Everyone knows that marketing is a vital activity for small businesses--for any business really--but especially for small businesses and solo entrepreneurs. It's what brings the customers in; more than referrals, more than word of mouth, more than just a single advertising campaign. But for many of us, marketing is the lowest priority on our to-do list, mostly because it makes us uncomfortable.

I mean, who really likes cold calling, or eating rubbery chicken at networking functions that may or may not result in a tiny trickle of new business? Especially if you're shy or have physical or geographic limitations, these tactics just aren't going to work well. And those networking functions can start to get expensive if you're going to lots of them, or joining a bunch of groups that charge monthly dues. So what can you do? Glad you asked!

My research, in which I polled a number of small business owners who are coaching clients of mine, or who belong to the same industry groups that I do, turned up the following recommendations. Most of these are low- or no-cost strategies that you can implement right away, and which can be mixed and matched to fit your own industry and your own preferred workstyle.

Here then, in no particular order, are some smart marketing strategies for the small business owner:

1. Joint venturing. This is a great way to gain widespread exposure in your target market because your joint venture partners are promoting your business for you! It can work on several different levels and can grow your business substantially faster than if you're using traditional marketing channels, such as advertising and direct mail. For ideas about how you might use joint ventures to expand your customer base, check out this article on our website: Adventures in Joint Venturing.
2. Running contests. I see this a lot online, especially in the writing community. If you have a website that lends itself to doing a monthly contest or giveaway, or if you've got a bricks-and-mortar business, you can get a lot of exposure by hosting a contest with valuable prizes. You can get prizes donated by companies or individuals who also serve the same types of customers you do, and let them spread the word to their own audience--it's a win-win situation, and it gets your business name "out there."
3. Issuing press releases. This takes a bit of creativity, because you've got to come up with a newsworthy angle that will appeal to print (and online) publishers that will make them want to write a story about you, but I know people who have gotten so much publicity from stories written about them that they've had to turn people away at the door of their workshops and other events!
4. Setting up a MySpace profile. I personally don't have a MySpace presence but I know several people who do and they swear by the amount of business they've gotten by using this social media site to promote themselves and their businesses.
5. Creating videos that drive traffic to your website. Again, this is huge, because catchy little videos get forwarded around cyberspace like wildfire, and they get "favorited" by video bloggers and on social networking sites so you can literally get thousands of hits every day from one little video. And the best part is (besides the fact that it's free!) is that it's super easy to create videos using the software that comes already installed on most computers (like Windows Movie Maker, for example). Okay, it does require a bit of imagination and a little time (like, one day, at the most!) to come up with a catchy video--and you can't make it a blatant sales pitch--but if you make it funny or quirky, or off-the-wall in some way, believe me, it'll get noticed! And isn't that the point of marketing?

So those are just a few of the strategies my peers and clients use to make their businesses more profitable-- without spending tons of money to do it. Give one or more of them a try and see what works best for you. Who knows? Maybe you'll have to start turning customers away too!

The Women's Business Gallery is pleased to announce that we are sponsoring a very special 2-part teleclass on May 15 and May 29, 2007, conducted by world renowned prosperity mentor Marilyn Jenett, on attracting abundance and applying prosperity principles to improve your finances.

Unlike other coaches whose programs are complicated and hard to apply to your own life, Marilyn's Feel Free to Prosper program is incredibly easy to understand and simple to do, yet it delivers amazing results, which I can personally attest to since I have been blessed with an astounding increase in my income since beginning her program.

These two powerful, life-transforming classes are ONLY available to new members of the Women's Business Gallery Prosperity Center and seating is limited to 50 people. For details about the program, visit Fee l Free to Prosper. For information on joining the Women's Business Gallery Prosperity Center to receive Marilyn's class free with your paid membership, visit the Prosperity Center page on our website. These classes WILL change your life.