You Have to Be On It

06.12.2019 by Elizabeth // Leave a Comment

You Have to be on It I was talking with a client the other day about their ongoing marketing efforts. Thank you notes, holiday cards, phone calls on birthday’s – they are ON IT. As we were talking about what’s working and what needs to be kept up, they reminded me…

You Have to be on It

Always.

This is one of the hardest things I see for business owners. There’s so many different hats you wear as a business owner, and yes your marketing efforts are one of those hats. I often see people drop their marketing efforts when business gets busy. It’s the worst thing you could do. Why? Because it won’t always be busy and you’re going to need more clients – cultivate them when you have them so they’re ready when you’re ready.

Continue to have good marketing habits throughout the year. Go to your networking events, schedule that call or coffee meeting, even if you don’t think they’re ready to hire you. Send your newsletter, do your follow up, engage on social media. Run your business. Continue to blog (this one might just be a reminder for me…)

Having systems and schedules in place makes your life a whole lot easier. If you haven’t downloaded my free Monthly Marketing Calendar – I give you a good place to start and make sure that you’re considering all the marketing efforts out there and available to you. They’re usually FREE and with some setup it won’t take you much time. You’re busy running your business, keep doing it. And don’t forget to keep on it along the way.

It’s Not Luck

12.18.2018 by Elizabeth // Leave a Comment

The other day I had a longer term client email that in the new year it’s time for a break. That’s OK, it happens and it’s always good to see what’s working and what’s not in any business. Then at the end of the day I received an email from a potential referral partner saying they needed help with the EXACT same service of the client who’s leaving. I know what you’re thinking “wow, that’s amazing luck!”

No. It’s Not.

It’s a lot of hard work. Every time I wrap up with a project or finish with a client, even if I am thinking “crap that was a good chunk of money each month,” inevitably within a week or so someone pops up in my pipeline to replace them.

Every. Time.

After 7+ years in business I have discovered that by being consistent in my newsletters and following up regularly, the right people show up when they are ready and when the timing is right. For both of us. I’ve talked about scarcity before – it’s not a thing. If you’re consistent – networking, following up, engaging, good at what you do – in time the right clients will just start showing up and the wrong clients will take their exit.

It sounds just like magic. But it’s not. Its years of hard work, consistency, amazing referral sources and DOING THE WORK. I know that’s not a fun answer. I’m not lucky on a regular basis, I have built up systems and schedules that keep my sales pipeline healthy and active. And we all know the first thing I do…

Follow Up.

As usual when something like this happens I text my business coach, because we all need a cheerleader. Her response?

“THAT is what happens when you are consistent.”

Not Lucky.

Schedule Time to DO the Work

07.11.2018 by Elizabeth // Leave a Comment

Schedule Time to do the work A few weeks ago I received an email from someone who had downloaded my Monthly Marketing Calendar.

“I have a calendar, I have content, but putting it all together is overwhelming, so I am very inconsistent. Thoughts?”

As per the usual, I have lots of thoughts on this! Here was my response:

It’s time to schedule time to do the work. That’s my best suggestion – block time on your calendar to write and post and schedule social media/blogs/etc. It sounds like that may be the missing piece.

For some people (me) having a to do list is enough to ensure that your tasks get accomplished each week. My first two items on my to do list each week are 1. Blog 2. ZOHO (my CRM). This way you’re always guaranteed a blog post (you’re welcome) and I always make sure to do the follow up with my contacts and leads that I manage in my CRM.

For other people the to do list isn’t enough. You may need to block that TIME in your calendar. That’s why I recommend when you attend a networking event you also schedule time to do your follow up after the event. That way it gets done. Maybe it’s 30 minutes a day of marketing and follow up to start. Then you’ll start to see you don’t need it every day, or at least not as much time. Great! In time you’ll start to see just how much time you specifically need to do your marketing tasks and you can get them done.

Also consider WHEN in the day/week you want to do your marketing tasks. Monday is often an office day for me so I get a lot of my marketing/admin tasks done on Monday. I also know right after lunch isn’t always my most productive time so maybe some admin tasks are good to schedule then.

What do you do to ensure that your marketing tasks are accomplished each week?