The Value of SEO in Your Marketing Budget
The Value of SEO in Your Marketing Budget
Value: relative worth, merit, or importance
I just read a post by Chris Silver Smith discussing Print Yellow Pages vs. Online Yellow Pages, and he makes a point I strongly agree with: People are leaving the phone books and going to the internet to get information. The phone books have been a prime source to provide information to consumers in the past, but is not the only one. The main marketing medias in recent years have been:
TV
Radio
Newspaper
Billboard
Direct Mail
Magazines
Phone Books
Online
So what medium has the best value for your business? Depends on your business. Each marketing option has it's own strengths and weaknesses. I found a profile of the major media types on www.iesbdc.org which was very interesting. They listed the advantages and limitations of each media type and only listed two of them as having low cost in the advantage category: Online and Billboard.
The report goes on to say that for a billboard the cost are- "$3,000 to do artwork and install media on billboard; rates depend on impress level, ranges from $5,000 to $500,000 (the higher the qualify of the artwork and the larger the demographic group, the higher the price); minimum contract is 16 weeks". So lets simply say the low end of $8000. $8000 divided by 16 = $500 a week. Other costs were as such:
*Newspapers- $1300 a week for 2' x 2' ad
*TV- $200,000 for 30 seconds of prime time
*Direct Mail- $1500 for 1000 standard postcards including postage
*Radio-$90-$120 a week on a rotator
*Magazine- $1200 to $5000 per month or issue
*Online- $.60 PPC or $1200 to $1800/month for aggressive PPC campaigns
These numbers seam fairly accurate (depending upon several different factors) to me, but what disappoints me is the fact that the report actually excluded SEO efforts. What is the value of being the #1 natural ranked result for targeted keywords on search engines such as Yahoo, Google, or MSN? Of course the exposure alone is worth it's weight in gold, but also consider the credibility factor. Do you want to use the company that finished in 1st place or in 10th place? It's a little simplistic, but people have been naming their companies "ABC Whatever" just to be listed 1st in the phone books for years.
It's difficult to establish an average cost of SEO because their are so many different levels of effort and needs, but for companies that do not have geographical boundaries for their product or services, online marketing is the most cost effective and controllable media type available. Geographically defined companies can't overlook the need for SEO though, because it has been estimated that between 25-50% of searches done are local in nature. If someone goes online to find a mechanic they will search for one near them.
Of course the biggest disadvantage to online marketing is skewed demographics- if the consumer doesn't own, use, or have access to the internet- you won't reach them. The other ongoing debate between push vs pull marketing was recently reviewed by Blog Bites Man. While you must evaluate all marketing avenues to find the right mix for your specific business, it seems that many companies are overlooking this extremely cost effective and valuable form of marketing.
In an age where domain names like www.business.com are worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, it's still hard to evaluate what the value of being ranked #1 for your industry specific keywords is. Many people ask "What will it cost to perform SEO for my website?", when the real questions is how much you want to make? The reason companies are willing to spend $200,000 or more for only 30 seconds of TV air time is because they believe it will create a positive return on the investment.
The Value of SEO in Your Marketing Budget - To learn more about this author, visit James Wells's Website.
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Let's talk about value first, so we're going to go back to Dictionary.com to get a definition.
Value: relative worth, merit, or importance
I just read a post by Chris Silver Smith discussing Print Yellow Pages vs. Online Yellow Pages, and he makes a point I strongly agree with: People are leaving the phone books and going to the internet to get information. The phone books have been a prime source to provide information to consumers in the past, but is not the only one. The main marketing medias in recent years have been:
TV
Radio
Newspaper
Billboard
Direct Mail
Magazines
Phone Books
Online
So what medium has the best value for your business? Depends on your business. Each marketing option has it's own strengths and weaknesses. I found a profile of the major media types on www.iesbdc.org which was very interesting. They listed the advantages and limitations of each media type and only listed two of them as having low cost in the advantage category: Online and Billboard.
The report goes on to say that for a billboard the cost are- "$3,000 to do artwork and install media on billboard; rates depend on impress level, ranges from $5,000 to $500,000 (the higher the qualify of the artwork and the larger the demographic group, the higher the price); minimum contract is 16 weeks". So lets simply say the low end of $8000. $8000 divided by 16 = $500 a week. Other costs were as such:
*Newspapers- $1300 a week for 2' x 2' ad
*TV- $200,000 for 30 seconds of prime time
*Direct Mail- $1500 for 1000 standard postcards including postage
*Radio-$90-$120 a week on a rotator
*Magazine- $1200 to $5000 per month or issue
*Online- $.60 PPC or $1200 to $1800/month for aggressive PPC campaigns
These numbers seam fairly accurate (depending upon several different factors) to me, but what disappoints me is the fact that the report actually excluded SEO efforts. What is the value of being the #1 natural ranked result for targeted keywords on search engines such as Yahoo, Google, or MSN? Of course the exposure alone is worth it's weight in gold, but also consider the credibility factor. Do you want to use the company that finished in 1st place or in 10th place? It's a little simplistic, but people have been naming their companies "ABC Whatever" just to be listed 1st in the phone books for years.
It's difficult to establish an average cost of SEO because their are so many different levels of effort and needs, but for companies that do not have geographical boundaries for their product or services, online marketing is the most cost effective and controllable media type available. Geographically defined companies can't overlook the need for SEO though, because it has been estimated that between 25-50% of searches done are local in nature. If someone goes online to find a mechanic they will search for one near them.
Of course the biggest disadvantage to online marketing is skewed demographics- if the consumer doesn't own, use, or have access to the internet- you won't reach them. The other ongoing debate between push vs pull marketing was recently reviewed by Blog Bites Man. While you must evaluate all marketing avenues to find the right mix for your specific business, it seems that many companies are overlooking this extremely cost effective and valuable form of marketing.
In an age where domain names like www.business.com are worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, it's still hard to evaluate what the value of being ranked #1 for your industry specific keywords is. Many people ask "What will it cost to perform SEO for my website?", when the real questions is how much you want to make? The reason companies are willing to spend $200,000 or more for only 30 seconds of TV air time is because they believe it will create a positive return on the investment.
The Value of SEO in Your Marketing Budget - To learn more about this author, visit James Wells's Website.
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John PowerJohn Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website |
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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Jeff FosterWebBizIdeas.com is a Minneapolis website design company founded to help people start an internet business by providing them with website, business, and internet resources that help foster the growth of successful online businesses and develop innovative Internet business ideas. We specialize in internet consulting & internet marketing. - Visit Jeff Foster's Website |
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Stephanie RobeyStephanie Robey is President and CoFounder of Pivot Positive, LLC - an Internet marketing business focused on helping people start work at home ventures. Previously, she was employed at The Search Agency with over 20 years experience in graphic design and 10 years experience in online marketing. She was responsible for launching the Conversion Path Optimization (CPO) unit where she and her team have conducted hundreds of optimization tests for online companies across multiple verticals. She is a successful entrepreneur having started and sold 2 companies and remains on the board of directors of the third, PhotoSpin.com Stephanie began her career in the direct marketing realm creating and producing direct mail for many of the major cable television companies and directly attributes her understanding of Internet marketing to those early offline experiences. Stephanie is a graduate of San Diego State University with a BFA in Graphic Arts and also holds an Executive MBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Read Steph's Blog Meet Steph and Dave Sign up for our Free 7-Day BootCamp: Self Employed & Rich - Visit Stephanie Robey's Website |
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Joe DagerJoe Dager is President of Business901, a progressive coaching company providing no-nonsense direction in areas such as Lean Six Sigma Marketing and organized referral marketing. What others say: In the past 20 years, Joe and I have collaborated on many difficult issues. Joe’s ability to combine his expertise with “out of the box” thinking is unsurpassed. He has always delivered quickly, cost effectively and with ingenuity. A brilliant mind that is always a pleasure to work with.” - James R. If you want to learn more about Business901, start a conversation with us. We can be found @ Web/Blog: Business901.com Web/Blog: FundingYourNonprofit.com LinkedIn Profile Follow me on Twitter - Visit Joe Dager's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Jay Kubassek(Jay's Full Bio: EvanCarmichael.com/jaykubassek) In five years, Canadian-born entrepreneur Jay Kubassek went from selling mufflers at a Midas franchise to revolutionizing Internet marketing with the 2004 launch of CarbonCopyPRO, a online marketing education company, now worth over $20 million with customers in over 160 countries.
As an independent film producer, his upstart film fund Aliquot Films is currently producing a films with Spike Lee and Abel Fererra (starring Ethan Hawke and Dennis Hopper.)
Jay's entrepreneurial spirit is irrepressible. He’s the owner of five companies, a professional speaker and trainer, international real estate developer/investor, extreme sport enthusiast and emerging philanthropist. Jay resides in NYC with his wife Jamie, son Milo and dog Cooper. Visit Jay's official website: www.JayKubassek.com - Visit Jay Kubassek's Website |
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John AlexanderJohn has taught keyword research and SEO skills to small groups of business owners and Webmasters from over 80 different countries world wide since 2002. John is also the Director of Search Engine Academy ; Co-director of Training at Search Engine Workshops offering live, SEO Workshops with his partner SEO educator Robin Nobles, author of the very first comprehensive online search engine marketing courses at SEO Training Online and the SEO Workshop Resource Center. I look forward to hearing from you! - Visit John Alexander's Website |
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