Many times a small business owner draws a blank determining how to spend their advertising budget. They often have never bought ads before, have a small budget to work with, and don't even have a clue as to what's available to them.
The fact is advertising is essential for a business to thrive, and for small businesses there are many more options than you might imagine.
Let' acquaint you with some of these, and why they could be a good source of leads for your business. Try these advertising options for small businesses this 2015.
Related: The 9 Best Things About Display Advertising
7 Places to spend your small business ad budget
Newspaper and Magazine Ads – While not the most economical type of advertising. A well-placed local ad can still be a lead generator even at a cost of $20-32 per 1000 people reached. These are however, highly targeted leads.
Cable television ads – Costing around $8 per 1000 people reached, if you have a product or service that would lend itself to being showcased in a more visual fashion, this could be for you.
Radio interviews or ads – This one comes in at about $7 per 1000 people reached, and might be a viable option, particularly if you can interview or be interviewed by a popular local host or personality.
Related: Does Online Advertising Work?
Facebook Advertising – A terrific bargain at roughly $0.25 per 1000 people reached, Facebook ads can give your business a reach that it wouldn't be able to generate otherwise.
Your Email list – Alert your customer email list to new products, promotions, sales and any other events that can get their interest. It is far, far easier to sell to a customer you've already sold to than to create a new sale.
Local online ads – An economical way to generate local leads is by advertising on local business directories and on local sites that get a lot of traffic. These are easy to find in your local area.
Try Search Marketing – Probably the path of least appeal when it comes to small business owners, as they may not know enough about it. However, this fact may change their minds: Outbound leads such as print ads or direct mail convert at a rate of 1.7%, whereas search marketing leads come in at a robust 14.6%! Is that enough to help allay some fears?