Your company requires customers to survive and grow. It will help if you promote your business to gain customers. You had to choose between a flyer, a brochure, a postcard, or a local newspaper ad.

However, opportunities are limitless in today’s digital world (read: overwhelming).

Marketing for small businesses is a difficult task for the majority of small business owners. Due to the time and effort required for actual business operations, there isn’t enough time, human resources, or budget to fully realize the potential of ‘how to market a small business.’

Budget-friendly ways to market your small business

If you are tight on a budget and want to market your business, follow the following suggestions:

• Make and confirm your Google Business Profile.

Your Google Business Profile (Google’s term for your Google listing) allows your business to appear in Google Maps results, the local section of Google Search results. Moreover,  the right-side Knowledge Panel in Search results when someone types in your business name (ideas for creative business names here!) and location.

As Google improves its ability to tailor its results to the searcher’s location, this free listing should be a top priority.

The key to successfully using your Business Profile to promote your company is to confirm ownership of your listing using your free Google My Business account. Once you have control, you can optimize your listing to appear higher in search results and for more relevant keywords.

• Blogging

Blogging for your small business is a simple and low-cost way to increase traffic to your website, build an audience, and attract more customers. Brands that blog receive 97% more links to their websites.

Furthermore, blogging allows you to inform potential customers about your products and brand identity and share your opinions and thoughts on specific topics. This helps to establish credibility and position your company as an expert in its field.

Blogging also improves your chances of appearing in search results. The more you post about relevant topics regularly and consistently, the more “discoverable” your website becomes.

This is because publishing content worth linking to and sharing signals value to search engines and helps your website rank higher when Google serves it to interested users. Blogging can also help you benefit from SEO, even if you have yet to learn about it.

• Be familiar with social media.

Many businesses hire social media managers specifically to manage their online presence, demonstrating the importance of social media these days. Simply put, your company requires social media marketing.

Creating a plan and strategy for Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and other platforms can be cheap. Keep your posts relevant to your brand, but don’t be afraid to celebrate your victories loudly and proudly.

Targeted social media ads can be highly effective in reaching out to potential customers. You can also concentrate on specific platforms. For example, if your product or service lends itself to visuals, you may want to create a marketing strategy specifically for Pinterest or another image-centric site.

• Utilize Google Ads

While SEO is one of the most effective marketing strategies, it is a long-term strategy that can take weeks, if not months, to yield results. If you have the budget, Google Ads is the way to go for more immediate exposure.

Ads from Google appear at the very top of search engine results pages, above organic and local listings. And of the available search engines, Google is by far the most popular, not only because it controls the majority of search engine traffic but also because of its high flexibility, ad-building features, and detailed performance metrics.

• Discounts and promotions can be advertised using low-cost email marketing.

Despite being slower than social media or instant messaging, email remains at the top of most marketers’ toolkits. Almost half of the customers enjoy receiving weekly promotional emails, and there are numerous techniques you can use to increase sales via email. Inexpensive email marketing tools like MailChimp and GetResponse give you far more control over your campaigns.

This includes the ability to segment your audiences based on various factors, schedule automated emails, and even track the performance of each email. This way, you can improve your email offerings to increase clicks to your site and, eventually, conversions.

• Make business cards, brochures, and other materials.

Online marketing can be highly effective, but nothing beats having something tangible to hand to someone. Business cards, brochures, and other promotional items that are well-designed and professionally printed are an excellent way to get your name on the tip of people’s tongues.

• Marketing through influencers

One common misconception about influencer marketing is that it necessitates a large budget because influencers are expensive. While major influencers can command high fees, small business owners and entrepreneurs can reap the benefits of influencer marketing at a low cost by focusing on a specific niche.

The cost of working with influencers is determined by several factors, including the number of followers, engagement, and the terms of the partnership. We recommend working with micro-influencers or brand ambassadors because they are less expensive. Many are even willing to work together in exchange for complimentary products.

The Bottom Line

Marketing for small businesses is a difficult task for the majority of small business owners. Due to the time and effort required for actual business operations, there simply isn’t enough time, human resources, or budget in order to fully capitalize on the potential of ‘how to market a small business.’

There are numerous options for promoting your business, regardless of your budget. Implementing the strategies in this post will undoubtedly pay off, mainly if you review and revise your strategy regularly.

Now that you have many marketing ideas, the best time to begin marketing your company is right now. “Time is money,” as the saying goes, so the sooner you start promoting your business, the better.