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Let’s face it, marketing your business, products, and/or services is expensive. Not every business can contract a marketing agency or hire a team of marketers to grow the business. For most businesses starting out, or in the first two years, will rely on their own marketing skills and small budget to catalyze growth.

The good news is that not all marketing requires a stack of cash and a team to be successful. If your aim is to connect your business with your target audience, and deliver value, you have a winning marketing campaign on your hands.

“The almost inescapable noise has caused a shift in the way people view what we do, and who gets access to their attention,” Forbes explained. “Even if you’re one of the lucky few who gets an audience’s momentary undivided attention, you have seconds to make it count.”

So how do you make it count? And how do you make it count without spending a ton of money? To help, we compiled a few highly affordable top marketing tips. Let’s take a closer look!

1. Have a blog to capitalize on more niche keywords and increase online visibility

Content is very much still King. With so much noise online for users to sift through, it’s critical to have more online outlets to promote your business, as well as provide quality content your audience will love. Having a blog for your business does all of the above.

A blog can also help you rank your business higher in Google SERPs, since you can use more keywords than you can in your web page content. Getting a blog up and running is easy, and it is free. Here’s a DreamHost article on starting a blog to get you moving in the right direction.

2. Create a ton of content for social media users to engage with, comment on, and share

Another affordable marketing tip for your business is to utilize social media as much as possible. Many people believe you need a social media manager or community manager to make social media a success, but this is simply not the case. First you need to create content for social media your audience will love, comment on, and share.

As the business owner, you should have a pretty good idea of what your audience wants. If not, just check out what your competitors are posting on social, and make it better. To create awesome posts, you can use Canva (free). To schedule the posts, you can use Buffer (free). And for a few dollars a week, you can boost posts that are performing well organically for even better results. It’s time to get social!

3. Make email marketing part of your daily marketing strategy to get the most out of those leads

Email marketing is another highly affordable, and effective method for businesses to grow and be more successful. If you have a website, attend industry events, or use LinkedIn to get more potential client contact information, you probably have a pretty healthy email list. And this list is gold for business growth.

Email marketing can help you connect with those leads and market to them without spending a lot of your budget. You can use free email marketing services like HubSpot or Mailchimp to send large amounts of emails. The success here, however, is dependent on the email content. You want emails to be of value and personalized for best results.

4. Become an authority for your industry or niche online and in real life

You probably didn’t start a business in an industry or niche that you didn’t have any experience in, or a passion for. Chances are, you have a ton of experience behind you. This is great, because becoming an authority in your industry or niche can have a big impact on your marketing efforts.

However, you’ll need to get active online to start building that authoritative presence. Start with your LinkedIn profile. Post articles about industry quirks or problems, and the solutions you and your business provide. Use real life examples to not seem to self-promoting without valid support of results. Next, write and publish articles in online publications your audience follows and reads. This can be a very affordable and fun for you, and give your business a boost against competitors.

Wrapping Up . . .

Building your business is not as hard as it may seem. Doing it on a tight budget does present challenges, but it certainly is not impossible. With a bit of leg work and elbow grease, you can get your business in front of more people with little to zero cost to your business budget. Make marketing a priority, be creative, and put in the work. That’s the equation for marketing success.

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Debt isn’t automatically a dirty word. Most Americans carry debt, and for many good reasons. Responsibly taking on debt and paying it off on time is an excellent way to build credit. Certain types of debt also help us achieve our goals, like financing an education or getting the keys to our dream home. In some regards, it’s useful to think of debt as a handy tool in your larger personal finance toolkit.

But left unchecked, debt can become dangerous. It’s easy to start falling behind on payments, accumulating late fees and interest as you go. Furthermore, certain kinds of debt carry a certain amount of risk from the get-go, like lines of credit with high interest rates, or auto loans for a vehicle that’s going to depreciate in value substantially the second you drive off the dealership lot. Suddenly, that tool you meant to use constructively becomes a weapon aimed directly at your financial well-being.

Here are six telltale signs your debt has gotten out of control, plus some solutions meant to help you get back on course.

Sign #1: You’ll “Figure It Out Next Month”

It’s very easy to put off dealing with debt for another day… week… month… and suddenly you’re much farther behind than you ever meant to be. If you’ve noticed yourself procrastinating, it’s time for a reality check. Commit to making time to sit down, go over your debts and come up with a strategy sooner rather than later.

Sign #2: You’ve Lied About/Hidden Your Debt

There are many reasons people feel hesitant to admit the reality of their debt to others. Carrying debt can feel embarrassing or shameful. Many Americans feel pressure to “keep up with the Joneses” too.

But if you find yourself directly lying to a loved one about the existence of debt or the amount you’re carrying, it’s a sign the situation has gone too far. This is especially true if you’re lying to a romantic partner, business partner or someone else affected by your finances.

Sign #3: You’re Missing Minimum Payments

Most lines of credit offer borrowers the option to repay a minimum amount each month, either a low flat fee or a small percentage of the total outstanding balance. The upside is that doing so will keep late fees at bay. The downside is that paying only the minimum does nothing to stop interest from building. If you’re consistently missing even this minimum requirement, it’s time to take action.

Sign #4: Credit Cards Are Your Emergency Fund

Emergencies are often unfair, but they happen to the best of us. Without a sufficient emergency fund tucked away, people fall back on credit cards to cover unexpected costs.

Does this sound like you? It’s a very common situation in America. Many people who eventually decided to try an elimination strategy like debt settlement describe falling thousands into debt after an unexpected life event like a divorce, death in the family, layoff, medical incident, etc. Dozens upon dozens of Freedom Debt Relief reviews cite having to put emergency expenses on credit as one contributing factor to overwhelming debt, which is why these consumers eventually decided to seek assistance through debt settlement.

Although we can’t stop these costly events from happening, we can do our best to prepare ahead of time and proactively get out of debt after the fact.

Sign #5: It’s Hard to Keep Your Debts Organized

Starting to lose track of how much you owe and to whom? This is a classic indicator you’re getting in over your head. Disorganization makes it all too easy for debts to slip through the cracks, worsening your financial woes.

A system for organization is a must, as is addressing debts as they come rather than letting the statements sit unopened until they’re past due. Staying in denial can be tempting, but it’ll only prolong the process.

Sign #6: Your Debt-to-Income Ratio Is High

Here’s how to find your debt-to-income ratio: Divide all your monthly debt payments by your gross monthly income. A high ratio makes you risky in the eyes of lenders; if your ratio exceeds 43 percent, you’ll have a tougher time getting a mortgage. Many experts recommend keeping your DTI below 36 percent. If you crunch the numbers and find that your DTI is high, it’s important to keep lowering your debts.

Has your debt gotten out of control? If any of these six signs apply to you, it’s time to explore your options for reducing and eliminating the amount you owe.

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With the internet becoming more popular, everything is becoming more accessible from the convenience of your own home. You can do your back to school shopping, registering for activities, purchase tickets, store data, and even do online banking. No need to go to a store, ticket office, or a bank. When it comes to banking, people are all about convenience because it is a necessity of life but can be burdensome to those of us who have busy lives. In the event you have unexpected bills or debt, you may be in the market for acquiring a loan. With everything being available online, you are now able to apply and obtain an online loan. This basically means you can apply from your computer and find out instantly if you have been approved and where you want the money to be sent. Sounds great, right? Well there are definite pros of online loans, but it also comes with some cons.

Pros of online loans

As mentioned above, the main positive of obtaining an online loan is that it is convenient. You no longer have to go to a brick and mortar bank to speak to someone and fill out paperwork. You can literally fill out an online form from the convenience of your couch. Do it as quickly as you want or even in bits and pieces by saving your information and coming back to it later. Part of the convenience factor of these types of loans is the fast processing time. It is possible that with a click of a button you will have your application processed.

Another pro to online loans is that they often offer better deals. Without having the costs of having a physical store front, they can pass along those savings to their customers.

Cons of online loans

With anything online, the major concern is security. Obviously, an online loan would require the vast majority of your personal information (name, address, social security number, email address, etc.) which means that the info has the potential of being hacked. Many would view this as a con. Many companies do have security processes intact that would allow you to feel more comfortable, but no matter what you are opening up your information to becoming compromised. If you are to go this route, be sure to use a reputable site that has these systems in place.

Some people enjoy and value face to face customer service. If you are to go with an online lender than you would not have access to a physical human being to help you. This goes along with the idea that there may be technical glitches that could hinder your ability to go through with the loan. You may not understand the application and don’t have anyone there to help you, or the website might be down, and you can’t go through with applying.

Each person’s circumstance when it comes to taking out a loan is different, so it is very important for each person to assess their situation and research their options. Such an important decision should be an informed one.