Can your business be found online?

Fact: 44% of small businesses have a website and half spend less than 10% of their marketing budget online.

Fact: 82% of consumers and small business owners turn to search engines first for information about local companies.

The disparity of these two numbers are striking, but our "from the ground" perspective supports them. There is a significant disconnect between the way consumers and even small businesses act and the way companies market their business online.

More People Use Search

What's more, it is a growing disparity. 72% of respondents state they use search engines more than two years ago, while other forms of marketing saw marked declines -- Yellow Pages (23%), local newspaper (25%), and magazines (31%). The only other marketing tactics to see an increase was email marketing (35%). The move to digital marketing is clear.

Search Marketing in Q4 2008

Given this information, we were surprised by several clients at the end of 2008. Many of them had made the decision earlier that year to finally adopt digital marketing into their marketing mix. When the economy soured, however, many placed their campaigns on hold. And, as could be expected, they have seen little growth despite consistent spending in their traditional marketing campaigns.

Not all clients made this mistake. We are helping several forward-thinking companies adopt digital marketing into their mix -- firms like Rinnai, which sells tankless water heaters, and Lexicon Technologies, which provides repair service for used Symbol barcode scanners and Intermec printers. We aren't surprised to hear from them that business continues growing despite the contraction around them.

Where to Market

So we have a suggestion. Below is a chart of where consumers are going to find the product and services they are seeking. This year, match your marketing dollars to the actual consumer behavior.

• 82% use search engines
• 57% use Yellow Pages directories.
• 53% use local newspapers
• 49% use Internet Yellow Pages
• 49% use TV
• 38% use direct mail
• 32% White Pages directories