7 Great Free Marketing Ideas For Small Business Owners

Being a small business is always a struggle. Always watching the books and looking for savings. Marketing is something that any business can not overlook. It is an essential part of any successful package and can be very expensive.

Big corporations spend millions of dollars on advertising and marketing but it doesn't have to be that way. The small business owner needs to be cunning and think outside the mainstream.

It is possible to market a business cheaply and effectively, it just takes a little more effort. There are lots of ways to market a business free and these methods are known as guerrilla marketing.

Below are seven ways to market a small business for free.

1. Leaflet campaign. Some people think that a leaflet campaign is a waste of time but in my opinion it can be a very effective way of getting your message out. A leaflet campaign does not mean posting thousands of leaflets through random letter boxes. The key is to get your message in front of the right people. For example, if you sell cars you could put your leaflets under the windscreens of old, broken looking cars. These are the people who may need your service in the not too distant future.

2. Give something away. Everybody likes a free lunch. Give something useful away free and people will start to talk. Be sure to have your business name on your freebie. Chinese restaurants do this at Christmas; they give away a free calendar. Computer companies give away free mouse mats. Everybody gives away free pens. Put your business name and contact details on something and give it away for free.

 

3. Use your business card effectively. Obviously you should be carrying your business cards around with you but there are lots more ways you can use it. Leave your card wherever you go. In restaurants leave it on the table and in the bathroom. Lots of places have a bowl where you can throw your business card in and get a mention in the newsletter. Leave your card on buses and trains. Leave it in taxis. Go to your local library and put your business card in related books.

4. Paint your car up. Put your business details on the side of your car, the brighter your car is the better. The more bizarre your vehicle looks the better. You want as many people looking at you as possible.

5. Project your logo onto a building. You could cut a deal with a building owner and project your business details onto the side of their building. This is a good strategy to action in the winter because it goes dark early and you stand more chance of the shoppers seeing your advert.

6. Stencil your logo onto the pavement. A relatively new concept is cleaning your business logo into a dirty pavement. You basically get a pressure washer and a stencil of your logo and sneak out in the middle of the night to a busy high street. Find a dirty pavement; place your stencil on the floor and jet wash the pavement. Your business details will be left on the pavement.

7. Get on the web. The web is a great place to advertise your services or business for free. Sign up to Facebook, twitter and any other social media sites you can find and start building an on-line reputation.

Some of these methods may seem a little far-fetched but marketing is a sustained effort and the more people that see your marketing efforts, the higher the chance of someone acting on it.