Helping Firms "Get the Word Out" on a Shoestring Budget (6/24)

Helping Firms "Get the Word Out" on a Shoestring Budget

It's no secret that many small to mid-sized businesses operate on shoestring budgets. As a result, after the payroll, overhead and other vital components are paid for, there's usually very little capital left for advertising and marketing - two very important revenue generators. Fortunately, the Internet has helped to level the playing field for businesses by providing marketing, management and staffing services online, but some of the more effective methods are still cost-prohibitive for companies.

Recently, a number of new services have cropped up, aiming to help companies "get the word out" into cyberspace about their products and services. Here are a few of the new companies that are focused on helping small- to mid-sized firms mind their bottom lines:

SmartAge This company just launched a new service offering small businesses low-cost advertising on premium Internet sites. Although major Web sites typically require a long-term commitment and a minimum buy to place advertisements, SmartAge's new service, Media Buyer, repackages the ad buy into smaller allotments to make it more affordable for small start-up companies. Media Buyer lets small businesses place banner advertisements on major Web sites for as little as $100, compared with the typical minimum charge of $1,000 to $3,000.

Bull's Eye Media This firm has brought together the combined marketing and technical expertise of its founders to create a new concept in small business advertising. At the forefront is Bull's Eye Media's flagship product, Online Local Exchange (OLE), specifically designed to provide restaurants and fast-food establishments an affordable and effective way to advertise through its software-based advertising product. The software program contains a growing directory of localized restaurants that allows users to view full menus, point-and-click food items, and submit full orders instantly, without the Internet. According to its creators, "The most significant benefit to merchants is the method by which Bull's Eye Media distributes OLE. The advertised menu is targeted directly to local business users who have shown the highest potential for becoming regular customers."

Golden Gallery 2000 This new cybermall aims to provide online management tools and services for small businesses. According to Oscar Wright, company president and former regional administrator for the U.S. Small Business Administration, the service will provide the equivalent of having two additional staff members, but without the overhead. Golden Gallery 2000, in association with Amazon.com, International Wealth Success, The Alliance of Small Business Purchasing Network Group, Beyond, Inc. and DigitalWork, Inc. have formed this new cybermall, which consists of more than 1,000 small business books, courses, software and newsletters covering every aspect of starting, financing, managing and marketing a small firm. "Large companies continue to downsize and lose more employees than they hire," Wright comments. "Small firms with one to four employees generate about 50 percent of new jobs, and with the marketing power of the Internet, they will usher in a new economic renaissance in domestic and global markets."