Why spend a fortune on marketing your online business when you don’t have to? You can get more accomplished and grow your business faster if you stick to the simple solutions. Years of trial and error by many other entrepreneurs have shown that these solutions all deliver amazing results. Yes, they are simple but so often it’s the simple solutions that deliver the best results.
Continuing the list of tips from the second post (Part 2) in the series…
#21 Unlock the Power of Testimonials
We’re not just talking about getting testimonials for your products, but yourself and your business. You should dedicate a column on all of your sales pages for testimonials. Nothing you can include on a sales page is as powerful as real customers who have purchased and love your products and services. You should also place testimonials inside of your sales letters.
#22 Don’t be Afraid to Ask for Referrals
Not asking for referrals is a huge mistake made by so many entrepreneurs. You need to be consistent on this one. Ask your readers to pass along your emails by including a short message and link to your sign-up page. Ask Twitter followers to retweet your messages or Facebook fans to like and share your updates. You might even consider putting a referral program in place that rewards customers for referring you to others. Finally, include this process in your policy so that you are consistent.
#23 Webinars
Webinars are an awesome method of connecting with customers and building lists at a rapid pace. Sit down and hammer out a topic for a webinar and then include a short Q & A session at the end. Be sure that your webinar provides a ton of useful information. Save product pitches until the very end so that you don’t appear too pitchy. If you are fortunate enough to get invited to a partner’s webinar then be respectful. Make them look like a genius for having invited you! Webinars are a great way of building tremendous rapport with your customers. If you provide some wonderful information then they will be more likely to listen to your pitch at the end.
#24 Send Useful Information
You should never send only offers to your email subscribers. In fact, if you want to unlock the power of your email list then only about 30% of your emails should contain offers. The remainder should provide them with useful information. By providing useful information, you will make it more likely for your subscribers to open future emails from you. Naturally, this will increase your conversion rate.
#25 Take your Best Shot
Get professional photographs taken. These can be used everywhere – from Facebook to Twitter and even LinkedIn. You can upload these photos on article directories, your website, or business directories. Photos build recognition that will pay off in the long-term.
#26 Blog
If you don’t have a blog yet then I suggest you stop reading this and start one right now. Even if you already have a website, you need a blog! Blogs give you a one-of-a-kind opportunity to connect with your local community and create that personal connection that will pay dividends in the long-term. If that’s not enough incentive, then you should also know that Google loves blogs so by blogging you will have a better chance of being ranked. This can lead to a ton of free traffic.
#27 Unlock the Power of Keywords
Getting ranked on Google is huge in online marketing. If you want to get that ranking then you will need keywords that people are actually searching for. Investing your time on a great keyword can reward you in ways that you never dreamed possible. You might need to invest a little money in a good keyword tool though if you want the best chance of this happening.
#28 Bookmark It
Social bookmarking is one of the best ways to help other people find helpful articles and blogposts. Get out there and join sites like Reddit, Dig, and StumbleUpon and bookmark your best stuff. Also, be sure to bookmark other people’s useful content so it doesn’t seem like you’re only promoting your own content.
#29 Press Releases
If you have real news to report than don’t hesitate to publish it to a press release website.
#30 Spend 30 Minutes a Day on Forums
Be sure that you monitor this time closely because it’s easy to get caught up on forums and waste an entire day. Spend only 30 minutes a day on the best forums within your niche. This has the power to increase your visibility. Also, follow the advice above and utilize your forum signature by including links to your website and information about your business. When other forum members find your posts helpful, they will be able to easily find you.
#31 Utilize the Power of Social Media
This includes Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and LinkedIn. These are all great places for people to find your business, plus they are powerful networking tools. There are enough books that have been written about social media to fill a library so I cannot possible list everything here. Just be sure that you are utilizing the power of social media.
In summary, there are a lot of different methods of promoting your business without having to spend a ton of money. Keep an open mind and be creative. You could be well on your way to reaching out to all of those potential buyers out there.