Free and Low Cost Alternatives to Paid Search Engine Marketing

MoreVisibility - March 6, 2007

The cost of Marketing a website is soaring as coveted keywords and positions in content networks are becoming more expensive. So what if the price is too high for your company? There are options for those who can’t afford a significant monthly budget.

For starters, there are a number of directory sites such as www.superpages.com who offer free listings for businesses under the paid section of their yellow page directories. Depending on the industry and location, these free listings could really be a benefit to companies with limited budgets. Other yellow pages sites offer flat rate annual fees to show up higher in search results. A cost of $500 per year may be well worth the return. Join your city’s Chamber of Commerce. Membership comes with a variety of benefits above the extra exposure and, depending on your location, costs a few hundred dollars per year or less. If you offer a local service, The Better Business Bureau can be a great place to find new leads. A paid membership to the BBB is about $500 per year and also includes a number of great benefits. Note that there are higher costs involved with clients who serve larger areas. Some other free advertising opportunities may work for your company also, depending on your industry and reach. Search for any free directory, local or national, create a social networking webpage and advertise for free on www.craigslist.com.

Though search engine marketing is largely about paid search, there are a few free and flat rate opportunities available for those who are looking to scale back on their monthly spending. Though they may be harder to find and more trouble to keep up, these free and low cost alternatives could help you to get the leads needed to move into the next level of Internet advertising.