 3
Extremely Low-Cost Marketing Strategies
by
Kathleen Gage
The
Street Smarts Speaker and Author
Are you looking for cost-effective marketing strategies? Look no
further. The following three strategies have proven extremely
effective for countless businesses and they can for you.
1.Press Releases – Very effective method of gaining
visibility and credibility when published. You must have a well
written release pertinent to the media source you are sending it
to. You can distribute press releases both online and off.
A
quick Internet search under media resources in your city will
bring up radio, television, newspapers and magazines in your
area. To find online resources do a search under - free online
press release distribution. Numerous listings will come up.
Utilizing the free services when on a limited budget can prove
to be invaluable.
There are services you can pay for if you are so inclined. An
excellent resource for both free and paid distributions is
www.prweb.com.
Prior to writing a press release, determine the following:
-Who is your target market?
-What is your target media?
-Who is the contact person at the media outlet?
-What is the timeframe for submission?
-Do you have an attention-grabbing headline?
-Do you know the who, what, when, where, why, how?
-Do you have good quotes, research and technical date if
appropriate?
2. Articles - Writing articles is a great way to gain
recognition as an expert in your field or specific industry. By
providing practical information, you can reach targeted
audiences. This can create exciting opportunities for you and
your business.
You should write on what you are knowledgeable about. Make sure
your information is factual. Incorrect or untrue information
can come back to haunt you.
Recently I read an article by someone claiming to be an Internet
marketing expert. Their article was about gaining visibility on
the Net. To find out how much visibility this so called expert
has I did a name search on the author. The “expert” author had
only 10 postings under his name. Not very impressive when other
experts have thousands of listings. The author immediately lost
credibility.
3. Presentations – One of the most effective ways to
market your product or service is to offer a complimentary
information seminar. When you provide great information that is
of interest to your market you have become a resource before you
are a vendor. By positioning yourself as a resource you are
marketing in a very unique way.
Hosting a presentation can be virtually expense free. You can
offer to do a presentation at a staff meeting for a client. Many
large companies have brown bag lunch speaking opportunities. You
can host a meeting open to the public at your local library. Be
sure to send press releases to the local media when you are
offering a presentation open to the public.
Many associations, including your local Chamber of Commerce, are
constantly seeking good presenters who can provide timely and
content driven talks that benefit their members.
When you apply one of the three recommendations to your
marketing mix you will gain benefit. When you apply all three
the results can be phenomenal.
Kathleen Gage, The Street Smarts Marketer™, is an Internet
marketing advisor who works with spiritually aware speakers,
authors, coaches and consultants who are ready to turn the
knowledge into money-making products and services. Visit
http://www.kathleengage.com for free resources to build your
online presence and credibility.
NOTE:
You may publish this
article for your magazine, trade journal, newspapers, business
journals, website and/or Ezine provided you keep it in its
original form and include the
resource box at the end.
|
