There are so many options for marketing your business.
Should you write articles? Publish an ezine? Blog? Get on Twitter? Facebook? LinkedIn? Distribute flyers? Mail out postcards? Hold workshops? Present workshops or speeches? Do in person networking? Network online? Do joint ventures? Radio ads? Contests? Teleclasses? Work with charities? Write a magazine column?
It’s important to know yourself and to acknowledge who you are and what you enjoy when you create your marketing plan.
As a mother working from home my time is extremely limited and I don’t have any time to waste when it comes to marketing. I need to find and do only what works. The wrong methods would mean wasted time away from my children and more stress (really, if I had to go to an in person networking event I’d be a ball of stress for days beforehand and that’s not a good choice for me). There’s no law that says you have to market one specific way or you’ll fail. Not everyone communicates well in certain mediums and marketing is about effectively communicating how you can help someone. So pick the right tactics!
It doesn’t matter so much what you label yourself, the important thing is just that you know who you are, how you communicate well, and what situations you’re comfortable with.
If you want a test, there’s a free one here: http://humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes1.htm
Here are some examples to help illustrate:
Do you enjoy writing? Write some reports and distribute them free. Or write articles and place them on ezinearticles.com and other sites. Try blogging, an ezine, or other writing centered tactics.
Do you enjoy getting to know new people and spending time in groups? Go to the local mom’s hangouts, library story times, where ever your target market is and make friends! Then share a business card. Social networking might also be a great fit for you.
Are you a graphics/print design whiz? Throw together some rockin’ flyers then get out there and hang them up. Or make a few cool blinkies with messages your target market would love, then setup a MySpace page and give the blinkies away free.
Love to teach and motivate people? Try offering a free teleseminar about something related to your products or services.
Are you great at explaining and demonstrating how things work? Think of something related to your product or service you can demonstrate, record a video of it, and distribute it on YouTube. This can work especially well if you can think of a creative way to add an element of mystery or humor to it.
Don’t worry about following some checklist of the “right” marketing methods – you need to start with the methods that work for your personality and your products. You’ll find that it’s easier and more fun (which means you’re more likely to stick with it) if it’s something you enjoy and not something you dread.
Once you’ve got a good grasp of what works for you, you’ll also be able to expand into other marketing tactics in smart ways. For example, if you know you hate writing but you want to do an ezine, there’s more than one way to accomplish it. You can hire a ghostwriter or use articles from sites like www.ezinearticles.com or www.wahm-articles.com, or do a video or audio article and link to it in your newsletter. Be creative!
Challenge this week: Brainstorm a list of the things you enjoy and are good at, then keep that in mind as you consider different marketing tactics. Give yourself permission to market in a way that feels right to you and to drop the activities off your list that make you cringe or lose sleep. Not only is it okay to be yourself when it comes to marketing–it will help you get better results!
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