Retail Internet Marketing and SEO on a Shoestring Budget

In turbulent times, only the strong will survive.  With the economy in recession, consumers are conserving their cash.  The last few months of economic volatility have forced retailers to battle waves of extreme ups and downs. 

Simply standing still is not an option for retailers that want to survive.  Sensible businesses who intend on staying competitive need to outsmart the competition and increase their Internet visibility on a shoestring budget.

As much as some retailers may hate to hear the ‘C’ word, the rebirth of the ‘coupon’ is upon us.  Now more than ever, consumers are price shopping and looking for bargains.  Businesses who think coupons will hurt their image are foolishly wrong.  Shoppers appreciate saving money, regardless of their income status. Research shows that consumers are looking online for coupons and discounts like never before.

Coupon Websites are Good for Search Engine Optimization

There are many techniques to implementing coupons into digital marketing campaigns.  For starters, it’s not what business say, but how they say it.  Businesses worried about ‘cheapening’ their image with coupons can simply use another term.  Clever marketing campaigns can use alternate words such as complimentary gift card, 15% courtesy, or premium upgrade.   All of these terms imply savings to shoppers without using the word ‘coupon’.

The internet is flooded with coupon websites, allowing shoppers to pickup printable coupons or online discount codes without cost.  Consumers then can use these digital coupons to get the best bang for their buck without ever leaving their home.

Many business owners are not aware that they can post their coupons and promotions on many popular websites for free.  Retailers and online stores with small or large digital inventories can also feed their sales and specials into Google Base for free. Add to these Craigslist, Backpage and MerchantCircle and retailers have a wide base of tools for free marketing.

Posting coupons and sales promotions on the internet has become one of the most cost effective ways to increase sales on company websites without spending thousands on expensive print advertising campaigns.  In fact, car dealers are finding great success on Craigslist and Backpage for posting their used cars for sale.  The cost to the car dealers for used car ads: zero.

Organic Search Marketing Innovations

One of the added bonuses of online coupon campaigns and some classified ads websites are quality inbound links.  We have found dozens of premier websites  where we can post coupon offers without charge.  These premier sites have high Google PageRank scores and also allow hyperlinks back to your primary website.

The combination of added traffic from couponers and links makes a small group of coupon websites an ideal addition to a well balanced SEO campaign; links are part of the Google ranking algorithm.

If this is the first time you are reading about why online coupons are also good for your Google and Yahoo search rankings, you need to give us a call.  The Pasch Consulting Group is using digital marketing platforms in innovative ways to help our clients achieve higher Google rankings in their industry.  If you are looking for ways to leverage social networking platforms we have answers.

In a recession, every advertising dollar needs to have a clear and measurable return on investment (ROI).  Simple digital marketing campaigns like Internet coupons, leveraging popular social networking platforms and empowering your company assets via blogs are all ways in which companies can increase market share on a small budget.