September 25, 2024 by Molly Weybright Ask An Expert: The State of Search Marketing for Small Businesses In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, search marketing has become a cornerstone for small businesses looking to enhance their visibility and reach potential customers. To gain deeper insights into how small to medium businesses (SMBs) are leveraging search marketing, we conducted a comprehensive survey that highlights key trends, challenges, and opportunities in the industry. The results provide a window into how these businesses utilize SEO, paid search, and local listing strategies to grow their brands online. To analyze these findings, we’ve brought together several industry experts from the digital marketing and tech fields. Their expert analysis will help break down the data, offering actionable insights for small business owners who may be struggling to optimize their search marketing efforts. Whether you’re just starting out or looking to refine your strategies, this blog will shed light on how to stay competitive in the ever-changing world of search marketing. Was there anything in the survey results that surprised you? There were a few key trends that surprised our experts, including the lack of SMB focus on both off-page and on-page SEO. Luke Chapman, Senior SEO Strategist at SimproGroup: “A surprising stat was that only 7% of businesses focus on both on-page and off-page SEO. Focusing on only one or the other is leaving a huge opportunity on the table. Creating great content can attract links on its own, but you’ll always obtain more links by combining it with an outreach or PR effort.” Another expert, Andy Bissonette, Senior marketing Director at Liquid Web, reported being surprised by the growing investment in local business listings by SMBs. “Despite the shift to digital,” he said, “the fact that small businesses still prioritize local listings shows the importance of localized marketing even in a globalized internet landscape. This trend reaffirms that for many small businesses, appearing in local searches is still critical for customer acquisition.” On the Other Hand, were there any trends you predicted? Roman Zrazhevskiy, founder and CEO of MIRA Safety, was unsurprised by the increase in 3rd-party tool adoption, stating: “The 24% rise in tool adoption reflects the need for lean, efficient operations. SMBs frequently lack significant marketing teams, so technologies like SEMrush or SurferSEO fill the skill gap. Early on, we used these platforms to automate SEO tasks and keyword analysis, reducing manual workload and accelerating growth. These methods enable smaller teams to compete on a wider scale while preserving resources.” Additionally, Elisa Montanari, Head of Organic Growth at Wrike said, “I knew that SEO would be popular because it’s one of the cost-effective ways to build your business and gain leads. As AI takes over, We’ll see even more small brands adopting content marketing and other SEO strategies because they’ll be more readily available and less labor-intensive.” She added that she wasn’t surprised by the number of businesses who’d tried SEO and given up, due to the fact that SEO is “a complex process that requires skill, experience, and time. If businesses aren’t adopting the right techniques or patiently waiting to see the results, they may give up before they realize the full potential.” What is the biggest factor affecting the small business marketing world right now? Experts noted that one of the biggest factors affecting SMB marketing is limited time and resources. Yevhenii Tymoshenko, CMO at Skylum, stated that this is what has likely led to the increase in tool adoption: “As the algorithms become more and more complex, small businesses have to get more creative with their strategies while keeping them budget-friendly. This is probably the biggest challenge for them right now. Hence, the results indicate a growing number of businesses adopting complex tools to keep up with algorithm developments.” Adil Advani, SEO Specialist at Securiti, echoed that budget and time resources are major issues for small business. However, he reported being surprised that most SMBs are still handling search marketing in-house. Advani said he understands why small businesses want to keep search marketing in-house, but cautioned SMBs, adding, “While I understand the need to keep control, handling search marketing in-house can be tricky without the right expertise. It often leads to missed opportunities. Outsourcing SEO to experts could help SMBs save time and drive better results.” What are your thoughts on small businesses handling search marketing in-house, despite time and resources being a big challenge? Much like Advani, many of our experts had varying thoughts on the fact that small businesses are choosing to handle their search marketing in-house. For example, Yevhenii Tymoshenko said, “It shows that businesses value control over their strategies. After all, they know their company best, which guarantees the results will be meaningful.” Andy Bissonette echoed Advani’s earlier thought: “The resource challenge is clearly reflected in the data. Most small businesses continue to handle search marketing in-house, despite limited time and expertise. This is understandable, given budget constraints, but it often leads to inconsistent strategies and missed opportunities.” It’s possible that the increased availability of high-quality tools has contributed to SMBs keeping their search marketing in-house. In fact, Roman Zrazhevskiy said: “SMBs are increasingly relying on platforms that offer real-time insights into performance, as shown by the survey. At MIRA Safety, we use technologies like SpyFu and Google Analytics to monitor competitors and fine-tune our strategy. This type of data enables organizations of all sizes to optimize their campaigns, resulting in higher ROI and more targeted spending.” Do you have any predictions for future small business search marketing trends? Nearly every expert mentioned the importance of AI adoption when it comes to the future of small business search marketing, with Advani mentioning the increased affordability of AI tools. He said that this helps SMBs “optimize their campaigns without needing extensive technical knowledge.” Andy Bissonette expects a continued rise in the adoption of AI-driven SEO tools. “As SMBs look for ways to streamline marketing efforts,” he said, “AI can help manage tasks like keyword research, on-page optimization, and content creation more efficiently.” Yevhenii Tymoshenko echoed these thoughts while cautioning small businesses not to wait any longer to adopt AI into their search marketing strategies: “I believe that in the future, as AI keeps developing, it will affect businesses more and more. So, those who have not adopted it yet, need to hurry.” What advice would you give to small business marketers looking to get ahead of the curve with search marketing? “To get ahead of the curve, focus on building high-quality, localized content and embrace automation tools that can alleviate resource strain,” said Bissonette. “Investing in first-party data and creating personalized, relevant content will be key to standing out in a crowded digital landscape.” Bissonette continued: “At Liquid Web, we’ve leaned into tools like AI-driven analytics and automation to help clients optimize their SEO efforts without needing full-time, in-house expertise, and that’s a trend I see growing for SMBs.” Advani recommended that small businesses focus on local SEO and mobile optimization to get ahead. “The rise of voice and mobile search means businesses need to ensure they’re easily found locally,” he said. “Investing in automation tools can also provide a much-needed efficiency boost.” Overall, the survey shows that while small businesses face challenges, they find creative ways to adapt and thrive in a fast-evolving digital landscape. In Conclusion The insights shared by our experts highlight the evolving landscape of search marketing for small businesses. From the missed opportunity of integrating both on-page and off-page SEO to the continued importance of AI tool adoption, it’s clear that small businesses must embrace a multi-faceted approach to stay competitive. The data from our survey not only reflects the current state of search marketing but also points to areas where small businesses can improve to capture more leads and grow their online presence. As search marketing continues to change, small businesses that adapt to these trends and take advantage of the full spectrum of organic and paid search strategies will be best positioned for success.

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