The small business solution to promoting your site.
You’ve decided to open a business and planned out your Web site, even contacting a professional Web hosting company to handle everything. But now comes the part where you have to market yourself online. After all, how is anyone going to know the site is there if you don’t tell them about it?
But not everyone has an abundance of money to spend on advertising. Some companies are looking for ways to keep the bill low, but at the same time, effectively let others know that there is something new for them to consider. So what is the best way to market the site? Surprisingly, there are more ways than one:
Make Every Contact Count... Try Constant Contact1) Search engine submission is a good idea. There are so many of them out there now and it is a great way to gain exposure. Although search engine submission is simple, it can be time consuming, so be prepared. When registering with these engines, it is important that the site is running on the server of a professional Web hosting company, because search engines generally view free servers negatively.
2) Some will even claim that direct marketing is a good way of promoting a site and that a catchy subject line is the answer. New businesses should be weary of sending out too many e-mails of this type, for risk of being branded as a spammer. The best solution is to start your own mailing list, asking customers if they would like to receive information when it is available. A good way to get around this is to create a newsletter and have clients opt-in – thereby asking to receive the information. Constant Contact is a software solution that enables small businesses to grow their business from their customers and prospects (permission based list) with targeted, professional looking email communications. It is a web based solution, designed specifically for small businesses and is easy to use, affordable and takes no technical expertise. Click here free Trial Email Marketing.
3) Another great way of promoting your website is to advertise in e-zines (electronic magazines) because they reach a specific audience. By trading ads with other e-zines, it is a great way to get the message out there without having to spend a fortune. They are also beneficial because they position the business as a leader in the industry and build on customer loyalty. What a great reason to start your own!
4) Exchanging links with other companies (obviously not ones promoting the same product/service) can be a great way to bring more traffic to your site. In fact, some companies have achieved a million hits per month within 90 days of placing a link on another site. But even if this doesn’t prove effective, it will allow you to have the URL on more pages throughout the Web. When search engine spiders crawl the Web looking for information, the fact that your URL is on all of these pages will move the page up in rankings.
5) Join a news group and make sure to give your two cents. When promoting your website, be sure to include a signature at the end of each posting (no more than six to eight lines) stating the product and e-mail/Web address for the company. Each time a posting is put up, literally hundreds of people see the ad. If more information is needed, customers now have the means to find it. Even if they visit the site out of curiosity, word of mouth is the best advertising there is (and the least expensive).
6) Give things away for free – free articles to other sites or in magazines, free services that are needed in the market, free downloads, links to specific information or downloadable software.
7) Banner ads are still an effective method as they have been throughout the last few years. Banner exchanges can be a good idea, but a more successful approach is to place them on targeted Web sites. The only downside with banner ads, however is that they can become quite expensive, so make sure that you have good placement and that you’ve done your research to ensure the site reaches a specific audience.
8) Finally, if something new is coming out from the business, make sure to send out a press release. Although it can take time to write one, there are many free press release distribution services. Although some charge a fee, if it means of promoting your website, it might be a good idea.
You’ve decided to open a business and planned out your Web site, even contacting a professional Web hosting company to handle everything. But now comes the part where you have to market yourself online. After all, how is anyone going to know the site is there if you don’t tell them about it?
But not everyone has an abundance of money to spend on advertising. Some companies are looking for ways to keep the bill low, but at the same time, effectively let others know that there is something new for them to consider. So what is the best way to market the site? Surprisingly, there are more ways than one:
Make Every Contact Count... Try Constant Contact1) Search engine submission is a good idea. There are so many of them out there now and it is a great way to gain exposure. Although search engine submission is simple, it can be time consuming, so be prepared. When registering with these engines, it is important that the site is running on the server of a professional Web hosting company, because search engines generally view free servers negatively.
2) Some will even claim that direct marketing is a good way of promoting a site and that a catchy subject line is the answer. New businesses should be weary of sending out too many e-mails of this type, for risk of being branded as a spammer. The best solution is to start your own mailing list, asking customers if they would like to receive information when it is available. A good way to get around this is to create a newsletter and have clients opt-in – thereby asking to receive the information. Constant Contact is a software solution that enables small businesses to grow their business from their customers and prospects (permission based list) with targeted, professional looking email communications. It is a web based solution, designed specifically for small businesses and is easy to use, affordable and takes no technical expertise. Click here free Trial Email Marketing.
3) Another great way of promoting your website is to advertise in e-zines (electronic magazines) because they reach a specific audience. By trading ads with other e-zines, it is a great way to get the message out there without having to spend a fortune. They are also beneficial because they position the business as a leader in the industry and build on customer loyalty. What a great reason to start your own!
4) Exchanging links with other companies (obviously not ones promoting the same product/service) can be a great way to bring more traffic to your site. In fact, some companies have achieved a million hits per month within 90 days of placing a link on another site. But even if this doesn’t prove effective, it will allow you to have the URL on more pages throughout the Web. When search engine spiders crawl the Web looking for information, the fact that your URL is on all of these pages will move the page up in rankings.
5) Join a news group and make sure to give your two cents. When promoting your website, be sure to include a signature at the end of each posting (no more than six to eight lines) stating the product and e-mail/Web address for the company. Each time a posting is put up, literally hundreds of people see the ad. If more information is needed, customers now have the means to find it. Even if they visit the site out of curiosity, word of mouth is the best advertising there is (and the least expensive).
6) Give things away for free – free articles to other sites or in magazines, free services that are needed in the market, free downloads, links to specific information or downloadable software.
7) Banner ads are still an effective method as they have been throughout the last few years. Banner exchanges can be a good idea, but a more successful approach is to place them on targeted Web sites. The only downside with banner ads, however is that they can become quite expensive, so make sure that you have good placement and that you’ve done your research to ensure the site reaches a specific audience.
8) Finally, if something new is coming out from the business, make sure to send out a press release. Although it can take time to write one, there are many free press release distribution services. Although some charge a fee, if it means of promoting your website, it might be a good idea.
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