How Your Small Business Can Make the Most of Local Online Advertising

The local advertising strategy for your small business may include a variety of direct and indirect marketing efforts, but don't overlook your options for local online advertising as well. Online advertising is changing rapidly, and there are still many valuable ways for small businesses and startups to gain instant exposure, even when they're on a limited budget. If your small business needs to enter the online marketplace and has an offline entity that could use a boost in sales, consider your options with local listings on directories, partnerships with other businesses, and even getting listed on local mapping services. Here's how your small business can make the most of local online advertising:

1. Determine your marketing ‘radius'

This is often used by television and radio stations as a way to mark out where the target market is located, and what type of reach they need to plan for. Implement a similar strategy as you get started, and you'll be able to create a visual assessment of who and where you need to be marketing to.

2. Review local advertising search engine packages

Both Yahoo! and Google search marketing packages for business offer a range of online advertising packages based on your budget, and when you're interested in pursuing local-based advertising, they can also create a program that is based on keywords fro your city or region. This is why the map of your marketing ‘district' wil help; you'll have a fairly good idea of where to focus your advertising dollars, and which areas may not require a complete launch.

3. Get in touch with the local chamber of commerce

Most area Chamber of Commerce organizations feature a web page with complete listings of each member. You might also consider developing an article or informational piece to showcase on their website; this can help you reach out to new prospects, and will list you alongside area businesses.

4. Contact the local YellowPages

YellowPages and similar ‘yellowbook' directories are readily offering website links and listings as part of their packages. If you listed your business phone number a while ago, but are now ready with a website or blog, it might be a good idea to get indexed. YellowPages is still used by millions of people when searching the interent, and having your website link available can only help increase traffic as they click to find out more.

5. Learn about advertising options with your local newspaper

The online version of your local newspaper can be a valuable resource for generating traffic; well-developed newspaper websites are becoming a popular choice for daily readers, and positioning yourself as a local business offers plenty of value.

6. Consider online coupons and packages

Coupons such as ValPak and other direct mail pieces may offer online versions as well; these also get indexed on search engines, and are another simple way to get the exposure you need on a regular basis.

Marketing online is a valuable addition to any small business's marketing and advertising campaign, but knowing which resources to tap into at the local level can be especially advantageous. Pursue any or all of these six areas as you prepare your local advertising initiative; growing your business by attracting your local target market is a great place to start!