5 Inexpensive Marketing Strategies for Small Business

Gone are the days when all a small business needed was a good corner with a lot of foot traffic to make it big. No matter whether your “corner” is an online or a traditional brick-and-mortar one, you still need more than exposure to keep up with the competition. According to a study conducted by Infusionsoft, 62% of small business owners say that they mostly rely on word of mouth to get new customers through their door.

Far be it from me to say that word of mouth is inefficient; we all know it is! The question is: what should small businesses do to get their words circulating? Since we all know marketing budgets are tight in start-ups, let’s have a look at some of the most inexpensive strategies:

  1. Never ignore Google, especially if you own a local business. Put your name and address (and as many other details as possible on Google Maps/Local. It’s free, easy to do and it can get you a lot of reviews. While we’re at it, you should also make it as easy as possible for people to check in on Facebook or Foursquare. Nothing says “word of mouth” today like user-generated social media content!
  2. Roam the forums. Whatever your business niche might be, you can find new clients on specialized forums. Set up a profile on as many as possible and engage in conversations with users. Be sure to disclose that you are the owner of a business – forum policies usually frown upon masked ads. For instance, if you own a guitar shop, you have plenty of forums to choose from. Offer free advice to beginners and some of them will definitely click the link in your signature (which should lead to your online shop; everybody got that, right?).
  3. Facebook ads. Yes, I know, they cost money. But not as much as you might think. Well-targeted ads can bring you new clients for as much as $1. Plus, you don’t have to have a huge budget, you can start with as little as you want. If you don’t have any idea on how to setup a Facebook ads campaign, I might know someone who does.
  4. Share your expertise for free. You are an expert in your field, right? Let people know about that by offering your expert advice on your blog (yes, NOW is a perfect time to start one!), social media profiles or forums. You can even write a short e-book every once in a while and distribute it to your client list. People love to buy from someone who has already helped them without asking for a dime in return.
  5. Giveaways. No, you don’t have to sell actual products to have something to give away. You can offer a free trial, a free consultation session or even a white paper about your industry. The smartest entrepreneur know that B2C tricks can be borrowed by B2B’ers and vice versa.

What about you? What is your favorite inexpensive marketing trick to use when you need to get more clients through your door?

 

Photo source: www.marketingprofs.com

Adriana Tica is an expert marketer and copywriter, with 10 years in the field, most of which were spent marketing tech companies. She is the Owner and Founder of Idunn. In October 2019, she also launched Copywritech, a digital marketing agency that provides copywriting, SEO content writing, and strategy services to companies in the tech industry.