Personal Marketing Strategies for Women in Business

Personal Marketing Strategies for Women in Business 

by Meredith Liepelt

Marketing is a basic skill that every woman in business should foster in order to remain on top of her game.  The goal of all marketing is to develop yourself into a valuable resource, thereby making your input, your service and your product a critical part of other people’s success.  It makes you more desirable, and this is important whether you are looking for your next client, a strategic partner or an alliance of some kind.    

One marketing battle that women struggle with is this:  Marketing makes them uncomfortable or at the worst, they think of it as dirty word!   As a person who thrives on marketing, I have given this a lot of thought and have spoken with several colleagues for their thoughts and opinions on this topic.  Below are some of the common themes that I uncovered along with strategies to reevaluate the role that marketing plays in your work.

Theme 1:  “I don’t know how to network effectively.”

This is the most common theme I hear from women.  This baffles me because by nature, women are relationship builders and at its very core, marketing is about building relationships.   To build relationships, you need to build a strong network of trusted business professionals from a variety of industries so that you can make and receive quality referrals.  Women sometimes have a negative connotation about the word “networking” or simply don’t understand how to network while maintaining their integrity.   Think of networking as “connecting” instead of “networking.”  It’s more about connecting people with the resources they need.  Everyone you meet either needs your services, knows someone who needs your services or can serve as a referral source.   Approach your next networking meeting with the goal of meeting three new people and finding out which category they are in for you.   It makes conversation and following up so simple!

Theme #2: “Marketing makes me feel phony and dirty.”

As women, we tend to share a need to be authentic.   Relationships based on false information are not worthy of us.    Consider the people with whom you do business -  your hairdresser, your favorite clothing boutique, your accountant.  I am willing to bet that these people have sharp skills and provide you with a quality service, otherwise you would not be going back to them.   Now, if they can provide you with a valuable service, charge you for it and even ask for referrals, why is it that you have a hard time doing the same?    When you find yourself in a rut, ask yourself, “How can I be honest about this situation?”  Once you answer this question, your decisions become very clear very quickly.

Theme #3: “I don’t know how to get started.”

There is no one “right” way to market yourself.   An easy way to start is to reach out to others and be genuinely interested in their businesses and their needs and make quality referrals when you can.  Use your relationship building skills in the context of marketing because this is in fact what you are doing.  Your goal is to build trust and respect of others so they will add you to their mental Rolodex of high-integrity service providers to refer business.   Part of personal marketing is simply “showing up,” meaning that you attend events or meet someone for lunch or coffee.   You must get out of your office and talk with people.   If you haven’t tried this approach yet, try it for a few months and you’ll be amazed at your results.

If you are one of the many women who feels negatively about marketing, I hope that this information will help you start to transform your ideas about personal marketing. 

© 2008 Meredith Liepelt, Rich Life Marketing

Meredith Liepelt, President of Rich Life Marketing, publishes ‘Smart Marketing,’  a free bi-weekly ezine featuring marketing tips, insider secrets and thought provoking articles designed to help  the busy female entrepreneur become known as an expert in her field, build trust with clients and prospects and generate more income than ever before.  Claim your free subscription and ecourse today at www.richlifemarketing.com.