By Christina Sanders

Special to the Financial Independence Hub

You may be running a small business on the side to achieve financial independence. These side hustles can be anything from lawn mowing to website design. No matter what your side hustle is, you’ll need marketing to gain new customers. It doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg either. There are plenty of options and methods for promoting your business through cheap, yet effective means.

1.) Focus on local markets

In marketing, there is a constant focus on target markets. These are the people that you want to buy your product or service. They’re the people most likely to buy your product because it solves a problem they have or they trust it to improve their life. This comes down to not only geographics, but also demographic data focused on income level, family size, interests, gender, and age. All these factors will help you to hone in on who you should spend your marketing efforts on.

For a small business, it’s likely best to focus on your surrounding geographic area. Utilizing a local market is usually less expensive and you have a competitive edge by being based in the same region as your customers. That geographic intimacy provides a better understanding of local culture, including common pain points and values. Use that to speak to your potential customers on a more personable level.

2.) Design distributables

You’ll likely want to make some business cards and flyers for your business. Digital marketing is crowded, often difficult, and can be expensive. Physical distributables are very effective, especially in local markets. They can be passed for referrals, posted on community boards, and distributed through mail. If you’re unsure about how your design should look, check out some flyer examples and look at what other businesses have done. There are simple and free online programs for designing flyers, brochures, and posters. Simply do a Google search to find one that works for you.

Having a personal brand in your advertisements goes a long way. You can build trust and confidence with your potential customers by having high-quality designs and messaging. Your brand should represent what values you and your customer both deem important. Having brand consistency will be important for becoming recognizable and memorable in your community. So don’t ever settle for less than high quality, because your brand defines what people will think of your service.

3.) Create a website

People may hear about your business and then wonder more. Where will they likely go? The internet. You need a webpage that answers questions they will likely be wondering and that drives further interest.

This doesn’t have to be difficult. Sites like Wix.com make it easier than ever to build your own website based on beautifully designed templates. Make sure you choose a website design that values ease of use over anything else. Make it incredibly simple for your customers to understand exactly what you do and any other information that would be valuable to them. This is called UX, which you can research online for a more in-depth understanding. Continue Reading…