Due to the pressure of economy and regulations, small business owners are forced to make difficult choices in using their limited budget. One of the areas often slashed for the wrong reasons is advertising.
Well, small businesses need exposure; they need to get their services and products on the market, and you need advertising in doing so. Reducing your advertising effort is like a diver who blocks some of the oxygen intake to preserve the capacity of the oxygen tank. I know, it’s silly.
But that’s what many small business owners do! They strangle their own small businesses in their effort to save money. Well, doing so won’t get you more money, don’t you think?
You need better way. Instead of cutting your advertising effort, why don’t you look for alternatives offering the best value for your advertising budget; those which enable you to “safely” cut your advertising budget without reducing the advertising effort?
Enter digital advertising.
It’s a big lie when someone told you that reducing your advertising budget means reducing your advertising effort. You can actually boost your effort while reducing your overall budget via digital/online advertising.
Well, you are not alone, as many of your fellow small businesses are doing the same thing, too.
But then, how effective is online advertising? Well, we now know that digital video ads are growing in popularity and effectiveness.
One thing for sure, when you are advertising online, you must put social media on top of your list, as – quite simply – it’s the new hangout place for your target market. According to the latest report from BI Intelligence, social media advertising is set to explode in 2013. Cheaper but quite often more powerful.
“Cheaper” here could also mean “free.” Using social media effectively can get the words out about your business for free, even without using their ad services.
Of course, digital advertising is not the only way to go. In fact, offers and promo work even better than digital advertising.
Let’s take a look at how Groupon helps small businesses get the most of their marketing budget – according to Ad Age Digital, digital-marketing consultant Surya Yalamanchili said he believes small businesses using Groupon “would have to spend two or three times” the amount they share with Groupon to get the same traffic from newspaper or digital advertising.
Also, you can’t dismiss any advertising medium as they are still working out quite well. Creative small business owners will be able to find ways to reduce their ad spending while using traditional media, including the use of smart ad copy, and so on.
To take away, here are some tips from around the web which can help you reduce your small business advertising spending – while maximizing your ROI…
The Best Way to Advertise a Small Business on a Low Budget
No matter which methods you choose as a business owner, the key is to keep the advertising rate going, and take advantage of market conditions to promote your business.
How to Advertise Your Small Business Online
Tips on how to drive traffic to your company’s website using search engine optimization, social media, and customer-driven marketing.
Small business advertising tips and ideas
Entrepreneur.com offers tips on how to advertise your small business better using various medium, both online and off line.
15 Proven Ideas for Low-Cost, Local Advertising
You need to advertise your business, but that comes with two stipulations: Advertising needs to be both inexpensive and targeted at a local audience. Consider these 15 suggestions for low-cost, local advertising.
Photo credit: mastermaq
