Archive for February, 2009

Many small business owners and entrepreneurs think marketing and publicity is out of their reach, especially when they feel they can’t compete budget-wise with big corporations.

But I disagree. With the right amount of exposure in the right places, any small business can flourish and succeed.

March 7 is Be Heard Day (http://www.BeHeardDay.com), a way that small businesses can celebrate their own unique marketing efforts. The holiday was created in 2004, and recognized by New York State, Chase’s Calendar of Events and the Associated Press.

Be Heard Day calls attention to the 145+ million people who are either employed by a small business or is an independent professional in the United States. They’re the owners of the local grocery store, the employees of the small advertising agency, piano teachers and plumbers, business analysts and bakers, attorneys and artisans. The day urges these professionals to find their voice, tell their story and be heard through marketing and publicity.

Marketing is a key element in any small business, but it doesn’t need to break the bank.

Small businesses typically have a limited marketing budget if any at all. Does that mean you can’t succeed like the big guys? Absolutely not. It just means you have to think a little more creatively. And that’s what National Be Heard Day celebrates: creative tactics that helps the little guy grow and thrive.

To help small businesses owners, entrepreneurs, coaches, consultants and solo professionals owners,, here are just a few ideas to be heard on Be Heard Day:

• Write articles: Articles don’t have to be long; they just need to be informative. Writing articles gives you instant credibility, too. Submitting online, as well as offline, provides another good chance to get your name in print at no cost. Be sure to put your contact information in a contact resource box at the end of the article.
• Use your business cards: Think of your business card as a small billboard and start handing them out everywhere. Include them in all your correspondence – even in your bills!
• Public speaking: Speaking in front of an audience usually makes you an expert. People like to buy from experts. If they’re in your audience, then they’ll remember your expertise and come to you when they need your product or service. Speaking is free, and it’s just like making a sales call to many people at one time.
• Free reports: Offering a free report online is a good way to get an e-mail from prospects so you may market to them later. This is the whole basis of permission-based marketing, or opt-in lists. You can do the same thing offline.
• Build strategic alliances: Introduce yourself to other businesspeople who don’t compete with you but sell products or services to the same target audience. Offer to promote them if they promote you. Make sure they’re people you like and trust.

For more marketing tactics and tips, and to receive free gifts as part of the Be Heard Day celebration, go to www.BeHeardDay.com, which opens it’s doors on March 6!

It’s not just a rhetorical question.

Because in today’s Internet-driven world, your reputation could change in a flash.

You online reputation, even if you don’t think you have one, is as essential to you and your business. After all, there’s nothing more damaging than negative comments about you and your business.

What would happen to your business if one of your competitors started bashing you online and their posts started showing up above yours? What would happen if a disgruntled consumer started attacking your skill set or a your products on a blog or other site?

You see, most business transactions are preceeded by some sort of online search  for your company name. If you have a tarnished reputation online, you are likely losing business.

So you need to keep tabs on what’s out there. I use a few tools to do this for myself and my clients:

1. Google News Alerts – Put in the keywords you want (like your name or business name) and get emailed results as much as you want.
2. Serph – Tool that searches for all web mentions of a keyword.
3. Technorati – Pop in a keyword, and it delivers the top blogs that have it
4. TweetLater – It send  a report on the Twitter activity  for the keywords selected.

All of these are great free resources.

But the key is to monitor it daily. Because when you don’t, you might just miss the day when someone does say something negative and hurt your reputation.

Bill Gates once said, “If I was down to my last dollar, I’d spend it on public relations.”

And he’s not the only person who thinks getting publicity is a smart idea.

In this economic climate more people are cutting back on the many marketing tactics they have used previously – except one: PR.

The reason: in a recession, people who pull back on their marketing efforts are more likely to lose market share. And sincepublic relations includes so much more than just press releases and media relations, it’s a cost effective way of building a platform and reaching your target market.

The other PR tools company execs are turning to include: social media, case studies, white papers, websites, videos, and SEO.

Plus, since the economy is also effecting traditional media outlets, the time is ripe to get your messages out to the media. Reporters today don’t have the time like they used to and are looking towards others to help generate the news.

So how are you going to leverage public relations for your business?

It hear it all the time:

“I tried to do a press release once, but it never got any traction.”

Really? Just once?

Well, that explains it!

Like any marketing tool, the more you do it, the more likely you will get results. It’s that simple.

You see, PR needs to be approached strategically and consistently in order to work. You can’t try it just one time and expect amazing results. The impact of public relations builds over time.

The key is to create a good plan and stick with it.  And you can do it in three easy steps:

1. Find your voice. Figure out your platform and who your target market is.
2. Tell your story. Find out the tools that will be used to take your message to your target market.
3. Be Heard. Disseminate your news and information consistently to the right audiences at the right time.

I’ve been off the speakers circuit for a while. Sure, I’ve done a few teleclasses, but actually hitting the road and speaking wasn’t an option for me.

You see, I made the decision that I’d be as home as much as possible with my twin girls until they were in preschool. So now that they are three, I’m actively looking for speaking gigs.

I’m already booked for Troy White’s Wild West Wealth Conference (get on his email list to get an awesome discount to the event), and have  irons in the fire for a few more. (And if you know of anyone who might want a speaker on PR and publicity issues, please think of me. Thanks!)

But it’s one thing to land a speaking gig. It’s completely another thing to be able to use publicity to make the most of this opportunity.

You see, every speaking event is a chance to promote yourself and your business. But the best speakers know how to leverage their speaking engagements for additional publicity.

Use the following steps to strategically turn a speech or presentation into limitless exposure:

1. Initiate pre-event buzz. Get listed in local calendar of events where you will be speaking. Send out a media alert. Publicize it in your ezine and on your website.
2. Be on good terms with the event’s sponsor. The people in charge of the event are likely to generate their own publicity for the occasion. Ask them to recommend you to the media as an expert  to quote or even promote you directly to potential clients.
3. Write your own introduction. By doing so you can include things you would like to say about – or brag about – yourself without seeming like a walking advertisement.
4. Mention your business or product, as well as your expertise, every time you speak. No matter what the topic or audience, always let them know what you do and how it could benefit them. Being clear about your expertise and letting them know about it can generate positive references, potential clients and unexpected media coverage.
5. Offer to submit a summary to a newsletter. Whenever you speak for an organization, offer to submit a summary of what you covered for their newsletter. And don’t forget to include a photo and contact details.
6. Generate post-event buzz. After every event, send out a news release to your local media about your speech. Try to piggyback it on other headline, if you can.