Marketing Information

Tooting Your Own Horn


"If he who has a thing to sell Goes and whispers in a well, He won't be so apt to make the dollars As he who climbs a tree and hollers!" -- Anonymous

Every day in your business, something happens that others should know about. You give exceptional service to a client; you reach out to a new type of customer; you demonstrate your expertise on an important topic. Yet most of the time, the only people aware of these significant events are the individual you are speaking with and you.

We might chuckle at artists or performers who are waiting to be "discovered," but sometimes business owners are just as guilty of hanging back when there's boasting to be done. Below are some examples of occasions for informing the media, your clients, referral partners, and very importantly, POTENTIAL clients that you have done something special:

  • Winning an award or competition

  • Being elected or appointed to office in a professional or civic organization

  • Obtaining an important new client or contract

  • Giving noteworthy service to an existing client

  • Opening or relocating your office

  • Expanding to serve a new market

  • Offering a new product or service

  • Launching a new or redesigned web site

  • Publishing the first issue of a newsletter

  • Reporting an invention or discovery

  • Expressing a unique opinion on a topical subject

  • Being selected to speak at a major conference

  • Completing a survey or study

  • Having an article, white paper, or book published

  • Getting a mention in the news

  • Landing an interview on radio, TV, or a live chat

When any one of these events occurs, notify all your clients, prospects, and referral partners by letter or e-mail. Include a copy of any item referenced in your letter, or let readers know where they can learn more. For example, if you will be speaking at a conference, mail a copy of the program, or mention the conference web site.

It gives you extra credibility if the event you're reporting is also acknowledged by someone else. When you give great service to a client, ask for a testimonial letter. Then include the letter in mailings and your marketing kit.

Many of these developments are newsworthy enough to inform the media. Write a news release describing what has occurred and your opinion about it. If you win an award, describe how it made you feel. If you are elected to office, outline your goals for the organization. Include in your release a brief paragraph about your background.

Send your news release to your own trade press and all your local media outlets. If you are nationally known already, include national outlets as well. Follow up with a phone call to offer additional information and find out if they plan to run the item.

When you do appear in the news, no matter how small the mention, capitalize on it. Unless you are on the cover of a major publication or featured on national TV, don't expect a lot of people to contact you as a result of your appearance alone.

In addition to reprinting articles about you or by you for everyone on your mailing list, keep them on hand. Include them in your marketing kit for prospective clients, speaking engagements, and future media opportunities. Use them as handouts at trade shows. Frame them and hang them on the wall of your office. Post links or entire articles on your web site.

When you land a radio, TV, or live chat interview, let everyone on your mailing list know when you will be on. You'll probably get more business from telling people about it than you do from the program itself.

About The Author

C.J. Hayden is the author of Get Clients NOW! Thousands of business owners and salespeople have used her simple sales and marketing system to double or triple their income. Get a free copy of "Five Secrets to Finding All the Clients You'll Ever Need" at http://www.getclientsnow.com


MORE RESOURCES:

BILMBA Marketing & Associates Launches 1SwingThought.com to Aid Golfers in ...
Sacramento Bee
By BILMBA Marketing & Associates LOS ANGELES, Feb. 10, 2012 -- /PRNewswire/ -- BILMBA Marketing & Associates has launched a new website http://www.1SwingThought.com with a simple yet revolutionary product for golf equipment designed to help the 20+ ...

and more »


TSN

Milwaukee Mile back on IndyCar schedule, Andretti-led group to promote June 16 ...
Washington Post
A marketing company led by former Indy driver and current team owner Michael Andretti announced Friday it will promote a race weekend at the one-mile oval June 15-16. The race will be held Saturday afternoon, and the two-day event is expected to ...
IndyCar returns to Milwaukee for June 16 raceSan Francisco Chronicle

all 115 news articles »


SEO Services Alert: Internet Marketing Blueprint Unveiled at 2012 AAJ Winter ...
Sacramento Bee
10, 2012 -- /PRNewswire/ -- When you design your house you need an architect; when you design your lawyer Internet marketing campaign, you need an SEO architect who understands the online legal marketing industry. Cepac lawyer marketing consultants ...

and more »


Nan Richardson Named Director of Marketing & Business Development for JG ...
MarketWatch (press release)
based commercial/retail contracting firm JG Construction as director of marketing and business development. In her new position, Ms. Richardson will be responsible for all marketing activities both internal and external, including client relations, ...

and more »


Brafton (blog)

Lead Scoring: How B2B Search Marketers Can Lead the Process
Search Engine Watch
by Derek Edmond, February 10, 2012 Comments B2B search marketing teams should step up to the forefront in lead generation initiatives in 2012. According to the 2012 B2B Marketing Benchmark report by MarketingSherpa, three of the top four challenges ...
Content Marketing is King: Are You in the 82?Exec Digital (press release)
Why content marketing is your key to B2B lead generationBrafton (blog)
Survey: Marketing resource allocation to social lagsBtoB Magazine
Business 2 Community -Econsultancy (blog) -Business Strata - Business News
all 23 news articles »


BancorpSouth Insurance Hires Texas Region Marketing Manager
Sacramento Bee
10, 2012 -- /PRNewswire/ -- BancorpSouth Insurance Services, Inc. hired Larry D. Batie II as marketing manager for the Texas region. He previously served as account executive and assistant vice president at Marsh & McLennan Companies.

and more »


Manufacturer.com

PepsiCo to Cut 8700 Jobs, Spend More on Marketing Brands
BusinessWeek
9 (Bloomberg) -- PepsiCo Inc. plans to cut 8700 jobs and boost marketing spending for its brands by as much as $600 million as Chief Executive Officer Indra Nooyi works to speed up profit growth at the world's largest snack-food maker.
Pepsi to increase marketing spend at expense of 8700 jobsManufacturer.com
PepsiCo To Cut Jobs, Boost Marketing; Lowers 2012 ViewWall Street Journal
PepsiCo Cuts Jobs To Boost Marketing ExpensesDaily Gossip
DM News
all 588 news articles »


SubmitinME

Marketing Your Business With Pinterest
WebProNews
Typical marketing rules begin to apply here. The main idea is to get traffic to you. What you do with it from there is up to you. And, Pinterest is amassing a great record for getting them to your door/site. Other types of businesses that are using ...
Social Media Marketing with “Pinterest” – In and OutSubmitinME

all 90 news articles »


Pre-Opening Corn Market Report for 2/10/2012
NASDAQ
Outside market forces look negative today with a surge up in the US dollar and weakness in equity, energy and metal markets overnight. While the USDA report showed a sharp drop in South America production and a further decline in US ending stocks, ...

and more »


Fortune

The Facebook IPO: Marketing, hypocrisy, and arrogance
Fortune
They involve marketing, hypocrisy, and arrogance -- in other words, standard Wall Street fare. If Facebook's offering ends up being the advertised $5 billion, and the company's stock market valuation is in the expected $75 billion to $100 billion range ...

and more »

Google News

home | site map
© 2006