Ten Secrets for Getting FREE Advertising

By Catherine Franz
Posted Monday, February 7, 2005

The opportunities for getting free advertising for your product or services are only limited by your imagination and energy. There are so many proven ways to promote without cost it’s truly mind-boggling! Here are ten proven methods.

1. Write an article relating to your area of expertise and submit it to all the publications and media dealing in that range of interest. Become your own promoter and writer. Get the word out by establishing yourself as an expert on that topic and "tag-along" everything you write with a reference box listing your address for a catalog, dealership opportunity, or more information.

2. Write shorter articles for the Internet and send them to broadcast houses free articles. (These are known as "media- matching medias".) Here are a few sites to get you started:

(http://www.IdeaMarketers.com) (http://www.addme.com) (http://www.ezinearticles.com) (http://www.web-source.net/syndicator_submit.htm).

3. Become a guest on as many radio, television talk shows, or interview-type programs as possible. (Actually, this is easier to accomplish than most people realize!) Write a letter to the producer of the talk show, and then follow up with an in-person visit or telephone call. Your initial contact needs to emphasize how your product or service would be of interest to the listeners or viewers of their program - perhaps even saving them time or money.

4. Post your advertising circulars on all the free bulletin boards in your area, especially the libraries, grocery stores, and beauty and barbershops. Don't discount the idea of handing out circulars to all the shoppers in busy shopping centers, at bus or metro stops, and malls, especially on weekends. You can also enlist the help of students to hand out circulars.

5. Print your product or service’s promotional ad on the front or back of your envelopes or other people’s envelopes.**

6. Send programs announcements on post cards. Shop for maximum size at minimal price. Use both sides for information leaving half of one side for the addressee’s information.

7. Check the publications that carry the kind of advertising you need and is compatible with your product/service. Many new mail order publications offer low rates to first-time advertisers; a free-of-charge insertion for prepaid issues; or special seasonal ad space at reduced rates. In addition, there are a number of publications that will give you Per Inquiry (PI) space - an arrangement where all orders come in to the publication -- they take a commission from each order, forward to you for fulfillment, and send you a check for the balance.

8. Ask about "stand-by" space. This means, you submit your ad and the publication holds it until they have unsold space, and then at a savings of 33% or more, you can insert your ad. Check all local suburban and neighborhood newspapers for these opportunities.

9. Do you publish any kind of catalog or ad sheet? Get in touch with other publishers and inquire about bartering an advertising exchange. They run your ad in their publication in exchange for you running a comparable size ad for them in yours.

10. Advertise a free offer. Simply run a print or electronic ad offering a free report of interest to most people or to a particular target market . Announce it in the "tag-line." Alternatively, include the report as a bonus for their purchase. The objective is to convert the largest percentage of responses into sales, which is usually done with a "tag-line" inviting the reader to ask for more information or a free report.

Unleashing your imagination and have a powerful force working for you to help increase your sales.

About the Author
Catherine Franz, a Certified Professional Marketing & Writing Coach, specializes in product development, Internet writing and marketing, nonfiction, training. Newsletters and articles available at: (http://www.abundancecenter.com) blog: (http://abundance.blogs.com)