Your first step to promoting using free advertising is to find as many free classified ad sites online as you can. Post your ads.

The secret to writing a great ad is to study good headlines. Write a good headline, and you'll make it a lot easier for others to click your ad.

You can study newspaper ads, Google Adwords, as well as classified ads on these free sites. You'll get plenty of good ideas you can incorporate into your own ads.

Another thing you can do is to write articles. There are tons of article directories on the internet that are looking for great content.

(Sites like US Free Ads will allow you to post your articles and reviews on their site. Don't forget to submit your articles to sites that offer revenue sharing. It's a great oppportunity for you to advertise your business and earn a little money at the same time.)

You can give them great content and brand yourself as an expert on your topic at the same time.

To write really great articles, you should first know your topic. If you don't know your topic as well as you would like, then do a little research to fill out your education.

Craft a good title (headline). Like classified ads, a good headline will draw your readers in and get them to at least take a look at your article.

Don't forget your resource box either. Make sure you include a reason for readers to click back to your website and include a url to your website.

You can also get local. Many small towns have radio stations and local newspapers. Local, smaller operations are always looking for content, as well as guests.

It certainly doesn't hurt to put in a call to these places and find out what they're looking for. Try to offer them something valuable.

You might even be able to submit articles, press releases, or other content. Who knows, you might even end up with a column at the local newspaper!

Some other easy and inexpensive ways to advertise your business are business cards, flyers, circulars, and local bulletin boards.

Hand out your business cards to others. Post flyers on as many local bulletin boards as you can. Don't be shy about talking about your business.

If you have something free to give away, it might not even be a bad idea to post an ad in the classifieds of your local paper. You can also look for free papers that accept ads. You may have even better luck there.

Although it will cost you a little money, these free circulars, like Thrifty Nickel, can become an easy outlet for you in promoting your business.

(Don't forget to post these free offers on the free classified ad sites either.)

You certainly shouldn't overlook your local markets because people like to buy from those they know.