New e-business and in need of advertising ideas.?

Question

I am starting a new handmade craft e-commerce business soon and was thinking about different ways of advirtising. I was thinking about getting Car magnets made. I have business cards made already but another thing i was thinking about is drawing up flyers to put on cars and store bulliton boards. So i guess my questions were what other kind of advirtizing can i do for my brand new website? and also Is there software to help design flyers, maybe with different clipart and such?

Answer 1

You need to think of two things: OFFLINE advertising (flyers, car magnets, etc) and ONLINE advertising. Offline advertising is good, but you'll be reaching local clientele. Issue a press release and send it to a local newspaper about a local woman starting her own handmade craft business -- that can reach more people than wasting money to create flyers and putting them in people's car (who will just throw it away).



With online advertising, you need to do two things: get TARGETED traffic or visitors who are interested in buying your products; and CONVERTING those visitors to buyers. You'll find that getting traffic is not the same as turning those traffic to sales.



1. Create the best content you can with the best products you can possibly offer. Your content is your best advertisement - if visitors love your content, then they will go back and spread the word to others.



2. Make it easy for users to recommend your site. Viral marketing is very important -- and easy to tap on the Web. But give your users the tools. Get a Recommend this Site script from websites such as cgiscripts.com and similar directories of scripts. Some even go as far as giving incentives to those who recommend the site to their friends. If only 10 people go to your site, but these 10 people invite 10 more - that's additional traffic that you get for FREE!



Recommend Site Scripts (various) http://php.resourceindex.com/Complete_Scripts/Website_Promotion/Recommend_Site/

Big Nose Bird Recommend this Site http://bignosebird.com/carchive/birdcast.shtml

CGI Resource Index http://cgi.resourceindex.com/Programs_and_Scripts/Perl/Website_Promotion/Recommend_Site/

Hostscripts http://www.hotscripts.com/PHP/Scripts_and_Programs/Site_Recommendation/index.html



3. Rank well in the search engines (organic search results, not the pay per click). SEs can be a big source of traffic. The key is to create the best content in your niche. If you have good content, other websites will gladly link to you and offer your site as a resource to their audience. Check the on-page factors and be sure to get linked from authority sites in your topic area.



If you are going to read only one piece on search engine optimization, I suggest you read Brett Tabke of WebmasterWorld.com's "Successful Site in 12 Months with Google Alone: 26 steps to 15k a day." http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/2010.htm





4. Send out press releases. While outfits charge as much as $650 per release, there are free press release submission places on the Web. Press releases allow you to (a) attract media attention; (b) get more back links to your website without sending each website an email request; and (c) get more visibility especially if your press release gets in Google News or Yahoo News.



http://www.prleap.com/sign_up.html

http://i-newswire.com/

http://www.24-7pressrelease.com/

http://www.pressbox.co.uk/cgi-bin/links/add.cgi

http://www.pr.com/press-releases

http://www.prfree.com/

http://www.clickpress.com/releases/index.shtml

http://www.theopenpress.com/

http://www.przoom.com/

http://www.prweb.com

http://www.newswiretoday.com/

http://www.free-press-release.com/



5. Submit articles. Write articles and submit them to websites accepting author submissions. You get exposure for your business; establishes you as an authority in your field, and allows you to get backlinks for your website. If 50 websites publish your article and it contains a link back to your website, then you easily get 50 links from a single article. The more links you have, the greater your chances for increasing your search engine rankings.



Here is a comprehensive list of where to submit your articles http://answers.yahoo.com/question/;_ylt=AhzreGmnCUicOoyedqypscUjzKIX?qid=1006022407481



6. Improve your conversion. Getting visitors is one thing; getting them to buy your products is a whole different story. Read the article " How To Sell More on the Web: 30 Tips To Increase Conversion Rates For An Ecommerce Site " http://www.powerhomebiz.com/092006/ecommerce.htm for tips on how to improve your conversion rates.



7. Post a link to your site for free where it is allowed (always read the Terms of Use). Examples are:



Craigslist http://www.craigslist.com

Google Base http://base.google.com

Classifieds for Free http://www.classifiedsforfree.com/...

Text Link Exchange http://www.txtswap.com/

Recycler.com http://www.recycler.com/

Yahoo Classifieds http://classifieds.yahoo.com/

US Free Ads http://www.usfreeads.com/

Answer 2

I agree with Shamieya (check spelling) you should find you niche. I'm into health care marketing and I know that there are tons of home health agencies out there. If my sources are correct, there are two agencies every week. Most of these people don't have a clue on how to market their services and putting up a website can be a good start for them. Go to medicare.gov and look up home health compare, you will find all the agencies listed in the whole US. You can send them direct mails or better yet call them.Goodluck!=)

Answer 3

The quickest way to start driving targeted traffic to your web site (people who are already looking for the products you sell) is with paid search, such as Google AdWords or Yahoo! Search Marketing. The upside: the traffic comes immediately. SEO takes months to take effect. The downside: you have to pay for it. Natural traffic is free. However, I often recommend that web site owners start with paid search, even if they plan on doing an SEO campaign, because pay per click management can generate some very valuable data that can help you pick the best keywords for which to optimize your site.



Jerry Work

http://WorkMedia.net

Answer 4

imisdro is giving you some great information/advice.



Take that further by first getting a USP (unique selling proposition). You need to set yourself apart from others in your industry to give people a reason to choose you; in other words "what is in it for the buyer to choose you over others".



Use your USP to get a headline and some free offer to gain leads. Your offer should not one of your products, something like a "10 ways to..." article that will be helpful to them and lead them to choosing your services, but not something like "How to choose a ...".



Use your leads to send them a newsletter with helpful content for them. By keeping in front of them, they will come to you when they are ready to buy.



If you are going to spend money on advertising, make sure you know who your target customers are. For example, if your customers are mostly new moms, advertise and market in areas where you find them. This will save you from wasting money on advertising/marketing to people who doesn't care for your product.



Make sure to include your USP, an offer and testimonial in every form of your advertising and marketing (and collateral). Be consistant with your message.

Answer 5

Your off to an excellent start! I'm promoting my home business. Look for free classifieds, post on blogs and groups, Thrifty Nickle and Pennysaver, BigDaddyPays.com, place your web in your signature on all outgoing emails, join free networks (salespider.com), and free leads. If I can help contact me. Good Luck!

Answer 6

If you want to advestive in Ohio. I think I can help email me at [e-mail] By March 21

Answer 7

Be careful with the car flyers; it is illigal in Connecticut.

As for software you can use MS Publisher.