Learning how to advertise your business—whether it’s a growing design firm or soon-to-be-unveiled retail store—also means keeping an eye on your purse strings. With the combination of hard-goods costs, operating expenses, and employee paychecks often taking up much of your budget, entrepreneurs frequently face super-tight margins for advertising. Luckily, in the digital age there are myriad ways to creatively get the word out about your business. AD PRO has culled more than two dozen techniques for marketing your growing business that won’t break the bank.
1. Create a business listing for search engines
To ensure that your business is highlighted when someone searches for it on Google or Bing, set up free profiles with Google My Business and Bing Places for Business. Yahoo Local ($8–$42 per month) can also help boost your search results in online directories, maps, and even voice-activated searches.
2. Build a website
If you don’t already have a website, building one can help your firm appear in searches, explain what goods and services it offers, and present your portfolio, pricing, customer recommendations, and so on. To keep costs down, platforms such as Wix, Squarespace, and WordPress offer simple, do-it-yourself templates.
3. Create a strategy
Know who you’re trying to reach and figure out how to get in front of them. If you’re running a design business focused on coastal homes, for example, but you live in a landlocked part of Texas, the local paper won’t be your best bet. On the other hand, if you’re an interior designer who wants to make a splash in your local market, regional media may be the right choice. Any information you know about your customers—age, demographics, and income level, for example—can help you target them more directly.
4. Know when you want your future clients to bite
Understand at what point in the process you’re trying to attract clients. Do you want to reach them at their research stage, or capture them when they’re ready to hire you? This information will determine when, where, and how you advertise your business.
5. Compile contacts
A pop-up window or widget on your website is a not-to-miss opportunity for collecting emails from visitors. Add value by offering an exclusive discount or freebie to those who sign up.
6. Send a newsletter
Once you’ve collected those contacts, it’s time to let them know what projects your business is working on. Send out a newsletter with some regularity, but don’t overstuff their email inboxes, and never spam, sell email addresses, or add names without permission. MailChimp, Constant Contact, and Emma are great services to use.
7. Build your social media
The social media platforms your future clients already know and love—such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn—are effective ways to reach out to them. You don’t need to be active on every platform; focus on those that make sense for your business or industry. Create quality content that highlights your achievements, projects, specials, or other worthy news. Your presence on social media can also be beneficial to search engine optimization—see tip 11—too.
8. Begin social advertising for your business
To get your posts in front of as many eyeballs as possible, consider paid advertising on social platforms to boost your posts or gain more followers. Many allow you to specifically target the audience you want to reach by categories, such as age, location, and interests.
9. Use pay-per-click advertising
For certain industries, print ads may be useful, but when it comes to cost and conversions, online ad campaigns are generally more affordable and easier to track and yield more sales. Pay-per-click advertising can help you reach a highly targeted audience and allows you to tailor a message until you get it right.
10. Create content
Crafting blog posts, articles, or other content on your website can be a significant asset to your search engine optimization. Known as inbound marketing, the idea is to use concepts, terms, topics, and phrases that show search engines that you’re an authority on certain topics. Think about what your business is excelling at, where your expertise lies, and then start writing.
11. Optimize for search engines
Chances are that if you offer valuable services or goods, people are already searching for them. To write the best possible content—or to retool content you already have—and attract those customers, learn what phrases and terms are most searched for, and what terms will help you return the best results in search engines. Search engine optimization can get very complex, but it’s not hard to get a grasp of SEO basics.
12. Create visual content
Great images and videos are also excellent tools for promoting your business online. Videos are not only helpful and entertaining but also much harder to ignore in our feeds. In one recent Hubspot survey, 54 percent of consumers said they’d like to see more video content from businesses they like. And people are much more likely to click on and retain information when it’s paired with a great image.
13. Write guest posts
Consider creating content for other web destinations, too. This can help you become recognized as an expert, get in front of a new audience, and get valuable links back to your own site. Reach out to sites you admire and see if they would be willing to host your article on their platform.
14. Send press blasts
When you have meaningful news to announce, like unveiling new products or hires, send out informative press releases. Keep an ongoing list of consumer, industry, and B2B press contacts who may be interested in your news; there are also multiple wire services that can help you spread the word.
15. Pad your email signature
Don’t waste the valuable real estate below your email signature. Add customized info about your business, a special offer, or a great review from a customer. Or, direct people to your social pages, website, or particular products.
16. Network online
Building an online network of customers, clients, and industry peers is an excellent way to promote your company in an authentic way. Follow and interact with other social accounts you like or find interesting. Comment on or like posts, share, and give shout-outs. Just be sure to engage in an authentic way; don’t use others’ digital spaces to promote your business if it’s not relevant—you may lose followers as a result.
17. Network offline
You already know that attending conferences and industry events is a great way to meet like-minded peers and stay informed. Take it a step further and volunteer to speak at events or sit on panels, which will give you the chance to put your brand in front of new audiences.
18. Join professional groups
Whether it’s your local chamber of commerce or a chapter of a national organization like IIDA, take advantage of the clout and connections that professional groups can offer. It’s often good for your resume and for referrals, too.
19. Give back
Contribute to your community through volunteering or donations, and allow employees to do so too. It’s a great way to promote your company in the community at large and reinforce your values.
20. Market your successes
Did you win an award? Were you interviewed for an article? Spread that news via a press release, post it on your website, or get the word out on social media. Don’t forget to use proper handles and appropriate hashtags, which can help you extend the reach of your posts.
21. Join a business incubator
If you’re looking for information about grants, loans, or training, participating in a business incubator can be a great way to connect with other entrepreneurs in the know. If none exist near you, check out the U.S. Small Business Association, which offers general and localized advice.
22. Put vehicles to work
Let your cars and trucks advertise your business by applying the name and logo to the exterior. Don’t want to make it permanent? Use a magnet.
23. Create a Groupon deal
Consider offering a discount or special offer via a site like Groupon. You’ll attract the attention of potential new customers who weren’t aware of you previously—or who were, but will convert because of the bargain.
24. Offer a free consultation
When you offer a free consultation for services, you provide value to a customer—but you get some back, too. Even if he or she doesn’t hire you, you’ve got a new name and email for your mailing list. Leave them with promotional material; they may recommend you to someone else or call on you in the future.
25. Share great reviews
Have a pleased client or customer? Ask them to leave a review on a site like Yelp or share one you can post on your website or use in other collateral.
26. Consider affiliate marketing
Affiliates are resellers or lead generators who help promote your work or products and, in return, take a cut of the profit sent your way. Just think through your pricing structure and make sure you’re comfortable having your affiliates promote your company before you get on board.
27. Cross-promote your company
Team up with other businesses on events, promotions, or offers to tap into each other’s customer bases. For example, a florist and interior designer partnering on a workshop could use both of their email lists to promote the event to a wider audience than one alone could.
28. Run a contest or giveaway
Ask people to sign up for your newsletter or follow you on Instagram to enter a contest, sweepstakes, or giveaway. People will want what you’re offering, and you’ll get valuable contacts and followers in return. Tip: Read up on the legal particulars first; some stipulations apply.
After following these steps, you’ll likely start generating buzz for your business without a serious capital investment. Continue to keep your client base, followers, and media contacts updated with news, and make sure to keep your digital platforms up-to-date in order to attract new customers who may be looking for a designer just like you.