Everyone wants to know the best marketing channel. The truth? It depends. What works for a SaaS company won't work for a local restaurant. What works for a $20 product won't work for a $2,000 service.
Here's a framework to figure out where you should focus.
Start With Your Customer
Where do they hang out? How do they find solutions to their problems? If your customers are searching Google for answers, SEO matters. If they're scrolling Instagram, that's where you need to be.
Don't guess. Ask your existing customers how they found you. Survey them. Look at your analytics. The data will tell you.
Consider Your Product
Visual products (fashion, food, home decor) do well on Instagram and Pinterest. Complex products that require education do well with content marketing and SEO. Impulse purchases work on social. Considered purchases need nurturing.
Factor in Your Budget
Paid ads give you speed but cost money. SEO is "free" but takes 6-12 months. Social media is somewhere in between. If you need results this month, paid is your only option. If you can wait, organic channels compound over time.
The Channel Matrix
- Google Ads: High intent, immediate results, requires budget
- Meta Ads: Great for awareness and impulse buys, visual products
- SEO: Long-term play, compounds over time, good for info-seekers
- Email: Best ROI once you have a list, retention focused
- Social organic: Brand building, community, slow but free
Start With One
Don't try to do everything. Pick one channel. Get it working. Then expand. Spreading yourself thin across five channels means you'll be mediocre at all of them.
Master one. Then add another. That's how you build a marketing engine that actually works.