E-business Articles
Building Businesss Buzz
Stretching a limited marketing budget and being innovative is critical to keeping your small business in operation. Forget costly advertising, because small businesses don’t have million dollar marketing budgets. Smart business owners are implementing grass roots and creative promotional strategies toboost their company without straining their budget. One way to get the buzz about your business flowing is to sell yourself.
Partner With Another Business - Form strategic marketing alliances with noncompeting businesses to attract customers and bolster resources. A car wash owner, for example, can offer discounts to customers who patronize a nearby restaurant.
Leverage the Power of the Internet - Establishing a Web presence puts you one step closer to the bigger competitors and lets you reach a broader market. You can get a professionally designed e-business website for less than $1,500. Even if you don’t sell products online, your site can be a valuable marketing tool by providing three ways to contact you--E-mail, phone and snail mail address.
Join a Trade Association - It's a great way to find potential partners and customers. You can join a nonspecific industry group such as African-American Women in Business or your local chamber of commerce. As a member, you can network with other entrepreneurs and keep abreast of industry trends and competition. These organizations can be a great source of potential customers and suppliers.
Become a Sponsor –You can help your community and establish a base of regular customers by sponsoring local sports teams or a community organization, or by hosting fund-raisers. In exchange for your community support, your company can received valuable visibility with new prospects.
Make the News – You don’t have to hire an expensive public relations firm to get your name in the press. You can be proactive and contact local newspapers and media stations with interesting stories about your company. Be creative and come up with an interesting angle about your product, service or company programs. The media outlets are always in search of unique articles. Join a speakers' bureau, and look for opportunities to promote your enterprise at press events.
You’re the Expert – If you have expertise about a specific industry, market or your own products and services, you can deliver your knowledge by teaching evening courses at local colleges and city workshops. By becoming a known expert, you can deliver a credible message to future customers and continue to promote your company name in the process.
Free Advertising – The Internet is providing free advertising opportunities for businesses like never before. You can post company announcements on blogs or free sites such as MySpace.com and Craigslist.org. These websites attract millions of visitors and they don’t charge for visitors to post information.
