Legendary investor Warren Buffett once quipped that “price is what you pay; value is what you get”. While this saying arguably holds true for most of the goods and services we buy today, it’s definitely on the money (pardon the pun) when talking about website development and digital marketing services.

In these tough economic times, where growth is virtually stagnant, the knee-jerk reaction of many business owners and marketing managers is to cut back on the “nice-to-haves”, such as marketing and advertising.

Like anything, you get what you pay for with digital marketing

But this approach is likely to have a negative impact on a business and provide less value in the long run.

By cutting back too much, you’re likely to end up with the equivalent of the badly drawn winged donkey adorning the poor guy’s back in the image above. No prancing Pegasus in sight!

As we head into 2019, it’s important to remember that marketing spend is a “must-have” and not a “nice-to-have” – no matter the size of your business.

Research in the wake of the global recession in 2009 showed that reducing advertising and marketing budgets were detrimental to a business.    

Spending less on administration and manufacturing were shown to be prudent, but those companies that reduced product quality, spent less on marketing and developing new products underperformed during times of slow growth.

Moreover, when the economy stabilised, they took longer than their competitors to make up the ground they had lost to those companies that continued with their marketing efforts and even increased their spending.

There was also a hidden price to pay. The research showed that although the cuts resulted in a short-term profit gains, the decision to cut back on ad spend during the recession led to a 20% – 30% fall in turnover in the two years following the cuts.

Box clever with your budget for digital marketing

When it comes to your website and digital marketing mix, are you paying for the Pegasus and getting the basic donkey with wings? Or are you happy to pay for the donkey in the hope that you might just get some value out of it. Worse still, are you trying to do your own digital marketing to save costs but aren’t making any headway?

More than ever, it’s become so important to evaluate your digital marketing efforts to gauge what is working and what’s not. Keeping track of monthly production costs (such as your website, hosting account and social media), project costs and your media spend.

The internet has created the most amazing potential for small and medium enterprises (SMMEs) to punch above their weight.

By boxing clever with their marketing budgets, SMMEs can rise above more established (bigger) companies in Google’s rankings by investing in a website that works well, continually optimising their website for better rankings and carving out a niche in the market using unique keywords for Google Ads.

Partnering with an experienced and reputable website design and digital marketing agency that knows the ropes will deliver more bang for your buck in these uncertain economic times.

Instead of pulling the plug completely on your marketing this year, an experienced digital agency can help you make informed decisions about where to spend and where to save.

New website or revamp? Recommended Google Ads spend? Where does SEO fit in? A holistic approach is always best, and best of all the data will show you the way.  

Listen to your inner Buffett

In life, and in business, there’s always someone willing to do it cheaper. But before you sign on the dotted line with any old so-called digital marketing agency, think about what Buffett says. Now there’s a guy who knows a thing or two about spending wisely.