Determining where to put your limited marketing dollars is difficult in today’s economy. Budgets are tighter than ever, but with more competition for the same consumer dollar, marketing is a must. What mediums really help to drive sales, and which are simply a black hole of spending? Traditional marketing avenues of radio and tv are no longer as effective as they used to be. The radio is becoming less common, with an incredible number of people choosing to listen to mp3 players where they avoid the annoyance of commercials. Even some online radio sites offer commercial free listening, or paid services like satellite radio, that are commercial free for extended periods of time are becoming a favorite. Radio simply doesn’t pack the punch it used to. TV is just as bad. Now, more people use services like DVR or TiVo and simply skip or fast forward through commercials. Unless you have the money to advertise during prime time national television shows, it is simply not worth the money. Sites like YouTube are also growing in popularity, where people watch totally commercial free content.

Newspapers and magazines used to be a good place to put advertisements, but now more people read blogs dedicated to topics they are interested in or stay current using social media. Newspapers are going the way of the dinosaur. Search engine optimization techniques are more profitable for a business than print media ever will be. Listings in the phone book are now a thing of the past, ensuring your business is listed on websites is important, but very few people use a traditional phonebook in today’s society. Online listings are easier and faster to search through. Ensuring your website is search engine optimized so it shows up during internet searches is a much better investment. It gets your company to a wider audience, for less money.

Other traditional marketing methods are also taking a hit. Telephone calls are not welcomed by the public and can actually hurt your business more than they help. Street signs still have a place, but they are expensive and it is difficult to track sales generated from this method. If you can’t track the return on investment, it is difficult to determine the value of a specific advertising method. Search engine optimization allows your company to reach the billions of people that shop online. It is also easily tracked and inexpensive. Why pay tens of thousands of dollars for radio and television advertising when you can reach more people for less money online?

Contracting a search engine optimization service to help your company show up on the first page of search results is a great investment in the future. Businesses that don’t take advantage of online sales will have a difficult time staying profitable during economic downturns. Online sales can help to fill in the gap when local markets are strained. Make sure your website is the visible sales tool it should be with simple search engine optimization techniques and expert help.