Throughout my experience in Marketing, I have found that simply placing ads in free classified sites, FFA (free for all), and participating in safelists does not work anymore. It used to, but that is not the case any longer. I also have found out that you do not have to pay for any advertising for it to be effective.

The key to "Effective Marketing" is creativity. If you really start thinking about how you might go about promoting your business/website, then you might be surprised at what you come up with. Here are some free methods to get you started. You need to make Google/Yahoo/MSN or any favorite search engine a good friend. Use these to your advantage for finding the following places below.

1) Work At Home/Business Forums or Message Boards:

Find and create accounts at various work at home or business message forums. After creating your account then proceed to create your signature. A signature is a block of text at the end of a message that states your name and your business/website/affiliate program. Please read the posting rules at all forums. Some do not allow signatures...and some do not allow posting your business ad. Always be careful of these rules...you could be banned. Signature advertising in forums/message boards has found to be very effective.

2) Directories:

Find and sign up with various business directories. Add your business/website to them. There are tons of these that do not require a reciprocal link back. You will find the occasional ones that require a fee...just pass those up and go on to the next one, as there are several. For the ones that do require a link back, it is advisable to choose the ones with a high page rank.

3) Link and Banner Exchanging:

There are many, many webmasters that are willing to exchange links/banners with you. This method of advertising is called networking and is really a great free way to promote your business. You can let webmasters know that you would like to exchange links with them through various forums, OR...you can look up websites (that relate to your business), and simply email the webmaster (site owner) and propose that you would like to exchange links or banners. Always keep up with your emails and follow up with a polite reply. You will be pleasantly surprised at the responses you will get.

4) Ezines and Newsletters:

Ezines and newsletters are basically online magazines. You can subscribe to them and enter your ad and affiliate program or website URL. Most of these are free to subscribe to, and also free to enter your ad. These ezines/newsletters have a large membership base. By using this method of advertising, your business/website would reach a large audience.

5) Offline Advertising:

This is where you will use your creativity. There are literally endless offline advertising ideas that you can use. You can make up flyers, business cards, letters, and give them out to friends and relatives. You can post them at grocery stores, laundry mats, department stores, libraries, theatres, schools...basically anywhere where it is allowed.

One example of an idea:

If you are at a theatre...leave some of your business cards in the restroom. You might be surprised at who will look and pick them up. Just use your imagination...have fun and be creative.

6) Articles:

You might try writing some articles that relate to your business or website. Many ezines and newsletters that you subscribe to let you post your written articles. And again, this method would be free of charge. At the end of your article, mention the URL of your business or website.