The 2011 State of Digital Marketing Report details the results of a survey conducted by Webmarketing123 in September. Through the course of the survey, over 500 marketing professionals discussed their objectives, lead generation methods, social media engagement and PPC strategies. One striking statistic that came from this report was the fact that SEO beats PPC and social media for generating leads! How did this break down?
Both B2B and B2C Marketers Agree that SEO has the Biggest Impact on Lead Generation
A conclusive 57 percent of B2B marketers report that SEO is their primary source for generating leads, beating out PPC (24 percent) and Social Media Marketing (18 percent).
Among B2C professionals, 41 percent report that SEO generates the most leads for them, versus PPC (34 percent) and Social Media Marketing (24 percent).
How Do You Allocate Your Marketing Budget?
In spite of the fact that SEO generates the most leads, both B2B and B2C professionals report that SEO doesn’t get a proportional slice of the marketing pie. In B2B marketing, SEO gets a reported 33 percent of the marketing budget, and PPC receives nearly 28 percent of the marketing budget – which seems inconsistent with the importance of SEO versus PPC in lead generation. In B2C marketing, PPC reports the highest marketing allocation at nearly 43 percent, while SEO only gets 22 percent of the marketing budget.
Are You Utilizing SEO?
Whether you’re a B2B or B2C business, the data seems conclusive: SEO generates more leads than PPC or social media – in some cases, combined. If you aren’t utilizing SEO marketing techniques, you’re missing out on potential leads. For 2012, consider reallocating some of your marketing budget to improving your SEO marketing, and see whether you can capitalize on the value of SEO in lead generation.
