Marketing for Little to No Money

I truly believe that a successful business must advertise in a least 3 different types of media. That does not mean that you need to spend a lot of money to do so, you just need to advertise intelligently and creatively!

1. Create a referral network Do you have people in your network that do something similar to you but are not in competition to take away your customers? For example a great network would be a hair dresser, tanning salon and manicurist; or how about a roofer, window contractor and painter?. These examples of referral teams allow for the group to easily refer each other's services in a natural conversation without seeming pushy.
2. Email marketing Set up an email capturing widget on your website using one of the many services out there such as Constant Contact or iContact. For a small monthly fee, these services will help you market to your targeted audience; people who you KNOW are interested in what you have to say and are interested in hearing from you.
3. Be helpful Put yourself into the role of resident expert, or trusted advisor. Offer to be a speaker, write an article or do a demonstration and share your knowledge and don’t hold back. You will benefit from the name recognition.

These are only a few ideas; I encourage everyone to go online and find other ideas that fit your specific business. The more things you do, the better your business with be for it!