5 Steps to Cost-Effective Marketing

As a business, it’s important to get exposure. But as a small business, you might not have a marketing budget or even a staff to make a meaningful marketing push. In early June, local marketing organization Manini Marketing held a “Go to Grow” conference, bringing together small business owners to learn different ways to make their businesses known. Chief Manini Jim Levine offers five cost-effective steps to better marketing.

By Jason Ubay

CREATE PARTNERSHIPS
For small companies, partnerships are key. For instance, while organizing its conference, Levine says, it was apparent the small organization could not afford all the speakers. So, the organizers at Manini Marketing worked with different companies, offering them attendance and exposure through forums in return for sponsorships. It was a win-win situation for everyone involved. Levine calls it partnership by function because it involved companies from completely different industries with one centralized goal. For small businesses, bigger things can be accomplished when there are multiple parties contributing to the process.

USE WHAT'S FREE
Getting yourselves recognized by the media requires some manpower, Levine admits, but there are other things to do as well, including “fun newsworthy projects.” Levine cites the Great Hawaiian Rubber Duckie Race as a way to raise money and exposure by having a fun event.

USE WHAT'S NEW
“Most marketing taught in schools is for larger organizations that have big staffs and lots of money and resources to spend,” Levine says. Small businesses don’t have that budget luxury, he says. But technology has opened up new doors for marketing. Levine says blogging and social networking have made it easier to reach a wider audience. He adds that blogging is essentially free, except for labor, which leads to the next tip.

OUTSOURCE
“It’s much easier to outsource, whether in the country or out of the country, to get the things that you need,” Levine says. This can be contracting an accountant to do your taxes or hiring bloggers. Levine says it’s more cost effective to hire someone who is good at what he or she does because it saves time and resources while decreasing liability. He adds that there are organizations that act as middlemen, referring people to other contractors.

NETWORK
Power teams can be built in any industry. Levine uses the example of real estate. Home buyers often need a broker, then a home builder, which in turn refers to landscapers, cement workers, etc. “They’re all complementary to one another,” Levine says. “They run into the same clients and if you get a small group of them together, they can find work for each other again and again and again.” It becomes a support system that crosses different industries. Levine adds, “It doesn’t require a lot of money, but it does require a lot of cooperation."