If you work alone, it can be difficult to motivate yourself when things are quiet. Joining forces with someone else could inject new life into your business.

As is often said, two heads can be better than one.  So, who can you join up with?  Ideally it would be a business that complements yours but does not compete. It should be something that appeals to a similar target audience so that you can combine your marketing efforts.

The perfect solution would be working with a business that enhances and improves your product or service and vice versa.  For example a personal stylist and a make-up artist, a caterer and a wine merchant, an accountant and a book-keeper, a virtual assistant and a meetings venue … Use your imagination – what other services do your customers need?

Then you can consider how you can work together. It could simply be referrals to each other, or you could create a joint product or service such as a workshop, an event or an offer.

Or carry out a joint marketing campaign, or exchange space on each others’ websites or email newsletters.  Note, you can’t mail each other’s database though – your customers agreed to receive communications from you, not them. However, you can feature an article within your newsletter about another business.

Give it some thought – it could provide just the inspiration and motivation you need.

1.  Introduce yourself properly. Rather than just sending the standard request to ask someone to be your friend or to join your network, add a personal note. If you know them this will be easy. If not, explain why you would like to connect with them or who you know that is a mutual connection.

2. Include a photograph in your profile. It’s much nicer to put a face to a name, and if you’re trying to build your presence online, it makes you more recognisable when people can see the same picture across the various online platforms.  A professional photo is something you will use again and again, and it’s worth investing in one.

3. Include a biography. It’s helpful for others to know what your business is, where you’re based (the internet is global don’t forget!), and possibly something personal depending on the relevance. A lack of biography means it is less likely for those you don’t know to accept your connection, and it can make it look like you’re hiding something (for instance, spammers don’t have profiles or have vague, meaningless ones).

4. Don’t just start spouting about your business. Think about what your first few “posts” or updates could be. These could be a mixture of introducing yourself and your business, something useful or interesting connected with your line of work (e.g. a link to an article or an insightful quote), industry news, useful tips – variety is the key. People will switch off if you just talk about your products and services all the time.

5. Take part. Add comments to other people’s articles, let them know you like something they’ve written, pass it on to others if you think they will enjoy it too. Encourage people to comment and ask questions on your updates.

6. Acknowledge others. If somebody comments on your posts or articles, respond and thank them for contributing. Start a discussion, engage with others.  However, don’t have a private discussion in public!  It’s a bit like having a loud mobile phone conversation on a quiet train. If the conversation starts to go on, but is not relevant to the topic, send private or direct messages instead.

It’s much like being at a real-life networking event. Have a go, and watch and learn how others do it.  You will soon start to see different styles, and be able to see who does it well – then you can emulate them.

This is why I think it’s a stroke of genius on Boden’s part. I used to buy a couple of items a year, but stopped buying clothes from the catalogue about 3 seasons ago.  I would get all excited waiting for an item to arrive that looked fabulous in the catalogue, only to find it too big on the waist, too long, the wrong shape for me etc.  That sense of disappointment happened once too often, and my Boden shopping habit stopped.  But since then, I’ve noticed friends wearing lovely clothes that I’d overlooked in the catalogue, and on asking have been told “Oh, it’s Boden”.

So when I got the invitation, I was delighted. I could try on 20 items if I wanted, until I found the perfect one. And I did. Boden sold 4 items last night that they would never have done, no matter how many attractive catalogues and email offers they sent through. And I wasn’t the only one – cheque books and credit cards were out all round.

Well done Boden, for reviewing your marketing efforts, looking at alternative distribution channels and delivering what your customers want. Genius!

Friends and fans: You will need a personal facebook page before you can create a business page. The difference is that on your personal page, you have friends. People you know and have agreed to be friends with. On a business page you have “fans” and anyone can become a fan. You don’t have to be “friends” with them, and they won’t see your personal page.

Groups: If you want to restrict members of your page, consider setting up a group instead. This enables you to approve people before they join.

Use the tools: Both types of page give you the option to create events, share photos, write articles in the “notes” section and start discussions.  They are like a mini-website and very easy to maintain and update.

Naming your page: When you create a name for your page, make it descriptive – not just your business name e.g. “Sarah Jones – artist with a passion for colour” rather than simply “Sarah Jones”

More than one business: If you have different businesses, create a page for each one. You can have several pages.

Accessing your business page: Whenever you sign into facebook, you will land on your personal home page.  You can paste the url of your business page into the “about me” section on your profile page, together with a description of your page. This has the added benefit of being visible to anyone who looks at your profile.

Encouraging fans: Evidently you will invite all your friends to become a fan of your page.  And it will slowly grow as others see your page and join it. Add a link to your email signature, your website, your stationery etc.

Saying thank you: When people join your page, send them a message thanking them for joining and encourage them to take part, post comments, ask questions. Your page should be interactive for best effect.  It’s also good to acknowledge people’s input and comments.

Keep it interesting: What will be of interest to your fans – helpful hints, links to good articles, photographs, videos. If you don’t know, ask a question, or start a discussion e.g. what do you think of this?  Make sure you’re not just broadcasting your news all the time.

Be inspired: Have a look at other people’s pages. Which ones do you like?  Why?

Join me on facebook www.facebook.com/janebrocklebankmarketing

The first year of the vegetable plot saw us eating carrots twice a day for about 3 weeks… and then no more carrots for the rest of that year. Learning from that experience, we now have regular “batches” throughout the year. And so it should be with marketing. A massive influx of business one minute and a quiet period for months is not healthy for you or your bank balance. And given that most business comes from the marketing efforts you apply, it would make sense to spread these activities over a period of time.

So how do you do it?

First think about the results you need, and when. For example, you may know that the early autumn was quiet for you last year, so need to generate some business for that period. You may also think that you’d like to be less busy in the summer holidays so you can take some time off.  Think about how long it takes to generate business once you’ve done some marketing.  Is it instant, like selling ice-cream? Or is there a long lead time before an enquiry converts into actual work for you? Plan your activity to create a steady stream of enquiries and interest throughout the year so that you can manage the workload and direct it to fill (or avoid) those periods you’ve identified.

In this way you should be able to enjoy the fruits (vegetables?) of your labour all year round!

So here’s a quick and easy way to get started.  Firstly (and anyone who knows me by now will know what’s coming) … you need an objective – otherwise how will you know how you’re going to achieve it and more importantly, when you’ve got there?

Your objective can be about anything you like, so long as it’s clear and precise.  For example “to generate an income of £3,000 a month by the end of this year” or “to increase my sales from 10 to 20 items a week” or “to add 100 new contacts to my email database before March”

Once you’ve decided on your objective, you can create your plan.

Step 1
Create a grid containing the months of the year across the top

Step 2
Create a list of marketing activities that can help you achieve your objective down the left hand side. This could include advertising, networking, PR, direct mail, newsletters, social media etc

Step 3
Highlight any important dates in the year that relate to your business e.g. trade shows, exhibitions, industry events, holidays, special occasions or celebrations

Step 4

Start to plot when you’re going to carry out your marketing activities (to either coincide with, avoid or complement these events in Step 3)

And voila!  You have a simple marketing plan.

1. What’s it for?
What is the purpose of your website?  Until you think about why your website exists and what you want people to do when they get there, it’s very difficult to plan it effectively.  Here are some ideas to get you started.  Your website could be for:

• People to buy products – an online shop
• Demonstrating your product or service
• Providing information
• Creating a community
• Explaining your product or service
• Entertainment

2. What will it say?
This is the one that has many people frozen in terror!  But move past that and think about what your visitors will need to know. For example it could contain:

• An overview of who you are, what you do and who you do it for
• A description of your product or service – this may be broken down into sections
• About you, your team – establishing your credibility
• Some examples of your work, case studies, pictures, testimonials
• A shopping area
• A newsletter or blog area (what you write on this is a whole new subject which I’ll tackle later)
• How to get in touch

My top tip for this part is to get a pad of sticky notes, and imagine each one is a page on your website.  Write down the heading of each page on each one, laying them out on a handy table, wall or window so you can visualise your website as pages.

3. What functionality does it need?
This is important when briefing a website developer as the cost will be determined by the functions that you need.  For example, do you need:

• A gallery of images
• An online shopping facility
• A blogging area
• The ability to update it yourself
• A newsletter sign-up option
• Integration with your email newsletters
• An online booking facility

4. How should it look?
You may already have a company colour-scheme or brand image.  Whether you have or not, your website should reflect your company style in terms of colour-scheme, typeface and design. 

• Modern and funky
• Contemporary and stylish
• Traditional
• Classic
• Business-like

You can also think about more emotional words like “friendly”, “approachable”, “professional”.

5. What “tone of voice” will it have?
How will you talk to your website visitors?  Perhaps you will adopt an informal tone, or you could prefer a professional, business-like impression.  Imagine who your website visitors are likely to be – I mean literally picture them!  Give them a name, an occupation, a personality.  It makes it much easier to write your content in a language and tone that they will relate to.

Giving these 5 areas some serious thought will help pave the way to a successful website.

• Use a template – this helps maintain consistency and your readers will start to recognise your brand
• Make sure the first half of your email gets the right message across, and draws people in
• Use a grid format – don’t be afraid of white space, and let your words have room to breathe
• Don’t use lots of typefaces, bold text, underlines and colours – it’s confusing to the eye. Keep it simple and just use one or two styles (e.g. one for headlines, one for text)
• Use images carefully – many email clients automatically block images. Make sure your email works without them, just in case they don’t download when your email is received
• Write for the web – keep it short and to the point. Cut out any unnecessary words
• Direct people to your website to read more – this way you can keep the email succinct, and you can use pictures on your website if they are crucial e.g. product images

With the spotlight firmly on social media and email marketing, it would be easy to overlook the humble printed newsletter. But there are many good reasons why you should introduce this into your marketing activities.

You have the opportunity to write a variety of articles on different subjects, giving an insight into the breadth of your knowledge and the scope of your product or service. It makes a great leave-behind – much more meaningful than a business card or even a brochure as it’s more likely to be read. You could even use it to direct people to join your email newsletter database.  Here are some of the situations where a printed newsletter would be impactful:

• Networking meetings
• Workshops or discussion groups
• Speaker events (if you’re speaking, have a stack to give out)
• Exhibitions and fairs
• Local shops and offices of complementary businesses
• Your own office (if you have a waiting area or public reception)
• Groups and clubs doing related activities

If you’re creating an email newsletter, you could use the same content. Give it a try and let me know how you get on!

Valid concerns, but if you don’t promote yourself, how will people know about your business?  Don’t worry! A bit of creative thinking goes a long way…

Firstly, consider the following: 

• What does your business need?
• What you want to achieve?
• Who is interested in your product or service?

Then write down everything you would do if you had an unlimited budget (allow yourself to go crazy here – it’s only on paper!)

Then, take a look at your ideas and see if you could adapt them. For example, if you said you’d have a fleet of taxis carrying your company brand, scale it down a bit.  How about getting some magnetic panels produced that you can put on your car?  Or even cheaper, a promotional flyer in your back windscreen (where garages normally put their details).

Instead of a full page advert in the local paper, how about some free editorial?  See my blog for tips on writing a press release.

Rather than an expensive direct mail campaign, consider email marketing.

Do a joint newsletter with somebody else – then you can combine databases and increase your audience.

Team up with complementary businesses to share the cost of advertising or promotions.

Network and tell people what you’re doing, and what you’re looking for.

Search around for good print deals on leaflets and printed flyers.  For example, www.printing.com often have promotions on some of their products.

Take advantage of the free listings you can get on the online directories such as www.yell.com – there are lots out there. To find them, do an online search for your business type and see what comes up.

If you’re clever and apply a bit of thought, you CAN come up with cost-effective ways to get yourself seen and heard on a budget.  Just Do It (and if you need some help, get in touch)