4 Key Questions to Determine if Paid Internet Marketing is for You

If you’ve ever asked yourself this question, “Is it worth paying to get people to my website?” then you’re in the right place, my friend.

You see, we all wonder about getting in on the power of Facebook advertising, or dabbling in some Google pay-per-click ads. But how do we know it’s the right decision for our companies right now?

So, let’s take a timeout and have an “A-ha!” moment together, shall we?

Because the truth bomb is this: you’re already investing a good deal in getting people to your website. Maybe it’s money. Or perhaps it’s time or resources creating valuable content. No matter what, though, you’re spending something to get results.

So now let’s see if adding paid advertising or internet marketing to your repertoire is right for you. All it takes is answering these 4 questions.

Internet Marketing Question #1: How quickly do you want to build your audience?

This is, by far, the most important question. Because if you’ve got time (or fewer resources to spend up front), it’s very possible to build an audience and a community organically by using social presence, great content, podcast interviews, etc. The only downside is that it does take time.

How much time? Well, it’s probably not going to be this week. Or even this month. This is really more of a “long-game” approach.

So if you need results faster than in several months, you really do need to consider investing in paid internet marketing.

Example: If you’ve got an event coming up any time in the next 2-3 months, an organic strategy needs to be augmented with a paid marketing strategy.

Question #2: Is your landing page (or website) ready for the full user experience?

First of all, is your webpage done? And by done, I mean: is it ready to drive conversions? Because getting eyeballs on your page isn’t enough. You want them to make the click, buy your product or service, sign up for your webinar, or whatever else it is you’re promoting on that landing page.

And, as you start to analyze the page readiness, remember that with paid marketing strategies, you’re dealing with cold traffic. And cold traffic doesn’t typically buy on the first interaction. In fact, an average conversion rate for cold traffic is a whopping 1%.

So instead of getting stuck in the “well, how do I get more traffic to make that 1% worth my investment,” here’s how you get a better ROI on your internet marketing investment.

Think about the entire user experience. How do you encourage these cold traffic viewers to get to know you? How do you gently guide them into your sales funnel to turn them into leads and paying customers?

In other words, you need to go back to that website and tweak it so that, if you’re using cold sales tactics, it’s set up for success.

Bonus info: Here’s what savvy marketers do. They have multiple landing pages. One is for the cold contacts they get through paid advertising. Another is for warm leads. And maybe there’s even a third for those piping-hot, ready-to-buy types. Boom. Sales funnel for the win!

Question #3: How much is a lead worth to you?

Next, you need to know how much a lead is worth. Because you don’t want to be overpaying on your advertising, am I right??

So in order to figure out how much you’re willing to pay for a solid lead, let’s first determine the lifetime value of a paying client. Once you know that, you’ll be able to figure out how much you’re willing to invest in acquiring new clients.

Got that new figure? Fantastic! Now we can use that to determine a realistic and appropriate advertising budget.

Bonus: Now that you’ve got data, you can make informed, intelligent decisions on your content marketing, your organic marketing, and your paid internet marketing strategies.

Question #4: Should you be using Facebook Ads to get people to your website?

The final question to consider at this point is whether or not Facebook Ads are right for your business. Now, Facebook Ads can be amazingly powerful. But if you haven’t addressed the first 3 questions, you won’t be able to answer this one. So make sure you’ve answered the first three questions, then ask yourself this:

“Is my target audience even on Facebook?”

Because if they aren’t, let’s focus on using your advertising money somewhere else – somewhere more effective. Maybe that means Twitter or LinkedIn. Or perhaps it means we look at SnapChat or some Instagram.

But if they are… well, it’s time to talk about using some ultra-targeted and powerful Facebook Ads.

Now that you know whether or not paid internet marketing is for your business, it’s time to take action: it’s time to advertise!

Ready to learn more about how to get seen, improve your digital presence, or just get this done already? Great. Then let’s chat.

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