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.
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 is 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 http://www.ArticleSubmissionSites.com for more information today!
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