This is Freedom from Fear of Speaking Week. It should be “Speak Out for Business Success” week, because public speaking is such a crucial activity for any small business person.  I know, you didn’t sign up for this when you started your business, and I know that public speaking is the number one fear of everyone, ahead of death and snakes.  (I figure public speaking is scarier than death because if you are dead you don’t know/care if people are making fun of you.)
Why Speaking is Important. If you want people to know about your business, you have to …read more

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Is your business recognizing the holiday? I don’t mean giving your employees the day off, but do you have special holiday sales or events?

Many people love holidays and smart business owners take advantage of this fact by providing reasons to celebrate – buying something special from their business, that is.
As you can see by the BizFact, a fair percentage of people will recognize the holiday with a special dinner or by going to a restaurant or bar.  But there are lots of other possibilities for your business to link to a holiday.
A local quilt shop, for …read more

Unless you are NEW, you are boring.  You have to keep re-inventing yourself.  The best way to keep customers coming back to your small business is to be constantly creating something new and exciting.  You may be thinking, “My products and services are exciting,”  But if you aren’t creating something new, you are not going to survive.
Case in point: I love Z-Coil shoes.  I I have arthritis in my knees, and these shoes have helped me be able to walk comfortably; in fact,  they keep me from having surgery.  Over the past couple of years, I have purchased almost every …read more

[photo: ourdailybreadmealstogo.com]
As a work-from-home mom, my marketing challenges are often related to finding my clients and assessing their needs. Unlike a brick-and-mortar business, clients don’t come to me – – I have to go to them. And couple that with a service industry like the one I provide (church marketing and professional speaking), the challenges broaden and become a bit harder to define.
Knowing what your customers want can be simple and not so simple. Sure you can ask questions and perform market research analyses, but will that give you a true picture of their needs? Perhaps so, perhaps not. The …read more

by Guest Poster: Susan Gunelius
Today I am featuring a guest poster whom I have had the pleasure of working with for only a short while. She is one of my fellow bloggers here at b5media and is also a peer blogger of mine over at Know More Media. A very detailed and thorough writer, Susan Gunelius brings a fresh, innovative voice to the world of branding and marketing and keeps readers’ attention by weaving her own insights and opinions into the principles of marketing. Although Susan is a very busy blogger, author, writer and mom (to triplets!), she took time …read more

Who doesn’t like free lunches? Everyone does! Call one of your clients up and tell them you’d like to treat them to lunch. They’ll love it! You decide the winning factors, i.e.,
The Best Client
The Worst Client (that should get some orders!)
The Client Who Hasn’t Ordered In A While
The Fairly New Client
You get the idea. The point is to get your name and your business in front of them. The client will think they’re just getting a “free lunch” but what you’re doing is actually setting the stage for future business. Trust me…I’ve tried this and it does work.
Oh, one …read more

Today’s marketing tip is a BOGO: Buy One Get One Free.
This works great if you have a professional service to offer such as personal services (massage, hair stylist, makeup artist, etc.), consulting, accounting, web design or tax services. This is how it works: For every hour (or whatever block of time you choose) the client purchases services from you, they get one hour free of charge. Don’t worry about it sounding or being perceived as cheesey. The client will be more attuned to your fine level of professionalism than your marketing strategies. Use this strategy perhaps on a client who …read more

Welcome to Monday!
Today’s marketing tip is a revisit on something we all know about but have gotten away from:
Letter Writing. Or, more specifically, note writing.
When you visit a client or make a sales call, always follow-up the visit with a handwritten note. Not typed. Not emailed. Handwritten. The personal touch is nice and it shows the client that you care.
Invest in a writing pad of nice, linen paper with matching envelopes and keep them in your briefcase or car for quick notewriting before you leave the parking lot. Also, keep a roll of stamps with you as well. All …read more

As part of a regular series, each Monday I will post a business marketing idea or strategy that will help you in your business. These tips will be designed for business women of course, but can be used by anyone who is in business for themselves, work in corporate America or is employed in any industry where marketing skills are key.
Most of the marketing tips that I will bring you will come from my own experience, but I welcome any and all tips from any of you readers that you feel will benefit us all. As part of this campaign, …read more