The very fact you are reading this article is proof you have the tools, the hunger to learn and the inclination to begin, run and market a small business.

Often we get distracted by all the financial investments we ‘must have’ in order to start an entrepreneurial venture, but that simple isn’t the case. Don’t get caught up in costs! If your business requires equipment such as tools, a massage table, etc, find someone who is selling a used but serviceable version. Don’t go out and take a loan for some latest-greatest gadget. Start small, work with cash and don’t go into debt.

But, you might argue, what about marketing? Don’t you have to spend money to make money? Absolutely not! There are tons of free services including free logo makers and free marketing software. To find out more try googling Open Office, Gimp, Scribus and CutePDF. Online print companies often do a wonderful job of offering good, cheap printing that is much more affordable than going to an office copy shop like Kinkos.

Again you might ask, what about pretty graphics? There are many, many places that offer free photos and clip art images. Obviously you should be aware that most images on the internet, like the ones you find with Google Image, are copyrighted, so don’t grab those for your brochure or you might face upwards of $100,000 in fines!

There are places that offer free images that are for ‘any use, including commercial'. For more information try MorgueFile or RGBStock. Consider also taking your own photos and creating an image library for future promotions. There’s nothing quite like your own images and, with free photo editing programs, you can edit, crop and manipulate your images as much as you like.

A website might be a small financial investment, but with a little shopping you can get a domain, a hosting service and custom email addresses for as little as $50 total for the whole year. When creating a website, try to make it as relevant as possible. Add lots of content, how-tos and opinion articles on things important to your industry and your customers. The more content you have, the better your site will show up to search engines and the more often it will show up.

Even if all you have is still photos, consider using free software to create a promotional video of your business and posting it on YouTube and your website. Additionally building and maintaining a Facebook and Twitter account with also improve your visibility to the community.

Simplfying marketing and design isn't impossible. It is well within your grasp. Get empowered with the basic principles of selling and design so you understand how to communicate more effectively.