So initially, when the news broke that states began their “stay at home” orders, many of our clients reached out with questions. It was more than questions though, it was concern about how this will affect their revenues and marketing performance. We here were concerned as well. Its something that none of us have been through before and as their marketing team, we need to ensure a positive ROI and a stronger start when this blows over. What we want to share with you though are a mix of our findings and some recommendations.

Changes with Google Adwords

Let’s start with something that surprises most people we speak with: Overall searches have gone down for local business services. It makes sense. We are told to stay in and not go out! This does have a silver lining though. As people are searching less, many local (and not) companies have prematurely stopped their advertising and digital marketing. We have even seen this in direct mail marketing. Have you noticed the drop in your mailbox? We have!

What this has led to is a decrease in the cost for each click on google’s ads. This is because the amount of competition has been reduced thus lowering the bid for a keyword or search term. Our clients are now seeing a higher return on their ad spend through Google Ads. Additionally, the click-through rate for our ads has increased. Generally, we see about a 4-5% CTR for our ads. Currently, our clients are seeing up to 8%. This means more people are seeing these ads at a lower cost!

What Our Successful Clients Are Doing Behind the Scenes

We understand that we are part of a larger marketing effort for some of our clients. Our clients that are making use of slower office and business visits from existing customers are seeing an increase in organic and social visits to their websites and social pages. Here is a playbook of what some of the most successful clients (who have seen a slowdown) are doing:

• Increased activity and creativeness in their social postings
• Follow Up (or create) with existing partners on future endeavors that will help you both
• Utilizing their email lists to keep existing patients engaged
• Work with clients in a virtual method if applicable

Making Sense of Digital Marketing at a Time Like This

How do we make sense of this? From our perspective, there is no more cost-effective time to invest in your marketing! If you are getting more out of your dollar and your competition is taking a break, there is no better time.

Quick Points

• Those who are continuing to market are taking the leads/prospects from a business that has temporarily closed and/or stopped marketing
• Google Ads Cost Per Click has reduced in price by 50% in some localities
• Click-Through Rates have increased. Our clients normally see 4-5% but we are seeing some going into 8%
• Total competition has dropped, this is good for you if you want to start marketing now.
• Staying (on) Social keep existing customers in the loop and attracts new business
• If you’re in a slowdown, focus on your long-term relationships