Every kind of internet marketing strategy requires either time or money. Most strategies will require both, but are likely to lean more toward one or the other. My favourite strategies always involve using more time. Time options are more residual. You put in the hard work at the start, and whatever you have created stays there and continues to bring you business. Money strategies continually need more money. You are paying for a subscription, or an ad or click, etc.. Frankly, I prefer everything to become as residual as possible.
Money strategies are obviously anything that involves you paying directly for an ad, like pay-per-click, ads on websites, ads in newsletters, paying a company to look after your campaign, etc. These can all be great strategies, but it is so easy to run out of money before you start to achieve succcess. If you are relying only on money methods, if you run out of money you tend to run out of traffic to your site. The obvious benefit of money strategies is getting traffic to your site fast. Never jump into money strategies without educating yourself. If you don't want to take the time to learn about a certain type of advertising you can find companies that will set up and manage your campaigns for you. But make sure you've done some due diligence on the company you pick.
Time strategies are where the true branding and marketing success are. The truth is, even when people are feeling poor they would generally rather throw money at a problem than have to invest a lot of time. So those people who are willing to put in the hard work have a much larger reach. I've heard marketing be compared to fishing, if you are paying using advertising or pay per click services you are fishing in the same fishing holes as everyone else and competition is fierce. You want to get out of the fishing hole and into the open ocean.
You can develop a unique voice using a time strategy. You can make a video, brand yourself on a webpage, write blogs and articles, visit social networking sites, create relationships. Prospects that find you this way will already have an idea of who you are and view you as an expert or leader in your field. They are far more likely to want to do business with you, and less likely to waste your time.
If you're time and money poor and still want to grow a business quickly here's what I recommend:
-Create a small budget and start a few paid ads just to get traffic to your site quickly. You need to work on money making tasks (talk to leads, doing business) as quick as you can.
-Research the time strategy that most appeals to you. Set aside a small budget for the tools that will facilitate getting yourself up and running quickly with this.
-Set aside time daily to work on your chosen time strategy. Do the same amount everyday and be consistent. It could be one article and one video produced and marketed a day.
This can be easy. Marketing can be really fun when you are doing it in a way that appeals to you. And it's really exciting when you start to see results. And never forget: Marketing should come second, you should always stay focused on your business and your long term goals.
Click to learn more about creating your home business internet marketing strategy
If you are thinking about a home based business but haven't yet found the right one for you visit Brilliant Journey for a chance to work directly with Niamh Arthur (business owner, mentor, stay at home/travel the world mom).
Click the XML Icon Above to Receive Entrepreneurs Articles Via RSS!
