It requires resources like IT, web developers, UX, content writers, brand strategists, legal/compliance, and/or management approvals.
And I might be missing something from the above list!
Back in the day, when I started doing SEO in the mid-2000s, I was able to do about 80% by myself. Now, for good reasons, much more collaboration is necessary.
However, when budgets get reduced, you have to be very focused on where the remaining money goes.
In some cases, you might have that dictated to you. However, if you still have enough control, you’re going to have to prioritize where you put the budget and deploy resources.
That means possibly prioritizing content over technical updates. Or technical over UX. Or CRO over link building.
Be smart, utilize your updated strategy and goals, and deploy your resources in ways that don’t stretch you too thin.
6. Target Short-Term Wins
What can be gained in the short term? Your market conditions, goals, and the ultimate extent of how restrictive budgets are will help you dictate this.
Are you down to just a few dollars? Put it on the highest opportunity and priority items.
I know that sounds obvious, but SEO is big and complex. We’re prone to go down rabbit trails.
There are a lot of distractions. Stay disciplined, know what you need to do and achieve in the short term, and do your best to forget about the long-term items.
If you’re trying to keep the lights on, achieve ROI in the short term, and get through this season to see budgets increase again, go for things that have the best chance of short-term success.
That could mean local SEO, partnerships/affiliations with content, going bottom of the funnel in the keyword and content focus, or full SEO scope/scale but on a very short list of topics/terms.
7. Think Long-Term
If you have the luxury of thinking about long-term strategy, or more likely, are hit by decreased demand but still have some SEO budget, then you can do things that will build for the future.
With a long-term focus and strategy, you can get ahead of competitors who are cutting budgets entirely or are focused on short-term thinking even if there’s no demand there.
I can speak from experience with clients in past downturns who we collaborated with even when their demand slowed down, choosing to invest in building longer-term plays that put them on top when demand picked back up.
Things to invest in if you have some budget, even when you don’t have the demand and want to be future thinking: website tech, infrastructure, the base of content, your thought leadership platform, and how you serve the full funnel as the authority in your industry.
If demand is down short term, I’m willing to bet that your competitors are taking their foot off the gas, giving you an opening to pass them and come out stronger on the other side – if you’re not already in the top position across your key focus topics and terms.
8. Measure Efforts
Never stop measuring what is happening. You want to have your own set of performance data to objectify everything you can.
That means being able to draw correlations where you can between reductions in budgets, markets, and other resources and performance.
It will allow you to continue (or start) knowing the true impact of downturns, reductions in investment, and market factors on your SEO efforts now. It will also give you benchmark data for the future.
If you have past data from downturns or budget reductions, use that as guidance, too!
Don’t do anything without projections, expectations, and measurements.
Whether you’re in a publicly traded company or a small business, data is an objective that removes as much gray area as possible.
Conclusion
While businesses might take similar approaches to downtimes, no two situations are the same.
Whether you’re given a reduced budget, team, or set of resources overall, you can still push forward toward SEO goals and success.
I’m not saying this is a fun season, but I want to encourage you that if you understand the situation, recalibrate to the demand and achievable goals, and push forward with a narrowed focus and an achievable plan, you can see things through to the other side.
Sometimes, lean times lead to a better understanding of what is working and what isn’t.
Yes, measurement, analytics, and proper attribution are a big part of SEO. However, until pressed, we often overlook inefficiencies and wasted resources and efforts in less stressful times.
I encourage you to press forward in downtimes. These can be big growth opportunities for you professionally, personally, and for your organization as you persevere and surpass those who don’t have a plan or commitment to the longer-term aspect of SEO.
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