Many businesses wonder where to spend their ad dollars, and it’s a more than valid question. The pandemic brought about a huge slump in digital ad spend as the majority of businesses began stuffing cash into their collective mattresses, instead of advertising. As a marketer, I noticed this trend in 2020 and communicated to clients that now was not the time to retreat. Why? Well, it begins with keywords, associated costs and plainly put; the client’s competition. When most businesses stopped spending cold-turkey it created opportunity for those with smaller budgets.  Some clients that spend $10,000-$20,000 a month began to save, as the cost per click (CPC) was far cheaper than the previous weeks/months.

When things like this happen, as a business – you have the opportunity to gain market share at a cheaper rate. How? When people are searching for those same goods or services, they’ll see your business, not the competition. So, during a pandemic or retreat phase, companies that held on to the plan gained market share and gained a connection. When you earn or attract new business during a time when the world is in shut down, you become a trusted place to go that solves your customers needs. All of that was able to be gained simply by sticking to the strategy and being open/nimble when you need to be. Firstly, we as humans always remember how someone or something made us FEEL.

Digital Ad spend has been increasing each year, even considering the pull-back experienced during the start of the global pandemic. According to the good folks at eMarketer, Digital ad spend will hit $455 billion dollars by the years end. They report that the trend of ad spend that has been shifting towards display ads, continues to do so with 55% of spend having gone in that direction. Around 40% was spent on search ads. So, depending upon your budget, target audience and other factors, display advertising may be the right shift for you.

Typically, display ads are developed to leave an impression on a possible customer whereas a search ad works when customers are searching for goods or services you may offer. That said, it’s becoming impossible to not have your game together when it comes to your strategy and overall digital presence management.  That’s why we’re here, to provide you with the packaged brownie – not necessarily all the ingredients it takes to make it. Whatever it is you offer from HVAC, retirement community management, manufacturing, healthcare or even plastic surgery – you are trusted to produce the best outcome. We’re no different, but we don’t want to go through medical school. 😉

Looking behind and looking ahead pays dividends when it comes to defining a strategy that will work for you. Even with spending shifting to display ads, search ads will still have a home. There are many factors that might prevent potential customers from seeing a display ad, like connectivity or the simple choice of how individuals find what they need on the internet. Search ads will always have a home, because as good as algorithms are – they will never be able to serve us an ad based on what we might need in any given moment. That said, be sure your plan considers all the variables before you move large chunks of money into Display advertising. Either way, there is no slowing down in terms of the trend of spend in digital ads.

If you don’t have a website, or have one that needs to be refreshed – we’d be happy to take a look and form a plan that will guide you in the right direction, with intent and meaning. To give you some more perspective, the internet began in April of 1993. I remember setting up my first hotmail account and sending emails. What a time. The point is, you are in competition with every other website out there that swims in your lane. If your site is less that optimized, you’re missing opportunity. Once a site is built and propagates around the globe, Google and other engines begin to determine if your website answers basic questions for those that have found their way to it. If the answer is “yes” then your site becomes ranked higher, at which point Google will show your website to more searchers, as a kind of award for relevance and solving a problem. It works in this way because WE are customers of GOOGLE. If you go to a dentist and he botches your dental work in some way, chances are you wont ask him to do it 3 or 4 more times. That’s how Google works. They want to provide us with the best possible answer on the first search. So, your website should be mobile friendly first, maintained and organized in a rational flow – and most importantly communicate what you do immediately. Ready to get started? We can help by building your website, today.

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