Tag Archives: public relations

Writing About What You Do

Promoting a business often means telling the story about what you do and what your business is all about. Many business owners feel comfortable doing just about anything EXCEPT writing. Whether you fear your spelling skills or seize up when you see a blank screen or piece of paper, it might be that writing about what you do is the hardest thing you have to face as a business owner. Since this can be such a great way of promoting your business, however, it might be worth your while to learn how to write about what you do. Writing articles … Continue reading →

Make Announcements about Your Business

When you hear the word “announcement” perhaps you think of a town crier with a huge megaphone hollering and making big sensational statements? Or, perhaps, you think of a simple press release that states a story or new development? It is important that we incorporate the use of announcements into how we market our home business. In fact, many businesses make very good use of keeping regular announcements about their latest developments, sales, and other details in front of the public eye. The great thing about announcements in the business realm is that they can be incredibly brief and simple … Continue reading →

Bring it Back to Target Marketing

Lately, I have been doing a fair amount of writing about customer service and personal relationship here in the Home Business blog. I realized, however, that when it comes to running a home business—if someone was to ask me how to get a business back on track, I would probably advise that she bring her efforts back to targeting her marketing and efforts. When in doubt, pay attention to your target market and figure out how to reach them and cultivate those prospects. Of course, this requires that you actually take the initial step and identify what your target market … Continue reading →

When You Really Hate to Sell Yourself

Sales and marketing go hand-in-hand with business ownership but that does not mean that all of us are thrilled at the prospect of having to constantly go out there and sell ourselves and our products or services. In fact, I think many people quit their businesses for this very reason; they just get tired or hate to do the selling. How can a person stay focused on building a business when he or she is just not in to having to be a salesperson? Many years ago, when I started my first consulting business, one of the most aggravating and … Continue reading →

Repetition…in a Good Way

A while back, I wrote about how one of my pet peeves is having to do the same thing over and over again (repetition) or having to repeat things because they didn’t get done right the first time. But, repetition doesn’t have to be a bad or annoying thing–when it comes to branding and marketing and cultivating clients and customers–repetition can actually be your friend… Repetition in business can be a good thing–I am not talking about having to do a menial task over and over again or getting stuck in a rut–but sending a strong message or conveying your … Continue reading →

Think of Ways to Get Attention

Okay, I know that we are raised to think that drawing attention to ourselves is not necessarily a good thing—but this thinking can get in the way of our being able to really market and promote our businesses. If the term “marketing” puts you off, or your eyes glaze over when you hear terms like “public relations” and “promotions”—consider just thinking about it as getting people to pay attention to you and your home business. Attention-getting tactics are those things that bring you customers, prospects, and public interest. This can be anything from a fantastic logo and a brilliant sign … Continue reading →

Do Customers Know What is Expected?

We spend a great deal of time in our home businesses trying to predict and assess what our clients and customers need or want from us. We may even attempt to morph or change our business to meet those anticipated needs. But one place some small businesses stumble in that we are not communicating well with our customers and clients about what we need from them. Do your customers actually know what is expected from them and what their role is in the whole negotiation/sales/business relationship deal? Setting clear expectations in regards to order forms and process, deadlines, payment policies, … Continue reading →

Your Contact Information Should Be on EVERYTHING

I know this seems like simple advise from Marketing and Promotions 101–but many of us here ARE business beginners. It doesn’t hurt for us to remind ourselves of some of the most basic, tried and true business truths. One of which is to make sure that every thing you hand out, every web page, every piece of mail you mail or email you send–all of it has your business contact information on it. This only needs to be one line and should include your business name, logo, address, phone number, fax number and web address. E-mail has become a necessity … Continue reading →

Keeping Your Press Contacts Current

I know you may be thinking that keeping in touch with the local or regional press is only for big corporations or those who work in the public eye. That is not necessarily the case. I work with several small businesses, some home-based, who send out press releases and have been able to get some pretty good free promotions from the press–but it takes some work and effort to not only send out the releases, but keep up with who is who in the press. There is turnover in the land of newspapers, radio and television just like in any … Continue reading →

Coping With Shyness

Not all of us home business owners are outgoing extroverts. Shyness and social insecurities can be a bit of an albatross when it comes to networking and marketing. BUT, there are plenty of successful business people who don’t necessarily consider themselves social butterflies or even strong leaders. There are ways to accommodate and cope and still stay focused on marketing and promotions—even if you consider yourself to be quite shy. In this day and age, a great deal of marketing and promotions can be done without ever having to meet with people face to face. You can create a strong … Continue reading →