The International Association of Business Communicators’ (IABC) Atlanta chapter recently contacted c21 to take part in a story on economical marketing for its quarterly empart Magazine.  We’ll post a link to the article when it’s up, but in the meantime, we wanted to share c21’s top tips for marketing on a shoestring budget.

10.) Look for ways to better use what you have.  In this economy, it’s important to capitalize on existing assets.  For example, The Avenue, lifestyle shopping centers with locations throughout the southeast, uses its walkable landscapes as the site for many charity walks – getting involved in the community while drawing people to its properties.

9.) Involve all departments in developing creative ideas and cost-cutting measures.  Go beyond the marketing team to develop your campaign.  Property management may know of the perfect space for your next event, and your IT team may have a great solution for managing the invite and RSVP list.

8.) Leverage the relationships of your team.  Use your team’s existing relationships to find the best deal, or better yet, create a centralized database so you can see exactly what resources your team has to offer.

7.) Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket.  Develop an integrated marketing campaign to reach your audience in multiple ways.  A combination of online tools, including social media, e-mail marketing and Web sites, and offline tools, such as media relations and events, ensures you will reach your target audiences with multiple touch points.

6.) Take advantage of free services.  There are lots of free services like Metromix, Craigslist, Facebook event postings and more that can help you extend the reach of your message.

We’ll post the top five later this week, so check back, or sign up to receive c21’s blog posts via RSS or e-mail.