Oh yes... budgeting. This is often a task that many of us fail in several areas of our lives. For those who like to say they're in business however, having an advertising budget can make all the difference between having success and being somewhere between getting a few sales and going out of business. You want success right? You kind of have to be willing to invest more into your business other than your time and energy.
Let me be honest here, my first year or so running my own business was budget-less. I was a bit stingy when it came to investing into great advertising. Don't get me wrong, I was doing well and got new clients on a regular basis but mostly via referrals of those I had already worked with previously. Come my second year in business I wanted to do better than well. So I tested out a few places to advertise. From black owned biz websites to implementing client thank you gifts (which I sucked at, at first).
Those experiences proved one thing to me... paying for advertising is so WORTH it. I may not have become a millionaire overnight but the results greatly exceeded my investment. I started off with small amounts and increased gradually. Here is how I did it.
1. For every sale or project you gain, take at least $10 of the cost and put it aside for advertising investments.
2. For every $400 I made for example, I would take $100 and put it aside. For every $50, I'd put away at least $20. Trust, that amount goes a long way if you learn to streamline your efforts properly.
3. If you don't make the income from your business just yet, you can start small. $5 may not get you those thousands of Facebook views or click-throughs but it'll get you 33,000 eyes further than than the 6 or 12 views you may normally receive.
"It's always better to have 6 extra eyes than no eyes at all when you want to succeed in your business." #smallbiz #HUCreative
— HasneoUnique (@HUNCreative) February 21, 2015
Avoiding the RedBox wouldn't hurt either.
For those of you who work a 9 to 5 while trying to build your business, taking a percentage of each check you receive and putting it towards your marketing efforts REALLY helps in the long-run so take advantage of Uncle Sam's money for the best.
You can download my Biz Advertising For Your Niche printable here to help you visualize and maintain your marketing efforts within your business. Tweet This if you love it and good luck!!
ARE YOU INVESTING IN AN ADVERTISING BUDGET FOR YOUR SMALL BIZ? WHY OR WHY NOT?
Post a Comment
Share Your Awesome Thoughts On This Post!