A lot of people think that there are not any small business marketing ideas for shoestring budgets available. Unfortunately, this common misconception deters a lot of people from doing any Internet marketing. Whenever this happens, businesses grow really slowly because customers aren't aware that they exist, losing you more money in the long run. If you're dealing with a small marketing budget, try some of the inexpensive advertising ideas below.
Advertising Idea #1: Word of Mouth
The best way to let others know about your business is through a happy customer. This is true of both online and traditional businesses alike. Regardless of where your business is located or what type of a business you have, happy customers will gladly tell others about you whenever they hear someone who is in need of what you have for sale.
Advertising Idea #2: Press Releases
There are a lot of places online where you can send a press release to whenever you have interesting, informative or inspiring news to share. You will also find a lot of writers who specialize in writing press releases if you are uncomfortable writing one yourself. Regardless of who writes it, make sure that you include your business' contact details at the end so that other people, and reporters, can contact you.
Advertising Idea #4: Create a News Page
Create a news page on your website. A news page is simply a page where you add all of your latest news. This should include what you have been up to, how you are moving your business forward and information about you and your staff. Whenever you update this page you will want to send out an email to let everyone on your email list letting them know that you have updated this page of your website.
Advertising Idea #5: Networking
This is a valuable marketing tool that you can do anytime, anywhere. It will also help to build creditability and trust in you and your business. Of course, networking is more than simply talking to people on forums; it also means attending conferences, meetings, groups or even clubs within your industry and spreading the word about the service or product that you offer. If that person has no need for your business, they might know someone else who does.
Advertising Idea #6: Sponsor Contests
Holding a contest on your website is a great way to build good will and name recognition at the same time. It really isn't all that hard to do either. You could even use this to entice people to sign up for your email newsletter since each person who signs up could automatically be entered into the contest. Prizes could include one of your products or services. This will also bring about new forms of advertising as you can now use contest sites for advertising and even send out a new press release.
Advertising Idea #7: Touch Base with Established Clientele
As you build your customer base, it is also important to continue to keep your current customers engaged with your company. Provide good customer service to gain recommendations. Send updated company and product information out quickly through free social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook. Use your mailing list to send out newsletters to your established clientele. Talk to your clients and get to know more about them and their needs in order to see if there is anything that you can do to serve them better. As mentioned in idea #1, free advertising can come from word of mouth and customer loyalty.
It is important to use a variety of ways to advertise your work-at-home business. Thankfully, you don't have to have a big budget to make your business stand out.
