For many professionals, the single most difficult part of starting to market their business is the very act of getting started. So many professionals would rather do virtually anything else than sit down and think about how they are going to attract new business. The good news is that it isn’t all that difficult, once you get started. All you have to do is make a start.
1. Set aside a definite time for marketing
Set aside a definite time period every week to get started on your marketing. It doesn’t have to be very long, in fact you’re better off keeping it short and to the point. Start with one hour before lunch every Tuesday, or 40 minutes on Tuesday morning, followed up with 30 minutes on Thursday afternoon. Stick to your chosen schedule and you’ll soon start to see real progress. By setting aside just one hour a week, you’ll go from doing no marketing at all to 4 – 5 hours a month. This will make a big difference. For most professionals, marketing is something that gets done every once in a while when they get around to it. If you make it a regular part of your week you’ll create and compound a significant advantage over your non-marketing competitors, week after week, month after month.
2. Decide what type of business you want to attract
If you’ve never had a real marketing plan and never outlined the type of business you want to attract this means you’ve always been doing what other people wanted you to do, not what you wanted to do yourself. Think about it. If you don’t define the type of business you want to bring in and the type of client you want to have, you’ve just been reacting to other people’s expectations of what type of work you should do every time the phone rings or someone walks into your office. If you’ve decided to start doing some marketing and actively seeking new business, make sure you’re bringing in the business that you want to have. Examine the work you do at present. Ask yourself which work you enjoy most and which is your strongest practice area. These are your core strengths. You should concentrate on these areas and aim to attract new clients and new business in these areas. For the moment, forget about your other practice areas. If you are making a conscious effort to find new business, I can’t over emphasise the importance of making sure that it’s the type of business you want to have. You’ll soon find out that marketing works, and you definitely don’t want to bring in more work that you don’t want to do.
3. Make a plan and set some objectives.
You need to have a plan with some defined objectives. Even if your goals are modest, it’s important to have goals. Determine what you want to achieve, make a plan that will help you reach that goal and stick to the plan. If you need some help making a marketing plan, save yourself some time and money by giving me a call on +353 87 231 3090. I’ll be happy to help.