Marketing- An expense or an investment?

Do you wonder if you will ever get a return on your investment or if marketing is just another business expense?

Well, like you, many businesses view marketing as an expense. Many businesses choose to spend money only on the necessities of their business. Such as hiring new employees, getting new equipment,  or getting new software.

However, it is very hard to spend money when you are not making it… Without customers and sales, there is no business to run. So why do businesses hesitate to purchase something that is so critical to their business?

The goal of marketing is one thing – to drive leads. Driving leads will convert to new customers and will slowly grow your business.

When you spend money on marketing or advertising your business, there will be a return on investment or a ROI. Typically, the ROI  will be a number higher than the original investment (but not always).  For example,  for every $1 you put into marketing, you will typically get $4 back. That’s 1 ad spent :4 in revenue ratio.
Companies that view marketing as an investment are the ones that succeed. They understand that to grow your business, you need to invest in continuous leads, customers, and prospects.

Why Does Every Business Not Utilize Marketing?

Okay.. If marketing is necessary to keep your business alive, why don’t all businesses invest in marketing?

Well, there are many reasons as to why businesses choose to not prioritize marketing.
Some businesses have had a terrible experience with a marketing agency . This is when businesses trust a marketing agency to do what they are supposed to do. Market their business. This can include no results in website traffic, leads, or social media growth.

A Bad experience with no marketing results can look like -.
Sometimes this can be a lack of posts, a lack of ROI (return on investment), this can be through no leads from their marketing efforts, no new website traffic, or even a lack of tracking their marketing  progress. When you don’t track your marketing, this results in a loss of data and analytics for all of the efforts that you’ve put into your marketing. How can you tell if it’s working?

However, rest assured. When you use a reputable agency that has the plan, the people, and the  resources, it will be a positive experience throughout the entire process.
Another bad experience that can lead to bad marketing results is bad marketing efforts in general. This typically happens when – The agency doesn’t do what they promised. This can be promising to post 4 blogs a month and posting none, inconsistent social media posts when promising one a day, or even promising paid ads and never receiving them.

It’s Just Too Expensive!
Many assume that marketing is expensive.and the truth is, that  it can be. On average, in 2022,  businesses spend anywhere from $2,500-$12,000 PER MONTH. Or, 7-8% of your gross revenue! (https://www.webfx.com/digital-marketing/pricing/) WOW!
However, Stradigi has marketing tiers that start at $500 per month. These are very affordable prices for every business no matter the size, age, or location.

Not Enough Knowledge
How do I start marketing? Who do I trust to help me market my business? What do I need to contribute to my marketing efforts?
It can be very overwhelming to learn about marketing. With all of the information that there is, how is my online marketing performing? Where can I improve my online marketing?  How can I improve my online marketing?
Many of our first time clients come to us with little to none knowledge of marketing.  We actually love these clients! We love to help our clients explore and discover their marketing journeys.

Not Enough Time
A lot of our first time clients have preconceived assumptions  that they don’t have the time to put into marketing, however, marketing with Stradigi is as hands on, or, hands off as you’d like.
Our clients spend on average 90% less on marketing while making more informed, educated decisions that drive better results.

I didn’t get what I Paid For
Some of our clients have had a past marketing experience that is bad. This is always an unfortunate situation and is not what we would hope for, for any business. We understand that some bad experiences can cause our clients to be reluctant to try again. However, most of our clients who have had these bad experiences didn’t go to a reputable, trustworthy agency.

Benefits Of Marketing
Marketing has lots of benefits. Where do we start?

Marketing helps you build and maintain effective, predictable online sales funnels, outpace your competitors and get ahead, attract the most qualified website visitors to convert into leads, dramatically boost conversions (turning leads into loyal customers), and improve your closing rate without spending more time or money.

The right marketing helps your business Eliminates inconsistencies –
– Inconsistent prospects: minimal website visitors
– Inconsistent leads: erratic sales opportunities
–  Inconsistent sales: substandard customer acquisition
– Inconsistent revenue: unpredictable monthly income

With the right marketing, those inconsistencies result in eliminating those ebbs and flows of revenue creating stability to even your revenue out, which creates predictability, and generates scalability allowing you to grow your business!

How Do I Get Started?
Now that we understand why marketing is an investment (with the right agency), how do we get started? Well, for starters contact Stradigi (insert link for website).
Stradigi is here for one reason – we fill the void in digital marketing services industries for small businesses.

We are for entrepreneurs, by entrepreneurs. We do this for one reason – we were you.
Small businesses are often the last to enjoy the benefits of service products. This is because they can not afford what larger corporations are dishing out per month. This leaves small businesses out in the cold; striving to fill their needs on their own. Business owners are now stuck between two choices – pay a lot of money for an in house professional, or, try and do all of the marketing on your own. Stradigi believes that small businesses should have access to the same digital marketing tools and expertise as enterprise -level organizations. With another 20 years of experience with building successful businesses, we are the ones to trust.