21 Local Advertising Ideas to Grow Your Small Business

Local advertising is an effective way to boost awareness of your brand and attract customers within a specific locale. It allows you to target nearby prospects based on the audience of the medium used (e.g., newspapers or radio stations) or to use ad targeting tools to put your advertisements directly in front of your ideal customers. With that in mind, here are 21 local advertising ideas you can use to grow your small business.

1. Get Free Local Advertising in Online Business Directories

Average cost: Free

There are multiple benefits from adding a listing for your business to online business directories. It offers another place for local patrons to discover your business (in the actual directory) and benefits your website’s search engine optimization (SEO), helping your site rank higher in local search results. At a minimum, your local advertising strategy should include adding the following listings:

• Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business)
• Facebook (business profile)
• Bing for Business
• Yelp for Business
• Angi (formerly Angie’s List) for service-based businesses

This gives you a good start at increasing your brand’s online visibility. From there, add your business listings to the best online directories that make sense for your company or industry.

2. Turn Customers Into Advocates With a Referral Program

Average cost: $45 to $100 per month

Everyone loves a discount, freebies, or other small rewards—especially from a local company they already love. Referral rewards programs turn your customers into brand advocates by incentivizing them to spread the word about your business. This is one of the local business advertising ideas that can have a huge return on investment (ROI).

Plus, software like ReferralCandy makes your program easy to set up and manage, making word-of-mouth marketing a win-win for you and your fans. Interested in more referral marketing ideas? Find out more about how to get referrals to gain new customers.

3. Increase Retention & Revenue With Loyalty Rewards

Average cost: $45 to $100 per month

Customer loyalty programs can help small businesses retain current clients and turn new buyers into repeat customers over the long term. Customers who feel valued are far more likely to purchase more frequently, and as with rewards programs, the software makes it easy to manage. Check out our list of the best customer loyalty program software you can use to encourage customer retention and drive sales.

4. Get Brand Exposure With Local Press Coverage

Average cost: From free to $250

Getting local press coverage can be a huge boon for a small business, whether your story ends up in the newspaper or lands a local TV news spot. If your press release is newsworthy, the media coverage you garner can quickly get the word out about your business to local audiences. An easy way to get your story out to the public is to use one of the best press release distribution services.

Ready to write your first press release? Make sure you know what makes for a good press release, and then use a press release distribution service like eReleases to get guaranteed syndication in thousands of online media outlets.

5. Increase Local Visibility With Billboard Ads

Average cost: From $10 a day for digital or $600 to $3,000 per month for physical billboards

It isn’t uncommon to dream of having your small business advertised on a billboard above a busy street or freeway. But if your local business advertising hadn’t included billboards before because you thought they were too expensive, you might want to think again. Find out how much billboards cost in various cities—both physical and digital billboards.

Billboard advertising is surprisingly affordable, especially when you choose digital billboards through a platform like Blip Billboards, which works for any size budget. If you’re ready to get started, get some local advertising ideas for your billboards from our list of must-see billboard designs.

6. Land at the Top of Google Search Results With Local Ads

Average cost: $2 to $6 per click

Take control over your small business website’s position in local search results with Google local service ads. Even new businesses can appear at the top of results when they use pay-per-click (PPC) advertising on Google.

It’s one of the local advertising ideas that affords a lot of control over your budget as you can turn your ads on or off depending on when you have the budget to run ads. Google ads can be surprisingly affordable, especially for low-competition keywords. Learn more about how to advertise on Google.

7. Set Your Website Up for Local Advertising Success

Average cost: $12 to $40 per month

To get the most out of all the other local advertising ideas you’re implementing, you need a well-designed website that provides a positive user experience at the hub. Squarespace is an all-in-one website builder that provides everything you need to get a professional website up quickly. It’s a great choice for local websites with features like embedded Google maps, and it’s one of our top picks for the best website builders for SEO for small businesses.

Make sure your landing pages closely match the ads and keywords used in your social media and email campaigns. Using the same keywords will ensure that your content is relevant and provides a unified experience to your site visitors.

Another website marketing strategy that can bring in more local customers is to add trust badges to your website. This includes things like adding a logo and link to your local chamber of commerce and industry associations, or adding the logo showing that you’re a BBB Accredited business.

8. Rank in Search Organically With Local SEO

Average cost: $29 per month

Many people skip the ads in local search results and opt to click on organic results instead, which is why it’s important to invest in local SEO. To do this, you’ll need to optimize your website for local search and engage in local content marketing.

Create compelling, relevant content for your website and blog using keywords pertinent to your business, ideally with high search volume and low competition. For example, you can use a tool like Semrush for SEO keyword research and to track your rankings in search engines.

Get access to free resources for tracking and improving your local search rankings with providers in our list of the best local SEO tools for small businesses.

9. Run Local Newspaper Ads

Average cost: $50 to $2,700

Advertising in your local newspaper offers enormous benefits, especially if your target audience reads newspapers every day. Depending on where you live, the cost of newspaper ads can be affordable or expensive. Cost also varies based on the size of the ad you run.

10. Catch the Attention of Commuters With Radio Ads

Average cost: $200 per 30-second spot

Although radio has lost listeners to streaming services, more than 156 million people in the U.S. listen to the radio every day. That’s a convincing reason to consider using radio for local advertising. Also, the cost of radio ads is reasonably affordable, with smaller markets offering 30-second spots for about $50.

Read more about how to advertise on radio for your local audience. When you’re ready, consider hiring a Fiverr radio advertising pro to write your ad or even record it.

11. Create a Geotag for Social Media Tagging

Average cost: Free

A geotag is a location tag—like a pin on a map—on social media. Creating a geotag for your business’ physical location is a great way to earn new customers. Platforms like Snapchat, Facebook, and Instagram make it easy for you to tag your business in posts, and you should do this in conjunction with hashtags that target your location so people searching #newyorkcity, for example, might come across your posts.

Geotagging is a popular hotel marketing strategy—it’s great for restaurants, entertainment businesses, marketing a bar or night club, and real estate businesses too. You can also incentivize customers to give you a shoutout with a geotag while at your business through rewards programs or simply by encouraging them to do so on signs inside your facility.

12. Local Advertising Ideas for Facebook Ads

Average cost: $2 per click

To use Facebook ads for local advertising effectively, you need to know precisely what your goal is for your ads. For example, your ad should include a link to a dedicated landing page if you want to drive traffic to your website. If you intend to get social followers or email subscribers, your ad should specify exactly the action you want viewers to take. Also, eye-catching images and videos are essential if you want your ads to get noticed.

There are 2.93 billion Facebook users worldwide as of the first quarter of 2022, so it’s a large audience overall. However, your costs can vary depending on the type of ad, your audience, and your industry. Find out how much Facebook ads cost based on audience, bidding, and competition.

Not sure you have the know-how to get a good return from Facebook ads? Turn to Lyfe Marketing or another of the best Facebook advertising agencies to get expert help.

13. Sponsor Something Important to the Local Community

Average cost: $150 to $500

It’s common for cities and civic-based organizations to offer sponsorship opportunities as a local business advertising option. Sometimes it’s to get your brand’s logo onto a park bench (great for long-term brand awareness and advertising) or the uniforms of a local little league team.

You may also find a chance to sponsor a city event, such as food fairs and cultural festivals, or participate in a civic operation like a holiday meals project or as a collection point for a food bank or shelter. All these opportunities are a great way to become known in your local area (for the right reasons)–and it’s usually fairly affordable.

14. Hold a Special Event

Average cost: $500 to $1,000

Hosting a launch event is a great way to market a new business or introduce new products and services to the public. A launch event can generate a lot of positive press for a business and help attract new customers and clients. Real estate agents and mortgage lenders often hold educational events as well as open houses to establish connections with residents.

Planning and hosting a successful launch event takes some careful planning and execution. Still, the payoff can be well worth the effort. If you’re thinking about launching a new product or service, consider what types of marketing materials you’ll need to publicize your event or use during the event.

15. Distribute Marketing Collateral

Average cost: $17 (100 business cards)

It takes 3-4 years for most new businesses to see a profit, according to our list of key startup statistics. Using marketing collateral like business cards, flyers, and brochures is a bit like physical display advertising. It’s one of the more basic local advertising ideas. However, it’s highly effective for increasing brand awareness and reminding customers your business exists.

It’s also an affordable way to advertise promotions and discounts while helping with word-of-mouth advertising, such as when your customer gives your business card to a friend or co-worker. Use a top business card printer like VistaPrint to design and order a wide array of low-cost print marketing materials.

16. Reach Out to Locals by Email

Average cost: $0 to $20 per month

Getting special offers by email is one of the top reasons consumers subscribe to mailing lists and follow brands on social media. For this reason, email marketing is one of the top methods of small business advertising, including local advertising. To build your contact list, ask customers to sign up for emails at your store, on your website, or on your social media profiles.

If you’re new to email marketing software, we recommend using SendX. It has a clean interface and easy-to-use tools for building email campaigns, landing pages, triggered campaigns, auto response emails, drip campaigns, and more. Plans start as low as $7.49 per month, including all of the platform’s features.

17. Manage Your Online Reputation

Average cost: $30 to $100 per month

What does online reputation management have to do with local advertising? Everything. Any time someone locally searches for a business in your area and industry, there’s a chance they’ll see your business’ Google profile along with your star rating, address, phone number, and hours.

A negative review (with no response from you) can be enough to drive business away. However, there are many ways to quickly get more reviews on Google to boost your brand’s reputation.

To make reputation management easier, platforms like BrightLocal give you the ability to automatically monitor reviews. Find out more about the best local SEO tools to use for managing your brand’s reputation online.

18. Use Direct Mail for Local Business Advertising

Average cost: $50 to $400 per month

Business postcards, in particular, are a highly visual marketing tool that can convey your messages in a short, eye-catching way. Direct mail is one of the local advertising ideas that allows you to target a specific audience with laser precision or reach a broad audience.

Control who receives your mailings by targeting specific demographics, interests, or even past purchasers for a higher return on spend. Alternatively, you can use Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM) through platforms like PostcardMania to deliver marketing materials to every mailbox in a defined geographic area. See which are the best direct mail services for small businesses based on overall value, ease of editing, niche features, quality, and cost.

19. Attract Window Shoppers With Digital Signage

Average cost: $59 per month

Your storefront and interior can be a giant billboard for “free” local business advertising using digital signs. Digital signs are eye-catching (especially when they include animated elements) and memorable. Plus, it’s easy to display information with a digital sign since you can change the content anytime. For example, digital restaurant menus can be used to display items and prices or daily specials, upcoming events, and other important information.

Get more inspiration for business sign ideas, including low-cost digital signs.

20. Collaborate With Fellow Local Businesses

Average cost: Free

Among the essentially free local marketing ideas on this list is to collaborate with other businesses on marketing and ad campaigns. For example, if you own a bakery, you could work with a local coffee shop. You could brew and sell the cafe’s coffee, and they can sell your pastries.

Photographers and florists can hook up with event centers, real estate agents and mortgage lenders can collaborate, a graphic designer could work well with a local print shop, and so on. Collaboration can also be as simple as referral marketing—check out our list of the best referral lead generation sources by industry.

21. Give Back to Your Local Community

Average cost: Free

Community members tend to remember the businesses that get involved and donate time or services to help improve the local area. For example, a barbershop or salon might offer free haircuts for veterans one day each quarter or treat a local hero to a makeover.

Local businesses that give back to their community often get a big return on the investment in customer loyalty—not to mention knowing they’re positively impacting the local community. If you’ve wanted to do this but weren’t sure where to start, find local nonprofit organizations that are relevant to your business to give back to your local community.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What are some examples of local advertising for small businesses?

Local advertising is the promotion of a business within a specific location, such as a city or county. Local business advertising often includes TV, radio, and newspaper ads, but also extends to word-of-mouth marketing, social media, paid search ads, and distribution of marketing materials like business cards.

How do you attract local customers?

Several different types of local advertising ideas will work to attract local customers, direct mail, email marketing, social media ads, Google ads, and local SEO. Coupon marketing is an especially popular method of attracting new customers through time-limited discounts or gift-with-purchase deals.

What is the best free advertising for small businesses?

There are several free local advertising options for small businesses on a budget. For example, email marketing software like Mailchimp and Sendinblue can be used for free. Posting on social media, setting up Google and Bing business listings, and creating search-friendly content for your website doesn’t cost anything but time.

Bottom Line

No matter whether your budget to execute local advertising ideas is a lot or none at all, you can use many if not all of the ideas above to promote your business locally. For the best results, use a combination of local business advertising strategies, such as email marketing, social media, local business collaborations, and rewards programs, and track your results for each. As a result, generate brand awareness and gain new customers quickly.

You Might Also Like…

• Find out how to get more Google reviews to crush the competition in search rankings.
• Get more people onto your website with these website marketing strategies.
• Bad site design might drive new customers away. Don’t let that happen—get inspiration from the best small business website examples.