Online marketing – whether it be through search engines, social media or another venue – can be an important and vital component of any broader marketing strategy. In the past, standard marketing tactics took additional time and resources, but the world of online marketing has made it possible to effortlessly target a wide variety of audiences with little to no effort (and minimal resources). Despite this, there is a need to carefully consider how best to calibrate an online marketing budget – especially if the budget is relatively large or will determine the overall success of the business in the coming weeks and months. Below, we’ll discuss some important tips that you’ll want to consider when developing your next online marketing budget.

Evaluate Your Own Website

Before you begin pinging search engines with ads to your website or blog, you’ll want to give said website a careful evaluation. Why is this necessary? The first impressions you’ll make on visitors is essential to whether or not conversions and purchases will occur. This is the prime opportunity to ensure that all content is up to date, that pages have all of the necessary information in order to help shoppers or visitors make the right decision, and that your website structure is in tip-top shape for search engine optimization and navigational purposes. It should go without saying at this point, but it is absolutely necessary to verify that your website functions flawlessly across all devices (a majority of search engine traffic now originates from mobile devices).

Consider the Mediums

Not all forms of digital marketing are created equally. For your particular purpose and audience, one medium may be a better choice than another. A bit of prior market research may be required – is your target audience younger or older? What are some of their auxiliary interests? Since the goal is not just to merely reach a target audience but to reach them in an effective way and make it possible to convert these individuals in the desired way, the medium through which your digital marketing efforts are to occur matters. It is also important throughout this process to consider whether you will pursue a PPC campaign (pay per click; perfect for immediate exposure and setting ad budgets to correspond only when there is engagement) or a CPM campaign (cost per mille; you pay a flat rate for the number of impressions you make via search or social media advertising).

Factor in Remarketing

Lastly, any marketing budget considerations wouldn’t be complete without determining whether remarketing efforts will play a role in them. Remarketing is the simple act of targeting those who clicked or engaged with your ads in some way, but who did not successfully complete the desired action. This effort makes it possible to remind those who may have been distracted or otherwise incapable of converting at a particular time of what you have to offer. Studies have shown that pinging search engines with this particular type of digital marketing campaign can be substantially more effective than merely exposing those who haven’t yet engaged with similar ads on a repetitive basis.