Getting noticed

How do I?

[mannygunn]

I have started a new small business. Just out of the box for 2 days. I have submitted to all the search engines and I realize it will take some time to get established there. What is the best FREE way to get noticed? What about mailing lists? I am looking for any QUICK way to get my URL out there to ANY mailbox. Any suggestions? My market is just about anyone.

[curlykarl]

Have you considered Adwords? :)

And Welcome to Webmasterworld.

[webmasterworld.com...]

Karl

[Shak]

I am looking for any QUICK way to get my URL out there to ANY mailbox.

Welcome to Webmasterworld [webmasterworld.com]

The word ANY frightens the living daylights out of me.

Look at it like ANY business you would start, promotion, advertising and PR, and they all cost "some" $$$s.

Start reading and lots of gem to be found here.

a quick step would be PPC advertising, such as Google Adwords and Overture...

Shak

[mannygunn]

I am not a web developer (well, just learning:), so I am not sure what Adwords is? Can you tell me more?
Thanks for the information and thanks for the welcome. Glad to be here

[curlykarl]

[google.com...]

[webmasterworld.com...]

Karl :)

[Shak]

I am not a web developer

neither am I :)

[adwords.google.com...]
[overture.com...]

and we have dedicated forums for both of the above:

[webmasterworld.com...]
[webmasterworld.com...]

have you thought about hiring a professional online marketing specialist...

Shak

[curlykarl]

neither am I :)

[nakulgoyal]

Google AdWords™ enables you to manage your own account, and with cost-per-click (CPC) pricing, you pay only when users click on your ad. You control your costs by setting a daily budget for what you are willing to spend each day.

Find more at www.Google.com/adwords

[ogletree]

neither am I. Get a coke and a bag of chips put on your favorite cd and read Webmasterworld for about 4 hours and you will start to see what is going on. The Google Optimization 101 on the front page is a good article. If you find anything that you don't understand go to the glossary. If you want more go to www.google.com and type in site:wwebmasterword.com subject. The threads mentioned above are good ones to read.

[shasan]

My market is just about anyone.

yikes. That's very high on the list of 'what not to do' that I learned in business school. Actually, it may be #1. Target, target, target.

I would strongly suggest finding a target market and use that as a launchpad for your marketing efforts. Especially if you are a small business.

It's like a nail vs. blanket. Which would go through a wall better?

But since you asked, there's not really anyway to spam for free. At least, not that I know of. to the best of my knowledge you will be paying either by email, or if you find free email blasting software, you'll be paying for email lists.

l8rz,
shasan.

[mannygunn]

Good thinking. Nail vs Blanket. I didn't think of it like that.
I have found some good target groups of people to market to. And it is working.
But I guess I was just looking for a quick and easy "blast it out there" way to advertise. A free-B would be nice.

[edward607]

Mannygunn, based on your message I assume this is a product targeted at consumers. You can start inexpensively by thinking about who your customers are and why they want to buy your product (or what value/benefit they derive from it.) For example, are they male or female? Are they segmented by age group? Are there differences in usage, benefit, or purchase motivation among purchasers and users that can be used to define target segments? Are the purchasers different from the ultimate consumers? You can do this analysis on your own. You may want to validate the results of your thinking with a few of your buyers.

From that analysis, you can look for newsletters, sites, or "affinity groups" (for lack of a better term) and the appropriate corresponding communications vehicles, including Adwords if it's appropriate. These tools can be used for awareness. The copy, keywords, etc., that you'd use in these vehicle should be an output of your segmentation analysis.

I'd avoid anything that even remotely looks like "spam" - you don't want your brand (yes, you will have one, explictly or implicitly) to have any negative connotations.

Sorry this is a little long-winded, but I hope it helps. Good luck.

Cheers,
Ed.

[shasan]

mannygunn,

Good to hear your marketing is working. Once you define a target market and focus your company, things usually fall into place for the most part.

And yeah, it's nice getting freebies every once in a while, but I wouldn't start off with unsolicited email. Like edward said, just think about where your target market will be reading and spending time and see if you can get your name up there, with what you sell. You may well be able to do this for free.

Good luck!
shasan.

[mannygunn]

Right, I guess I do hate unsolicited emails as much as the next. I don't know what I thought consumers would read mine. I must think I am special:)
Thanks for the response. Great advice!