Starting your own business? Congrats on this big undertaking! In all the excitement of launching your new business, it’s important to keep in mind that many business owners are publicly sharing mostly or only their successes—not the challenges they are facing. Because social media tends to be a highlight reel of only the positives of a person or business, it can be easy to romanticize the idea of starting your own. This is not to say that you couldn’t or shouldn’t, just a friendly reminder that launching and running a new business, whether it’s a side hustle or a full-time gig, is a CHALLENGE. And that’s okay—it’s supposed to be hard! All companies (especially the new ones) face complex obstacles, including:

– Hiring employees
– Knowing what YOU do well vs. what to delegate
– Deciding on a marketing strategy
– Managing your time

This list goes on!

A common denominator between most new businesses when they first get off the ground, though, is needing capital. Finding funding to give an idea the legs it deserves, paying yourself consistently (or oftentimes, not at all), and our favorite topic…finding a marketing budget.

When your small business is still, well, small, and you don’t exactly have unlimited funds to allocate toward your marketing efforts, you have to get scrappy. Being thoughtful and agile with how you spend the few dollars you do have is crucial to building your brand’s presence in your community and industry. We know the struggle can be real when it comes to getting that idea off the ground when funds are low, so we’re here to help. Keep reading to learn more about how you can market your small business on a budget.

– 1. Make a website. Build your website and drive traffic to it! Getting an official website up and running for your business should be one of the first steps you take when giving your idea legs to stand on. If you want people to know what it is you’re selling, you need this one source of truth to be able to send potential customers to in order to learn about your product or service.

– 2. Network it up! Attend networking and industry events to get to know the people and other business owners in your area. Talking up your business and building that awareness in the space is important, of course, but even if you’re not selling your idea, your presence in the community as you make connections in the beginning of your career is pertinent to opening doors in the future.

– 3. Host a fun event. Even better than attending other networking events, host your own! Throw a party and invite all of your teammates’ friends, family members, and professional connections to come and see what the business is all about. You can even make fun, matching attire that guests can win or bring home with them, like blank t-shirts that you buy at wholesale prices and customize with your brand.

– 4. Get social. Establish your presence on social media. Once you’ve taken care of step one, you can drive your social media followers to the site to push them further down the conversion funnel. Social media is a place where you can engage newcomers, build your loyalty among those followers with unique branding and consistent posting, and encourage them to visit your site to actually make a purchase.

Social media is meant to be a space where people turn for inspiration, education, and connection. Part of building the connection with your followers and providing them with that interactive experience is engaging with those followers! You can easily do this through fun giveaways and promotions.

If there’s one thing we’ve learned, it’s that people love two things: free stuff and the idea of winning. Combine those two and you’ve got yourself a powerful social media strategy! Companies like Threadsy make bulk ordering clothes, hats, and bags affordable and easy.

If you’re reading this, we have to assume you’re interested in or already well on your way to starting a business. In that case, congratulations, we’re so excited for you! Also, you have already come across some hurdles in getting your business off the ground, undoubtedly one of those being a tight marketing budget. We hope our tips have helped spark some business plans for you!