Inexpensive Ideas for Promoting Your Business

When you first set up shop, it's critical to invest time and money on marketing for your product or service. Of course, when you first set up shop, money is usually pretty tight. So goes the age-old marketing conundrum.

Even though it's difficult to measure the return on money spent on things like advertising, no one would argue that it's important to get some name recognition for your business. The question becomes how much you really need to spend to gain that name recognition. My experience says it doesn't have to be a lot, if you're willing to some of the leg work.

Here are a couple of ideas:

• Set up a Web site -- It's worth it, in my opinion, to spend a little money on a good Web designer to make the site look professional. I asked around and found a local freelancer who was just starting out on his own, and we bartered for services. He designed my site. I wrote copy for his site. Once your site is live, put your Web address on everything -- your business cards, letterhead, signage, packaging, your emails.
  
  
• Send a press release to the local newspaper, radio and TV stations -- You'd be surprised at how open local news outlets are to stories on local businesses, particularly if your business is unique.
  
  
• Think about offering a seminar that showcases your expertise -- Civic groups are always looking for guest speakers.
  
  
• Tell everyone you know about your business -- I used to go through my Rolodex every couple of months and call friends and acquaintances just to say "hi," and invariably the topic of my business would come up. Make an effort to get involved in local business organizations. Volunteer with different community groups. Oh, and have business cards with you at all times. You never know where your next sale may come from.

A Google search turned up all kinds of sites that offered free or inexpensive marketing ideas. One of the best sites I found was bizymom.com.