Starting A New Business – How To Get The Word Out There

You can have the best product or service in the whole world but if you want to make some money out of it, you need to make sure that people know about it. Here are some tips for people starting new businesses who need to get the word on the street.
It Costs Little To Look Professional
New businesses are often in a similar situation to people looking for that first job. They need to be able to convince customers to give them that first opportunity, on which they can then build.
Just as a job candidate will have at least one decent outfit to wear to interviews, new businesses need to ensure that when their potential customers see them, they look professional and reliable.
Invest in some business cards and resist the temptation to go for the lowest-cost option with the printer’s logo on the back. It only costs very little extra to have it removed and it looks much better.
Set up a website and at the very least put up a holding page with the basic information about your business. Then set up one or more e-mail addresses from your domain. This can be done with minimal IT skills and looks massively more professional than using web-based e-mail system like Hotmail.
Think Of Advertising As Ever Increasing Circles 
Think of the old chestnut about six degrees of separation, in other words the idea that any individual can be connected to any other individual by only six steps. Regardless of whether or not it’s true, it is a good guiding principle for advertising. Concentrate on building up good contacts and encourage them to spread the word on your behalf. Particularly in your early days, it’s much better to start slowly and take on business you know is well within your capabilities than overstretch yourself and develop a dubious reputation. 
Piggyback On The Success Of Others 
One of the most effective ways to get noticed is to sponsor local events and to support local charities. Sponsorship does not necessarily have to involve giving money, if your own funds are tight you can donate goods or services or just time instead. The activity doesn’t even have to be related to your business, although it’s a bonus if it does. 
If there’s a local charity you’d like to help, do some fund-raising for them and make sure the local press know about it. They’ll usually be quite happy to give your business a mention as long as there’s a story in it.
Go Where Your Customers Are 
Contact local organizations and see how you can link up with them to benefit both of you. For example, if you are opening a new cleaning company, you could contact a mums and toddlers group and offer a prize draw of some beauty products and a voucher for an hour’s cleaning to everyone who likes and shares your Facebook page, plus everyone from the group who enters gets a use-once discount. It costs next to nothing and is very likely to get some custom and some attention. 
If you’re in an industry which has trade shows, get out to them. There are places to hire exhibition trailers if you need them. These are great ways to get seen.
The author learned about the value of advertising largely through experience. These days she spends a lot of time writing and translating it as she’s now a full-time freelancer. When she’s not working, she’s usually out being walked by her dog. She also likes playing poker and backgammon.