Most organizations working with limited budgets don’t have the luxury of trial and error. Nonprofits, public programs, and small businesses must make every marketing decision count, which is why it’s important to increase marketing ROI even more when resources are scarce. According to a 2018 survey of 1,000 marketers, it was estimated that they waste an average of 26% of their budgets on ineffective channels and strategies. With this in mind, it is crucial to note that smaller budgets magnify every single decision.
Our goal here is to maximize the outcomes without spending more. No matter how tight budgets can get, it shouldn’t hinder your ability to achieve meaningful outcomes. Having a strategic approach and allocation will help maximize results, not spending more. Analyzing data, setting clear, measurable goals, and leveraging what has proven to work can help reduce waste and increase efficiency. If you find yourself overwhelmed trying to create a strategy or feel lost in the execution, the right framework can turn chaos into clarity.
Having a solid framework in place is crucial to increase your marketing ROI and give direction and intentionality to your marketing strategy. This is a great way to get a fresh perspective on what you are already offering, as well as when you are in the planning phase of something new. A great tactical framework to use is the 7 Ps of the Marketing Mix:
These are great things to consider when trying to ensure efficiency and that every dollar of your budget goes toward solutions that move the needle and keep your business growing and expanding.
A strategic solution for teams that are budget-conscious is the 40/40/20 rule. The approach allocates 40% of focus to list/targeting, 40% to the offer/message, and 20% creative.
The first 40% is identifying and reaching the right audience. Think of this as your target audience. Who are you trying to reach? Getting your product or service in front of the right eyes is crucial to ensure your message is reaching the most receptive customers. If the message is not reaching the right people, the conversions will suffer as a result.
The second 40% is in the offer and message. This is where you provide a strong value proposition and create an offer that is irresistible and relevant. This can be a product or service that addresses a gap not yet fulfilled by others. A special price that is better than competitors offering the same product or service. Whatever makes YOU stand out is where you can leverage this within the framework.
The final 20% of this equation is creative. Simply put, this is the execution and final deliverables of your message. Any creative elements, such as your ad’s design, copy, images, and/or video. While creative is the smallest percentage, it plays a large role in capturing attention and persuading your audience. An effective creative while clearly and directly communicating the value you offer to the right people.
This framework allows for intentional allocation of marketing budgets. When done correctly, you maximize your ROI by getting the right eyes on your product or service, having a strong message that stacks up against competitors, and articulating the value clearly and in a way that is easy to understand.
A great method that reduces wasted effort and improves efficiency is the 3-3-3 strategy. This approach prioritizes 3 audiences, 3 messages, 3 core actions. Identifying and focusing on your brand’s three most important customer groups. This approach helps to improve efficiency by targeting the consumers who will be the most receptive to your messaging and value proposition.
By condensing your brand’s value proposition into three key messages that you can consistently communicate, you help establish your brand’s identity.
Three core actions are important in moving the needle because they translate your company’s marketing goals into specific, measurable, and observable customer behaviors. Core actions help keep marketing campaigns focused by having specific CTAs. Whether that is a click, sign-up, referral, download, or purchase. Having three main core actions helps ensure alignment across all teams throughout the company.
Building a lean but effective marketing mix will ensure efficiency, data-driven results, and delivering value to each and every customer. Understanding what the customer values and eliminating what doesn’t align can help reduce waste. Another actionable step is to analyze data to see what is working and compare it with vanity tactics. Usually, vanity tactics will look great on paper, but do not produce results tied to core KPIs. By using low-cost, high-ROI channels first, such as email marketing, SEO, and optimized content, you can achieve strong results without overspending on your budget.
Maximizing what you already have is crucial to avoiding overspending. Leverage what you have, and enhance those experiences. Ensure that your website loads quickly, is mobile-friendly, and that users can navigate without any holdups. Strengthening SEO, such as your metadata, keyword relevance, and depth of your content, allows for more organic visibility without any additional ad spend. Focusing on areas such as your website, following the data when making decisions, and repurposing content will help your business leverage what it has before seeking out more.
Making decisions based on measurable data allows you to be very intentional about what is working and what isn’t. Using tools such as website analytics, CRM data, and different campaign performance metrics allows you to understand which tactics are genuinely working. Setting clear KPIs for each marketing campaign enables decision-making based on measurable outcomes rather than assumptions or trends. Building reports to track patterns over time helps allocate the budget where growth is most prominent. Finally, eliminating spending on channels that consistently underperform will allow you to reallocate spend to channels that perform satisfactorily.
An underperforming website can cost you and your company money. A strong website should be a reflection of your company and its identity. It shouldn’t confuse prospective clients; it should signal to your audience who you are and what value you provide. Having a seamless user experience is vital, as 67% of users will abandon your form if they encounter any complications. Additionally, having a mobile-friendly website is important, as 95% of users on your page are using mobile devices. Creating a cohesive experience from desktop to mobile will ensure that your user experience is good, no matter how someone is getting to your website. Optimizing your SEO will allow for higher visibility and potentially more conversions. We offer a number of website services that will not only optimize its SEO and appearance, but also speak clearly to clients, positioning your brand as an authoritative figure.
Using data to cut waste is a very practical and actionable step you can take to increase efficiency. Tracking campaigns with tools such as UTM codes, dashboards, and other tracking metrics is a way that allows your company to see what is working. Once you can visualize what is working, doubling down ensures better conversions, sales, or referrals. If you had one social media post that did very well, but another one underperformed, look at the style of content that worked. When tracking an email list, see which ones had the most conversions over to your website. Find what works, replicate, and repeat. This helps build brand consistency and efficiency, and reduces waste by focusing attention on high performers.
Content repurposing allows you to spread out your core message and develop a strong brand identity that customers can associate with your business. Turning different content into social media posts, videos, or email content allows you to extend its lifespan, get the most use out of it, and increase marketing ROI. Adopting one solid core message for your brand will also help establish your brand’s mission and core identity, which will, in turn, build customer loyalty and trust.
One of the most important aspects that no budget can compensate for is clear, concise, and direct messaging. When you have a clear message of how your product or service will either solve a problem or sharpen what needs sharpening, it points the customer to you, the guide who gives them a plan that helps them avoid failure and ends in success. Building trust with your audience is key to fostering a long-term relationship. Having proof that what you offer is valuable and worth the investment goes beyond increasing spending on vanity tactics.
Storytelling and testimonials with real people demonstrate that your brand came in, acted as a guide, and ensured a successful and meaningful outcome. Having an undeniable stack of proof that your brand can offer value and results in a clear and concrete way allows for a stronger client base and community. Quality in campaigns will always defeat quantity. Strong, well-put-together campaigns will perform better than rushed, pumped-out campaigns. People will always appreciate the extra time when consuming your messaging.
It can feel discouraging at times, but when you critically analyze what is working and what isn’t, it clarifies where your budget should be spent. Limited budgets shouldn’t hinder your company’s growth. If you find yourself struggling to create marketing that works with the limited budget you do have, you don’t have to do it alone.
We help teams increase marketing ROI by offering services such as data-driven planning, website audits, annual marketing strategies, brand clarity, content creation, and messaging/creative execution. No matter your budget, we want you to see the growth and efficiency you are capable of. Book a call with our team to get started on your marketing plan.
When people hear the name ‘Cork Tree Creative’, they often think that we are a tree-trimming company or a wine brand. Once we explain that we are a full-service marketing and PR firm, they often have questions regarding what we do and how we do it. “What actually is marketing?” “What can a marketing firm do for my business?” “Can I afford working with a marketing agency?” Just to name a few. In simple terms, at Cork Tree Creative, we strive to make our clients’ lives easier.
Whether we are managing a Google Ads campaign or designing a monthly e-newsletter, our goal is to make marketing simple, effective (and even fun) for our clients. If a business does not have the time or resources internally to maintain its marketing, that is where we come in. They can outsource their marketing services to our capable, seasoned team.
If you answered yes to any of the aforementioned questions, your business may benefit from outsourcing its marketing. Contact us today for a complimentary marketing consultation to discuss your business’s objectives.
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