If we are living in the year 2014, we need a little under $125k to air a 30 second commercial on TV. That’s a crazy amount of money, and for others, that amount is the value of their company itself.
But looking at the same data published by Statista, it seems that the cost of TV commercials is declining as the years go by. You may ask why so? Well, it’s not so hard to answer that – digital marketing, that’s why.
‘Digital’ and ‘marketing’ are very powerful words on their own and when combined, the idea of it does not only teach us effective marketing strategies but also endless ways to advertise for free.
This is the reason why a lot of small-scale businesses and first-time entrepreneurs found the drive they needed to enter the market even if they have a limited budget. The money needed to get the attention of their target audience greatly decreased, if not totally not needed anymore.
If you are looking for effective digital marketing strategies that will cost you no money at all, then this is your lucky day. We will list down five of the sure-fire ways to advertise your business.
Effective Digital Marketing Strategies: Why are They Important
We have featured a number of articles here in RCE that tackle how effective digital marketing strategies are executed. We know that for businesses that are just starting up or have a limited budget, the idea of marketing might be overwhelming since operational costs are a priority.
We also know how much trust and pride you have in your brand. Truth is, having an amazing product or service is not enough, especially at this time. You want and you need people to notice you. Without marketing, you cannot expect to make as much sales as you want. It is as simple as that.
And so, you might have thought of allocating some of your capital for advertising your brand through signages, calls, or maybe a billboard. But are these strategies still (cost) effective and timely? This is where online or digital marketing kicks in. It can do wonders that traditional marketing channels we know cannot.
Five Powerful Ways to Advertise For Free
No matter how impossible it seems, you can have thousands of followers and patriots without spending a dime on marketing. You just need to know a few ways to do it! Get your pens and papers or bookmark this page and start doing these if you want those sales!
-
Be Present on Social Media and Maximize its Uses
Social media is a gift from above. As long as you have an email account, signing up on Instagram, Twitter, even on Linkedin is free. It is of course free to create posts about your products and or service as well as to communicate with your target audience quickly via chat or comment.
More so, with millions of people using these social media platforms, the number of likes, shares and followers you can get is limitless. Putting your brand out there by posting about your new promos, new flavors, and customer testimonials will make your target audience feel that they are closer to you and you are just a click away.
Among all the top social media platforms, Facebook offers the most possibilities of growth for brands. According to Brandwatch, there are 60 million active business pages on Facebook! This comes as no surprise since the platform offers a beautiful and simple interface for both the page owner and the page’s visitors – all that for free. Imagine doing that 15 years ago!
Of course, you can level up your advertisements if you happen to have enough budget. Facebook ads lets your brand be discovered by a wider audience. You can read more about Facebook Pages by clicking here.
-
Emails Emails Emails
If you are reading this, chances are you have an active email address. Who doesn’t have one anyway? Email marketing is one of the first effective digital marketing strategies there has been and it still is as powerful until now. Imagine giving away flyers and sending out brochures in mails without a cost, and you can do it a thousand times per click.
As long as you have a couple of email addresses at your hands, and as long as you are constantly adding more to that list, then you can surely turn those leads to sales. We have published an article titled “The Best Practices for An Effective Email Marketing Strategy” which will help you be more successful in this.
-
Work on Your Website
Websites seem intricate to do for others, but actually they can be pretty simple – and free! You do not need to hire someone to do it. There are even free website builders you can play around with like Wix, Workspace and Squarespace. Designing and publishing a website lets you have your own space online where you can feature your brand as much as you can. Websites let your visitors know the details about you, your location, vision mission, prices and many more.
Of course, it is important to know that these free website builders only offer limited features, but even if you use only the free version you can absolutely create a stunning one.
-
Join Forums and Create Helpful Content for a Community
If you are truly passionate about your brand, then joining online forums and communities will be super easy. You love your brand, you believe in it, and you absolutely know one or two things about it! So, why not help other people be more informed about your product or service?
-
SEO is Your Best Friend
Nowadays, everytime you need to know about something, Google becomes your best tree hugging friend. Search Engines like Google, Edge, and Internet Explorer (gone too soon) helps us get the information we are looking for through the keywords we put inside the search bar before we hit enter.
The idea behind SEO is that as you create contents (such as blogs, videos or really, anything) that are keyword enriched, then people will most likely visit your site whenever they use search engines. Thus, more visitors, more sales.
Takeaway
This article is published to let you understand that your marketing strategies cannot be limited by your budget. Money is needed to make a business grow, but there are things you can do (like the 5 free ways to advertise your business we mentioned) that will offer so much return even if you only invest your time and creativity.
Moreover, we do not in any way intend to discourage you from spending for your marketing plan. Digital marketing channels, when you spend wisely on it, will greatly help your brand to succeed. Moreso, even if we can do something for free, like websites, social media management and email management, does not mean we should not hire anyone else to do it. There are a lot of talented and great people out there that will make you want to spend more!
