Written by: Paul Robitaille, Director of Corporate Development, BreezeMaxWeb and Futurpreneur Mentor

It’s an exciting time to be an entrepreneur; the digital age we live in is constantly changing and providing businesses both big and small with all kinds of exciting opportunities to better promote their brands and products. Digital marketing has become an extremely effective way of reaching new customers, with online powerhouses such as Google leading the charge. Delving into the world of digital media is now easier than ever, and if you have a start-up business still in its early stages, you should be aiming to include digital marketing in your budget. Here’s why!

Take advantage of “micro-moments”

In today’s digital age, life tends to push us towards the internet every day in both obvious and more subtle ways. These “micro-moments” are occurring all the time whether we realize it or not, and include anything from Googling the nearest computer repair shop after spilling your coffee on your laptop to searching for traffic updates before your morning commute. Micro-moments are all around us and your start-up can take advantage of them from the beginning when you invest in strategic digital marketing.

Great things happen with Google

Google is the ultimate digital marketing platform. With the help of a qualified and experienced digital marketing agency, your start-up can start building a strong online presence from day one. This can be done with services such as Search Engine Optimization (SEO), a vital part of digital marketing that can help get businesses to the highly-coveted front page of Google. With Google processing an average of over 40,000 searches per second each and every day, you can get an idea of just how important an effective digital marketing strategy is going to be for your start-up.

Don’t be left in the Competition’s Dust

If your start-up is too slow to utilize a digital marketing strategy, it may be too late to get a leg up on the competition. A start-up that is taking full advantage of SEO and other digital marketing tactics early on is going to be on their way to a strong online presence well before a start-up that has neglected to budget for digital marketing in its early stages. Word of mouth and print advertising are not enough to get your start-up noticed in its initial stages; digital media is the ideal strategy to start reaching more potential customers straight out of the gate.

Real life example of the importance of budgeting for digital media advertising

Entrepreneur ‘X’ wanted to start his own business – a tire changing shop just north of Toronto.  He had already been subleasing a small section of an auto repair shop and was booked solid so he took the plunge and searched for his own unit close by. He put together a thorough business plan including a cash flow forecast, and approached the bank for financing. After analyzing the plan and financials and checking his credit score, Mr. X was granted approval. His dream was finally coming to life. Within three months, he had his equipment installed and opened his doors to the public. At first his sales were in line with his projections and he was feeling positive, so much so that he began to forward-think about investing in a few more machines and hiring a receptionist. What he didn’t realize is that his two closest competitors had begun an aggressive digital advertising campaign while he was preparing to open up the shop.  His past customers were swayed away and he had a difficult time acquiring new ones. His cash flow suffered and as a result, he had to cash in some of his retirement savings to stay afloat. He attributed this entire situation to not budgeting for digital media advertising while his competitors had.

Don’t wait any longer to give your start-up the boost it needs to gain a competitive edge. In the time you’re taking to read this sentence, more than 150,000 Google searches are being processed. It’s time to get in on the action! By budgeting for effective digital media, you are taking the first step towards a successful business with a more dominant online presence.

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