Search Engine Marketing Vs Offline Marketing in Atlanta

Finding the right advertising/marketing medium for your business can be tricky. Thankfully, all marketing campaigns can be measured the same. If you spent $10,000 to market your product and received $20,000 in revenue, you are doing good and should continue the marketing campaign. However, if you only netted $5,000 in sales, you need to revisit your marketing strategy.

So which marketing strategy is best for growing your business? As we head (or continue) into the recession of 2008, budgets are being slashed. Businesses no longer can afford the luxury of under performing marketing endeavors (not that they really could before, but now they are under more scrutiny). Simply put, a company can not afford from a failed marketing campaign.

Why SEO is perhaps the best thing since sliced bread

As one of Atlanta's leading search engine marketing firms, we believe in the value of search engine marketing (or we wouldn't be in business). We believe that search engine marketing is the least expensive method of getting the word out to the most number of educated customers *seeking* your product or service. That is, when a online searcher visits your website from a search engine, they got there by stating exactly what they were seeking (i.e "SEO in Atlanta"). They are not simply window shopping, but rather actively engaging in a search for your service or product. As such, we are in the business of helping clients take advantage of their curiosity and making our clients be found when it matters most.

General Pros of Search Engine Marketing

• Wider potential reach
• Cheaper than most other forms of marketing
• Allows for quick revision of content
• Allows for quick iterations to the campaign
• Highly specific metrics

Now, let's see how other forms of traditional marketing (Yellow Pages, Print, and Broadcast) compare with the costs and coverage of search engine marketing, specifically in the Atlanta market.

Yellow Pages vs Search Engine Marketing in Atlanta

A yellow page ad costs about $10,000, for which you get a display listing in a large print book servicing a specific, local area. This ad will run for an entire year, during which time it can not be changed. The listing are alphabetically ordered, so if you are not fortunate enough to be A1 COMPANY, you will be below many of your competitors. Bottom-line: Get the basic free listing, and then get instant traffic to your website with pay per click search engine marketing.

Print vs. Search Engine Marketing in Atlanta

We have posted on print advertising in prior postings. Simply put advertising in print is expensive. A half-page ad in the Atlanta Journal Constitution will run you 36k, much more if you are looking for the prime readership day of Sunday. And don't forget -- this is only for one day. Furthermore, chances are you will not be able to choose or effect the placement location of the ad unless you have a long-term relationship with the newspaper. Bottom line: for the same cost of running an ad for a full week in the Atlanta Journal Constitution a business can generally have a highly effective website created and marketed on search engines. What's more, that investment will last indefinitely, not one week.

Broadcast vs. Search Engine Marketing in Atlanta

If you have money to throw away, then broadcast is for you! First, you have to create your radio or television ad. This should set you back tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars. Now that you have your expensive advertisment, it is time to purchase spots to air the commercials. This is so complicated you will probably need to find a professional firm to assist with you just figuring out how to spend your money. Now that you have your ad out on the air/sound waves, try to measure the success of your campaign. No seriously, try. Bottom line: Broadcast is for deep pockets and big egos.

Search engine marketing is the great equalizer. All things are equal in search engine marketing. A wise business can have a much better, innovative website and more savvy search engine marketing strategy than its larger competitor. And, since perception is reality, as the stronger of the two companies. If a company gets a top rank in the search result, we all assume that they are also the better choice. At the very least, we assume they are the person we should be contacting.