If you own a small business, you are obviously interested in getting the word out about your products or services to as many people as possible. One way that many small business owners are choosing to promote themselves today is by using the power of the Internet. Online marketing can provide opportunities that will allow you to reach out to people from all across the country who might not have been aware of your business. This can be especially valuable if you can also sell some of your products online. Here are three online marketing tips that could help spread the word about your business.

Create a Blog and Give Away Free, Useful Information

Everyone likes getting something for free and one of the most powerful things you can give to someone is information. If your business performs a specific service, consider answering common questions or concerns your customers might have in a FAQ or blog on your website. This could increase the chances of someone stumbling across your website when searching for the answer to a problem online. The person may then be more likely to remember your business when they need to buy something that was related to what you helped them with.

Hire a Professional Consultant

Competition for visibility on the web can be intense. No matter what kind of business you have, you are likely competing against countless other small business owners all offering similar services. If you don't have as much time as you might like to increase your online footprint, consider hiring a professional PR or marketing consultant. This person can craft press releases for you and help share them around the web. A press release that gets picked up on a major site can give you the same advertising power as a much larger competitor in your field.

Start an Email Newsletter

When you take an order online, ask if you can have the person's email address to share special information about your business or upcoming deals. Some people don't like giving our their emails, and that is fine, but consider making use of the ones you do collect. Send out a monthly newsletter to the emails of your most frequent customers. Consider telling them something personal about yourself or giving them a look behind the scenes at your business. If the newsletter is great, the customer may be likely to share it with someone else who would enjoy your product or service.

It can be rough as a small business owner to get attention for your business out on the web. But you can take some steps to increase your online footprint without too much trouble. Hire a professional to craft press releases or write an online blog. If you make a blog, give away useful information related to your industry to bring in potential new customers through organic search. Start an an online or email newsletter to humanize your business or give out some deals to your most frequent customers to help get a buzz going.