Some of the best small business marketing strategies are those that have been utilized for years. They include the standard practices, such as: networking with business associates, joining your local Chamber of Commerce, guerrilla marketing, advertising and cold calling. Increasingly, though, small businesses are using new techniques and methodologies that leverage the Internet. Consider that there are over 34,000 searches per second on Google. Consumers search for everything including research information, how to source and buy products and much more. It’s been estimated that fully 20% of these searches are for a local type listing, e.g. finding a business in a local region, county, or city.

By utilizing widely available Internet tools and services small business owners can market to new and existing customers in ways not available in the past. Traditionally, products were marketed through newspaper ads and classifieds, yellow pages and even radio spot and TV commercials. Generally these marketing mediums are called “offline” marketing. Tracking offline marketing campaigns were difficult and often downright impossible. There was really no “direct” way of measuring success, except through surveys and inserting ad response codes. One of the problems is that people forget ad response codes and surveys do have a high percentage of related errors.

New Internet / online small business marketing strategies incorporate such concepts as social networks, online PR and the newly renamed Google Places. Let’s dissect these strategies to see how they fit within any small business’ overall marketing campaigns.

Google Places is essentially a local listing within your demographic area, whether it is a county, city or borough. With Google places, small businesses can list their company utilizing words that people type into Google search when looking for a service or product. For example, when someone searches for a “tailor” in Manhattan, New York, Google would serve up a list of tailors in that area. These listings appear even before the traditional top 10 organic listings that Google services us. It’s imperative to understand how to utilize Google Places in order to maximize your potential customers.

Online social networking complements offline networking with business associates. Think of online social networking as joining your local Chamber of Commerce or socializing at the office water cooler. Through online social networks, such as Facebook, Linkedin, and MySpace, small businesses can reach out to many more potential customers than they could ever have achieved through using offline networking avenues alone. Learning how to navigate these online social networks is critical to reaching new customers, as well as maintaining existing ones.

Small business marketing strategies should also include online PR. Small businesses are used to guerrilla type marketing. Think of online PR as another way of getting your message across to your market through free and cheap publicity. Generally there is a section in newspapers and magazines for announcements, such as a staff promotion, a new product, education and things like new partnerships. By issuing an online press release, you can reach thousands of viewers without alienating them through a “sales” pitch. Press releases are generally viewed positively and “trustworthy” by consumers.

Incorporating these new marketing strategies will help small business owners maintain their market position, as well as grab new markets. This is especially true during this period of transition as offline marketing reach through print, radio and TV declines and gives way to online marketing through the Internet and mobile devices.

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Small business opportunities are really shaping the new American economy. Small businesses have always been a driving force in America, but it seems to be even more so today. Perhaps I’m more keenly aware of small businesses, since I’ve owned and operated a number of them over the last 20 years. But, I sense a sea change in both sentiment and desire.

According to the US Census Bureau, there are now roughly 28 million small businesses in the US. A small business is defined as a company that has less than 500 employees. Of these small businesses, the bulk of them, about 22 million, are identified as single person businesses with no employees. And, the total gross receipts are staggering … $992 Billion in 2007.

I believe small business opportunities are growing because of several factors: the state of the economic recession, obvious unemployment issues and the fact that there are many more resources available to the small business than ever before. Much of this is driven by the ubiquity and availability of downright cheap technology.

For example, when I bought my first computer, many “generations ago” …, it cost me $6,000. Forget about Internet connectivity, think dial up (barely), and 16 KB, not GB, of RAM. These are dinosaur terms to emphasize a point. Today, a Dell Net Book can be had for $184 after rebate, Internet connection for 20 bucks a month, and a phone service with unlimited calling for as little as $19 / year.

How can you beat this type of setup when it comes to building small business opportunities, especially out of your home? My company is the epitome of a small virtual business. We are 10 people small and we all work out of our homes. The technology that we’ve implemented allows us to be linked together through a virtual PBX system, project management software, instant messaging, online meetings and much more.

Many of the tools that we use are free, some are unbelievably cheap. For example, a virtual PBX with unlimited minutes for $49.99 a month! This system gives us 10 extensions, so that our clients only need to call one 800 number to access any one of our team members. In the “old days” this would have cost us thousands of dollars and would have needed to be installed in a physical location. There’s nothing to install or download here, baby!

So, what are the top 10 online small business opportunities fueling my imagination? If you can wrap your arms around the term virtual, the ideas are limitless. My top 10:

1. Virtual Assistants – So much work, so little time. Virtual Assistants “free up your day,” as one of my colleagues in the business likes to say.
2. Internet Marketing – Think Google search and you’ll know what I mean. Companies are moving their marketing dollars in DROVES to the Internet. Print, Radio and TV are dying breeds.
3. Answering Services – You can’t always be in two places at the same time. Set up your own Virtual PBX, cultivate some clients and answer their calls for them.
4. Online Researcher – The Internet is a wealth of information. But, you still need time to sift through the dirt to find the gold. Turn your curious nature into a saleable asset.
5. Internet Broker – This business is as old as eBay. People want to buy and others want to sell. But, some are technology “challenged.” They just don’t know how to sell anything, let alone on eBay.
6. Stock Up! – The Internet’s appetite for online “stock” content is voracious. Think 300 million websites. They all need some type of photo, video or graphic. And, there are plenty of sites to sell your passion.
7. Creative Services – If you’re a photographer, videographer, graphic artist, hobbyist or professional, move your attention to Internet. Linked with #6, the need for QUALITY work is exploding.
8. Freelance Writing – Coupled with the explosive nature of the Internet, blogging is as hot as it gets. No, not about your kids’ latest soccer game, but serious ghost writing for individuals and companies.
9. Expense Reduction Manager – Everybody’s looking for a deal these days. And, they’re everywhere. Some people just don’t know where to look.
10. And, my all time favorite – Personal Shopper – I threw this one in for fun. “Back in the day”, people paid good money for others to shop for them.

Let’s just hope that legislation on AFFORDABLE health care, doesn’t rain on our parade!

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Every day layoffs are in the news around the country. No one right now is feeling secure in their job. With the recession in full bloom and housing still in the tank, there will likely continue to be more layoffs. However, in contrast, Internet businesses are enjoying an uptick. The old fashion way of building a small business “brick by brick”, i.e. the brick and mortar way, requires sizable overhead investment. Starting a business online can be accomplished literally on a shoestring. If you’re struggling to make ends meet and unclear about your future, perhaps now is the time to think about building an online business.

It does take some time, understanding and work to get an online business going. However, it will pay off in spades if run correctly. In fact, it could be a profitable venture in a shorter time than trying to build an “offline” business. One way to fund your online business, if you’ve suddenly found yourself unemployed, is to use unemployment benefits to bridge your income shortfall. Of course, consider searching for a “traditional” job in parallel. Craft your strategy correctly, just like you would
if developing any business plan in the traditional world.

There are literally tens / hundreds of thousands of online business. So, it’s clear that you must think outside the box. If you’ve been an account in the past, consider offering online bookkeeping services or consulting with clients for on how to structure their accounting systems. What if you were an application developer in the past, perhaps you can offer your help through online bidding services such as Guru.com or RentACoder.com. These services are great for giving you a baseline of potentially unlimited short-term engagements.

Many people would just brush off building a business online as “too hard.” This is especially true if they’ve never done this before. But, the real question to ask yourself is “what do I have to lose, except time?” Let’s dissect a few of the components. Buy a domain name, build a website or use an existing site / blogging service such as WordPress, and start advertising. You should spend a few hours every night writing about what you enjoy most. Explain to your audience about certain techniques, what actions work best, where to get more information, etc. Once you start, you’ll find it amazing how much knowledge you really do have about the subject.

Of course, you have to realize that regardless of how small your business there will be competition on the Internet. The Internet has something approaching 400 million websites, give or take. But, the beauty of this is that you have the opportunity to check out your competition. You can figure out what they are doing right or wrong and create your own unique products and services.

On the flip side of the coin, if you are not a proficient web designer, you might hire one of these people off of the services listed above: Guru.com or RentACoder.com. These services provide ratings on the coders within their portfolio. It makes it much easier to pick a competent web developer.

Again, just like any business, be sure you know your objectives. The Internet should be a “one-action “model. Don’t confuse the issue with creating too many “personas” or themes about you or your offering. You will end up confusing the audience / paralyzing their thought process and they will end up not buying. Make sure you have quality content on your site, as well.

Marketing will be a key component to a successful launch of your business. I like to say that you can build a website, but if no one knows that it’s there, does it really exist? Remember you ARE competing with millions of other websites. At a minimum, you are competing with thousands of business in your category. How will you stand out? What are your unique selling points? Are you relevant?

Marketing your website is probably the most difficult aspect of starting a small business online. By the time you’re ready to launch your site, you need to be prepared to invest some bucks in bringing your small business to the attention of the world.

In the end; however, this small investment could be the biggest you’ve made to be in control of your own future. This is probably the best time to invest in your tomorrow’s future by developing your own business.

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