Self Promotion Is Simple
Really, it is. All you have to do is locate the people who need your services (either currently or at some point in the future). Next , introduce yourself to them, nurture the relationship, and then be there when they're ready to work with you.
I know, you hate self promotion. "I just want to do my work. I don't want to hustle it," you say, as images of slimy, high-pressured salespeople come to mind--arm-twisting, manipulating, steamrolling solicitors that won't leave you alone. But that doesn't have to be you.
Maybe you believe that if you're creative, you can't also be a businessperson, as if one will corrupt the other. Or you may be overwhelmed by the concept of marketing, thinking the only way to do it is the corporate way, and that's gotta cost a fortune. Or perhaps you can't see past the piles on your desk to find that brochure you started working on way back when.
Try the following to combat a couple of the obstacles you put in your self promotional path:
WHAT YOU THINK: I'm uncomfortable talking about myself. You are by no means alone if you think you're not supposed to talk about yourself--after all, didn't your mother tell you not to brag?
WHAT TO DO: Don't even try to say you're the best anything. It's irrelevant. Simply talk about the thing you know best: your work. Tell anyone who asks what you do and who you do it for. You can't call that bragging.
WHAT YOU THINK: If I were really good, I wouldn't have to promote myself. No way. You may imagine that the Big Names don't have to promote themselves, but you better believe there's a very firm marketing foundation supporting them, and they know they have to keep promoting themselves if they want to stay there.
WHAT TO DO: Choose marketing tools that you enjoy, tools that fit with your personality. For example, if you don't like networking, don't go to a Business Card Exchange. However, you must understand that personal contact is essential to establish the trust your clients need to work with you, so, if necessary, trick yourself into networking by volunteering in your community. That's how people will get to know you and your work.
Self promotion doesn't come naturally to most creative people--but it really is simple and logical. If you want control of your business, you must market yourself every day. So in this space, you'll get jargon-free, easy-to-understand marketing concepts, combined with practical, nuts 'n bolts tools and ideas you can implement right away. And you will no longer have any excuses.
Ilise Benun is the Director of Creative Marketing & Management, a Hoboken-NJ based consulting firm. She is a national speaker who has given workshops for NAWBO, the Family Business Council, the AIGA and many other trade groups around the country. Benun is the editor and publisher of the newsletter, The Art of Self Promotion, and the author of Self Promotion Online. She is also the Internet Promotion Expert on www.gobizgo.com, a one-stop online resource for small business owners. She offers private marketing consultations and Web site critiques.
