Let's build a web hosting business on a shoestring

Design a marketing campaign and decide on where to do marketing. Prepare marketing efforts. Check for deadlines with publishers.

Marketing and advertising. You have to let the world know that you and your business are out there. If nobody knows - how will you get customers at all. There are several different ways to get customers. We will show you the basics so that you can get clients. There is no easy way of advertising. It is a long process and the impact is usually pretty short. If you stop advertising you will feel an immediate impact on the results = less client signups.

1) Word of mouth

Ask friends and family to spread the word. You're open for business. So, let them recommend your services to their friends, co-workers, and families. This is the most affordable way of advertising and one of the best. Once you have clients - ask them to recommend your services to thier friends and family. If your clients are satified they will be happy to recommend your business. Word of mouth is important. Eventually offer referal fees to improve results. Cost associated with this step: $0.00

2) Logowear

Go to http://www.cafepress.com and order a frame for your license plates, some logo wear with your business slogan and logo. Wear this stuff when going shopping or in the gym. This is a very affordable and long lasting way to advertise repeatedly. Approximate cost depends on what you order. For now we assume that you spend about $75.00 on your own-branded merchandise.

3) Forums and Newsgroups

Become a member in forums and newsgroups on the Internet. Use your forums signature to advertise your business services. Be sure to read up on the rules on each forum before doing this. Some do not allow advertising this way - others do promote it. Become an active poster and people will start asking for your advice and help and eventually become clients. This can become a very effective way of advertising. Cost associated with this step: $0.00

4) Press Releases

Make use of free media reports. Publish a press release whenever possible. The occasion has to be noteworthy of course. Newspapers, magazines, radio and TV - they all receive press releases from the newswires. A local newspaper might catch on and will contact you to print a story about you and your business. Look into the business section of your local newspaper - how often do you see a report about a local business? Where I live - it happens quite often. Maybe the newspaper publishes company profiles every once in a while. Maybe you're the chosen one.

How to publish a press release? You should find out how you can directly submit a press release to your local newspaper. It might require some work, but newspapers are always looking for information that they can publish. Use services like PRWeb.com to publish your press release. PRWeb.com even offers templates so that you know how a professional press release looks like. You can even release a press release free of cost with them. Cost associated with this step: $0.00

5) Newspaper Advertising

Spend some money on local newspaper advertising. Ask for special rates for business starters. Where I live I can publish a business card sized ad for about $90.00 in a weekly newspaper distributed to about 70,000 people. You should be able to find similar deals in your area - hopefully cheaper. Run an ad for 2 weeks. Cost associated with this step: $180.00

6) Local Business directories

Go online and find business directories for your area and get listed. In most cases this is free of charge. If the owner of a website wants a return link - setup a partner page on your website and link back. So, the both of you can refer customers to each other. Cost associated with this step: $0.00

7) Yellow pages

Get listed in the local Yellow Pages. If there is one place for targeted advertising it is in the Yellow Pages. Call the local phone company and find out what it will cost. My local phone company offered a small listing for just $10.00 per month. Cost associated with this step: $10.00 (recurring)

8) Got print?

Got a printer at home? Make it work for you. Create flyers and distribute them. If your local laws aloow it - place them on telephone poles, bus stops, and other visible places. Otherwise always place them (when parking your car somewhere) under the windshield wipers of the cars left and right next to you. Cost associated with this step: $25.00

9) Online advertising

Go online and search through newsgroups and forums for affordable advertising opportunities. Do not spend a fortune on one site. Rather spend the available money on 3 or 4 sites. Make sure that the sites you spend money on for advertising are actually having traffic. The owner needs to show you traffic stats. Cost associated with this step: $200.00

10) Visit local businesses

Create a small flyer or sales kit and visit local businesses. Talk to the owners and managers - introduce yourself and leave the flyer with them. Call back the next day. You can also use the business cards you ordered earlier for this kind of advertising. Cost associated with this step: $20.00

We just showed you 10 different ways for advertising. Some cost money and some don't. Make sure you always use several options at the same time to get the best effect from your advertising. If your budget does not allow the expensive forms of advertising substitute them with the low cost ways of advertising. There is no one way to get to the clients. Be creative.

If you want to spend some money on marketing books - here are a few recommendations. The cost for those is not included in the cost listing below.

Cost associated with this step (one time / maximum): $500.00
Cost associated with this step (recurring): $10.00

Money spend so far (one time): $727.81
Money spend so far (recurring / monthly): $45.00

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