Do You Have a Diversified Local Strategy?

I wanted to share this article from Search Engine Land because I couldn't have said this better when it comes to local businesses having challenges deciphering the best online marketing strategy to utilize for their specific business.

At the end, I will add an additional nugget that will give you the edge! 

I am often surprised when I hear a business or brand owner state, “My SEO or local listing position for my top keyword has dropped, and my revenue and sales are shrinking.” With Google’s recent reduction in local listings positions from seven to three, I hear this statement quite often. My response is often, “Adjust your mix of paid media or add additional promotional elements to increase lead flow and make up for the revenue shortfall from your organic elements.”

Now, if you were investing or even gambling, you would not put all of your money or bets on one number or stock. Yet many marketers for both big brands and small businesses rely heavily on a single or too few tactics to quickly adjust to changes which occur frequently in the digital marketing landscape.

Admittedly in the old days before the economic meltdown of 2008, it was much easier to simply place a big ad in the Yellow Pages, along with a local radio or cable ad and expect for the phone to ring. All was good in the world.

Media options in today’s local environment have exploded, and it is more difficult than ever to identify the good tactics from those that provide little or no ROI. Compounding the problem at the SMB and local level is a lack of trustworthy partners to provide unbiased advice which helps to create a diversified plan.

Instead, every local salesperson extols the virtues of their offering and how it will solve all the local merchant’s problems. If they are an SEO firm, they tell the merchant, “All you need is a good SEO program and you do not need to pay for clicks.” At an SEM firm, they will tell the merchant that “PPC advertising is better than SEO.” When speaking with a social media firm… well, you get the picture.

The truth of the matter is, a diversified strategy is the best and only approach that local marketers should consider. 
 
 Do You Have a Diversified Local Strategy? Originally published on Search Engine Watch

Pete's Additional Comments:

PS: I would also argue that the starting point for any business would be to drive targeted traffic from a specific source that you know are a viable audience for your services and test your message, test your pricing, test your offering and FINE TUNE your overall message, solution and pricing and packaging.

Once you do that then you can turn up the volume for PPC, SEO, Social media and more and exponentially grow your business.