Marketing without Spending a Dime

So, my old friend Jen McColgan - a former Ski Vermont marketing gal and now Colorado marketing maven - posted a comment which inspired this next post. Here are some tips for how to market yourself, product, business without spending a dime:

1. Ask friends and customers how they FEEL about your product/business/service and why they like it. Be open to hearing things you may not think are true - because they probably are!

2. Use that feedback and pay attention to news outlets that reach the audience that enjoys/uses your product/business/service. Make note of the writers who write about possible competitors or who you think would be interested in writing about your business/service/product.

3. Contact those media folks and talk to them about your business, etc. Don't tell them what they should write about, rather start a conversation and ask what they would be interested in writing about and be prepared with background information and photos for them.

4. If you're having an event of any sort, research all the places that list events and send a brief calendar listing to make sure your event is included - just write it exactly how they print it and you're golden.

5. Collaborate! See what other businesses/organizations/individuals have a similar mission or audience and see how you might be able to work together.

6. If you earn any awards or receive any designations or hire new employees and they receive any awards or recognitions, send a short press release with a photo to local business publications to make sure you get included.

And those are some public relations tips you can use right here in Vermont or wherever you are trying to get free publicity! Feel free to use the comment section to ask a question as well!