Find Time for Marketing
…or kick yourself later when your client
pool dries up. Here are 6 ways to make time for marketing.
By Sean M. Lyden
Q: I started my
homebased graphic design business about six months ago. My problem
is, I'm spending so much time working on projects for my existing
clients and managing my business that I can't seem to find the time
to market to new prospects. I'm worried that I won't have enough
work in the pipeline to keep my business going once I'm done with
the projects I'm working on right now. What do I do?
A: You're smart to be thinking about
this now before it's too late. The principal issue here is time
management. When you're starting a business, you're wearing several
hats at once. You must deal with client demands and deadlines,
cash-flow issues, personal and family "crises"—and
you've still got to go out and market your venture. Here are six
tips to help you free up time for marketing, even when you have
several "plates" spinning at once.
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Make marketing a priority. You must commit to
making time for marketing—whether to attend networking events,
put together a brochure and business card, research prospects on
the Web, or write a proposal. Without a strong commitment,
you'll find yourself consistently putting off your marketing
efforts, which could haunt you a month or two from now.
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Plan ahead to diffuse crises. It's hard to
market your business when you must spend the bulk of your day
dealing with urgent matters. Anticipate potential problems and
do what you need to do to diffuse them ahead of time. As you
plan your week, ask yourself "What are the worst things
that can happen this week?" Then devise a plan of action to
deal with those situations before they blow up into
time-consuming crises. When you're proactive in managing your
time, you reduce the number of unexpected crises that you'll
have to face in the next week, freeing you up to devote more
time to your marketing initiatives.
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Cut the fat. A common mistake new entrepreneurs
make is not focusing on their most important tasks. As a result,
they're spending hours upon hours working but aren't really
getting anything done. So, create time for marketing by
evaluating your schedule to see where you can "cut the
fat." Which activities are most crucial to you achieving
your goals? Which tasks can you effectively delegate?
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Consolidate your activities when possible. Plan
ahead to accomplish tasks in a single trip. Bulk group-related
activities together. If you have client and prospect meetings
outside the home office, try to cluster them within the same
vicinity. Do this with your errands as well. Decide which ones
you can complete while you're on appointment. Why take extra
trips when you don't have to?
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Avoid telephone interruptions. Break the habit
of answering the phone every time it rings. This means giving
yourself enough respect to say "That call needs to go to
voice mail so I can focus on the person in front of me right
now," or "That should go to voice mail because I'm on
a roll with this project and it's most efficient for me to
finish right now." Schedule time for answering and making
phone calls and checking your voice mail. This way, you can get
more done without the stress created from the phone ringing off
the hook.
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Cultivate positive thinking. Negative emotions
like worry, frustration and anxiety waste time and cause you to
panic. And it's hard to market your products or services when
you're stuck in panic mode. When things don't go according to
plan, ask yourself "What can I learn from this situation
that will push me closer to my goals? What can I do now to make
today more successful, despite the setbacks? Say no to anxiety
and "rescript" worries into proactive and positive
thoughts.
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Sean Lyden is the CEO of Prestige Positioning (a
service of The Professional Writing Firm Inc.), an Atlanta-based
firm that "positions" clients as leading experts in their
field—through ghost-written articles and books for publication.
Clients include Morgan Stanley, IFG Securities, SunTrust Service
Corp. and several professional advisory and management consulting
firms nationwide.
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