One of the most effective methods for promoting a business is free marketing. If you are a brand new or relatively new business, or an individual entrepreneur, your advertising budget is likely to be limited so free publicity is absolutely ideal. However, marketing is also supremely effective for experienced businesses. Those who have read ‘Guerrilla Marketing’ by Jay Conrad Levinson will understand just how powerful and influential advertising and publicity can be for a company.
Some might assume that free marketing equates to low quality marketing, but in fact, this can be quite the contrary, and free advertising can actually prove to be even more influential than paid publicity. Paid adverts are often very clear marketing tactics, and this can push people away. For example, while browsing social media or reading your favourite magazine, you might notice that your eyes skim right over any clear adverts and move on to the next post, or article of interest. There are even internet ad blockers that many people use nowadays, which automatically stop any paid advertisements messages from reaching the user. Therefore, while you may initially think it’s a great idea to pay for premium advertising for your business, chances are your efforts will go unnoticed by many. Instead, why not try free advertising? You have nothing to lose.
If you’re unsure how to get started, stick with us a few great ways to publicise your business for free.
Article Writing
A fantastic method of gaining publicity around your business expertise is putting pen to paper (or more likely, opening your laptop) and getting a few articles written. These could be articles for a newspaper, or even for blogs and websites (known as self-syndication). At the end of your article you can include a snippet of information relating to your business, even if your article is written about a seemingly unrelated topic. Newspaper articles can be provided for free – or perhaps you can even negotiate a small fee. Try both local and national newspapers. It’s unlikely you will score with the largest publications in the country, but it’s worth a shot for the prospect of your column being read by hundreds or thousands of people.
If you go down the blogging route, this can be just as effective. Many people absorb their news and information online these days, therefore websites are often on the lookout for brilliant content. Content that is well-written and captivating should have no problem getting published, and you could even become a regular feature for a large and prominent brand.
Link to a Hot Topic
Simply that. Link your personal story to a current and engaging news story and grab additional free publicity. For instance, a gambling business once publicly challenged the then President of the USA, Barack Obama, to a Poker game for a total of $1million. This led to a huge discussion in the media on whether Poker and similar UK online casino games were based upon luck along, or strategy and skill. This gave plenty of online casino such as GoldRushSlots.co.uk a handy platform for publicity.
Some ongoing news stories can become a little tiresome for everyone. Use this to your advantage; link your own story to the hot topic and provide the media with a refreshing news story that they are likely to be glad to report. Examples are local angles on huge international or national current events; these often get coverage on local media outlets at the very least.
Introduce & Educate
You’re confident in your expertise, right? Then a fabulously effective way to attract customers is to run a seminar or a class. Are you a beautician? Consider running a local evening class on makeup, hair and beauty techniques. If you’re an accountant, perhaps you could offer a free seminar on managing your finances. Own a gym? Provide a free group training session or fitness class to attract business. You’ll have the perfect opportunity to introduce yourself and sell yourself or your business.
On occasion, you might even obtain direct profit from these events. Depending on demand, you might be able to charge a small admission fee or sell products within your class. If you are put off by the thought of the admin hassles, you could potentially arrange your class via a sponsoring company, who would take on much of the legwork in terms of venues, arrangements, etc.
Be sure to contact local media outlets and use social media to publicise your event.
Host a Competition
You might have noticed that businesses seem to run competitions more than ever these days, particularly on social media. Let’s face it, everyone loves to win a prize, and if you can enter the competition for free, why wouldn’t you? If you set up a competition, you can offer your own services or product as the grand prize. You can obtain many shares of your business page on Facebook and Instagram, for example, simply by hosting a competition. The best part is, if the service or product is appealing, people who have entered and fail to win may choose to become a customer anyway.
Demos, Demos, Demos
Finally, another effective way to turn heads towards your product or service is to demonstrate it, for free. Show the world how great your product is, or how talented you are. This could be in-person, or, more common these days, a video of your product or service on your website and business social media pages. You could even attach your video to your online competition (see above!). Plenty of shares plus a clear demonstration will surely get the customers flocking.
Final Thoughts
If you thought there was no such thing as free publicity, hopefully we have convinced you otherwise. Free advertising opportunities are limited by your thoughts only. Release your creative side, stand proud and have fun with your service or product as you share it with the world.