If you’re hiring an online marketer on a shoe string budget, it’s vital to think about six important things before handing over your cash.
As a soloist trying to get online exposure, it’s doubtful you’re going have unlimited funds to throw around on marketing. So if you only have a small budget, does it still make sense to hire an online marketer? The simple answer is ‘yes’, but there’s a lot to think about before handing over your cash.
Focus on return on investment (ROI)
Like any business decision, you should invest based on your expected returns. This mindset should be the same when spending whatever sum of money in online marketing. Therefore it’s a good idea to set goals and monitor key performance indicators (KPI’s). If you spend 1000 dollars per month on marketing, how many customers do you need to attract in order to make it worthwhile?
Get your website in order
Before you spend money bringing people to your website, make sure it’s doing your business a favour! It needs to be carefully planned and capable of converting visitors into customers, taking the following into consideration.
- Aesthetics. Have a professionally designed website that internet users expect to see.
- Content. Provide up-to-date and useful sales copy for potential customers.
- Conversions. Make sure each page is set up with a goal in mind, and has a suitable call to action.
Be realistic
It’s important to be realistic about what you can achieve. This comes with knowing how competitive your industry is. Have a look at the types of businesses that are competing online. Are they big businesses?
If you’re not technical when it comes to online marketing, speak with consultants and participate in forums to get a professional assessment.
Focus on one channel
As you probably know, there are lots of channels for marketing online, but not every channel is going to be optimal for your business, especially on a limited budget. The smartest strategy is to focus your efforts on one channel.
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Speak to a range of experts
Take your time to get a number of perspectives. If you speak to an SEO expert about your business, guess what services they are going to propose? Get a variety of proposals from experts that specialise in different areas of online marketing. These proposals will expose you to new ideas and hopefully give you more confidence in making a smart decision.
Learn
As a soloist constrained by budget, your long-term strategy should be to try and learn what the expert does. That way you’re investing in both marketing and knowledge for yourself. Their willingness and ability to teach you should be a consideration before making a hiring decision.
With these tips under your belt, you’re in a better position to hire an online marketer on a tight budget.
What’s your experience with hiring an online marketer? Any tips for making the right decision?