Unless you’re building a baseball diamond in the middle of nowhere, the “If you build it they will come” principle simply will not work for your home business or online store. Driving customers to your store and visitors to your Website are essential keys to your success. This article explores some new and old ways of marketing your company. Let’s begin with Satellite TV.

Satellite TV: Halfway out with the old and partway in with the new

Advertising on satellite or cable TV is certainly not an old approach, but the concept of marketing your company on TV is certainly not a new approach either. One thing that satellite TV or cable does have to offer is lower prices on advertising than conventional television stations. Because of the sheer number of stations offered on both platforms, you may also find that you can cater to a more targeted audience. For example, let’s say you sell discount fishing supplies online – you can be sure that the viewers watching your spot on the Outdoors Network are on average far more interested in what you have to offer than those who see your spot during a makeover show. Don’t throw out TV advertising as an option; compare prices and see if you can make it work for you.

Optimize Your Website for Search Engines

Online advertising opens up venues for marketing your home or online business that are ten times more targeted than satellite TV advertising. If done properly, your Website could appear on the first page of Google or Yahoo whenever someone searches for the keywords that describe your company. The best part is, besides the time, work, and resources you pour into optimizing your Website, this marketing method is completely free. There are ample resources online to help you get started, as well as professionals and firms that specialize in online marketing solutions.

What if each customer only cost 10 cents?

Pay-per-click marketing, also commonly referred to as search engine marketing, involves you placing ads on a search engine that will appear each time someone searches a keyword you choose. If that person sees your ad and clicks on it, you pay Google 10 cents, or however much you are bidding. The top spot usually goes to the highest bidder. That means that in as little as 20 minutes, your online TV equipment store could appear at the top of the list when someone searches for “Satellite TV” in Yahoo. This is a cost-effective method that has been proven in the past to drive targeted traffic to Websites.

Everybody loves getting a letter…

Even in the day and age of satellite TV and radio, cell phones small than credit cards, and truckloads of information traveling through the Internet each day, you should not discount the effectiveness of mailing a postcard or advertisement through “Snail Mail.” Compared to the targeted advertising of pay-per-click and search engine optimization, mailings may seem like a waste of money and time. But besides potential clients and customers you may acquire from the postcards, you also receive intangible benefits that are worth considering. A professional advertisement will do wonders in increasing your name recognition of the community among which you intend to do business. Name recognition is important for viral marketing techniques which rely heavily on word-of-mouth. This method is perhaps most effective for those home businesses that work within a limited geographic area.

So, do you want to go out this Friday?

Consider establishing working partnerships with complementary small businesses like yourself. If you sell picture frames, get together with a local photographer and create an alliance that both of you can benefit from. Even something as simple as putting each other’s business cards in an accessible place can help create business for you that you don’t already have.

Owning a home or small business is hard – making your home business succeed demands even more of you. The market favors proactive business owners who know who their target customers are and who do what it takes to bring them in. Using a hybrid marketing approach of new and old techniques can allow you to reach customers just waiting to do business with you.