When it comes to SEO, big brands tend to be the winners. After all, these companies have the people and the budget to fine-tune every aspect of their digital strategy. True as this might be, that does not mean smaller brands cannot find their success in the digital landscape. When you have only a small budget for marketing, you can make do with what you have and prioritize what will bring higher ROI.
How can you do that? A reputable digital marketing agency in Phoenix shares a few insights:
Identify Your Limitations
The reality with running a campaign on a small budget is that there are inevitable compromises to be made. Now, the critical part here is knowing what these compromises are, and that begins with understanding how your budget is limiting your campaign. It could mean less time or fewer resources allocated for SEO campaigns. There could also be a lack of money for various assets. By knowing what your budget is and isn’t, you can gain an idea of the top priorities for your campaign and avoid going down routes that won’t have significant returns.
Bridge Identified Gaps
The budget constraint would mean the existence of gaps in your strategy, and it is essential to fill these. For instance, if high-end analytics or tracking tools are too pricey, you have to switch to low-cost or free alternatives. These could require a bit more manual labor, but sweat equity is a small price to pay for a comprehensive SEO strategy without the hefty price tag.
Work with Your Strengths
Regardless of the budget, there are always parts of a brand’s marketing efforts that perform well. Identify what these are in your case and focus on them. Doing so would guarantee at least some success with your strategy. For instance, you can capitalize on your local popularity to gain backlinks or earn excellent reviews. There are also cases when focusing on optimizing one or two pages makes more sense than doing it for the entire website. If that’s what the budget allows for and if that’s what works, by all means, go for it. Start small, measure results, and build on your successes.
Set Realistic Expectations
Managing expectations is crucial when running a campaign with a low or limited budget. Check the numbers of current organic traffic and set it as a baseline. From there, estimate the growth of organic traffic with a predictive model. Do not give in to the pressure of doubling, tripling that traffic, or immediately boosting your rankings up to the first page. Direct all efforts into something achievable and realistic. It will also be helpful to discuss the type of work that will be done for the budget and make sure that each activity is feasible. Massive projects like website structure redesigns might have to be shelved for now and planned for in the future instead.
Big brands are not the only players in the SEO game. With the right prioritization and strategy, smaller businesses can win and succeed, too.
