Modern businesses have an excess of platforms and tools to reach their audience. This creates the challenge of separating yours from the rest.

You could spend money on advertising but small budgets make it near unsustainable. Sales drop-off with dwindling ad budgets.

Here’s the thing:

Branding your business costs less than many advertising campaigns. Effective small business branding isn’t difficult for those resourceful and creative. Business cards and work anniversary cards can be impactful when assessed the right way. This post will share several branding ideas for your small business budget.

Cheap and Effective Branding Ideas for Small Businesses: Ranked by Difficulty:

The criteria for the following meet these:

1. Costing less than $100
2. Do-able for those less tech-savvy

Follow along and see which business branding tips apply to yours. Then, join the 77% of marketers touting branding as a critical investment for growth.

1. Logo Design:

A quality logo becomes recognizable creating an instant perception.

Create one:

• Pitch a logo design contest on 99Designs or Hatchwise
• Outsource to freelance designers or an agency
• In-source with design talent on the team

Your business can then apply its logo to every marketable asset!

2. Business Cards:

Spend a few bucks for business cards using services like VistaPrint or Moo.

How can you use business cards for branding?

• Include them in online shipments
• Share them at local business events
• Attach them to community boards

Do a memorable exchange and the card swap will cement your face and business in the minds of your prospects.

3. Brochures and Flyers:

Combine the logo and the card with business info and offer descriptions to create a brochure. Or, condense the info into a flyer.

Try creating one:

• Download or buy a Word/InDesign brochure template
• Copy & paste business and offer info into the template
• Add business branding elements like the logo and team photos

Get this printed at a local shop or online service. Then, share it as you would business cards when interacting with your audience.

4. DIY Packaging/Inserts:

DIY packaging and inserts could detail:

1. Sourcing online labels
2. Adding branding elements
3. Attaching them to the shipping boxes

You could also try adding inserts like a thank you note. The customer is exposed to branding through the entire marketing and sales funnel.

5. Small Business Website:

The website builds branding through authority and expertise. Every page attracts users from search engines and social media.

Want to keep it cheap?

1. Get your domain and a small business hosting plan
2. Install WordPress using one-click install features
3. Add a business theme and configure WordPress for SEO
4. Build the primary pages like the homepage, shop/services, and contact
5. Begin building traffic by sharing it with your customer list

The next two leverages the site further building off everything detailed so far.

6. Content Creation:

Content creates organic and social traffic, it’s used in paid campaigns, too. The content is easy to make with these ideas and formats:

• Single posts for each frequently asked question
• Interviews with team members sharing their experience
• Sharing product or service details and how-to’s
• Creating list posts of tips and tricks for your industry

Each post creates a new entry point and exposure to your brand.

7. Social Media Participation:

Digitize your physical marketing assets or share the site’s content on:

• Facebook
• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• Twitter
• YouTube

This gets your brand in front of the market. You’ll build a following by sharing content and starting discussions.

Make Every Interaction a Branding Experience:

Continue expanding brand awareness by following and adapting to market trends. View interactions as a branding opportunity when finding your business using marketable channels.

Consistency is key to branding.

Need more branding ideas to grow your small business? Browse our marketing section, discovering your next challenge and goal.

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