June 26, 2020

Free Advertising Ideas: 10 Marketing & Advertising Ideas that Won’t Cost You a Dime

Launching a business has always been a costly and challenging adventure. As a matter of fact, almost 30% of all startups fail because they run out of cash at some point. You really need to be a skilled and savvy entrepreneur in order to outdo dozens of big-budget companies in the same niche. You can compete against these companies with creative advertising ideas.

Fortunately, there are many ways to get your foot in the door without spending too much money, particularly if you know that ad blocking became a norm among online customers. Modern consumers don’t want to see sales pitches – they demand tailored content that resonates with their needs and values.

In this post, we will show you 10 marketing and advertising ideas for your website that won’t cost you a dime. Let’s check them out!

10 Free Marketing & Advertising Ideas for Ecommerce Stores

Create Quality Content

Content creation is the essence of website-based marketing. It has the power to make or break your business, so give your best to create and publish high-quality content online.

Consumers don’t want to read ephemeral posts that don’t add any value. According to research, more than 80% of people expect brands to provide content that entertains, tells stories, offers solutions, and creates experiences and events.

Here’s what Paul Mohr, a marketing advisor at ResumesPlanet, says about it:

“Website content must be entertaining or highly analytical or both. Vague writing can’t inspire users, so you must delve deeper into the subject in order to impress potential customers.”

Utilize Social Media

With more than 2 billion daily active users, social media represents the most efficient channel to promote your business on a global scale. However, keep in mind that social platforms such as Instagram or Twitter require special attention, so you shouldn’t try to cover every network.

Instead, we recommend you find one or two options that match your style of work. Here are the most popular choices among entrepreneurs:

  • Facebook: The largest social network, and is the top priority for most companies.
  • LinkedIn: B2B organizations usually target prospects on LinkedIn.
  • Instagram: It’s a perfect channel for product-focused companies.
  • Twitter: This is the easiest way to follow industry trends and grow the network of professional contacts.

Create Tutorials and Product Reviews

Video content is dominating the internet these days, so you should ride the same wave and shoot tutorials and product reviews. It’s a great concept for companies that want to explain how their products or services work while keeping production costs close to a minimum.

Today, it’s easy to create videos with a smartphone camera. You just need to follow the basic video production rules and pay attention to the sound, brightness, and other technical factors. Everything else is up to you, including “infotainment,” creativity, and presentation skills.

Promote Customer Testimonials

People tend to trust their peers much more than brands or companies. Stats have shown that customer testimonials are the most effective form of advertising, coming in at an 89% effectiveness rating.

By adding reviews to your website, you will prove customer satisfaction and convince some visitors to test your products or services. You can give consumers small perks or freebies in exchange for testimonials, but you can also do it free of charge if you maintain good relationships with former clients.

Organize Contests

Contests are another cheap tactic to raise awareness and generate leads. You can give simple awards to users who send you the best brand-related photos or videos. For instance, it could be a half-year membership or a year of free delivery service. It’s not something that burdens your marketing budget, but it means a lot to your customers. And the best thing about contests is that you can easily cross-promote them via social media accounts, which users can quickly make it go viral.

Publish Industry Reports

The average website visitor loves to know what’s going on in your industry. They may even lookup the latest statistical findings regularly and search for interesting business analytics often. You may be wondering — what does this have to do with free advertising ideas?

Well, you probably make tons of business reports every month, quarter, and year; that’s what you do as an entrepreneur! You could modify at least part of these reports to design exclusive content for your website. It will make you stand out from your competitors, improve the SEO potential of your site, and probably generate new leads.

Repurpose Old Content

It’s not always possible to create new content. Sooner or later, everybody runs out of ideas and has to improvise. One way to get out of this awkward situation is to repurpose old content, especially evergreen posts. Here are some tips and tricks:

  • Turn webinars into video tutorials
  • Compile blog posts to make eBooks
  • Use internal data to create case studies
  • Design infographics using slideshow materials
  • Publish Twitter posts using statistical information

Add Your Business to Google Maps

If you’re running a physical store, you could use more than just digital marketing. In other words, you could use online advertising to lead customers to your shop. How can you do it? The answer is the Google Maps function. Verify your business online, and your listing will appear when people start searching for you or similar companies. It doesn’t cost you anything, but you can gain a lot from this feature.

Answer Questions on Quora

Quora is one of the leading Q&A websites worldwide. It compiles all sorts of different topics and rates answers based on quality and user appraisals. This is your chance to step in and prove professional expertise. The process is simple – follow niche-related inquiries and provide users with the best answer. That way, you are building professional authority while using the opportunity to mention your website or products along the way.

Build Industry Partnerships

Industry partnerships are a cross-promotion mechanism that can double brand exposure and introduce you to a brand new target group. Find a company with similar but non-competing services and promote it on your website. They will do the same thing for you. It’s a cost-free marketing tool that creates a win-win situation for both parties.

Conclusion

Running a low-budget business is never an easy thing to do, but it’s feasible if you have a beautiful website and want to invest time and creativity into free advertising ideas. With so many valuable features available online, there is no need to spend too much money on promoting your business.

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