As a business owner, we are sure you are aware that the internet world is constantly changing. Even more important for you to know, it’s changing and you need to keep up if you want to remain a successful small business. Constant updates by Google and changes in algorithms should be keeping you on your toes, however, we know it’s difficult to keep up.

Are you spending money on marketing your small business and wondering where it’s going? If it currently feels like you’re throwing your money out the window while driving down the highway at 70 miles an hour; or watching the coins slowly slip through your fingers like grains of sand on the beautiful beach you wish you were spending your hard earned dollars on vacation, then you need to examine your small business marketing strategy.

How do you know when you need to quit what you are doing? How do you know when it isn’t working and it is time to bail, versus, when to keep pushing through the hard stuff to make it to be the BEST in the business?

Today we are going to highlight one of our clients and talk about how sometimes sticking to a unique marketing campaign can really pay off. LivinginChico.com has been a client of ours for over 5 years now. It's an apartment searching website that helps people find the best apartments in Chico, California.

Let’s take a quick look at your small business. You have your employees, your product or service that you sell, your office, and your warehouse. With so many moving pieces and parts, it is inevitable that at some point in time your business will have a crisis or a point of transition, maybe even similar to the two examples below.

We’re going to start off with a story. Imagine that you are the CEO of a very large company. You show up to work on Monday and are informed that over the weekend a number of people became sick or died after ingesting your product.

Every organization goes through transitions. Whether it is planned or unplanned, it is part of “the circle of life” of a business or organization. As a leader, in the midst of transitions, you can keep your organization moving forward and stay on track to be the best you can be and move through the transition, coming out better than before!

Transition in any small business is inevitable. It comes in many shapes and sizes – expanding to a larger facility, adopting new industry trends, hiring or losing employees, financial hardships, or a client that decides to go in a different direction. Transition in your organization and in the lives of the people who make up your organization, can affect your ability to market and communicate your message clearly. Transition also provides an excellent opportunity for your small business to get some clarity in your messaging and marketing.

Google is always rolling out new updates, and many times as businesses and marketers we aren’t too excited about them. They often impact your small business in a way that requires you to tweak your internet marketing strategy. Well, the most recent update is actually a good one, in my opinion. You just need to make sure your business is on board so you don’t get punished.

What kind of marketing do you invest in for your small business? Somewhere along your journey as a successful small business owner you’ve probably tried billboards, radio ads, print ads and other types of traditional marketing. As a business owner who is constantly keeping up with trends and competitors, you probably have also invested in online marketing and have a decent looking website and Facebook business page. How’s all that working out for you?