Marketing savvy is critical
Albert Einstein once said, “The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.” In a recent ‘Think with Google’ release, the following information was revealed. It reported travel related searches for the words ‘today’ and ‘tonight’ on mobile devices had increased by 150% in the past two years. Additionally, the piece reported 60% of U.S. travelers would also consider taking an impulse trip based on great hotel or flight deals (pre-Covid-19). It also revealed 57% of U.S. travelers feel
destination brands should tailor their information based on personal preferences or past behaviors. Lastly, approximately one third of travelers across the country are interested in using digital assistants to not only research but book their travel.
Those are powerful trends and insights for communities with the aptitude to utilize the power and shear strength of the digital world. For those unwilling to adapt, it will be an albatross that communities are stuck with as they continue doing things the same way they have for the past few years.
It goes without saying, the digital revolution isn’t coming—it’s here. 58% of small businesses leverage digital marketing to grow their brands. Moreover, 75% use at least two marketing channels, with 80% emphasizing the importance of digital advertising for success. Nearly 70% of small businesses plan to increase online ad spending in the next 1-2 years.
For local businesses, the stakes are particularly high. 28% of local searches result in a purchase within 24 hours, while 78% of local mobile searches result in an offline purchase, demonstrating the strong connection between local SEO and in-store visits. This means that every local search represents a potential customer walking through your door within hours.
Local search isn’t optional—it’s essential. 92% of searchers pick businesses on the first page of local search results, making your Google Business Profile optimization critical. Ensure your business information is complete, accurate, and consistently updated across all digital platforms. Encourage consumer reviews actively, as they directly impact local search rankings and consumer trust.
Video content has become the dominant force in digital engagement. Digital video viewership grew from 2.78 billion users worldwide in 2019 to 3.88 billion by the end of 2024. This means that in the last five years, 40% more people have begun watching videos on the internet. Additionally, an estimated 91% of businesses are using video marketing in 2024. Local businesses should create short, authentic videos showcasing their products, services, or behind-the-scenes content. 78% of people prefer to learn about new products through short video content, making this format ideal for product demonstrations, customer testimonials, and community engagement.
With Google’s mobile-first indexing now fully implemented, your mobile presence determines your digital success. First-page SERPs take 92% of all consumer web traffic, making mobile optimization non-negotiable. Ensure your website loads quickly, displays perfectly on mobile devices, and provides seamless user experiences across all touchpoints.
Social media marketing delivers measurable results. $134 billion was the annual revenue accrued by Meta (formerly Facebook) in 2024, demonstrating the platform’s continued relevance. 93% of marketers report they’ll spend more time on social marketing in 2025, indicating growing investment in these channels. For local businesses, social media provides direct community engagement opportunities. Focus on platforms where your customers spend time, create consistent content, and use location-based targeting to reach nearby consumers.
Search engine optimization remains foundational to digital success. The first five organic Google search results account for approximately 69% of all the traffic clicks. However, many businesses miss basic opportunities. A quarter of small business websites don’t even have an H1 tag, representing easily fixable competitive advantages. Focus on creating quality content, optimizing page load speeds, and ensuring your website structure supports both users and search engines.
Make no mistake, a new marketing strategy isn’t just creating a new Facebook page and being big on social media. Yes, those can help, no doubt, but don’t make the fatal mistake of thinking that is the basis of your marketing campaign. The true cost to enter the new marketing arena isn’t any less than before. In fact, it is more costly if you are to make a worthwhile impact. The cost of really playing in the digital arena and reaching the same equivalent number of your target audience isn’t cheap due to the major fragmentation of the digital audience over so many digital options.
As always, communities need to strike a healthy balance between various forms of marketing to most effectively convey their message to their target market. Knowing your target audience is critical; you are wasting money if you don’t know that simple, yet vital data. Do you want baby boomers with excess dollars to visit your market? You are then looking at combination print/digital campaign. Do you want Millennials and Gen-X’s to visit your market? You are then certainly leaning more into the digital world. The larger the target markets, the higher the cost of effective marketing. That is why understanding and identifying your market is critical.
The beauty of gaining this digital marketing knowledge in the marketing arena is that it can go a long way toward leveling the playing field between large, medium and small communities. Even the smallest of communities with a powerful strategic marketing campaign can compete with larger communities in a new world of rapid change and transformation.
John A. Newby is the author of the “Building Main Street, Not Wall Street” column dedicated to helping local communities, government and business combine synergies allowing them to thrive in a world where truly-local is being lost to Amazon and Wall Street chains. His email is john@truly-local.org