roughly 5 years with Mainstreethost. You can follow him on Twitter @ckilgs or contact him via email at ckilgore@mainstreethost.com.

Each year, businesses dedicate more and more of their budgets into the various forms of online marketing. In my experience working with small business owners, how they spend their smaller online marketing budgets is something that is discussed frequently. There are many things to consider when investing in SEO, PPC, content marketing, social media and other forms of online marketing. As a small business owner, how can you get the most out of your online marketing budget? I will share some tips.


Know Your Industry – knowing how competitive your industry is will help you decide where to spend and where to cut back. If you are in a highly socially engaged industry such as bars or restaurants, you might want to dedicate more of your marketing budget into social media to compete with those other businesses. On the flip side of this, finding out where your competition is lacking can open up new doors you might have otherwise ignored.


Go With What Works – by no means should you be afraid to try new things or experiment with newer forms of online marketing, but you should always know what’s proven and what works for your business. If you have high rates of success with paid search advertising, you should pay close attention to this in effort to expand on your already proven success. The best thing you can do for your business is to be involved in your online marketing and be aware of what works best for your company and in your industry.


Be Creative – even on a small budget, the concept of creativity can stretch your marketing dollars longer than you would have ever expected. In addition to being creative, you should know where and when to apply your creativity. In most cases, any form of online marketing could benefit from implementing some sort of creativity. If you are going with what works as we discussed in the last bullet, you should have some sense of what doesn’t work. Can one of your less effective marketing efforts benefit from some more creativity? The answer to this question is usually yes so be aware and willing to experiment.


Utilize Your Resources – as a small business owner, your resources are not comparable to larger corporations but they are existent. From employees to customers to friends and family, you have resources you can rely on. See where your employees can contribute to your marketing efforts such as having creativity based contests (logo designs, content generation, etc.).


Ask For Product / Service Reviews – reviews are nothing new but how they are being used is something that is changing constantly in the online marketing world. Comment cards, email blasts and website review forms are just a couple of ways you can get priceless business reviews. You can use these reviews in many ways and most of them come at little to no cost. Most of the time, your customers will have no problem sharing their experiences with your products and services.

These are just a few tips to help you get the most out of your online marketing budget. Be willing to change directions as technology and consumer behavior studies advance. All in all, there are a countless number of opportunities out there waiting for you to experiment with. As a small business owner, don’t be too conservative but don’t be afraid to be creative. What have you done recently to address your online marketing budget?

To learn more about online marketing, you can download this free eBook from E-junkie.info:

Exploring Game Changing Tactics Of Online Marketing