The bottom line is that you absolutely have to market and advertise to have success in the online world. If I were to break it down, I would say that seventy to eighty percent of your time should be focused on these activities. The age old question is which is better, paid or free advertising?
Just so that we are clear, I don't believe in free advertising. It's not that you can't advertise your business without pulling out your credit card but you can't advertise without paying a price. It's either time or money and ultimately both have a price you'll have to pay.
Now that you understand that there is no free lunch you must make careful decisions as to how you will either spend you time or your money. The first question is how much is your time worth. The next question is how comfortable are you with doing certain things on your own.
There are some pros and cons to each from each type of advertising but I think the concept that you must keep in mind is effectiveness. If something is free and it doesn't work very well then that is of no benefit to you. Compare that to a paid ad that works and I'll take the paid ad every time.
First, let's look at free methods of advertising and how you can benefit there. This method gives you a level of "in the trenches" experience that will go a long way if you decide to use paid methods in the future. The hands on aspect of it gives you an understanding of the marketplace and how it responds to certain messages which is invaluable.
With paid advertising on the other hand, there are also some strong arguments as well. Typically with a paid advertising you can consult with vendors to determine the expected outcome based on their experience. It is leveraged so it saves you time that can be used building your business in other ways.
That brings me to my last point which is tracking. Regardless of the type of advertising you are doing, make sure you are using some type of tracking system to measure your results. Without tracking it is almost impossible to know what's working and what's not in your ad campaigns. You could end up spending good money on bad ads and not spending enough on your good ads.
Your time and budget will ultimately determine which advertising methods are best for you. I suggest trying a few methods that interest you and use them until you feel comfortable and somewhat proficient. Don't try to do a little bit of everything as this does not work. Pick something, stick to it and then move to another method while tracking your results throughout. - 15359
Just so that we are clear, I don't believe in free advertising. It's not that you can't advertise your business without pulling out your credit card but you can't advertise without paying a price. It's either time or money and ultimately both have a price you'll have to pay.
Now that you understand that there is no free lunch you must make careful decisions as to how you will either spend you time or your money. The first question is how much is your time worth. The next question is how comfortable are you with doing certain things on your own.
There are some pros and cons to each from each type of advertising but I think the concept that you must keep in mind is effectiveness. If something is free and it doesn't work very well then that is of no benefit to you. Compare that to a paid ad that works and I'll take the paid ad every time.
First, let's look at free methods of advertising and how you can benefit there. This method gives you a level of "in the trenches" experience that will go a long way if you decide to use paid methods in the future. The hands on aspect of it gives you an understanding of the marketplace and how it responds to certain messages which is invaluable.
With paid advertising on the other hand, there are also some strong arguments as well. Typically with a paid advertising you can consult with vendors to determine the expected outcome based on their experience. It is leveraged so it saves you time that can be used building your business in other ways.
That brings me to my last point which is tracking. Regardless of the type of advertising you are doing, make sure you are using some type of tracking system to measure your results. Without tracking it is almost impossible to know what's working and what's not in your ad campaigns. You could end up spending good money on bad ads and not spending enough on your good ads.
Your time and budget will ultimately determine which advertising methods are best for you. I suggest trying a few methods that interest you and use them until you feel comfortable and somewhat proficient. Don't try to do a little bit of everything as this does not work. Pick something, stick to it and then move to another method while tracking your results throughout. - 15359
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