First Word

Here are some the most common mistakes I see companies makes when marketing or promoting their businesses. In fact, some of these mistakes are so common it's completely shocking that these companies continue to repeat the same blunders. Or maybe the companies that do make these mistakes come and go -- and someone else picks up the baton to continue to the next marker. So, without further adieu, here are some of those blunders that hopefully your company will not perpetuate. Non-targetted, non-specific event invitations to everything from the steak cook-off to the community weight-loss event . I am invited to hundreds (no exaggeration) of events per day, especially on Facebook. What I've noticed is a complete lack of consideration or discretion as to who these groups invite. Business people literally blast invitations to community weight-loss events to someone like me who is not in the least in need of such an event. They invite vegetarians to BBQs. No research or thought goes...

Whenever I give my talks on building your marketing platform for your book or business, I get a lot folks who look at me with a grimace when the answer to, "How often should I blog?" comes back with "every day." Most people hold their groans only to replace it with an uncontrolled frown and a brisk, "Including Sunday?" Yes, friend-Os including Sunday. I know the horror, the horror. If you miss a weekend, don't despair; but I can tell you my analytics show that a decent number of readers show up on Sunday, because my weekly newsletter First Word (another horror ... "weekly" newsletter) drives traffic to my blog. Why do I blog so much? Is it that I have so much to say I can't constrain my type-hungry fingers? Not exactly. I watch my analytics (if you don't know what is analytics, Google it) and if I don't miraculously manage to make my fingers do the tapping, my readership drops. I know this is an ugly truth for the less prolific; b...

OK, I might be in shock and awe or just awe and shock -- either one works. In the last few weeks, I think the recession officially ended here in the 3L country. I have literally been picking up new projects daily. All of the marketing and PR momentum appears to be paying off. I even picked up prospective work on a Sunday afternoon if you can believe that one. At the rate we're going, we just made gross sales reflective of someone's middle-class income ... in one month. If this is any hint of what's to come, I must say it's utterly shocking and very, very cool. If I can impart any wisdom to you 3L watchers wondering what's the super-secret sauce, here it is: You must market and do public relations for your own company. All of the advice I give in my first book Smash: A Smart Girl's Guide to Practical Marketing and PR , should be followed to the letter. I don't live in a "do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do" world. I am all about the "say" and "d...