Posts Tagged ‘marketing’

Its marketing month at the Working Women’s network and that got me thinking about how I market my business.

I have never used paid advertising to get clients and always seem to have had plenty of work to do for most of the time that I’ve been in business. But I was thinking back to when I started out compared to how my business runs these days.

Right at the beginning there were the anxious, sweaty-palm moments wondering if this thing was ever going to get off the ground and trying to decide what the hell I thought I was doing. Then, as time progressed and I moved on from doing free work for friends (come on, we all did it) to having actual paid clients I managed to settle into a pretty comfortable routine of having work trickle in to fill the space where I wasn’t tending to the needs of a couple of raucous boys and a cute, but demanding baby.

I started to see a pattern develop where I would find myself with quiet periods in around July/August and then it would pick up again steadily until the following year.

This didn’t seem so bad but, in theory I was only a part-time business owner and it wasn’t going to go anywhere without having a serious look at marketing. So, I decided it was time to pull on my marketing boots and hike off into the big wide world of networking. No mean feat for a Mum who had been out of corporate circulation for several years and who had settled into a relative world of isolation and park catchups!

I made the decision that, with my youngest heading off to school at the beginning of this year, I needed to start the wheels in motion before I suddenly found myself with time on my hands and nothing to do. And, I decided that networking events were the fastest way to make connections with potential clients.

One of my first events last year was Carolyn Stafford’s Small Business Big Brand Workshop in Sydney. I had actually chosen the workshop both as a networking opportunity and with the intention of gaining some knowledge that I could pass on to my clients. Instead, I came out with a head buzzing with ideas about how I could change the direction of my business.

Since my first very nervous foray into networking events I haven’t looked back and have managed to change from being a part-time contractor to fully-fledged business owner. So, what’s been the difference? A shift in attitude and a move towards serious marketing of the business.

I still don’t pay for advertising, and I sometimes get to the end of the week feeling like all I’ve done is market my business. But, this year has seen my business grow exponentially through my personal exposure via Flying Solo, Twitter, appearing the media and, of course, the Working Women’s Network.

Carolyn showed me that there are many ways that you can market your business and help it grow. You just have to get a little creative and put in the effort.

I’m looking forward to seeing Carolyn again tomorrow night at the Top Seven Ways to Market Your Business networking event and catching up on some more marketing insights.

Until next time.

Karen

Karen Morris is the Working Womens Network media officer. She runs Inscriptions, a copywriting and PR Consultancy, is a contributor to Flying Solo and is a wife and mother to three active boys. She loves life and work and has an insatiable appetite to learn all things new, especially all things 2.0.