You don’t always need million dollar ads to create a buzz out about your company. With some time commitment on your part, you can use several low-cost marketing tactics to build effective customer relationships and entice more people to your offerings, both of which are critical to the survival of your business and earning profits. So, here are some low cost marketing strategies that have massive potential payoffs, provided you use them the right way:
Business Cards: Business cards can serve as your company’s inexpensive billboards where you list the name of your company, contact information, as well as your email and web address. The other side of the card can have a list of your offerings. In case you have too many products or services to be accommodated in the small space, try listing some special offers or upcoming discounts that would be the perfect excuse for people to go talking about it, thus giving you word-of-the-mouth publicity. Even when you are into online business, handing out business cards will help people have your web address in their hands, many of whom may be those who haven’t heard about your company before. Some curious people among these may eventually land at your website and even buy from you.
Emails and Signatures: Keeping in touch with your clients and building an ongoing relationship become easy with emails. Sending free email postcards on holidays or birthdays of your clients and business partners can make them feel special and get them more interested in doing business with you. Using your signature at the end of the mail that includes your name, company’s name, web address, email id, Twitter or Facebook page link will help people know about any specials or promotions that you are going to offer and encourage them to check back at regular intervals.
Reward Referrals: Use your business cards, letters, post cards, fax, emails or a phone call to publicize that you "pay for referrals". Setting up a referral program to give a certain percentage of the sale to someone who has referred you company is a good way to market your offerings. For example, if you are in the business of health equipments, try contacting dieticians, massage therapists, health food stores, chiropractors, or fitness equipment retailers to set the ball rolling.
Free Samples: There is hardly anyone who can resist the temptation of freebies. So, a fitness instructor offering a free workshop or free "trial" sessions, a company providing products and services for free as samples before the customers buy them, the chance to test drive cars for free offered by a card dealer are some ways to entice customers and market the products or services. You too can use such tactics to promote what you have up your sleeves.
Create a Website: Though creating a website would need some initial investment on your part, it's worth the money as it can help you promote and advertise your business constantly 24X7. With prices as low as $5 a month for some web hosting services, you can look forward to gaining global exposure by paying a pittance.
There are some other low cost marketing strategies like starting an online community, using social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace etc, networking both online and offline, article marketing, sending electronic newsletter etc. You need to select the tactics that suit your needs, budget and the time period that you can invest in order to get more people know about your offerings, entice them to buy from you and thus give a boost to your business profits.
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