HARDISON’S TIPS – MAY 25, 2021 – SALES AND MARKETING YOUR BUSINESS WITH NO MONEY
Marketing Without a Budget
Drive Traffic to Your Website
Next, I’d spend a lot of thought on figuring out how I can drive a ton of traffic – potential customers – to my website without spending a lot of money. I would use search engine optimization tools so the website ranks high in search engines. I would make the website interesting enough so that people referred it to their friends. I’d reference it on any advertising, business cards, or even bills I send out.
I would use social media to drive traffic to the website, and I’d regularly update content or messages. I would try to capture the emails of prospects and customers, and I would use database marketing techniques to reach to these people using carefully timed campaigns.
16 Really Cheap Marketing Ideas
Then I would use every other cheap marketing idea, on and off the website, to try to attract and close customers. Some of these might require offering deep discounts or free trials or even free products to get attention. But I can tell you that any of these cheap marketing tricks would likely be a lot less expensive than a major media advertising campaign.
Offer Coupons Online and Offline
Coupons aren’t just something that appear in big expensive newspaper ads!
You can simply create a few coupons on your printer and personally hand them out on a busy sidewalk, put them on car windshields or deliver them to targeted homes.
Or you can distribute them online via your website, email, or through social media.
You can have coupons that you target for new customers; coupons that you send to previous customers and coupons that you present customers as they make a purchase—good towards their next purchase.
Coupons can be simple in design because their message is typically price, not image.
Start a Blog
Regardless of the type of business you are managing, you should start a Blog. It generates traffic to your business’s website and creates a community revolving around your business. It is also beneficial for your main website’s ranking on Search Engines as it gives you a free relevant backlink. Setting up your Blog should be almost free and very easy; especially if you use popular hosts like WordPress and Google Blogger.
On your Blog, you should regularly post engaging and relevant content targeting your industry and activity. You should encourage people to comment on your articles. Don’t forget to answer them to create a true dialogue and community.
Hold a Contest
Yes everyone loves a contest! Win or lose its just a lot of fun! And a great way to attract attention and excitement for your businesses. Make your contest as offbeat and interesting as possible and you will get people participating, talking about it, and maybe even the local TV station will cover the story.
Give Away Gifts
There are all kinds of ways you can offer free gifts and drive sales. Most commonly you think of the perfume dealers offering a little gift with the big bottle…but this kind of promotion can work with any other business too! Even if you have a service business with a high ticket item you can offer something free to close the sale! For example if you are house painter you could offer Free garage painting with your next house painting job! Or even better…Free Interior house painting when we paint your exterior! People are irrational…they know rationally that they are somehow paying for the freebie..but they like the sound of it and these kind of give-aways can work big time!
