Today we will talk about the most popular methods of advertising various goods and services on the global network. These methods remain the most effective even if you don’t have your own online representation. However, if you also own a website, we are ready to offer you services to promote it.
Among the free options for placing advertisements on the Internet are:
- Classified ads;
- Product and service aggregators;
- Forums;
- Question/answer services;
- Videos;
- Articles in magazines;
- Social networks.
Classified Ads Websites
It’s hard to call this method outdated; it’s not as ancient as it used to be. However, the fact that it has been used for a long time is true. Finding such websites on the internet is not that difficult: search engines offer plenty of options. But here you need to be very careful. Before placing your ad, pay attention to the number of visitors to the site and its overall quality. The vast majority of such sites (practically 90%) are simply cluttered with spam, there are almost no clients on the site, and the visitor counter only records how many times the advertiser has visited the site to make changes to the text of their ad.
How to Work with Classified Ads Websites Correctly?
Most users come to such sites through search engines. The exception is only those sites that are already so popular that practically everyone who uses the Internet remembers their name. However, there are not many of them in reality. Users initially just search for a site with ads.
After they land on the site and it satisfies them (interests them, they like it, etc.), users start looking for information there that interests them, namely – ads. Therefore, to place your ad correctly, don’t enter the search query “free classified ads (name of your city).” Enter the name of your products or services instead. Nobody says you’ll find what you’re looking for right away in the first place in search results. But if you find it, it means your target audience will cope with it.
Product and Service Aggregators
There is a certain similarity with the above-described option here, but there are also differences. Ads placed on aggregator sites can be supplemented with images and prices for products or services. Very often there is an opportunity to place news or show other types of activity.
Often, such sites offer their advertisers a whole package of services, but already for a fee. You can try it if you are satisfied with the quality of the conditions or if you count on a long-term cooperation with this site. But a more reasonable option is to use not just one, but several similar aggregator sites. It’s better to use all possible free aggregator sites than to pay for only one. And if you still want to invest money in something, invest it in the development of your own site, let it bring more profit.
How to Find a Suitable Aggregator Site? You should look for them following the same principle as for classified ads: first, find suitable resources in search results, and then register on them and you can place your ads.
Advertising on Forums
Placing advertising announcements on forums won’t work right from the start. Administrators and moderators of such sites are not very welcoming to advertisers (after all, the site was not created for posting advertising announcements). Therefore, all advertising announcements are deleted practically immediately or at most after a few hours. But there is a way to place subtle advertising here. It requires patience, time, certain knowledge, and a willingness to participate in discussions.
The strategy in this case is as follows:
- You should find the largest thematic forums covering the region that interests you geographically.
- Register on them.
- Then, start participating in discussions. You don’t have to participate in all of them, but it’s essential to participate in those where you are genuinely professional.
- After a while, visitors and active users of the forum will start listening to you, and then it’s worth mentioning your products or services as if by chance.
Some forums don’t mind creating a separate topic if you are an expert in it, so you can answer visitors’ questions. In this case, everyone benefits (both the forum, you, and the site visitors receive professional advice). In such a case, you can also advertise your products or services on topic.
Question/Answer Services
There’s nothing complicated here. Found a question you can answer? Give a complete and competent answer. If advertising your products or services can also solve the problem of the person asking, then no one will delete it. There are many such services on the Internet.
Videos
The format of presenting advertisements is your choice. You can create real advertising or make it hidden, presenting information in the form of useful, interesting, or educational videos. All recorded video material can be posted on video hosting sites, the most popular of which is YouTube.
Don’t forget to provide a detailed description for the video material to make it easier for visitors to find. Also, remember that search engines can recommend your video for viewing if you write a proper description for it, and it matches the content of the search query entered by the user.
The optimal option is shooting informative and useful videos. In this case, users themselves want to share the information they receive. The advertising you place in the video should not be intrusive. After all, there are options for presenting information without being intrusive. For example, a review of an interesting and useful product with a phone number indicated, where you can call to purchase the product.
Articles in Magazines
Are you confident in your knowledge? Ready to share them? Then, without hesitation, contact various thematic publications (printed or online) with a proposal to write articles for them for free. But it will be free only partially. You will have the opportunity to provide a link to your website, indicate the name of your company, and leave your phone number.
Doubtful if this is effective? Look who writes articles for publications, especially if we are talking about specialized publications. In fact, there are very few experts among the authors. Mostly they are PhDs, company directors, professors, etc. All others may not be such well-known and recognized experts yet. In such a situation, everyone benefits: the magazine confidently publishes useful information, and you leave your advertisement.
Social Networks
You definitely should have your own account on social networks. You can use it or create a separate group where you will share useful information or tips on the topic you are knowledgeable about. Also, by the way, advertise your own company.
Don’t be shy. Invite all your friends, acquaintances, and friends of friends to the group. Don’t forget to ask them to like or share with their friends. If you are consistent in your actions and are not used to creating too many groups, your friends will fulfill such requests. When your business goes up, don’t forget to thank them, for example, with discounts in your store.
Conclusion
Today we have discussed the most accessible and popular methods of free advertising on the Internet. However, they can be called free only partially because each of these methods requires the most valuable investment – your time (but you will definitely save money). These methods are especially useful for those who want to promote their website on their own. But if you are not ready to spend enough time and effort on this matter, it is better not to start it at all. The result will always be proportional to the effort expended. If your advertising resembles spam, it will be deleted from the sites.
The least effort will be required for:
- classified ad sites (that’s why there are so many low-quality resources on the network);
- aggregator sites (here, as an advertiser, you are often offered paid services).
The most effort from your side will be required for:
- forums;
- question/answer sites;
- social networks;
- shooting videos;
- writing quality articles for various publications.
However, each of these steps will pay off with an influx of potential customers. The most important thing. Be active where your potential customers show their activity. This means that advertising should be placed where potential customers may search for it. If you want to place paid ads in publications or on websites, first find out if your potential customers read these magazines or visit this site.