How do I market my business without spending too much money on advertisements?

Ask Me Anything Q&A 2hmediaamarepo

Topic summary

A Shopify store owner selling skincare products has been operating for 6 months but only generating sales from friends and family. They’re seeking low-cost marketing strategies due to budget constraints.

Current situation:

  • Inconsistent social media posting
  • Limited sales beyond personal network
  • Tight advertising budget

Advice provided:

  • Increase social media posting frequency and consistency
  • Focus on SEO optimization (both require significant time investment)
  • Explore local networking opportunities to expand personal connections
  • Set realistic expectations: organic growth through social media and SEO typically takes longer than 6 months to show results

The discussion emphasizes that without an advertising budget, there’s no quick solution—success will require sustained effort in content creation and relationship building.

Summarized with AI on November 1. AI used: claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929.
1

I’ve launched my Shopify store about 6 months ago, I’m selling skincare products. I haven’t been getting sales except from friends and family. I do post on social media but I wouldn’t say I’m consistent. I have a tight budget so I’m just wondering if there are ways to get traffic and sales without spending too much money on ads and marketing

thank you!

2

Friends and family are a great place to start. Your social media posting should seriously ramp up. Unfortunately, without an advertising budget there is no fast way to drive traffic to your website. Social media and SEO can work but take a lot of time and consistency. Six months is a very short time for these efforts to pay off. You may find local networking opportunities are a lot more effective. Since you’re relying on your personal network for sales now, it sounds like you need to expand your personal network as much as possible.