The old mantra “spend your money wisely” couldn’t be more accurate when it comes to annual budgets, which is probably why many experts recommend dedicating a modest 10 percent of your budget to marketing. However, companies such as Salesforce and Twitter designate much more than 40 percent of their annual budgets to marketing, suggesting that 10 percent might not be the golden number after all.
Even if you decide to stick to 10 percent for marketing, you need to allocate your resources to online and offline advertising appropriately. According to various recent studies, the role of online marketing is becoming increasingly significant, and companies now allocate about 30 percent of their total marketing budget to online advertising.
However, despite the growth of online marketing, most businesses still designate a relatively small portion of their expenditure to social media, even if that portion did rise to 15 percent in 2017. As one of the leading SEO companies in Sydney, we believe that figure is set to rise further – and for good reasons.
Here at Smart Traffic, we’re an SEO specialist that’s been helping businesses foster an online presence for years, and we can place your website in front of ready-to-buy customers through SEO, content marketing, pay per click advertising, and social media advertising. Keep reading below to learn more about the role of social media marketing in the modern world of business and why you need to start paying attention to it sooner rather than later.
Why Is Social Media Still Underrated?
Despite the fact that there are billions of social media users, many companies still don’t see its value as an advertising platform. Social media marketing is on the rise, but most advertising experts and SEO Australia specialists agree that it’s not being exploited to its full potential – but why not? Here are some of the most common myths surrounding social media marketing:
- Social Media is a Fad
Perhaps many companies still believe social media advertising is worthless because they’re run by senior executives who aren’t quite as in tune with the modern world as millennials.
- It’s an Intern’s Job
Although you can pay to advertise on social media platforms, many companies choose to employ a free strategy. It’s not impossible to increase your revenue via free online advertising, but because there’s often no need to risk any capital, the task is given to interns or those who lack the required experience to create a successful strategy.
- It Doesn’t Work for All Businesses
Because many business owners still don’t know much about social media platforms, they often choose to believe it doesn’t work based on stories from other companies. However, the companies who reject social media marketing may have failed to invest in a workable strategy.
If done with careful planning and attention to detail, social media marketing can work wonders for just about any business, regardless of size. Plus, as a specialist in SEO in Sydney, we believe social media marketing is now more important than ever for the reasons listed below.
Why Now’s the Time to Invest in Social Media Marketing
Social media marketing is increasing consistently year on year, but many marketing experts – ourselves included – believe more companies need to be paying attention to it right now. Here’s why.
- Everybody’s on Social Media
Many companies still believe that social media is nothing more than a trend that will eventually pass, but when you consider the fact that Facebook has over 1.2 billion users, it’s safe to say that social media isn’t going anywhere for the time being. In fact, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram have all increased in popularity every year consistently, so if you want your message to resonate with customers, now’s the time to start drafting a social media marketing strategy.
- Bolster Your Brand’s Reputation
Some businesses fail to recognise the value of social media marketing because it’s admittedly challenging to measure the return on investment. When you focus on SEO in Sydney, you can monitor the increased conversions and how those conversions manifest into sales, but social media is more about nurturing your brand and encouraging people to pay an interest in what you have to say. However, if you can gain a large following and increase brand awareness successfully, you will see a significant return on investment from your social media marketing efforts, even if it isn’t blatantly obvious.
- Free Word-of-Mouth Advertising
Referrals and recommendations remain the most effective marketing methods, but it’s not easy to encourage your customers to spread the word about your company. However, social media is centred on the sharing of information, and should you manage to create content or videos that capture people’s attention, you could end up utilising word-of-mouth advertising to your advantage without spending a penny.
- Don’t Fall Behind the Competition
Even if social media marketing isn’t rising as quickly as we perhaps anticipated it would, it is still slowly but surely becoming a crucial element of online advertising for almost all businesses. If you don’t want to become a drop in the ocean, now’s the time to start attracting followers.
- So Many Places to Advertise
As mentioned above, it’s possible to advertise on social media platforms without spending a cent. Plus, you’re not limited to using just one platform. Most experts agree that Facebook and YouTube are still the dominant platforms and consequently the websites you should focus much of your efforts on when creating a social media marketing strategy, but many advertisers and businesses are paying close attention to Instagram and Snapchat.
How to Get Started
It takes years to understand the ins and outs of social media marketing, and while it’s possible to advertise for free, investing in a paid strategy usually brings the most significant return on investment. If you want to get ahead, it’s wise to utilise the experts, which is why you might want to call an SEO specialist in Sydney.
Here at Smart Traffic, we’ve grown to become a leading expert in SEO in Australia because we know which strategies work and which don’t. If you’d like to learn more about social media marketing, how to get started, or if you’d like a consultation with an SEO specialist, don’t hesitate to get in touch by calling 02 8205 3133.
