No To Low Cost Marketing

By Betty Ann Wilkins
Posted Monday, August 23, 2004

Over and over again I am asked, "How can I market this without spending anything?". Well, the answer to that is two edged because what you don't spend in dollars you will in spend in your time and effort.

You certainly can go the free route but you will pay dearly with your time. You must remember that you truly do get what you pay for, so when you go for free advertising you will most likely end up busting your behind (for hours at a time).

I have come up with a list of ways that will help you to market at little or no cost at all. None of which include the dreaded reputation killer, spamming. Please keep in mind that you must be persistent when using free and low cost advertising.

--> Submit to the Search Engines
The best source of free advertising. Search engines are the starting point for many surfers, especially Internet newbie. A high ranking can make all the difference in your traffic.

--> Use Banner Exchanges
Rumor has it that traffic from banner exchanges is way down, but it is free and if you take the time to create an attractive banner that entices clicks you can still generate a good deal of targeted traffic.

--> Send out a Press Release
This method of advertising is all too often overlooked. That is a sad fact because Press Releases are an unbeatable source of free exposure for your business. You don't even have to pay someone to do it for you, just surf on over to PR Web at:
(http://www.prweb.com) to learn how to write and submit your own press release.

--> Create a Signature File
Every time you send out e-mail include a brief ad for your product, service along with your name, url and e-mail address. You will be surprised at how well this works to give your business a boost.

--> Post messages in Discussion Groups
I'm not talking about blatant advertising here. Be sure to have something useful to contribute - answer questions, give your opinion. Get your name and signature out there often so that you will be recognized and well thought of.

--> Post Your Ad on Free Link & Classified Ad Sites
You need to re-submit consistently, but good headlines do get clicked on. An attention getting headline is your best chance for this type of free exposure to work.

Note: Be sure to check out the site first to make sure it is not one that allows submissions via software. You want your link to stay there for more than just a few seconds.

--> Trade Links
There are many ways to link to other sites. You can go to a search engine and start searching for complementary sites and request a trade or you can use one of the many free link trading services. The more sites you get your link on the better. Why? Many search engines and directories take into account how well linked you are when ranking your site.

--> Write & Submit Articles
Write a clear and concise article about something that you know well. Be sure you are not writing 1000's of words that are just promoting your product or service. You want to
provide useful information, not make a sales pitch. Try to keep it under 1000 words, have a friend or associate proofread it and critique it for you. Now you can submit your article to newsletters and resource sites.

--> Start a Mailing List or Newsletter
The number one goal of any marketer should be to stay in contact with his prospects and customers. Use your list to keep your customers and prospects informed or updates, specials, new products, etc. This is an absolute necessity.

--> Swap Ads
Find other publications that are similar in size to your with similar content and ask the publisher if he/she would like to exchange ads. You place their ad in your publication while they place your ad in their's. This is a great free way to added exposure.

Note: It is a well know fact that prospects need to see your message up to 8 times before they act on it. So try to swap ads for number of issues rather than just one.

--> Never miss an Opportunity
This means online and offline. Whenever it is appropriate get your business name, product and/or url in front of others.

Keep in mind that all of the above methods make use of very attention getting headlines. So be sure to work hard on developing your ads and headlines.

*This article available by autoresponder at: mailto:article_34@sendfree.com

About the Author
Betty Ann Wilkins, Publisher/Webmaster New Business Start-ups - Working from Home Resources, Information & Tons Of Freebies Let us help you to Start Earning from Home Today! (http://www.the-work-at-home.com/)