One of the questions entrepreneurs and small to mid-sized business owners will need to answer—at some point going forward—is this: When is the right time to hire someone to help with marketing? What if you need to market an item or offer a service and all the people you need to reach live scattered throughout a certain area? For instance, if you ran a Greek restaurant in Chicago, all the customers who might want to dine at your location happen to live in multiple spots here and there within city limits. And, they also live in disconnected spots throughout the suburbs. How can you reach your target audience if they’re not exactly in one geographic location?

And, how can you do this without spending a fortune?

The answer is relatively simple: digital marketing. This phrase usually means you start with some “real estate” space, preferably on the Internet. See, even if you could afford radio or television spots, chances are you would pay for large numbers of people who really aren’t interested in your product or service. Marketing experts call that “wasted viewership”; that is, you are reaching out to people you don’t need to reach.

Instead, today’s business owner should be wise in spending those hard-earned dollars he/she has set aside for promoting and growing their business. Digital marketing grew so rapidly this last decade largely because of the need for a more precise way to market goods and services. People wanted to reach a specific audience; a group of people with similar things in common: a want or need for your service.

So, what should you put in place before looking for help with marketing?

First, you need to consider three main factors before you seriously seek to hire marketing help. Here are the big questions you should consider with each of those:

As mentioned, the businessperson responsible for marketing needs to reach a specific group of people. This “audience,” as marketers often refer to them, is out there for every good or service offered in our economy. There are people searching for cars. There are people looking for shoes. Some people need help with their taxes. There are those who want specialty gifts to give to someone else. All these needs can be grouped into a set known as a market “segment” - a defined group interested in that particular product or service. The prospective customers within these “segments” are highly likely to spend money once they find what they want. Know this: there are tools related to Google’s search methods that greatly help a marketing agency (team) find and bring in the kind of audience you’re looking for.

Efficiency; money isn’t something to be wasted! The Internet, and digital marketing techniques, are sure ways to be efficient with money as you reach out to potential customers. For example, so many of Google’s “tools” are made to help you find and advertise to the correct audience at exactly the right time. No other traditional medium can offer you that kind of value!

Brand awareness and market share. Just like the strategies of old (radio, newspaper and television) the goal of your online budget is to make people aware of who you are and what you have to offer. And the end-game is simple, you want the Internet to assist you in grabbing a larger share of the market space you compete in. Let other competitors of your product do what they want, your goal is to take a percentage of the market from them and bring it home to your own business. As some have said, “successful marketing is not for the faint of heart.” In any case, get your brand out there to the right people and make them aware of what your company is all about.