Have you just launched your new home based business? Then it is time you starting marketing your business if you want to attract a lot of customers and grow huge. If you are first time business owner, it can be difficult for you with the marketing efforts, especially since home business owners have a very small set budget, but there is a lot of scope for marketing your business without lot of investments. The following are some of the ways in which you can promote your business right from your home:
- Create a website
You must start creating your own website of blog. These days these have become very affordable and every house has a computer with internet connection. Use this to your advantage and create a site to market your home business. It is a cost effective way and is a great way of advertising your business.
- Plan
You have to always start with planning. Planning involves all departments of the business such as marketing, purchasing materials, distribution etc. You have to plan ahead, determine what you want for your business, and set your strategy for marketing by having a mission statement. Know your target audience, and state what sets you apart from your competitors. Your plan has to be short and to the point.
- Social Networking
These days from children to grandmothers everybody has a social networking account on facebook, twitter, LinkedIn or several other things. Every person is involved in some type of social networking. A good news for home business owners is that they can create a profile on any of the social networks and promote their business for free of cost entirely. On your business webpage you can mention your area of interest and include links to your site or blog and then join groups which are related to your specific niche. With plenty of your target audience on these social networking sites you cannot imagine enough what it can do for your home business.
- Niche market
Home business owners must find their niche market and this is one of the hardest tasks, but also an important task. When you market your services or products you have to be clear on what way your business is unique when compared to your competitors, and why people will show interest in purchasing your services and products. You must research your niche market well, and have to convince your target consumers why they should choose your business over plenty of others out there in the market.
- Business Cards
Face to face networking is not dead, and if you have a good business card which registers on the mind of the person who is receiving it, then it will be very helpful for you. A good business card conveys that its owner is a professional and it also helps people register about your business in their minds forever. Your business card has to be professional and if your business has a logo then do not forget to include it on the card. A good way for your business card to retain its life is by including extras such as a calendar, appointment reminder etc on its back. A good option is creating magnets and small note pads with your business info on them.
- Ad copies
Publicizing a business is an important part of marketing strategies, whether it is a small business, home business or a large business. This publicity type has to be very effective. An average person views more than a thousand ads per day and if you expect your advertisement to register on their mind and make a mark, is by writing a great and effective ad copy. Based on your niche market, you can place your ad copy on offline or online sources. You can place them on radio, TV, magazines, newspapers and local bulletin boards too. Before you set out your ad copy you must research where your competitors are advertising and form a marketing strategy to benefit.
- Newsletters
If you have a website for your business then a newsletter is a good way of bringing your previous customers back to your site and keep them reminding of your services or products. You have to keep your newsletter interesting with content which is related to your topic, good way of writing product reviews, invite your subscribers to send questions, answer some of their questions in your newsletter.
- Blogging
A blog is a great way of making your customers to coming back to your site. For a successful blog a good marketing tool is very much necessary and it has to be updated regularly 2-5 times weekly. You must also have an interesting and thoughtful content on your subject. When your consumers know that you provide regular content they will surely visit your blog to see what is new and happening. Though there are plenty of free blogging platforms available, it is good to pay a little extra for your domain name, custom design, premium templates etc. It is very important that you include your company’s logo for branding purposes.
- Take part in charity events
You have to promote your home business actively and do some good for the community at the same time. Find a charity and volunteer for one of the events or offer to host one for them. Tell your family and friends to join you on the action. Many organizations will include your business’s logo on their websites, t-shirts and brochures. This is a great way of getting exposure for your businesses and form new relationships and keep up your old ones.
- Press releases
This is a written statement which is sent out to the media to get more exposure. This can be a great way for a home business to promote itself within the community and for creating an online presence. It is very easy to write a press release and there many free templates and instructions on how to write it over the web. Based on the budget you have, you can write for as less as $50 or as high as $2000.
