ROI results for the 7 best areas to invest in digital marketing

ROI results

ROI results

For many companies, the offline marketing channels they relied on for sales contacts like trade shows, events, and conferences are no longer available in the new world we live in. Now, they have to figure out how they are going to replace the lost revenue from offline channels, online. What are the ROI results they should expect? What channels should these choose?

A good marketing ROI is $5 in sales for $1 spent according to the Digital Marketing Institute. Depending on the buying cycle of your audience, it can take a year or longer to consistently see these results.

The best way to get there is to measure the ROI of each area you invest in. That way, you determine what’s working and not working. Adjust accordingly. And have a much greater chance of achieving success.

Here are ROI results for the 7 best areas to invest in digital marketing.

SEO: $22.24

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the process of driving quality traffic to your website by achieving a high search rank for the keywords your audience is querying. Studies say the ROI return on SEO is $22.24 to $1. SEO (organic) traffic is the cheapest over the long term. But it is likely to take a longer amount of time. It may be well over a year. And you have less control of the pages people go do. Pursuing SEO is a very profitable long-term path. The benefits accrue over time and don’t go away. But, be sure to establish a focus keyword for each page on your site with an action you want your target to take.

Paid Search, PPC (Pay Per Click) and Paid Social ads: $2 to $13

Paid Search, PPC, or Google Ads are also a channel where ads are triggered by selected keywords you believe your audience is querying. If you pursue social ads like Facebook ads, it is based on their demographics, interests, and behaviors. According to Google, businesses make an average of $2 in revenue for every $1 they spend on Google Ads. However, many businesses see ROI results to be as high as $13 to $1. Paid Search is probably the fastest way to see results with the most options for testing. But, inherent with this digital marketing channel, once you stop spending, the benefits are gone.

Display ads or Banner Ads: >$1

Display ads or Banner ads are meant for building brand awareness. They provide reach to targets that share interest your product or service provides. But they have a low ROI. They are best used with a multi-channel marketing strategy where there is a need to generate awareness and education.

Influencer Marketing ROI results: $5.78

Influencer marketing is the way to generate word of mouth recommendations from notable endorsers. Time is required upfront in choosing the right influencer. There is an agreement on how the relationship will work. The relationship with an influencer starts with the size of the influencer’s audience, how often they will post, and what they will say. But, many other factors can be involved. Results suggest it’s worth it. ROI of Influencer Marketing is reported to be $5.78 in sales for every $1 ccspent.

CRM $8.71

Customer relationship management (CRM) is a technology for managing all your company’s relationships and interactions with customers and potential customers to improve business relationships. It involves segmentation, lead generation, and lead nurturing. All with the goal of delivering the right information to the right person at the right time. segmentation The average ROI for CRM is $8.71 for every $1 dollar spent. For many businesses, the investment in the software is worth it. 

Chatbots: $300,000 savings per year

Chatbots have become very popular very fast as a customer service tool. Companies should not implement chatbots because they’re trendy but because a business may really need automated help. According to findings from a recent Intercom study, business leaders saved an average of $300,000 from their chatbots. The study also surveyed consumers and found that 74% of consumer respondents indicated that they expect to encounter a chatbot on a website. And 87% still prefer chatting with a human instead of a bot. Chatbots are becoming more than just a common component of the marketing technology stack; the technology is forecasted to drive $112 billion in retail sales by 2023,

E-mail marketing ROI results: $40

Email marketing remains on top when it comes to ROI. Businesses, on average, earn $40 for every $1 spent from their email marketing. This is nearly double the second closest channel (SEO) while performing much better than the others. Email marketing rakes in the money and leads to more business profits. It may not be the sexiest digital marketing channel, but the ROI results are the most reliable.

If your business has to cross the divide from offline to online, do these ROI results help you with how to go about it? Are you looking for a guide to get you there?

2 Comments

  1. Amy DeLardi

    Great post Rob! Excellent, digestible information to have when making digital marketing decisions. Thank you.

    1. Rob Petersen

      Thanks, Amy. Glad it was helpful.

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