The internet has completely changed people’s shopping habit. Almost everyone have bought something online or at least used the internet to compare prices. To many businesses, internet is already an important if not the main source of revenue. It is no surprise businesses are constantly searching for new ways to drive more online sales.

A lot of small businesses and new start ups are constrained by limited budget. To someone who is new to running an online business with a limited budget, the virtual world could be a very intimidating place and it is hard to figure out where to start. These businesses have posted many questions on online forums asking about ways to promote their businesses for free. There are many things a business can do to get results for free. A lot of them are actually very easy and do not require a lot of time or computer skills.

Classified Ads

Classifieds websites let people advertise everything from cars, household furniture to events and services. There are many classifieds websites, where you can advertise your products and services for free. Many people use classifieds websites like craigslist, gumtree, targro and many others to find what they need. You can advertise on these free classifieds websites to give your products and services extra exposure. These websites bring buyers and sellers together and sales can be made without the seller having to pay any commission to the classifieds website.

Business Platforms

Business platforms are websites like alibaba and lacartes, where companies can create a dedicated and informative business page designed to showcase the business and its products and services to potential customers. Usually these websites allow businesses to create a basic page for free and only charge if a business wishes to upgrade to a premium page. Even the basic page would feature all the essential information such as business description, contact information, photos, videos, special offers and customer reviews etc. These pages will appear on all major search engines so this method allows businesses to significantly increase their online presence and exposure to high quality search engine traffic.

Online Marketplace

Online marketplace websites like amazon, ebay, taobao, lacartes and many others let businesses sell their products directly to the buyers. Selling on these online marketplaces is just like setting up a stall in a busy mall. The only thing is the seller has to pay a commission on each sale. The commission rate varies between different websites but can be as high as 20% of the sale. Other than that online marketplace is a very effective way to expand your online business.

Press Releases

There are many press release and article distribution websites where businesses can publish their press releases for free. Any articles published on these websites will also appear on search engines, which will improve a business’s online exposure as well as brand awareness without any cost. The only cost will be the cost of producing these articles. Small business owners with limited budget can try producing the articles themselves.