Be the small fish in the big pond and succeed!!

One of the reasons SEO is such an effective marketing strategy is that your small business can compete with, and often outmanoeuvre, a big business.

seo manchester

Compare the costs of a SEO campaign vs. any other marketing channel.

 TV? Radio? Print?

 How much would it cost to get worldwide exposure using any of those channels?

 We're all sold on search marketing. However, there are other advantages that the small business enjoys.

 Consider the advantages below - are there any natural synergies with search?.

 First, let's consider boats.

Given a choice between being in a speed boat or being in a super tanker, which would you choose?

In a storm, I'd probably rather be on the super tanker, as it can weather the waves better. 

However, the super tanker has a number of disadvantages. It can take a long time to manoeuvre, it requires a big crew to sail it, it is sluggish, it is expensive and monolithic.

The speed boat, on the other hand, can zig zag; changing direction at will, only requires one person to operate, uses a lot less fuel, and it's fast.

Your small business is like the speed boat. Your small business can do things the big business cannot. Speed and agility are the key weapons of your small business.

Now let's look at the specific advantages of your small business, and match these to a few search marketing strategies.

Exploit The Niche

A small business can focus on a very narrow area and make a profit. 

Big business often cannot do this, as a big business requires larger markets in order to provide enough return to cover overheads. Focus on narrow, well-defined areas in which you perform well. Ignore everything else.

Once you've identified and established your niche, it makes your SEO task a lot easier.

Do you really need to rank for those competitive terms?

Possibly not.

You only need rank for those terms that relate directly to your narrow niche.

But what if your niche is competitive? Try narrowing your niche further, or change the niche.

For example, selling houses is a competitive area. Selling Houses in Cheshire is a competitive area.

But the level of competition in small, well defined geographical areas is much diminished.

Sure, there is less traffic, but if you're a small business, with a well-defined geographical market, how much traffic do you really need to make a profit?

Strategic Partnerships

 A small business can easily align with other business. Big business can be slow to do this, often due to legal issues and long sign-off procedures.

 Aligning with an SEO company, especially a trusted and certified one, allows you to concentrate on your own business whilst they manage your digital presence.

Reduce Overheads

A small business, especially a small business, can run on next to nothing 

In a down market economy, big companies spend a lot of time and effort slashing costs.

The small business usually runs lean anyway, so whilst the big business is pre-occupied with restructuring and layoffs, you can focus on developing new territory.

One of the first cuts companies make in a down market (dare I say recession!!) is to cut marketing spend. This is often a mistake, what you're not spending on maintaining overhead, you can dedicate to the strategies that earn you money. 

There is some indication that we can expect the price of PPC to come down over the next year as some big companies, who often run PPC strategies aimed more at building brand awareness than ROI, reduce their marketing spend. 

Direct and Personal

Your small business can offer expertise, direct to the customer. The customer can talk directly to the person who makes all the decisions. Try doing this with a big business.

There can be a lot of value to the client in dealing with a small operation.

Get personal. People are tired of anonymous, faceless companies.

Your small business can easily make a service more personal.

Small means that you deal with a far greater percentage of customer interaction.

Small means you are close to the decisions that matter and can make them quickly.

When a visitor arrives via a search, impress upon the visitor they are dealing with a small company.

Some small companies like to give the impression they are much bigger than they really are, but this is often a mistake.

The customer is going to find out soon enough, so the initial impression will smack of dishonesty.

Say it once. Say it loud! I'm small, and I'm proud!

Except if you're a on a date!!

Adaptation

Your small business, like the speedboat, can change direction in an instant. You could be doing something totally different tomorrow than you do today. A big business cannot do this.

Always be on the lookout for new markets, and change in existing markets. Make trend-spotting a regular activity.

Design & Strategic Flexibility

This is a big one.

Anyone who has ever worked on an established corporate site will know the difficulty involved in reorienting the site towards SEO.

There are meetings. There are conflicts with various stakeholders.

Designers will be reluctant to change their ways. Copywriters will be reluctant to change their ways. Management may fail to grasp the benefits of SEO.

In such situations, it is easy to lose focus, and compromise the SEO strategy.

It happens all the time.

Then, there is the small business.

If there are few - or only one - of you, then it is much easier for you to incorporate good SEO.

Not only can you compete with the big business, you can blow them away.

Use your speedboat to maximum strategic advantage.

Back to top