How to Increase Business in a Down Market
I began doing SEO in late 1999. It took me about 18 months to really get the hang of it, as back then there was very little information on SEO.
I was solely responsible for the marketing of my small company (eight people).
The economic collapse hit in 2001, just as the great revenue gains I was generating were kicking in. And as the economy got worse, my SEO achievements accelerated. I built many different websites so that each of the four salesmen could operate their own brand. By doing so, the company would have not just a number one rank for our keywords, but often four.
Our revenue grew and grew, seemingly immune from the economic downturn. As the overall market decreased for our industry, our market share increased faster.
An article in today’s NY Times describes a merchant who is doing the same, but with paid search.
The merchant has increased his revenue by doubling his conversion rate, his bid, and his marketing budget.
Think of all the companies out there spending significant amounts on brand campaigns, yet are budget constrained in paid search.
The right move for these marketers is to drastically cut, or eliminate, their under performing non-search campaigns and maximizing their investments in search.