"Small Business Marketing Magic"
By Bonnie Jo Davis
Once upon a time, in 1969, there was a young woman who had a dream
of starting her own company. She had ideas, talent and work ethic to
spare but what she didn't have was cash. After careful research she
found that marketing would cost more than all the other aspects of
her business combined. Out came the credit cards, family loans and
savings. After a few months the woman realized that she had
mortgaged her future to the hilt and she still couldn't make enough
money to buy her way out of debt. Sadly, she closed up shop and went
back to a job she hated at an uncaring corporation.
Fast-forward thirty years and meet a young man working at an
insurance company who dreamed of starting his own small business as
a financial planner. He had the education and experience but what he
didn't have was cash. The year is 1999 and after a few weeks of
research the young man realized that marketing and promotion were
vital to the success of his business. However, the young man knew
about a magical method of promotion that wasn't available to the
young woman in 1969. What was the magical method he used to start
his business part-time and build it into a full-time thriving
practice after six months? The answer, of course, is the internet!
It's true that the internet seems like a capricious magician
that selectively waves a magic wand over some small businesses.
However, the reasons for this became glaringly clear to the
young man after he completed his research. He discovered that
success is garnered by avoiding scams such as "business
opportunities" that seem too good to be true. In addition to hard
work and patience he stayed away from spam, Free For All Links (FFAs),
pyramid schemes, network marketing, sweepstakes and investment fraud.
He used
http://www.scambusters.org to avoid anything that remotely
resembled a scam.
The young man developed a marketing plan focusing on the
internet and after six months he found the following free or nearly
free strategies worked best:
Press Releases - Particularly helpful if the release is tied to
an upcoming holiday or a recent event.
Creating Content - Offering articles and case studies is by far the
most reliable way to find clients and brand yourself as an expert in
your field.
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Sidebar
For the best guide on how to create content, please read,
Make Your
Content Presell by Dr. Ken Evoy, whose
small family
business is now in the top 300 sites in the
World Wide Web
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Book Reviews - Some on-line books stores like Amazon.com allow you
to post reviews of books you've read. These reviews will be tied to
an "About Me" page that can include information about you and your
business and your URL.
Forums - Joining forums that cover your area of expertise is a good
move. Help people by answering questions about your topic and
include your URL in your signature.
Testimonials - Wise marketers ask every existing client for
testimonials to be used on their website and/or printed
marketing material.
Newsletters - Keeping in touch with customers and prospects with an
on-line e-zine is a good way to build a steady stream of loyal
clients.
Teleseminars - A small investment in a bridge line allows a
group of people to sign up for a free or fee based seminar on
your area of expertise.
Referrals - Proactively asking clients for referrals works better if
they are offered a discount on products or services in return.
Solo E-zine Ads - Solo ads are an advertisement or article sent by
itself to a list of newsletter readers. Many solo ads are
competitively priced and offer a generous amount of room for your
message.
The young man learned a lesson that we can all appreciate.
There are no "get rich quick schemes" that work on or off-line.
The only way to prosper hasn't changed over time... build client
relationships with hard work and excellent customer service.
Cultivate patience and find your own internet magic by following in
the footsteps of the young man.
(c) 2005, Davis Virtual Assistance. All rights in all media
reserved.
Bonnie Jo Davis is a Virtual Assistant and Publications Coordinator.
She has been using her favorite marketing technique, article
submissions, for herself and her clients for
over ten years with great success. Let Bonnie teach you what she has
learned and you too can profit from her experience.
Visit
Article
Submission Sites for more information today!
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