The best ways to advertise a small business locally, starting with the ones that cost nothing

A local business doesn't need to reach everyone. It needs to reach the people nearby who are looking for what it sells, right when they're looking. That changes which advertising is worth your money. Start with the foundations below, which cost little or nothing, before you spend on ads.

1. Own your free listings

When someone searches "pizza near me" or asks their phone for a plumber, the answer comes from map and listing platforms. Claim and complete each one:

• Google Business Profile. The single most important free listing for most local businesses. Fill in everything: categories, hours, services or menu, photos, description.
• Apple Business Connect and Bing Places for Business, for iPhone users and Microsoft's search.
• The directories customers in your industry use, such as Yelp for restaurants, plus your CheckThisBiz listing.

If your business doesn't show up at all, start with why businesses go missing on Google Maps.

2. Turn customers into reviews

Reviews are free advertising that people actually believe. Ask every happy customer, and make it take ten seconds with a link or a QR code. Here's how to get more Google reviews the right way.

3. Make it easy to come back and to refer

• Collect phone numbers and emails (with permission) and send a short, useful message when you have something worth saying: a new menu item, a seasonal service reminder, a slow-day special.
• Offer a referral reward to existing customers who send you a new one. Word of mouth is still the strongest local channel, and a small thank-you keeps it going.

4. Be visible in your community

• Sponsor something local: a youth team, a school event, a charity run. Your name ends up on shirts, banners and in local posts.
• Partner with nearby businesses that serve the same customers but don't compete: a salon and a boutique, a landscaper and a pool service.
• Show up where neighbors talk: community groups and neighborhood apps. Be helpful, not salesy.

5. Get written about

Coverage in local news and publications does two things ads can't: it builds trust with readers, and it stays online, where search engines and AI assistants keep finding it. Pitch your local paper a real story (an anniversary, a milestone, a community project), or get a feature package written about your business.

6. Then consider paid ads

Once the foundations are in place, paid advertising works better because customers who click find a business that looks established. Options for local businesses include:

• Search ads that appear when people search for your service in your area. You pay for clicks or leads.
• Social media ads targeted to people within a few miles.
• Top placements on local directories, such as being the first business people see in your town and category on CheckThisBiz.
• Print and mail, like door hangers and postcards, which still work well for home services in specific neighborhoods. Add a QR code so you can see what's working.

Whatever you try, track where each new customer came from ("How did you hear about us?") so you spend more on what works and stop what doesn't.