Advertising is considered the backbone of every marketing strategy. Without it, your business may not even survive its first year of business.
But what if you don’t have a big budget to pay for advertising on national newspapers, big magazines, and broadcasting stations?
For small businesses, every coin counts. This means that you have to get creative on how to use a small budget to effectively market your business.
Advertising is a vital (and potentially very expensive) part of operating a business. Don’t get left behind, read these 9 cheap advertising ideas to get the best value for your money.
1. Design Some Beautiful Business Cards
Find a printing service that gives you a discount if you print a couple of thousand promotional business cards with them. Try and chip in as far as the card design is concerned. Make the card look attractive by using unique print designs, fonts, and bright colors.
Be more thoughtful by attaching your store discount to each card. Make sure you hand out as many cards to as many different people as is possible. People love to make bargains.
While a few may tuck the card in their back pocket and forget, many will visit your store or site and claim the discount.
2. Collect Email Addresses
Paying the required monthly fees for an email management service may be a bit costly for you if your business is just starting out.
But you could also take them up on their offer to charge you nothing if your mailing list is below 2,000 subscribers using Mailchimp. Make sure that you get as many people as possible to subscribe to your services and be part of your mailing list.
Thereafter, send out newsletters informing them of any upcoming promotions, new products or services and so on.
3. Get Vinyl Banners
Getting a low-cost billboard at a strategic location is next to impossible for a small business. But you could always go the alternative, cheaper route of opting for a vinyl banner instead.
The good thing about this service is that you can choose from a wide range of attractive colors and fonts. Plus they are incredibly durable as they can tough out harsh weather conditions.
Get those vinyl banners with provisions for hanging.
Hang them at your business entrance, hoist it somewhere easily visible at a busy road intersection or have a teenager stand by a busy high way holding the banner up while directing people to your store.
4. Attend Community Events and Handout Giveaways
Stay informed on any upcoming community events scheduled by the locals. But how do you know of these upcoming events before they happen? By attending local churches or meetings, by joining all community social media pages, and by being close to the people.
Prepare adequately for these events by printing your business logo on some T-shirts, hand bands, headbands or bandannas, balloons or pens that you can hand out for free to the community members in attendance.
The joy you elicit in a child or a parent with the freebie is enough to prompt them to come to your store or check out your website. Ultimately, this will end up being a sale.
5. Start a Blog
Start your own free blog and post an article every few days. Look to write interesting articles on topics surrounding the product or services you offer. If, for example, yours is an ice cream business, write articles about different flavors you can mix to make it even more delicious.
People love ice cream and always want to know more about how they can enhance their experience.
Monitor any comments that your blog gets. Your job is to respond to all the comments and invite people to your store to sample some of the unique flavors you have.
Note that part of blogging involves posting guest blogs in other popular sites in a bid to redirect traffic to your own blog. Are there any established publications with a high readership in your local community?
Why don’t you contribute some articles for them too?
When people see your thoughtful articles on their favorite magazine or newspaper, it brings a sense of familiarity. They will know that you are a serious business and wouldn’t hesitate to partner with you if they are in need.
6. Open a Facebook Group
A Facebook page is unlike a Facebook group. You can open a page dedicated to your business and open a Facebook group dedicated to issues surrounding your area of expertise.
A Facebook group looks to help solve various dilemmas faced by your target audience. This is why a Facebook group may have a larger following than a page.
If, for example, you are in the business of selling car spare parts, you can open a Facebook group called ‘Get Familiar with Your Car’.
With you as the admin of your own Facebook group, you can regularly post and also get to see all the posts and contribute as an authoritative voice. People interested in learning more about their cars will quickly join your group.
Later, they will look up to you when they need help with their cars and probably even become your clients.
7. Signup for Free Ads
Google and Facebook are only two out of a long list of sites that offer free ads services. They give their users free ad credits to use as a marketing tool to reach potential clients.
What’s more, at a small fee, you can prepare an attractive, attention-grabbing post that gets sent out to people who fall under the qualifications of who you list as part of your target audience.
The more people who view your sponsored post, the more likely they are to click on it and find out more about what products or services you offer. This could lead to them becoming your clients.
8. Organize Free Seminars
Holding free seminars is another one of the numerous cheap ways to advertise your business.
Here, you will need to invest time and a little money to educate the locals about various solutions to some of the issues they face on a daily basis.
Give out business flyers prior to the free seminar telling people how informative the free seminar will be. Promise them value for their time and some snacks thereafter.
9. Set Up a Website
A website may seem like a long shot when it comes to ways of marketing you consider effective. But did you know that a well-designed website can work as your brochure, catalog, and credible resource for potential customers all at once?
If you don’t have the money to pay someone to help set up a custom website for you, opt for a free easy to set up a website which you can do on your own.
Get Your Business Recognized Using These Cheap Advertising Ideas
Discussed above are some of the most effective yet cheap ways to promote your business that can help you see your business reach new heights in only a short period of time.
Combine one, two, or more of these cheap advertising ideas to get your name out there as a start-up business.
Check out our blog post on social media marketing to see how your business can benefit further.
