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Marketing Advice: What Not to Do

Tue, 08 Jun 2010 22:33:00 -0400

Marketing advice: what not to do

Megan Tough. www.flyingsolo.com.au

None of us want to struggle with marketing, and yet it continues to create problems for many solo professionals. Here's seven pieces of solo and small business marketing advice that reveal common marketing mistakes.

1. Lack of a marketing mindset

We don't see ourselves as in the marketing game. The truth is, if you are out there running a business, thinking like a marketer has to become your priority. It's no use having a great service if nobody knows about it, or you. You need to be not just comfortable talking about what you do and offer, you need to get other people excited about it, too.

2. Lack of investment

For many solopreneurs, the focus on cost control prohibits you from ever investing enough money into marketing and promotion. These activities are seen as costs rather than as an investment. I encourage you to reframe your attitude towards marketing. Once you know what marketing activity to do, and have confidence that it will bring results, spend the money enthusiastically.

3. Lack of focus

Perhaps you do spend time and money on marketing, but you aren't happy with the results. Or your efforts are ad-hoc rather than carefully planned. Whatever it is, it's time to take charge. If what you are doing isn't working - stop doing it! Ask a professional for help, not your friends or associates. If an ad-hoc approach is the problem, take the time to complete an actual marketing plan and become ruthlessly systematic.

4. Lack of over-riding marketing strategy

Marketing activity and tactics are all well and good but it is like driving a rudderless ship if there is no grander plan. Your goal may be to have sales of $150,000 or $50 million. Or you may want to revolutionise your industry. Or you may want your company to be acquired within five years. Part of creating a marketing strategy is to clearly understand exactly where you are right now, and where you want to be.

5. Not surrounding ourselves with the right people

All of the great books on success advocate spending time with people who are already successful at what you want to do. Why? So you can absorb the attitudes and values that made them successful, as well as picking up new strategies and ideas. So if you are hanging out with people who also lack a marketing mindset then it's time to think about expanding your professional network to include those who are already down the track to success.

Marketing is more of an art than a science. Often times you learn by systematically trying different activities and approaches. The experts don't always have all the answers and this is exactly why you need to give plenty of personal attention to make sure your marketing is working as hard as it possibly can.

If you want to get serious about success in business, then understanding small business marketing is an ongoing priority.

Starting Social Media

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0500

Still ignoring social media? You can’t avoid it anymore. It’s time to get involved. It's for the health of your business. So where do you start?

Getting involved in social media means understanding a couple of things:

Align to your brand. No matter what social technology tool you get involved with, you need to stay true to your brand. It’s a marathon, not a sprint. Getting involved with the social media world is like going to your weekly networking meeting. People have to get to know you before they start sending you business. Don’t spruik sale pitches at every .

One Social Tool to Begin

Blogging, social networking, podcasting or video: What tools do you use? Look at the different tools that are available and see what fits. Although social media isn’t costly, it does take a significant amount of time to do it right.

Blogs

You don’t have to launch a blog to be involved. Find a few blogs that reach your customer and start commenting on them. Remember,don’t sell; just be a communicator. Getting actively involved in a couple of blogs that relate with your customer and your industry will build relationships. Being involved will also help you decide if launching your own blog is the right strategy for you.

Social Networking

Linkedin,Facebook, Twitter or You Tube? There is a social network for every audience.Where is your customer? Take time to do some research and find the right group for you. Using a social network isn't all that different from going to a networking event. Be a giver, and people will respond. Listen to people, and you may find the social world to be one of your best marketing opportunities.

B31 Executive are social media experts and provide social media services for small to medium businesses. Find out more about them at www.b31.com.au

Create a Cookbook

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 23:26:00 -0500

So your school or community group needs to raise money, and you want to involve everyone to make your project a lasting community project? Fundraising cookbooks could be the perfect solution.

A cookbook fundraiser can be set up in two ways, either by buying pre-made books to sell (just a little bit boring), or by gathering your own recipes and then printing and selling them.

Consider printing the cookbooks in a magazine format, with beautiful glossy photographs.The great news is that this can be quite cost effective – similarly to the fundraising calendars, it’s possible to produce for around $5 per book througha custom publishing company and on-sell for at least double that price.

Selling books door to door is a tactic that has been adopted by schools, girl scouts and sporting groups for decades, but there are other ways. An excellent way to sell cookbooks is to go to local markets or and set up a small stand. By doing this you maximize the amount of people who will see and buy your book. Or consider booking space in your local shopping centre – as a community group, I’m sure shopping centre management would offer a great deal.

To createa book like this you will need recipes. Ask local businesses, and residents. Hold a cooking day where the recipes are made...and can be photographed by the professional photographer supplied by your custom publisher.

Make sure to get recipes in several different categories - soups, desserts, pasta, seafood,chicken, salads, red meat, to make your book appealing. Consider adding stories from contributors.

To find out more about creating a fundraising cookbook, contact us on0458133113 or at bek@sainformer.com

Raising Funds with a Calendar

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 18:23:00 -0500

When you need to raise funds, a fundraising calendar can be the solution...and a lot of fun too.

Calendars have the benefit of being able to generate your group money at 3 different touch points. Obviously the sale of each individual calendar to the end user, but money can also be generated earlier in the piece through selling “sponsorships”of particular months to local businesses and via selling of birthday listings for local children and residents throughout the calendar. In many cases the two latter sales options can generate the revenue needed to print the catalogue.

The best fundraising calendars feature locals. Whether photography of local monuments, sights or characters, children’s artwork or even a nude calendar of your sporting team, the calendars that sell feature district icons.

Pricing

The cost for your fundraising calendar will vary based on the quality of calendar you are looking for, the features you want in a calendar and the number of copies ordered. Pricing for a basic calendar should sit at around $5 per calendar* and could potentially be sold for $10 a calendar. Higher quality calendars can be sold for more.

Timing

It’s never too early to start planning your fundraising calendar. Good calendars that earn excellent returns take time to plan, photograph, sell advertising in, print and have ready to sell. If you’re producing a 12 month calendar ideally they will be available to sell from October. For those wanting to generate funds earlier don’t forget you could create a 16 month calendar, ora 12 month financial year calendar.

*Based on a 500 print run.

Feel free to contact us on 0458133113 to discuss whether or not a fundraising calendar would suit you.