Many small businesses owners scratch their heads; hold their heads in disbelief; and constantly worry about having a continual flow of prospects (that they can then nurture into clients). It’s one of the biggest complaints I hear about.
And yet — when I ask … “what are you doing on a consistent basis to market your business?”, I hear answers like:
- well, I tried some newspaper advertising; and it didn’t work
- I post on social media occasionally
- No, I don’t speak because I’m afraid of putting myself out there
- I go to the odd networking event
- I haven’t written a blog or newsletter in 2 months
Any of that sound familiar? That’s okay — you can change that!! If you read last week’s post (7 Shocking Reasons why your marketing isn’t working), you’ll know that I talked about how important consistency is to increased the chances that your Dream Client knows about you.
You see the formula for creating a consistent flow of prospects is as simple as 1-2-3:
- Get Seen
- Create Leads
- Follow-up
It’s NOT rocket science!! But you must be sure that your message is clear and that you’re consistent. So I’m going to assume you have a clear message (if you don’t, let’s talk).
Here are the TOP 6 ways to be seen — marketing methods (and my 3 favorite).
- speaking
- networking
- sponsorships
- blog/newsletter
- social media
- strategic partners
Take the top 3 (speaking, networking and sponsorship) – they are my favorite to help small business owners GET SEEN. These are face-to-face relationship building kinds of marketing methods. This is when your prospect can actually interact with you; get a sense of who you are; and these are opportunities to add to/build your email list so that you can blog!
Although these are my favorite ways to GET SEEN — I think that they are also your least favorite. Some of you would rather hide in your office behind your computer. Many of you are introverts and feel uncomfortable networking, never mind speaking or being a sponsor. It is possible for even introverts to learn how speak, network and do sponsorships effectively. It often takes some mindset shifts; some guidance & support; and some learning — but it’s all doable!
Let’s talk about Sponsorship as a way of being seen! A couple of years ago, I started my sponsorship journey. I even travelled long distances to be a sponsor at events where I knew my Dream Client was hanging out. It’s true that the first few sponsorship results were dismal!!! No interest – crickets! But slowly, the momentum started to build. People started saying things like — “hey Diana, you hang around some really cool people. You’re always out there.” My brand was being positioned! I was being seen as an EXPERT!
Slowly, I figured out what to offer at sponsorships. I figured out which events to attend and where my Dream Client was hanging out. I figured out how to make my table stand out from others! I figured out how to engage my Dream Client and to get them on my mailing list, and then nurture them into clients. I figured out how to follow-up with them so that they stayed on my email list and eventually became clients. Here’s the thing — it’s about nurturing a seed with water, sunlight, fertilizer and watch it grow into a beautiful plant. Sponsorship, like many other marketing methods, are about creating momentum. We often don’t see the results immediately!
So get out there and GET SEEN; generate LEADS; and FOLLOW-Up. Three steps to a constant flow of prospects.
Very shortly I’ll be hosting my own event, SHIFT, and there are still sponsorship opportunities available. So ask yourself:
- is your dream client a service based entrepreneur; probably a women; who is growing her biz?
- are you willing to invest in your business?
- are you willing to be seen as an expert and hang out with some really cool people?
- are you willing to do something that is somewhat out of your comfort zone to get what you want?
- are you willing to do the work to get a 10x return on your investment?
If you are — then here’s the sponsorship information link for SHIFT. Read about sponsorship opportunities and give me a call (514-690-1867) because there is only room for ONE person per business category!!
If you’re new to sponsorship — I’ll walk you through the whole thing with my ‘Events For Success’ cheat sheet! I’d love to see you create a constant flow of prospects!
JOIN ME at SHIFT – click here.
In gratitude,
Diana
