Free Online Marketing
Free online marketing is an excellent way of promoting your business at no cost. Business is all about minimising costs and maximising profits. For you to reduce the expenses, you need to be cautious about the amount of money you commit to marketing your business. Whether you are a new or existing business person, you may have a limited advertising budget to market your business. Even if you had enough resources, you still have to minimise your costs for you to remain in business. Free online marketing is, therefore, a key ingredient in growing your traditional business. Do you agree with me?
Well, you may still be doubtful, but from what I know, most small businesses work with limited budgets. And nowadays, when the economic situation in Uganda is so biting that most of them hardly make a profit, you have to survive in business if you use cost-effective ways to market your business. You cannot succeed in business without marketing. That’s the reality. But again you may not have the money to advertise in the media or online. The best you can do then is to consider free marketing strategies.
You may have the money, but one of the mistakes most people make is to spend their money blindly. When I had just started a business, I spent a lot of money, hoping to bring quick returns in the shortest time possible. I dug deep into my pockets to spend on several methods intended to get customers. Initially, I thought that would make money as fast as possible. Hmmm! That wasn’t the case. I realised that if I continued spending without going back to the drawing board to reorganise myself, I would end up wasting my resources on what could not work for me. I, therefore, decided to zero down on marketing with “zero budget” such as free online marketing.
Consider Using Zero Budget Marketing
“Marketing with Zero Budget” is what I resorted to because I could not find the money for good robust marketing campaigns. And I think most of us fall into this category. Lack of funds or low cash flow leads to less advertising or less promotional activity and, consequently, no sales or lower sales. It’s why I advise you to consider using “Zero Budget Marketing” to grow your business.
“Zero Budget Marketing” doesn’t mean you don’t spend anything. It doesn’t mean you don’t create a budget. But it merely means that what you pay is as low as less than 1% of your gross, which gives you something with which to work. It means you have to invest time and energy to market your business. It’s what free online marketing requires you to do.
There are many “Zero Budget Marketing” methods or low-cost marketing methods, which I have tested and found to be effective. Yes, I have invested time in researching them. I have used them in our business. And those who agree with me can always benefit a lot from the articles I post on this blog. I will be talking about them one by one. Although you may know some of them, I believe some are very new to most Ugandan business people. But in this article, I would like to limit myself to free online marketing.
How Do Benefit from Free Online Marketing?
To benefit from the free online marketing methods I am going to discuss in this article, you must have a website. Yes, a website is a MUST. I am so sorry for those who haven’t yet embraced technology. The world is moving so fast. People no longer want to move around the busy streets in cities for products and services. The days of not having a presence for your business on the web are over.
You may do nothing else but at least put a beautiful looking web page that has the necessary information the customer might need and the types of products and services you offer. That’s good enough for a start. Such a page acts as your online brochure for your business. Are you getting me, right? Ok, now that you have a website, let us get into the free online marketing methods you can use to market your business.
Which Free Online Marketing Methods Can You Use?
There are several free online marketing methods, but I would like to share with you only seven ways that I have used and found to be effective.
#1 – Article Marketing
Content marketing is a beneficial free online marketing method, that most successful business people use to market their businesses. When you write articles about your business and post them on your website, you stand a higher chance of driving a steady stream of traffic (website visitors) to your site.
All that you need to do is to write your articles on topics related to your niche and post them to your website. You can also submit them manually to article directories that will not charge you any penny. Your challenge here is to produce articles consistently and to have a list of the article directories to which to submit them. It is cost-free and only requires you to have time and to generate ideas about which to write.
Secondly, open an account with Google to use their free online marketing tools like eBlogger, Google Webmaster tools, Google Analytics, Google Sitemaps, Google Adsense, Google Writely, Google Content Submission, Google Alerts and Google Froogle. These are advertising tools you can use without paying any coin to increase traffic to your website. Your challenge is to learn how to use them.
#2 – Use the Word of Mouth
Tell people, with whom you get into contact, about your online presence. Do not underrate word of mouth; it does wonders for me. I always ask people to visit my website because it acts as my online brochure. They get to know more about my business, and the response is good.
#3 – Use Social Networking
Reach out to many people with whom you share the same interests. Social networking is a useful free online marketing tool that came to stay. There are many social sites, but the most popular sites include Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, My Space, Ning, Google Plus+, Tagged, Badoo, MyLife, Friendster, etc.
Share the articles you post on your website on your social networks. Take photos and create videos about your products and services and share them on social media. Get new fans and always keep them engaged. There are higher chances of getting business and referrals from your social networks if you invest time in them.
#4 – Use Forum Marketing
Forum marketing is another free online marketing method you should not miss using. It’s so useful if you sell your products online. Most experienced online marketers use it. You only have to join forums and become an active member. You will begin to see people coming to your site from forums. And these people turn into real customers.
#5 – Use Social Bookmarking
Social bookmarking is a network where members of the same network can list websites, which are made accessible to other members of the same network. Just like social networking, social bookmarking is a method that has become a big thing for internet users. Social bookmarking sites include mainly Twitter, Squidoo, StumbleUpon, Reddit, Blinklist, Clipmarks, etc.
#6 – List Your Business on Google My Business
Get your company listed on Google My Business. It is a free service that has helped many small and big companies to get customers. However, most people do not use it effectively and end up not benefitting from this free online marketing strategy. But when you do it properly, you attract new customers with your free Google listing.
As you list your business on Google My Business, it’s essential to take the following points necessary:
- Make sure you enter your actual business name and phone number. And these should be the same you consistently use on your website and other local listings or directories. Spell the name and phone number accurately.
- Enter your actual physical location and NOT the P. O. Box addresses because you have to verify it for Google to approve your listing.
- Make sure that you enter the hours of work correctly. They should be the hours you are open for business, i.e. from 8.30 am to 5.00 pm.
- List your website. It is essential, and it’s one of the reasons why I said that having a website is mandatory for you to benefit from the free online marketing methods. It allows customers to quickly navigate to your website, read more about your business, get a feel of your personality and eventually, decide whether to have your services or not.
- Add photos for people to know who you are, where you are, and what you do.
- Use the right business category and don’t add many sub-categories.
- Get reviews for Google to reward you and people for knowing what others say about you.
You can now list your business on Google My Business here.
#7 – List Your Business in Local Online Directories
If you’re a serious business person who wants to establish a robust online presence, you must have your business listed in online directories. Search for local free online directories and list your business. You will become visible and even obtain new customers.
Conclusion
When you explore free online marketing methods, you can surely grow your business. Do not undervalue the effectiveness of free online marketing. It really can help you greatly to build your business. You only have to commit your time to do something every day, and you will win. No doubt! Next time, I will discuss other offline “Zero Budget Marketing” methods. Just keep visiting to find out more about our blog!
0 Comments
Trackbacks/Pingbacks