3 Low-Cost Marketing Strategies that Gave Us an Obscene Return on Investment

With marketing budgets tightening and businesses hurting, it made me want to share some of the most effective marketing strategies that have worked for us, either costing little to no cash or providing an absurd return on investment (ROI).

From my personal perspective and experience, and from studying the data, I am convinced that those who double down on marketing during recessionary cycles are the ones who emerge strongest.

Here are three strategies that have worked well for our company:

1. Leverage PR

In today’s world, people consume content at an astronomical rate. Therefore, many publishers are crying out for quality, unique content (especially if they get an exclusive).

I have always loved writing but hated putting my head above the parapet. What has worked for me has been finding an angle that may interest the readership of the publication. Sometimes, it may be unique data; other times, commentary around things happening in the news.

However, like with everything, you must share a story that resonates with people—be that something surprising, emotional, or even humorous. If you are interested in doing this for your business, I would recommend that you read Trust Me, I’m Lying by Ryan Holiday.

2. Stand Out

One thing I learned early on in entrepreneurial life is the value of doing things differently from other people. I often spend time thinking about how I can make something memorable or, even better, make it social currency—something that people will mention to others. I do this all the time; in fact, I did it recently on LinkedIn.

I posted a picture from my recent trip to the U.K., where it looked like I was in trouble with the police. In reality, the story around the picture is much more mundane. However, within a couple of hours of posting the picture and content, I generated 3,309 impressions, 105 likes, and 245 comments. Not bad for 10 minutes’ work!

My next two posts will feature similarly “interesting” pictures: the first, a picture with Sir Richard Branson on Necker Island. He is dressed as Where’s Wally, and I’m in a Stay Puft Marshmallow Man costume from Ghostbusters. (Thanks, MyEO, for the once-in-a-lifetime experience and the six clients we signed as a direct result of the MyEO visit to Necker Island with Sir Richard!).

The second is a picture from the National Business Review. The story behind that one is that I had an interview scheduled. Unfortunately, the night before the interview, I managed to get a black eye at kickboxing training. They offered to reschedule, but I’m pleased I didn’t: The number of people who mentioned it to me was staggering!

I read about another great example in Steven Bartlett’s book, The Diary of a CEO: The 33 Laws of Business & Life. He talks about having a huge blue slide in their office. While it was hardly used, almost every interview or client visit to their office was memorable because of it!

3. Utilize Unique Data

The media love unique data, especially if it tells a good story. Fortunately, owning a digital agency gives us access to huge amounts of data. For example, we partnered with a European agency to undertake a big data analysis of the clothing industry in New Zealand. The report was picked up by the media and helped us secure a large retail client. All it cost us was time!

Unfortunately, the best example of this type of marketing I have seen recently was not from us. A U.S. company called Yard conducted research to identify which celebrities are the worst private jet CO2 emission offenders, and Taylor Swift topped the list. The release got picked up by every major publication globally and went hugely viral—so much so that Taylor Swift appeared to try to change the narrative by going to a Jets game. One of my friends, Britney Muller, pointed this out on X with her comment, “PR Masterclass, Taylor Swift attended the Jets game as a strategic SEO play to bury her jet emissions stories. Genius.” Britney’s post garnered 5.8 million views, 28.3k likes, 2,252 reposts and 2,635 bookmarks!

PR, standing out, and utilizing unique data—these three strategies have generated millions of dollars in revenue for us and helped us grow from being a one-man band into the largest independent digital marketing agency in New Zealand.

I started my business during an economic downturn in 2009, shortly after emigrating to New Zealand from the UK with Emily, my wife. Being British and arriving in New Zealand with no network or friends, I had to rely on hard work and original marketing strategies to help us stand out. In 2013, I joined EO and got to experience my first university event in Queenstown. The event blew me away, and that started my 10+ years as an EO member. Without a doubt, joining EO has been one of the most impactful choices of my entrepreneurial journey.

Contributed to EO by Richard Conway, an EO New Zealand member, author of How to Get To The Top of Google Search, and the founder and CEO of PureSEO, a data-driven digital marketing agency that specializes in search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), and conversion rate optimization (CRO) to help companies increase visibility, generate leads and grow.

For more insights and inspiration from today’s leading entrepreneurs, check out EO on Inc. and more articles from the EO blog.