Email Marketing

Affordable Marketing Tips For New Businesses

Published on November 8, 2024

Starting a Startup? Here’s How to Market Without Breaking the Bank

1. Start with a Sales Funnel

A sales funnel is a structured way to guide potential customers from being interested visitors to loyal buyers. Start by creating a lead magnet (something valuable, like an ebook or free trial) and use affordable marketing tactics to direct people to its landing page.

Once potential customers share their emails, follow up with email marketing to turn those leads into paying customers. Then, keep adding value through emails to encourage repeat business and build loyalty. This approach helped us grow ClickFunnels into a nine-figure company, and it can work for you too!

2. Low-Cost Marketing Idea #1: Cold Email

If your marketing budget is tight, cold emails can be an effective way to connect with potential customers. Here’s a step-by-step guide:

Identify Your Audience: Be clear on who your ideal customers are.
Build a Lead List: Hire a freelancer to find leads that match your criteria.
Set Up an Email Account: Warm up your new email to avoid spam filters.
Create a Cold Email Template: Introduce yourself, explain your value, and offer a quick call. Make it easy to schedule by including a link to your calendar.
Follow-Up Strategy: After the initial email, follow up three times and then send a “breakup” email to close the conversation.
Track Results: Use a spreadsheet or tool like Lemlist to see how many emails get responses, lead to calls, and convert to sales.

Repeat this process with small changes (like testing different subject lines) to improve over time. Once you’ve got it down, aim to send up to 100 emails daily to scale your reach.

Learn More: Check out Cold Email Manifesto by Alex Berman and Robert Indries for cold emailing insights and templates.

3. Low-Cost Marketing Idea #2: Social Media Marketing

Social media is a great way to reach your audience, build trust, and lead them to your funnel—all without spending much money. Start with one platform and then expand as you grow. Here are some principles to guide you:

Promote Your Lead Magnet: Use your bio to link to your lead magnet landing page.
Post Consistently: Publish one valuable, original post daily. Use scheduling tools like Buffer or MeetEdgar.
Engage with Comments: Spend 15-30 minutes daily responding to comments (but avoid trolls).
Network with Influencers: Comment on and share content from key influencers in your field to get noticed.
Build Relationships: Connect with peers in your niche by commenting on and sharing their content.

Finally, stay away from social media drama and controversial topics. Focus on providing value and staying true to your brand.

Learn More: For more social media strategies, check out this video by Dan Koe.

4. Low-Cost Marketing Idea #3: Email Marketing

An email newsletter can be a powerful lead magnet on its own! Here’s how to start:

Create a Newsletter Concept: Weekly newsletters with a consistent structure work well. Share insights, relevant industry news, or personal observations.
End with a Call to Action: Use a “P.S.” or banner ad to encourage readers to take the next step in your funnel.
Promote on Social Media: Link to your newsletter in your bio and post teasers for upcoming issues.

Learn More: Watch this video by Brian Dean to learn more about building a newsletter audience.

Reality Check: Building a Startup Takes Time

Remember, bootstrapping a business is a long game. Many entrepreneurs quit too soon, so set realistic expectations and be patient. You may need to work a day job for a while, but if you stick with it, the payoff can be worth it.

Want to Drive Targeted Traffic to Your Startup?

Our co-founder Russell Brunson scaled ClickFunnels from zero to $100M in annual revenue using sales funnels. He shares the strategies he used in his book Traffic Secrets, which includes methods for finding customers, leveraging distribution channels, and building affiliates.

Traffic Secrets is available on Amazon, but you can also get it from us for free (just cover shipping).

These three low-cost strategies—cold email, social media, and email marketing—are effective ways to start reaching your target customers today!