Promoting your business is one of the most important aspects of your business. You could have the worlds greatest products, the worlds greatest website, the worlds greatest customer service; however, if no one knows that your company is open for busines, you will have no customers which equals no sales.
How to Market Your Business
- Online: When most people talk about online Marketing, they usually refer to any of the following ways: Search Engines, Email, Directories, Online Displays, Affiliate Marketing or Social Media. Many books have been written about each category, claiming to help you make tons of money, while charging you up to hundreds of dollars. Here is a quick explanation of each:
- Search Engines:
- Listing your company in a multiple Search Engines (i.e. Google, Alta Vista, Bing)
- Email:
- Usually refers to sending out emails to either customers or potential customers (i.e. Bulk Email, Spamming)
- Directories:
- Listing your company in a directory of other companies (i.e. ExploringArizona.org, Yahoo, Telephone Book)
- Online Displays:
- Placing an ad on another company's website, usually relevant to your product or service, (i.e. ExploringArizona.org)
- Affiliate Marketing:
-
When other companies promote your company's product or service for a commision of each referral. (i.e. Vista Print)
- Social Media:
- Either listing your company or placing an ad on a social media platform (i.e. Facebook, Twitter
)
- Offline: This is the way companies have been advertising for hundreds of years, basically it is any advertising not conducted on the internet. This can include: Flyers, Business Cards, Magnets, Signs, etc.
There are many companies out there that provide marketing services, some have been listed above and include marketing support like Eliminate Paper Clutter Today!...First Month is Free at Shoeboxed.com! (they scan business cards/receipts for you to download into other programs like excel, notepad, etc. They also scan documents for archival purposes. 
This is the most sought after answer when it comes to marketing. We believe there is really no one answer and several factors should be considered when trying to select the best method for your product or service.
- Location: If your product or service is limited for a local area, trying to advertise it in another state or country would definitely not be beneficial.
- Product or Service: If your product or service is based on a visual appearance, trying to advertised it on a non visual platform (i.e. Radio) would not have the same effect.
- Budget: A marketing budget can be one of the most important features of marketing, if you do not spend the capital to market your business, studies show that your company will not be as successful. While you may not have a huge marketing budget, making good choices and spending wisely, you can maximize every dollar invested in your company.
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