5 great, inexpensive advertising ideas for small businesses

We’ve long held the belief that you need to touch a customer or prospect about a half dozen times before they make a considered purchase at your small business. Some of these touches can be pure awareness – a print ad, a story in a local newspaper or a roadside billboard. Other touches can be less expensive and more targeted. Here are five ideas in this vein:

1) Google AdWords. For as little as $10 to $20 a day, you can put an impression in front of someone who is literally looking for your business and you only pay if they decide to click on your ad. Chose the right keywords, smart ad copy and a well-designed landing page and convert these highly-qualified leads into customers. Learn more about Google AdWords here.

2) Facebook Ads. You’ve dipped you toe into Facebook, have a business profile and post when your muffins are fresh out of the oven or you’re ready to discount shoes by 33%. Another way to use Facebook is with hyper-targeted Facebook Ads.  For a nominal $10 per day, you can put your ad in front of the exact age, gender, education or interests demos most appropriate for your product or service. Learn more about Facebook Ads here.

3) LinkedIn Ads. If you sell products or services to other small businesses, running ads on LinkedIn is a great idea. You can target your ads by geography, job title or LinkedIn group. This means if you want to reach HR professionals in Southern Connecticut interested in employee health, you can do just that. Read more about LinkedIn ads here.

4) Claim your listing on Local Search sites. I’m constantly surprised by how many local businesses don’t claim their local profile pages on GooglePlaces, Yahoo Local or Bing Local. It’s a free service – the only requirement is you spend a few minutes filling out the forms to customize the page for your business. Start with GooglePlaces here or Bing Local here.

5) Use Community Social sites. More and more, local town residents have set up pages dedicated to their communities on social networks. They are informal and organic and you can’t be too mercenary or overly-commercial when you engage with them but join the conversation. Find out what things local residents care about. A good one about Guilford, CT can be found here:  Simply Guilford.