Free Advertising Ideas For Small Business

How To Advertise Your Business Free

Every business needs to have a good marketing plan.

No matter what you do or how big your business is, this is true.

Good ideas help, but they are not enough to make something work.

You have to tell people about them.

Here are 11 ways your business can get free attention.

There is no need to spend a lot of money on advertising. There are many free ways to market your product or service on the Internet.

All you need is to know them, give them a little time, and be patient, because we might not see results right away.

With the help of the following tools, we can get free publicity for your business.

1. Make sure local map search engines can find you.

You have to let people know you're open for business. Back in time if people needed a chiropractor (for EX) they looked in the big yellow book called "The Yellow Pages" not anymore. Now people simply search their phone for a "Chiropractor near me".

Now most people think Google Maps and for the most part they're right but a lot and I mean a lot of people don't even install Google maps on their Apple phone. If they have an Android phone it comes with it automatically, but why leave out all those other users so here's what you need to do as a small business owner. You need to create or update or claim your business name on:

GOOGLE MAPS (Google Business Profile) |

APPLE MAPS (Places on Map) |

BING MAPS (Bing Places)

YAHOO MAPS note: It used to be free but now they got bought out and they want to charge businesses

Logically, it should be free to sign up. But it does not happen right away because these companies will want to make sure that your business is real. They will do this in different ways, like by calling you to confirm, sending you a code in the mail, etc. This is to make sure you're not a scammer or spammer.

2. You need a website for your business

You need to make a website if you want to market your business on the Internet. You might have a storefront and want to send people there. But people who might buy your products will want to see a sample before they come to your store and buy. This can be done free if you want via Google sites or wordpress.com or blogger but you really want to have your own business name by paying godaddy or namecheap yearly to register a .com domain. If you want to try it out free use the free options.

Also, make sure that your potential clients feel safe and trust you enough to become real clients. You have to earn their trust so that they do not see you as a complete stranger and instead see you as a friend with whom they can build trust over time.

You can not talk to your customers face to face over the internet, so you need a website to do it for you. You do not build trust by showing off the products or services you sell. Instead, you build trust slowly through different things you can do on your website:

Tell them who you are and how long your business has been around.
Use what happy customers have said about you.
Makes sure you have an offer and a return policy.
Show how your product or service works.
Pictures of your business and its employees.
This page has a form, a phone number, and a location

3. Sign up with the most well-known directories

Adding a business to business directories is a good way to get the word out. There are a lot of them, but we suggest that you start with these free ones yellowpages.com comes to mind but they used to have a free listing but now is only pay to play. There are many others, like:

Foursquare (free to add business but you have to pay around $20 to claim)

Yelp (They try to make you buy their ads but don't tell them no just say to try you in 6 months)

Facebook Page and LinkedIn Company Directory (You're not really going to get far without paying for ads but if people search for you on they will find your business address or phone or website)

Nextdoor (very local and if you live near a neighborhood it will give lots of exposure)

Tripadvisor (If you're a restaurant hotel bed & breakfast or any business related to travel)

Alignable (This is a platform where small business owners can connect and generate referrals)

There are 1000s more of these directories out there so at your own discretion add your business name address phone and website with accuracy. It is very important to be consistent when you fill your business info.

4. Start blogging or adding updates to your Google Business Profile

The blog should be one of the most important parts of your site. Remember that a website is pretty much the same from day to day. But in a blog, you can talk about anything you want, as long as it has something to do with your business. Write and share interesting content for your clients on a regular basis.

You will feel better about yourself, and more people will start to know who you are. This is of course optional but it helps a lot if you don't have time hire somebody or pay somebody on fiverr or upwork.

You might think this is stupid but customers that visit your website or Google profile or Facebook page will likely call a company that has posted something this month compared to another one that posted something 5 years ago.

5. It is free to use social media

You can promote your business on social networks like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Everyone is on social media; you just need to find out where your potential customers are.

You can join as many social networks as you want. Just make sure to keep your profiles up-to-date. If you don't post often, having a profile is useless.

Facebook is social network with the most users. You can find customers there for sure.
One very important tip to note is to join as many Facebook groups related to your business as you can.
Don't advertise your business just try to help and answer people's questions. Remember people are on facebook to socialize to be sold to.

LinkedIn has 260 million active users every month, making it the largest social media platform for business professionals. Business owners can find prospects who have something in common and contact them instead of making "cold calls."

Twitter is a great way to find out about new consumer trends, talk to your customers, and get the word out about your products or services.

Instagram is a great way to show off your products to a large number of people.

Pinterest is a social network that focuses on arts and crafts, fashion, and home decor.

6. Post videos on YouTube

YouTube is another great video-based social network. Do not forget to open a channel on YouTube if you can make fun and helpful videos for your audience. But if you do not plan to post frequently, you can use the Facebook video tool.

7. Answer Quora questions.

There are a lot of topics on quora. Some are general, and some are more specific. On this site, the people in charge post questions that other users can answer. You do not have to know a lot about the topic, but it helps if you do.

Also, the more you participate, the more authority you will have and the more likely it is that the community will accept your ideas. So, now that you know, go to the quora forums and join in.

8. Write guest posts.

Join forces with companies that are not in direct competition with you. You will be able to trade advertising, write a guest post blog post with links to your website, and even promote some products or services together.

When you write a guest post for a well-known blog, there are a few big benefits. You can benefit from connecting with that blog's readers, and you can also start to build your reputation as an expert in your field.

Since guest posting on a popular blog gives you access to a large audience and a high domain authority, it can sometimes be better than posting to your own blog. Also, you can link back to your own website from your article, which gives you an inbound link that boosts your domain authority and can help your website rank higher in search engines.

To do this, you need to get in touch with the site's administrator and suggest an exchange that you might be interested in.

9. Put out news releases

We can also use the media to spread the word about our company. There are times when sending press releases makes a lot of sense. During the summer, there is less news, and media news companies are looking for stories to fill their pages, so use this to your advantage.

Do not think that the media only talks about big companies because you have heard that before. That has not been true for a long time. Write a press release and send it to newspapers if you have something really important to say, like an event you organized, a successful contest, or a sponsorship. But do not send it to an email address that everyone can use. figure it out.

Call the paper and ask for the editor in charge of the topic. Also, there are now a lot of influential bloggers who can have even more of an effect than traditional media. Do a search for people in your field and get in touch with them.

10. Publish content on LinkedIn.

LinkedIn is a place for professionals to connect, so it is a great place to share content about business. With LinkedIn's blogging platform, you can show how knowledgeable you are in your field.

Your connections and other LinkedIn members will comment on and share your posts, promoting you for free. Almost half of all social media traffic to B2B company websites comes from LinkedIn. If you do not publish and promote content on LinkedIn, you are missing out on an opportunity.

11. Word-of-mouth is so important so encourage happy customers to give online reviews.

Who better than a happy customer to spread the word about you? You will only have to do your job and make sure that each client gets the care and attention they deserve.

There are now a lot of websites where customers can say what they think about companies, products, or services. So make sure that your profile is open and when you finish with a happy customer tell them your are sending them a review link via text or email. If you have time show them how to provide the feedback and help them follow thru right there and then.