Love it or hate it, marketing is a necessary part of creating a successful business. If you happen to reside in the "hate it" camp, it could be because you feel like marketing means you have to be pushy, sales-y or fake. We've all had the experience of having someone try to "sell" us and it doesn't feel good.

Fortunately, such tactics are not necessary to enjoy a profitable business. And that is certainly NOT the Smart Simple Marketing way. To me, marketing is simply a matter of sharing solutions with people who are already looking for them.

You and I both face a number of problems each day, both in our personal and professional lives. And of course, we are always on the lookout for solutions to those problems. We seek solutions that are simple, easy and provide a return on our investment.

So as long as you're showing up when and where your ideal clients are looking for the solutions you offer (aka marketing), you will have a never-ending stream of great clients to work with.

What you don't want to do is shoot yourself in the foot by making common mistakes that will undermine your efforts. Take a moment to take stock of what you're doing to grow your business and make sure that you aren't making one of these critical errors:      Read more about Common Pitfalls That Are Killing Your Business