Forget “exploit for your money”. You can promote yourself and your services for free with these simple self-promotion tips:

1. Create a signature line and add it to all outgoing email messages. Include your name, your company name or something to identify your services, your website address, and contact information. Make it easy for potential customers to contact you and pass your name on to others.

2. Actively participate in free email discussion lists and online forums related to your target market or area of ​​expertise. Asking questions makes you approachable, answering them gives you credibility, and reading other people’s comments is like a dozen free business and marketing courses rolled into one. Include your signature on each publication.

3. Submit your website to major search engines and indices: Google, MSN, Yahoo!, Open Directory, Looksmart and others. It’s not particularly difficult to do manually, but you may benefit from looking at a service like the one offered by Robert Woodhead at SelfPromotion.com. It provides simple information on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and explains the entire submission process. The articles and tips on the site are fantastic, and a free account there is, well, free!

4. Start a free subscription-based blog or email newsletter to build awareness, credibility and relationships, and to drive traffic to your website.

5. Write letters to the editor and opinion columns on topics that may interest your potential customers or establish you as an expert. Be sure to include your URL or professional email address in the author bio.

6. Sell or offer articles for newsletters and websites read by potential customers. Please include a bio that identifies your business and experience and include your email address and/or URL.

7. Write some short “evergreen” articles and submit them to content distributors like EzineArticles.com. You can earn a few bucks along the way, and your visibility will increase as your articles are reprinted by various publications.

8. Take advantage of PRWeb.com’s free press release distribution services to get your name out there and keep your business in front of your audience.

9. Visit Craigslist.org and post a short, well-written ad in the Services section of your city or region. Include a link to your website and use your real email address (not one of those anonymized ones).

Marketing doesn’t have to be expensive. Bite the bullet and shell out a few bucks for your website and a fresh batch of business cards every once in a while, but otherwise save your money for things that aren’t so easy to get for free.