Owner: MyStrategicMarketer.com URL:blog.mystrategicmarketer.com Join Date: Mon, 19 Feb 2007 22:53:28 -0600 Rating:0 Site Description: Helping authors, speakers, coaches, trainers and other independent professionals develop a marketing gameplan to grow their business. Site statistics:Click here
Radio Publicity: Right for you? 2006-11-15 03:13:22 I was going through some miscellaneous folders on my desktop today and I came across a great blurb that I want to share with you!
Publicity can be a useful marketing strategy if you have a well-developed platform that is getting some traction in the marketplace (see my last blog entry for more on the publicity strategy). If you have your troops mobilized to capitalize on your publicity efforts, consider that the first step toward being a guest on these shows is coming up with your angle or pitch.
Here are three hooks guaranteed to grab a producer's attention:
Be controversial or talk about a controversial topic. Producers LOVE anything that gets their phone lines going. And nothing does the trick like a good argument.
Be entertaining. If you can make people laugh and tell them fascinating stories, you'll always be in demand as a radio guest.
Be informative. Give people useful, timely information. Give them stuff that makes them say, Wow! That's amazing! I did Read more:Radio
, Right
Is the Publicity Strategy right for me? 2006-11-01 19:36:57 I've been talking to quite a few clients lately about the publicity strategy: Will it help me grow my business? How do I know if it's the right strategy for me? How do I choose a good publicist?
The publicity strategy is typically implemented by hiring either a press release writer, a publicist, or an article submissions firm to generate media coverage (broadcast media interviews or publication in online / print media) for your platform (book, consulting, expert status, etc).
There are so many factors that determine your success with the publicity strategy. First, say you are interviewed by a high-profile news program, like the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric. Can you expect your phone to ring with new business? How do you leverage this exposure? What can you expect if the Wall Street Journal prints one of your articles?
Media coverage rarely causes your phone to ring with people wanting to hire you. If you get a couple of Read more:Strategy
Does anyone read their mail anymore?! 2006-09-12 06:31:18 Direct mail can be a very powerful medium for promoting and growing your business, but it's a medium that for some, gets mixed results. If you're throwing spaghetti against the wall to see what will stick (ie offering to be "all things to all people" or targeting the whole world with your solutions because "everyone needs them!"), direct mail definitely isn't for you. But it can be ... if you get clear on what you offer, who you serve best, and how they want to buy or be served.
Consider that poor direct mail results can typically be traced to one of a three basic problems:
1. Your mail isn't getting to the decision maker. If your mail is being intercepted by a gatekeeper and isn't reaching the decision maker, you're dead in the water. There are a couple of ways of combating this problem, but the BEST way is getting on the telephone. Most direct mail campaigns start with a list of business owners or associations, and that
What's in it for ME? 2006-08-31 17:40:29 The purpose of business is to create a customer.--Peter Drucker
I was talking to a colleague the other day who is struggling to take his business to the next level. He's an IT guy who helps companies "maximize their technology dollars."
"I know when I stand up and say that I work with technology, 80% of the people in the room turn their brain off," he laments.
Ew! I think I might be one of those people. Talking about technology, to me, is stressful, frustrating, and frankly, B-O-R-I-N-G! This guy's service offerings really are fabulous; he's a best-kept secret because people "don't want to talk about it." Been there?
So what do you do when your prospects, though they NEED you, don't want to think about the problem(s) you can help them solve? In the new book I'm finishing (details coming soon!), we talk about this in detail: Before you can package your offerings, determine your marketing strategies or deve
My first presentation ... 2006-08-03 21:05:24 Last week, I did my first presentation
for the National Speaker's Association's Cavett Institute, and I had a bit of an epiphany ... anyone who knows me know that I don't love the idea of speaking in front of the room. I'd rather leave that to my clients. But there was something surreal about having people come up to you afterwards and say, "This is exactly what I've been looking for! I'm so glad you were here today." It redeems the panic attacks and makes your fears and apprehensions seem so small and irrelevant. Hopefully, there will be more presentations to come, and I'll learn to enjoy them.
For the presentation, I put together a workbook that outlines the process that we take our clients through to help them determine their Marketing Gamplan. It also guides us as we build their websites and other marketing tools. Since most of you weren't at the Cavett Institute, I want you to have it, too. You can download the &qu
A Solution to Email Delivery Problems 2006-06-12 20:42:58 I'm not sure if there's something in the water in Cyberspace, but whatever it is, it's been hassling my email lately and I've had random delivery problems galore. We aren't blacklisted, but we've had problems with emails bouncing back, emails not getting through but no bounced message, and more.
And to my chagrin, it seems that nothing we try fixes the problem.
Rather than bore you with all the solutions we tried that failed, or explain to you why we were having these problems in the first place (we aren't alone ... because of the increase of SPAM, incoming mail servers are getting pickier and pickier about how the email they accept must be set up, blacklisted or not), I think we've found the solution: www.dnsmadeeasy.com.
These people are dedicated to making sure your email gets through ... and they're some of the most respected email delivery experts in the industry. They offer a lot of services that can be confusing, so here's how you find the s Read more:Solution
, Email
, Delivery
The Seven Most Common Marketing Mistakes Speaker's Make 2006-05-10 22:26:19 Ever feel like you're spinning your wheels when it comes to marketing your business? It can be both an exciting and scary endeavor, even for those of us that have been doing it for a while. A few wrong moves can hinder your best efforts. I've written a new article called "The Seven
Most CommonMarketing
Mistakes Speaker
s Make" and thought I'd give you a little tease:
The Seven Most Common Marketing Mistakes
Speakers Make
Spending time and money on marketing tools before establishing a business development strategy
Speaking on multiple topics--targeting a broad audience
Approaching key decision-makers before it's time
Undervaluing or overvaluing your products services or programs
Getting an assistant or administrator to do your "dirty work" (ie misdiagnosing your marketing problem)
Spending investment dollars in the wrong places
Losing the game in your mind
You can read the full article here.
We're taking the plunge ... 2006-04-14 19:17:48 So we've decided to take the plunge
into the wide world of blogging ... and we're quite excited about it, I might add! There are so many things that I want to share with people just like you who are trying to grow their business: things I'm learning, new distinctions we come up with when we're coaching our clients, great resources that I think will serve you as you're growing your business ... this is the perfect forum for us. So welcome aboard! It's going to be a fun journey!
What's in it for me? Why people buy ... 2007-04-04 22:30:11 I just read a great article on search engine optimization that touched on the key component of great marketing: Connecting with people
and why they buy. Great copy isn't about "you", though I'm sure you're great! J It's about your customer and what *they* want, what *they* are struggling to figure out, or what pain or frustration they want to get rid of.
Consider that people will buy:
to save money
to make money
to save time
to make life easier
to improve their safety
Connecting your offering with these important triggers will help your prospects to see that you have the solutions they're looking for. The copy on your website, direct mail postcard, and the back of your book should help your customers see how you can solve their problems. You want people to read your copy and leap inside! Yes, this could be what I’ve been looking for!
Are people responding well to your print and web materials? How does your copy connect?
Som
Who Are You, Really? 2007-04-30 21:22:10 As independent professionals, many of us consider being
successful and making money as the "litmus test" of our success as we
contribute to the world ... we ultimately want to make a difference, to live
our passions everyday and to find fulfillment as we make our mark on the world.
It's amazing how owning our own businesses often tries our
conviction--the very nature of the process tries our souls, reveals our
insecurities and our fears, and exposes our demons.
I love the inaugural speech Nelson Mandela gave when he
became president of South Africa. I think this is especially important
for us to remember as we persevere through this journey:
Our deepest fear is not that we are
inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our Light, not our darkness,
that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant,
gorgeous, talented, and fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to
be?
Move beyond silent desperation to grow your business! 2007-06-28 17:29:22
I locked myself in the basement for two weeks working on the
new program, “Marketing YOU! A comprehensive marketing philosophy for growing
your business.”
There was one area that I think is so crucial to this philosophy that I developed an information-packed
report just for you. Here’s a sneak
peek …
Manipulation-free Marketing
What you need to know to book new business *almost* effortlessly!
I’ve been looking for a new dining room table, and I’ve
discovered that I dread walking into furniture stores. It’s like walking
onto a used car lot. Eyes following your every move, people waiting to
catch your attention so they can “introduce themselves” and “help you find
something.” If you’re like me, you just want to look around. If I
see something I like, I’m not shy about asking for help.
Wouldn’t it be nice if you could just peek in the window,
see if there’s a dining room table that piques your interest, and if n Read more:beyond
Is your busyness killing your business? 2007-09-27 15:21:39 So, have you been busy lately?
If you’re like most independent professionals, the answer is a resounding “YES!” Between answering the phone, responding to email, managing details for multiple projects, checking to-dos off your lists, keeping up with Quickbooks, running to the bank, dropping packages off at the post office, you’re lucky to have time for lunch!
For many business owners, the busyness isn’t translating into depositing more checks, which is the point of all this busyness, right?
Can you relate? Do you ever feel like you are just too busy to market your business?
It’s the classic conundrum: There is so much to do that you don’t have time to do what is most important: find new customers. Hey, I ain’t pointing fingers … I can be just as guilty as the next guy. Our busyness can be our doom if we aren’t careful.
So what does the busy one-man-show super-businessperson do to avoid the busyness trap?
Download Is your b
Taking great headshots 2007-11-08 11:22:12 When
it was time for me to get my first headshots done, I was a nervous wreck. I don’t really consider myself photogenic, I
had no idea how to “take good pictures,” I instantly spot all of my “flaws” and
tend to be relentless with the self-criticism, thinking, “Gawd, I hope all
these pics don’t end up with fat face.” “My hair looks so flat and blah, I hate it.” “That angle makes me look gi-normous!”
I
know, I know: my headshot looks fine
(three good shots out of 100, or so I told myself). And I can’t believe how much I’ve used it …
it goes on everything! My articles,
books, press releases, websites … for the independent professional, it is a
crucial part of our branding. A good
picture should showcase your energy, help you seem interesting to your
customers, and give off a warm, inviting air.
I
didn’t bring a stylist to my first shoot, but I did talk to some of my friends
in the entertainment industry (whom I know Read more:Taking
Help! They aren't paying attention to me! 2008-06-19 13:28:38 When was the last time you had a bad experience with a pushy telemarketer, or a clueless store associate, or an intimidating car salesman? These experiences have an interesting affect on us … they can trick us into thinking that... Read more:attention
How do I find good customers? 2008-08-26 12:23:07 I looked around the room at the earnest faces staring back at me. I had given the How Should I Market Myself? presentation earlier that morning, and during the afternoon breakout session, the attendees were starting to “get it,” and... Read more:customers
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