You know the old saying….. It takes money to make money! That may be true, but it doesn’t have to be as much as you think, especially when it comes to marketing. With the digital era occupying more and more of the marketing space, you have the opportunity to market your business on just about any size budget.

How? Good question!

There are several things you can do to cut costs and still get a huge bang for your buck. Here are 5 of my favorite ways to reduce the time and cost it takes to market your business:

Hire a Consultant

Rather than hire a company that manages all of your marketing, price out a service that is willing to teach you or your staff how to manage your accounts. Most companies don’t like to do this because it means sharing their secrets, but there isn’t a secret. There is education, tools, practice, and analysis. Everyone can market with these 4 things. If time is an issue for you, I recommend subcontracting a marketing manager that can do this for you and keep within your budget.

Graphic Design

Design is a huge expense in the marketing world. Software alone can cost thousands of dollars and that’s if you know how to use it! Hiring a graphic designer can cost hundreds of dollars per project.

Don’t fear! Your solution is here. CANVA.com is a free online tool that you can use to make infographics, invitations, event headers, flyers, and more. The site is free to use, but also has an upgrade option that includes additional templates, free photos, and allows you to add team members to collaborate on projects. The upgraded version starts at just $12.95 a month.

Use a Marketing Platform

There are several management tools to help you reduce the amount of time you are spending on posts, tweets, pins, etc. Platforms such as Hootsuite, buffer, sprout social, and Yutle are all great options depending on your company needs. Subscriptions start as low as about $10 a month.

Most small business owners tend to avoid using these tools because it can be intimidating. I recommend hiring that consultant, or using the online videos that the sites will provide you. After some brief training and a little practice, these tools could save you several hours per week and hundreds per year.

Advertising

I get asked weekly if Facebook ads are worth it. The answer is yes.

Google any business these days and often their Facebook account will be listed higher than their actual website. Facebook is doing a lot of the SEO for you. Use it! The ability to customize ads, demographics, market, and budget are worth their weight in gold. If instagram is more appealing to your audience, don’t fret, those ads are owned by Facebook and can be created in the same place as your FB ads.

Content

Content is key when it comes to marketing. Providing a variety of content for your clients is the best way to make sure that you are getting noticed. Content can also take a lot of time to produce, which means a lot of money. Rather than write blogs all day or conduct endless hours of research, I recommend, “sharing” content. There is an endless amount of content online that may be interesting, exciting, educational, or even humorous to your clients. Sharing that content with your clients/customers is a great way to save a lot of time.

It is important to note that shared content needs to be cited. Taking the content and claiming it as your own is illegal and you can suffer some hefty fines. Be sure to link content back to the original site or owner. Tagging the company, thanking them for the information, and using their hashtags, are also all great ways to accredit the original owner.

If you are interested in learning more about any of the tips or tools mentioned above, contact Loud Mouth Marketing at LoudMouthServices@gmail.com.

Lisa Snellings
Loud Mouth Marketing, Owner

A transplant from Southern California, Lisa moved to Utah to pursue her education at the University of Utah. She found her passion in marketing early on using grassroots techniques to grow several businesses to record numbers. The boom of digital media only fueled her passion in helping businesses spread their message. Lisa has launched small businesses into high gear tripling their sales in as little as 12 months. With experience in event planning, she has created a perfect platform for bringing awareness to her clients. Her work in the non-profit realm and with women’s organizations has been a large part of her career and with the local community. Her love of art and music has been an inspiration in her work as she has helped to organize special events, festivals, concerts, and more!