If you're new to marketing on the internet you're probably wondering how you can generate leads on the internet for your business. And if you don't have a lot of cash to spend, you definitely need to learn how to generate leads effectively online for free. There are no longer any excuses for not generating your own quality leads.

Here are 5 of the best ways to generate leads online for free. Keep in mind that this is just a basic overview of my favourite strategies, I advise you to do your research before using one of these strategies.

1. Social Networking Sites (Facebook, Twitter etc)

I like using Social Media because it is easy to implement and won't cost a lot of time (although it can if you're not careful) Create a good, descriptive profile, start networking, and you could find some really good people to work with.

You shouldn't add and follow people for the hell of it. And don't bombard people with pitches. Reach out to people and provide them with value. It's all about building friendships with this strategy.

2. Video Marketing

People seem to have short attention spans these days and often they'd rather watch a video than read something. Videos also give you another way to connect with your audience - its almost as if you are talking to them face to face. Search engines also love videos, ranking them high in a short space of time.

Pick the right keyword, do a decent video for that keyword and you could be at the top of google listings for that particular keyword within a week. Write something that describes the video, include a link to your website and you'll have traffic that cost you nothing.

3. Marketing With Articles

This strategy is an awesome method to make you appear like an expert. Write about something you know. If you don't have anything to write, research a topic or company to write about. You don't need to be an expert, you just need to know more than the people who are reading your article. Link to a lead capture page or blog inside of your author's box. That's how you convert readers into leads.

4. Marketing With Forums

Forums are a great way to find quality people to work with and can also be a great source of information and ideas. Forums are very much a community, this is not the place to sell or promote. You have to offer value to the posts you make in the forum. Your reputation is something you need to build here. Provide information and solutions to the other members and they'll want to know more about you and how you can help them.

5. Blogging

I've included blogging because having a personal blog is a great way to brand yourself and for people to find out all about you. I like to think of it as sort of a central hub for your marketing efforts. Have your blog linked to from all of your Articles, Videos, Forums and Social Media Profiles. You can then link out to your Social Networking profiles such as Facebook, Twitter, Youtube etc for people to find even more about you. This gives potential prospects multiple sources to reach out to you. I really like the idea of all of your marketing strategies being integrated into a kind of central platform. And make sure you have a way for your visitors to become leads. Having a form in a sidebar next to your main posts is the best way to do this.

Final Word

Generating leads for free can be hugely beneficial but are a longer term strategy than paid methods. Don't panic if you haven't got any leads overnight. Be consistent, persistent and over time you could generate 50-100 leads per day all for free!