Even successful companies can benefit from fresh marketing ideas. If you’re ready for a new approach, check out our list of 12 Marketing Hacks That Cost $0. Your business will see results, and you won’t spend a cent!
1. Give a Free Webinar
Giving a free webinar is a great idea to get your name out there, and it doesn’t have to cost you any money at all. Most laptops have a webcam built into them, and Skype is free to download, so you should already be good to go. Hosting a webinar will help you build confidence and establish your credibility. It’s a huge potential return from only a moderate time investment.
2. Comment on Blogs
This is one of the best marketing ideas if you want to make a lasting impact. Blogs are fun and extremely popular, so why not use the platform to generate traffic for your product or service? The key is not to just spam your business, but to establish a recognizable presence within the community. As people become accustomed to seeing you, they will want to learn more and will find their way to your business.
3. Submit to Online Business Directories
One factor in a new customer’s ability to find you is how many links back you have to your website. Additionally, your ability to show up multiple times for a single search can help discovery. Online business directories are looking for businesses to register their content. To top it off, it’s (mostly) completely free to make an account and doesn’t require a large time investment. Visit HubSpot’s Ultimate List of 50 Online Business Directories to get started.
4. Join a Meetup
Most people think digital when brainstorming marketing ideas. Even though the Internet may be your primary source of marketing, you should never forget the power of networking in person. This is free to do, and just requires a little confidence and personality. This can take some getting used to, but the results will be hard to ignore. We recommend starting with Meetup.com for interesting communities in your area.
5. Consider a Referral Program
A referral program is a fantastic way of building your customer base. Best of all, if it doesn’t work out, then it doesn’t cost you anything. Getting existing customers to bring more customers to you for a small reward increases brand awareness with minimal effort.
6. Promote Other’s Insights on Twitter
You should be on Twitter if you are serious about marketing on the Internet. If you’re already on the platform, one of the easiest marketing ideas is to start a Twitter feedback. The best approach is to choose ten individuals within your industry that are on Twitter and are regarded as being influential and start to follow them. Follow who they follow and retweet things and you will get noticed by them and their followers. The key to Twitter isn’t to post your work and hope others respond, it is to share things users may like and grow a community proactively spreading the work of others.
7. Develop Secondary Offerings
If you’re known for a single product or service it can be challenging to grow within a customer. You could be missing out on a substantial amount of opportunities by focusing so narrowly. By looking at your customer’s needs, what offerings would help them next? Is there a way you can offer this alongside your initial product or service? Secondary offerings are the key to building a business, not a single product, and all they require is a bit of listening to customer need.
8. Publish a Blog Post
Thought leadership blogs are an ideal way to expand a brand. Tools like LinkedIn Publishing or Medium have large and highly social user base, allowing you to better target a specific audience. A blog can create strong brand recognition if you stick with it and consistently find opportunities to tell your unique point of view. It takes a great deal of time to grow, but it can become an essential part of your brand.
9. Grow Your Email List
An email list is one of the most powerful marketing ideas, and also a great resource for the future. This is something that you can set up on your website or via your social media, empowering you to spread your message as far as possible. Furthermore, building your list costs you nothing and has a surprisingly good return compared to more expensive forms of marketing. Free tools from Campaign Monitor and MailChimp allow you to expand your list initially at no cost.
10. Interact With Customers Online
Your social media presence is not just there to tell people about what you do. It also gives you the opportunity to interact with customers. Remember that customer satisfaction is very important, so ignoring people isn’t the best strategy. Be sure to respond to public comments if you want to spotlight your customer service skills. Google Business Listings now allow customers to text or chat questions or requests right from your listings. Turn on this feature to start making it easier for all customers to answer their urgent questions.
11. Use a Free Press Release
If you thought that the day of the press release was over thanks to the Internet, then think again. Sending out a free press release is less time-consuming than other marketing ideas, and will put your brand in front of more people. If you’re willing to put forth the effort, you can build your own press release without hiring a company.
12. Do a Guest Blog
Finally, there is guest blogging. It will be easier to land an opportunity after you’ve already established a solid reputation. Of course, you want to match up with someone that is also popular so it will be beneficial for everyone. You need to write about something that is going to capture the imagination of the people that read it. Do this with several people, and you will certainly increase brand awareness.
Need more marketing ideas?
Debunk the myths with 8 Lies Marketers are Told, or plan ahead with 7 Marketing Fails to Avoid.
