Free Or Paid Marketing? Both .. Here’s Why ..
Note from Diane: Coming from the offline business world to the online business world was a transition that was quite hard to understand at first. First of all there is none of that silly backbiting that goes on offline, heaven forbid if small businesses were to contemplate a joint venture that suit them both!
There was not really much in the way of free or paid marketing , it was all PAID.
And then there is the help, sense of community and joining with like minded people that I still find is UNIQUE to the online world, it’s GREAT!
Although nowadays there is a much more smudgy line between the two thanks mainly to Social Media, having a virtual business instead of a traditional business has some pretty much upside down statistics for you to get to grips with to really make things work.
For example an offline business usually has huge overhead expenses for rent, rates and staff leaving a relatively small amount of money for marketing and advertising. Whereas online the opposite is true and therefore you have to approach it with that in mind.
Feature Article: Free Or Paid Marketing? Which Is Better And Are People Telling You The Truth?
The online business model is often seen as the number one choice for budding entrepreneurs with little or no money as a way in which anyone can start their own business. In fact just for the tax benefits alone you should!
Some of the worst elements of having owning a traditional offline business include having to pay high rent and rates, employers National Insurance and other liabilities before you make a penny profit and being chained to your shop/office/showroom 24/7 /52.
If you love what you do, there really is no issue and the new exciting ways of marketing your business on Twitter, Facebook and You Tube can really help ramp up that all important foot flow.
More People Today Need A More Flexible Business That Fits Round The School Run
But more and more people today need more flexibility with their business, one that fits easily around a new baby, the school runs, the sickness days and the vacations.
And it is this more lifestyle orientated business owner seeking freedom and flexibility that is usually drawn to the internet and especially network marketing.
As stay at home Mum myself, the best piece of advice I would give any new Mum now is to start now what you want to be doing in 4 or 5 years time when your babies have started to go to Nursery School, if you can work out a schedule of even just an hour a day to start a WordPress Blog by the time your children are ready to go to school you will be a proud Mum and the owner of your perfect business!
In the beginning for any new business you will face the decision of free or paid marketing and although there are people who have successfully built their business without a marketing budget online they are extremely rare.
Most people do not want to be told they are going to need to have a reasonable marketing budget when they start an online business and a huge amount of the training webinars and systems play to that idea!
If You Are In Business .. You Are In Sales!
I remember asking someone in MLM why the company insisted on telling people they only had to refer the services to other people and they would be able to build their business when in fact they were in sales?
His response was “people are uncomfortable with that idea!”
But here’s the problem with trying to tip toe around on eggshells on something so important, you are NOT going to help anyone unless you actually give them what they need to know.
If you are trying to build a downline and you do not suggest they sharpen up their sales and presentation skills they are going to struggle. It is far better to let them know from day one what books to read, courses to study and what to expect including … understanding that money and investment WILL be required if they are serious about building a business.
Whereas the offline business model has large overheads/ small marketing budget the OPPOSITE is true online small overheads / LARGE marketing budget .. yes there are more people online but there is also much more competition.
Free Or Paid Marketing?If You Are Looking For Consistency Choose Paid
Free marketing strategies like blogging, article writing and Social Media are great for creating a slow drip drip drip of really highly targeted leads for your business, but if you want to stand under a shower of leads every day use PAID for advertising, it will also help give you that consistency you are looking for.
There is nothing wrong with starting out with just £100 a month as your marketing budget as long as you DECIDE that is what you are going to use every month without fail until you can start to reinvest some of your profits back in to your business to increase it.
The ideal blend is to make full use of every promotional tool out there that is free including your blog, and then mix it up with paid advertising such as solo ads and pay per click to keep your business firing on all cylinders.
Feel free to share if it helped you!
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