Do you find that your marketing efforts are haphazard and all over the place? If so, you’re not alone. Consistency is the one area where entrepreneurs often have the most trouble. It’s an area to give careful attention though, because in order to grow your business and your income, you need to consistently connect with people who are already looking for what you have to offer. (Really, that’s all marketing is.)
Focusing on just a FEW key marketing strategies at a time – and not spreading yourself too thin – is guaranteed to get you the best results. Honing in on these strategies and doing them week in and week out will ensure your target market remembers you are available to serve them and give them an opportunity to purchase what you have to offer.
Even if you are not a structured, scheduled kind of person, you can make improvements in this regard. (Believe me, it takes one to know one…I’m not the most structured person you ever wanted to meet!) Creating consistency with your marketing efforts is as simple as picking two to three strategies, creating systems for them and working your plan each and every day.
Here’s a few tips that I you can model for your business to help get your marketing on track and implemented consistently:
- Schedule time for marketing EACH day and EACH week: I know this sounds simple but don’t disregard it! You likely have at least one recurring appointment on your calendar each week, whether it is for business or your personal life. You keep that appointment each week because it’s important to you and see the benefits of doing so. You need to have the same approach to your marketing. You can’t leave it to chance. Even if you just spend 30 minutes a day focusing on taking specific action to grow your business, you will see a significant increase in your profits.
- Do your marketing FIRST thing: How do you start your day? Do you have a habit of starting each day by reading email? Bad idea. That pulls you right into reactive mode; doing what other people need you to do and want you to do. Of course, there is certainly a place for that. You do need to set aside time to respond to the messages you receive. However, you don’t have to START your day in that mode. Choose instead to start your day with a marketing activity. Update your blog. Follow-up with prospective clients. Write your email newsletter. Update your social media profiles. Whatever the activity is, you’re starting your day focused on growth. You’ll start seeing immediate results from your consistent efforts.
- Work your plan: One of the reasons many entrepreneurs struggle with their marketing is because they are trying to do too much and don’t know where to start first. When you follow a plan, you’ll keep yourself from wasting time and money on strategies that don’t fit you. You’ll consistently enjoy better results (ie: more profits!) because you are taking focused action. If you have not yet developed your plan for the coming year, you can use my plug and play system to Create Your Money Map.
- Be accountable to yourself:Left to our own devices, NONE of us will stay as focused on our goals as we need to be. We are constantly being inundated with new information, opportunities and distractions each day. And it is very easy to flake out on ourselves. So it’s imperative that you create an accountability system for yourself.This is what makes marketing coaching so powerful. You have a mentor, who has already walked in your shoes, to help you strategize, hold your feet to the fire for the promises you make, and help you work through your excuses and eliminate where you stand in your own way. Investing in the right coach is the BEST investment you can make in YOURSELF. When you show up fully and do the work, investing in coaching always, always pays for itself! No entrepreneur should be without a coach or a mentor and that includes you. 🙂 If you haven’t already partnered with a coach, I would love to connect with you, learn about your goals and your struggles and discuss how we can work together to create more profits and more success in your business. To schedule your FREE strategy session, you just need to share with me a few details about your business. (Don’t worry! What you share is just between you and me.)
You don’t have to overhaul your entire operation to get organized and start marketing your business consistently. With a few simple tweaks and consistent effort you WILL get results! Schedule time for marketing each day, start your days off with marketing your business, work your plan and create accountability for yourself. In no time at all, you’ll start seeing an increase in visibility, clients and income!
Which tip will you implement first? Please share your thoughts with me on the blog!
YOUR “TAKE ACTION” PLAN FOR THIS WEEK:
- Set an appointment for yourself each week for a few hours (or at least 30 minutes each day) to devote time specifically toward your marketing efforts. Keep this appointment with yourself just as you’d keep an appointment with your favorite client!
- Get in the habit of starting each day with a marketing step. Update your blog, follow-up with those who have expressed an interest in your work or write your email newsletter. Whatever it is, make sure you take at least one action each and every morning.
- Work your plan each day. If you don’t yet have a plan, get a copy of my Create Your Money Map plug and play system to plan out the next year.
- Create accountability by finding a business coach to work with. If you don’t have one, let’s connect so I can learn about your struggles, your goals and we can explore how we can work together to achieve them.
MaAnna says
Sydni, one of the reasons I enjoy your blog is because you include a plan or worksheet for helping folks actully accomplish what you are advising. Thanks for this nice post and I’ll be sharing it with my peeps.
Kristi LeGue says
Another great one Sydni! For me, I plan on implementing not starting my day with opening my e-mail. I never looked at it that way! You are totally starting your day in reactive mode if you start with e-mail. That shift will happen now. Thanks for the heads up!
Andrea Costantine says
These are all such great tips… and ones to live by!
Doing your marketing first thing alone will literally change your business. Thanks for reminding me to put the most important things first in my day.
Brenda Stanton says
Syndi!
As usual your articles are chock-full of tips and tools we can implement right-away. I LOVE what you say about consistency – because we do need to keep ourselves accountable. I’ve found that committing to a weekly newsletter/blog has kept me in a consistent relationships with my readers where they know we have a ‘date’ every Monday at 10am. It’s really helped to have that routine and structure and your article just reinforces it.
Thanks for always giving us information and a PLAN to implement!
xo
Gina Bell says
Hi Sydni! I’m loving this post.
It hits the nail on the head of one of the most important parts of the marketing puzzle – consistency. So many entrepreneurs either have too many balls in the air – diluting the effectiveness of them all – or, they give up on a strategy too soon before it has time to work (hoping for the mythical magic pill effect)!
Persistence that stems from a commitment to marketing really does pay off! Thanks so much for sharing a plan to get this working in new and powerful ways!
Cathy Alessandra says
Sydni – great article! Marketing is essential in our business – and a plan or marketing strategy is the only way for us to do it and not go into overwhelm!
A little bit, each day! And automating and/or delegating some of that marketing can certainly help as well. Thanks for the tips!
Jessica Maes says
Thank you for this post! I often struggle to make time for MY business as I’m so busy supporting everyone else’s biz. This post is such a great reminder of how import consistant marketing is for all business.
Sydni Craig-Hart says
You’re welcome Jessica! It takes one to know one…I know exactly how you feel. Let’s support each other to stay on the right side of the fence on this issue. 🙂
Amy Kinnaird says
Sydni – I love the idea of doing my writing first thing in the morning. That would be the perfect solution for my time use and not start down the email and Facebook road before breakfast! Now, I am going to be consistent with that and make a new habit. Thanks!
Amy
Jennifer Bourn says
My favorite tip in this post –> “Do your marketing FIRST thing”
AMEN! Then it’s done and off your to-do list, and you can focus on your clients and what they need – and your other obligations.
Jennifer Bourn, Bourn Creative
Sydni Craig-Hart says
RIGHT! It’s so important to do it first…otherwise you look up, it’s 4:00pm and you wonder where the day went. 🙂