Marketing on a shoestring

Most small businesses face the never-ending challenge of marketing on a shoestring. You may not have the time or talent to do it effectively yourself, but you also don't have the treasure to pay someone else to do it for you.

If you do have more time than money, consider these three simple and no-cost strategies:
* Harness the Power of the Pen by writing articles on your niches of expertise for local association publications or websites, for publications or websites of colleagues or even in your own blogs.

* Harness the Power of the Platform by offering to speak to professional associations or business groups like chambers of commerce on topics of interest to their members that also showcase your value and expertise.

* Harness the Power of the Pro Bono by strategic volunteering not just your time but your talents. Share your expertise with a professional or charitable group that can also showcases it. Look for classic 'win-win' scenarios where the organization benefits from your volunteering and you benefit from the exposure that comes with it. If you're a graphic artist, offer to design a brochure or publication in exchange for a credit line. If you're a web designer, upgrade their web site for a credit line. If you're an accountant, become the group's treasurer.

These are not the only ways to market yourself on a shoestring - but they work, take no money and
leverage your time productively.

I am currently using networking as my main strategy for my start-up business. Do anyone have any more suggestions on low-cost efforts to market? Thanks.

Besides the items I posted above, here are some other Shoestring Marketing Strategies:
* Create a blog where you can comment on your industry if you don't have a website
* Send out an opt-in E-Newsletter to clients and colleagues offering useful information on your area of expertise.
* Look for allies or partners where you can exchange referrals or do sub-contract work.
* Ask existing clients for referrals within their organizations and with their professional peers in other organizations.

Anyone else have any tips to offer?

Here's a short video with some additional brand building tips for small business owners: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2nzYN-KhLs

In just 6 minutes, you'll move from "branding is just for big companies" to "I can grow my brand with my customers." And learn that even with a shoestring budget, you can build a powerful brand by keeping things simple and focused.

Enjoy.

It doesn't cost anything to make a phone call. I know that few people like to do it, I hated it. But once I found my target market and was passionate about talking to the prospects within it, it became easy. And, I have been successful. I am a B2B business so I can't speak for B2C businesses.