How many are the challenges of marketing a business? Let us count the ways.
Trying to count all your business’s challenges will leave you running out of fingers!
Often, businesses grapple with lack of time, limited budgets, and/or lack of marketing chops. This makes it tricky to maintain consistency with marketing and gain traction.
If you’re facing any of these obstacles yourself, this is where free marketing tools can come into play and save the day. So we’ve compiled the top free marketing tools for all your needs including:
- SEO marketing tools
- Content creation tools
- Social media marketing tools
And more!
Table of contents
Click to jump to free marketing tools that fit your business’s needs:
- SEO tools
- Content creation tools
- Social media marketing tools
- Conversion rate optimization tools
- More free marketing tools
While every marketing tool on our list today is free, we’ll include any upgrade prices as well as key details like what each tool offers in their free version and how you can best use them.
Free SEO marketing tools to dominate search results
While it’s a long game, SEO is an effective way to get and keep more eyes on your business and content. Here are three SEO tools that you’d be smart to try.
1. thruuu
At its core, SEO is about understanding what your target market wants to know and delivering it.
Search engines understand both what info searchers are after and what content does the best job of providing it. So you can’t create content just to appease search engines. You also have to understand and deliver what potential visitors to your website need. That’s where thruuu comes in.
This marketing tool gives overviews of the pages shown in search results for keywords you want to target. They reveal what topics your content must cover to be on par with the pages that are already ranking.
From there, you can make your content more interesting and beneficial for searchers to boost your chances of appearing in relevant search results.
Pricing: The basic version of thruuu is free with limited features. But if you create a free account, there are no feature limitations and you can perform up to 10 searches monthly. Then, if needed, you can buy more credits, which start at $10.
2. WordStream Free Keyword Tool
Local keyword research is half the battle when it comes to marketing your business via SEO. Not only does WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool help you find the terms you need for success, but it also provides strategic advice along the way.
The ease of use of this program makes it a go-to keyword research tool for small businesses looking for a quick yet effective keyword solution. You can simply plug in your website or a term to start with, and the tool will spit back relevant keyword suggestions along with search volume, competition, and even cost per click (CPC) estimations.
If you’re in a niche market, this particular free marketing tool can come in handy because it allows you to filter by location and industry as well.
Pricing: Free! (It’s in the name!)
Related: For more keyword tips, download our complete guide to local keywords.
3. Ahrefs Webmaster Tools
For those that don’t have the marketing budget or bandwidth to work on the technical side of their SEO strategy, Ahrefs Webmaster Tools (AWT), can be a breath of fresh air. This free marketing tool is meant to fill in the gaps of Google Search Console by auditing your site to catch over 100 possible SEO issues. You’ll also be able to quickly see what other sites are linking back to your business, and get insights into your top-performing keywords.
Pricing: Free!
4. LOCALiQ Marketing Lab Local SEO course
With SEO, or any marketing channel for that matter, there’s always more to learn. That’s why we thought it’d only be fitting to mention a free, online learning tool for SEO. Whether you’re an SEO pro or a business just starting out, this local SEO course walks you through the basics of SEO complete with best practices, the benefits of SEO, and measurement tactics.
Pricing: Free!
Handy free marketing tools for content creation and distribution
There’s no argument. Content marketing is one of the most popular options for small business marketing. Are you investing in it? Here are a handful of tools you’ll want in your arsenal.
5. CoSchedule Headline Studio
Headlines are the first things people see when they come across the content you produce. If they aren’t enticing, they’ll also be the only things people see (because no one will take the time to read your content).
To get your headlines right and get people interested in what you have to say, use CoSchedule Headline Studio. This free marketing tool scores headlines based on word choice, headline type, length, and other factors. While not a replacement for good judgment, Headline Studio can help refine your ideas.
Pricing: With some limitations, you can use Headline Studio for free. The Premium plan, which includes smart suggestions, a word bank, and SEO scores starts at $9 per month.
6. Grammarly
Regardless of whether your business needs to build out an entire content strategy, or simply create copy for your website, Grammarly is a must-have free marketing tool. Especially as almost 60% of people won’t buy from a company with grammatical errors or spelling mistakes in their marketing materials!
As you draft material online, Grammarly catches grammatical errors and spelling mistakes that can be too often overlooked. Plus, the tool reads through your content for contextual adjustments or suggestions to help ensure your customer-facing copy is as clear and concise as possible. Getting started with Grammarly is speedy, too, as you can sign up online and add it to your browser for future writing help.
Pricing: Grammarly offers a free version that hits all your basic spelling and grammar bases. There are also premium ($12 per month) and business ($15 per month) versions that provide extended vocabulary suggestions and features for groups or teams.
7. Missinglettr Curate
Creating quality content consistently is smart but only if you also commit to consistent content distribution. To help with distribution, there’s a handy tool called Missinglettr Curate. One of its two functions is to make it easy to get your content shared by others on social media.
Just add a blog post or other piece of content to the Missinglettr library along with social share text. People whose audiences may enjoy your content then schedule it to be shared on their social media accounts.
This can be a quick way to get your content in front of a wide audience of people likely to be interested in it. Especially if you’re new to content creation or not getting much traffic on your own.
Pricing: Missinglettr has free and inexpensive paid plans for sharing content from other publishers with your audience. To promote your own content like we’ve been talking about, though, you’ll need the Curate add-on, which is $49 a month.
Free social media marketing tools
Social media marketing (SMM) is a powerful way to stay connected to potential and current customers. Here are two of the best tools to help you do both effectively.
8. Later
Later acts as an all-in-one social media calendar for small businesses looking to pump out content for major social media holidays and more. The social media solution gives businesses the option to post on up to six platforms: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, TikTok, and Linkedin.
It also includes a nifty media library that makes accessing all your images and videos a breeze, as well as a social media landing page build-out option so you can add links to your bios.
Pricing: You can start with Later with all of the above amenities for free. If ever you consider upgrading for paid features, you can try any of the solution’s other plans starting at $15 per month and capping off at $80 per month.
9. Canva
Research shows that people respond positively to visuals both on social media and in general. They promote engagement. And they make the info you share and, by extension, your business more memorable.
To create visuals that bring you those benefits, use Canva. Known for its user-friendliness and a massive library of design options, it can help you create eye-catching social content.
Pricing: Canva’s free plan is pretty robust but its paid plans offer even more for as little as $12.99 per month.
10. LOCALiQ Marketing Lab Local Social Media Marketing course
A common challenge for small businesses is knowing where to start when it comes to social media marketing. Marketing Lab can lead the way for your business with its Local Social Media Marketing course. The free online learning tool gives businesses a step-by-step look at social media marketing. Plus, the course walks through how they can best achieve and measure their success on social platforms.
The best part about this course is that it doesn’t just explain the concepts behind social media marketing but also gives concrete examples and ideas for what to post on each channel.
Pricing: Free!
Cool (and free!) conversion rate optimization tools
No matter what tactics are part of your small business marketing strategy, you’ll need a conversion rate optimization tool of some sort. After all, it’s essential to understand how well your marketing is going and what you can do to improve it. Two marketing tools can help with that.
11. Google Analytics
Proper setup of Google Analytics can take a second to learn, as can interpretation of data. But Google Analytics is a top way to measure the effectiveness of your marketing and to get to know your customers better. So it’s worth having set up, even if you need to take Google’s free training or enlist expert help to get the most value from it.
Pricing: The free version of Google Analytics can give you a wealth of insights to inform your marketing. For most small to mid-sized businesses, it’s sufficient.
12. WordStream Google Ads Grader
Your Google Ads strategy plays a major part in how your business converts audience members into leads. Without a strong Google Ads account, your business won’t be able to move potential customers through the sales funnel. Ensure your Google Ads account is healthy with WordStream’s Google Ads Grader.
This free tool instantly audits your account to identify key areas for optimization. Plus, you’ll be able to see how you stack up against competitors. That way, you can make data-backed decisions to improve your conversion optimization strategy.
Pricing: Free!
BONUS: must-have free marketing tools for other key channels
With more online marketing tools becoming available by the day, this is a short list by comparison. Yet, there are a handful of other tools across various aspects of marketing that also deserve a mention.
13. LOCALiQ Website Grader
If you’re looking for a free marketing tool that can provide solutions to multiple challenges all in one easy click, look no further than the LOCALiQ website grader.
This free marketing tool allows you to simply paste in your website URL to unlock a plethora of optimization tips. The grader instantly audits key components within your website to ensure your business is doing everything possible for a maximized online presence.
If there are any areas of concern, the tool will provide actionable tips to improve. There couldn’t be a more important tool for local marketers out there because, after all, without a strong small business website and online presence you’ll never be able to turn prospects into customers!
Pricing: Free!
14. Mailchimp
Email is one of the most effective ways for businesses to keep in touch with and nurture their audiences. And Mailchimp is one of the most popular email marketing tools that makes it possible. It’s an all-in-one platform that includes audience management, email automation, and more.
Pricing: The company offers a free plan and paid plans starting at just $9.99 per month.
15. ClickUp
ClickUp is a versatile marketing tool that can help you handle many aspects of your marketing including task management, content planning and creation, goal tracking, and so on. If you’re looking to minimize the number of tools you leverage, or you’re in need of a one-stop shop for marketing, ClickUp covers most of what you’ll need to execute projects efficiently without needing a ton of additional resources.
Pricing: ClickUp offers both a free plan and paid plans starting at $9 per month.
16. Google Business Profile
If you have a brick-and-mortar business that you’d like to bring more foot traffic to, a claimed and optimized Google Business Profile listing is essential. Google Business Profiles can make your business more easily discoverable on places like Google maps and more. Google My Business can also encourage people to investigate what you offer and even to become customers.
Pricing: Since Google My Business is free, there’s no reason not to have a listing there!
How to know which small business marketing tool is right for you
With these tools, it’ll be easier for you to ensure that your marketing efforts are worthwhile. Just imagine the time and money you could save.
We reviewed a ton of low-cost and free options your business can benefit from. Now, all you have to do is decide which one is best for your business. The key to choosing an online marketing tool for your small business is to look at your big-picture goals and objectives. Take a step back to evaluate your priorities and the answer will be clear as day. No matter what marketing channel you’re looking to streamline, there’s a tool out there for you!
To recap, here are the top marketing tools for small businesses for…
SEO:
- Thru
- WordStream Free Keyword Tool
- Ahrefs
- LOCALiQ
content creation:
- CoSchedule
- Grammarly
- Missinglettr
social media:
- Later
- Canva
- LOCALiQ
CRO:
- Google Analytics
- WordStream Google Ads grader
Miscellaneous marketing needs:
- LOCALiQ Website Grader
- Mailchimp
- ClickUp
- Google Business Profile
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