H10: 20 reative Ways To Advertise Your Small Business On A Small Budget

Namaste. Hope you guys are still there reading this :) 

ehem with the recent enhancement of technology a 

lot of online business started to sprout like mushrooms 

after a rainy day. All of them are using the internet as their 

medium to do business. This is one of the good way to do 

this, but today I will share with you 20 creative ways to 

advertise your small business on a small budget that will 

help to keep your business going. 

1. Get Clear On Your Purpose

Why does your organization exist? What is the purpose of your company? Why should I care? What’s in it for me? If you can answer these questions clearly and concisely in less than 20 seconds, good for you, you’re on the right path. If you’re having a difficult time articulating your purpose, it’s time to get clear on it. If you can’t tell us why you exist or why we should care about your product or service, we’re not going to be inspired to action. Simon Sinek gives a transformational TED Talk about how great leaders inspire action by starting with "Why".

2. Build A Website

The internet is where most people do their research, and being easy to find online is incredibly powerful. With all the tools available today we don’t need any technical know-how to build a website. Most web hosting companies like Host Gator and Blue Host provide dozens of free website templates. If you’re a little more tech savvy I suggest using Wordpress.org. In my opinion, it’s the most powerful blogging platform and provides the most flexibility. To make the process simple, Michael Hyatt put together a screen cast that will show you how to launch a self-hosted Wordpress blog in less than 20 minutes.

3. Content Marketing 

Use content marketing on your website to cultivate a community that trusts you. “Content marketing is a marketing technique of creating and distributing relevant and valuable content to attract, acquire and engage a clearly defined and understood target audience – with the objective of driving profitable customer action.” I suggest learning as much as you can about content marketing.

4. Delight Your Online Community

Consistently create compelling content for your website and delivering value to your audience. Build trust. Do this year in and year out. Give your community the most outstanding content, the best information, your gems of wisdom and they will come back for more. Give, give, give - generosity pays dividends.

5. Build Your Email List 

Build your email list by offering a free piece of content on your website in exchange for first name and email address. Your list your the most valuable marketing asset, and it doesn’t cost a dime. To learn more about building your email list, click here, or do a quick web search for “how to build an email list”.

6. Online Directory Listings

Submit your website to online directories such as dmoz, aboutus.org, the world wide web virtual library,  or Yahoo Directory.

7. Location Based Services

Submit your business to location based services and apps such as Google Places, Yahoo Local, Foursquare and Facebook check-in, to name a few. With the empahsis on local search results by Google, efforts that you pay to build your local internet profile will likely pay handsomely in traffic from Google. (Just search on "improve local seo results" on Google Search to get started.)

8. Leverage Local Community Events

Sponsor a local charity event, golf tournament, county fair, festival, or any event in your area that will be well publicized. What activities or events are going on in your community?  Sponsor a youth sports team or a charity 5k run.

9. Post Fliers On Bulletin Boards

You can find bulletin board at your local grocery, library, community center, college campus and coffee shop. Take advantage of digital bulletin boards as well, such as Craigslist or Backpage.

10. Write Press Releases

Write and send press releases to local newspapers or radio stations. This can lead to great interview opportunities, but make sure to avoid common press release mistakes.

11. Collaborate And Cross-Promote

Collaborate with complementary businesses in your area to cross-promote one another. You can use coupons, bundled promotions, fliers, website links, social media and anything else your creative mind can dream up. By collaborating you can expand your customer base by reaching someone else’s audience. A great example would be a pizza shop and a video store, if video stores still existed.

12. Build Meaningful Relationships

Simply spamming people with your business card at chamber of commerce meetings and other networking events isn’t enough. Get to know people. Connect with them as a human being. Be genuinely interested in their story, listen to them and care about them. What are their dreams and aspirations? What can you do to help them achieve their goals? Discover what they’re interested in, what makes them tick, and maybe someone will listen to you and care about your story, too.

13. Give A Speech

Most of us hate public speaking. Face your fears and do it anyways. If you can’t do this, you’re disconnecting yourself from massive opportunity to share your business and your story to large groups of people. There are organizations actively seeking topic-experts to present to their group. Volunteer. You don’t have to be a professional speaker as long as your information is helpful. The development of any skill in life requires practice. Don’t expect to play like Eric Clapton the first time you pick up the guitar, or shoot like Tiger Woods the first time you swing a golf club. Public speaking is one of the most intimidating skills to develop. No one was ever great the first time they spoke in public, and even the most influential speakers were nervous when they first started. If they can do it, so can you. You’ve gotta crawl before you can run, and you have to fall down a few times before you learn to walk.

14. Go The Extra Mile

As this youtube cideo shows. going the extra mile means rendering more service than your customer expects, and doing it with a positive mental attitude. This is the essense of being remarkable - under-promise and over-deliver. Make your customer happy and wow them with extraordinary value. This simple but powerful tactic will bring you the attention of those who can provide you with opportunities to grow.

15. Ask For Customer Referrals

Referrals are one of the best ways to grow your business, and there’s only one way to drastically increase yours – ask for them. Don’t assume your clients will do this one their own. Take initiative, be proactive and build the habit of asking all your customers for referrals. If you go the extra mile and consistently exceed your customer’s expectations, they’ll be happy to refer your product or service to their network.

16. Develop Your Current Customer Relationships

Building trust is the goal of every organization. It’s easier to keep an existing customer than to gain a new one. Make sure your customer experience leaves clients feeling happy, valued and important. Be intentional about this. Trust and attention are your most important assets – nurture them. What are you doing to delight your customers?

17. Offer A Free Trial, Demo Or Sample

Offer a free trial, demo or sample of your product or service. Prospect's are more comfortable purchasing something they have been able to experience first. 

18. Pay Per Click Advertising

Pay per click advertising is one of the most targeted forms of advertising. It’s relatively inexpensive and can be very effective if you’re strategic about it. Please educate yourself on PPC advertising before jumping into it. Start by reading Copyblogger's "5 Steps To Pay Per Click Advertising That Works."

19. Social Media Marketing

Social media marketing on websites such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and LinkedIn can be quite powerful for advertising your small business, and it won’t cost anything but time and effort. If you’re not a social media pro, there are many resources available to educate yourself about social media marketing. I suggest the Social Media Marketing Podcast from Social Media Examiner and Amy Porterfield’s Podcast on social media. Each of the social media websites have different audiences and strengths and weaknesses. You should do some reaearch in making sure your targeted audience is active in the social media platform you choose. 

20. Paid Social Media Advertising

Facebook ads, promoted tweets, LinkedIn ads, Pinads and StumbleUpon’s paid discovery are a few examples. I don’t have personal experience with paid advertising on social media so I can’t speak for its ROI. Make sure to do your homework before jumping in.

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