I admit that when I hear the phrase “self promotion,” my immediate reaction is to think of some know-it-all who barks nonstop about his or her business and all the things he or she does and knows. Now that I have admitted that is MY first reaction, I will also say that as a small business owner, I know very well that self promotion is important and that it doesn’t have to be sleazy or annoying. Self promotion is NOT an undesirable part of business—in fact, it is imperative…
Self promotion or promoting yourself and your business does not have to be like whacking everyone you come in contact with over the head with a braggart hammer—it can be subtle, thoughtful, and customer-focused and still be considered self-promotion. The first hurdle, however, is that we need to get over that image of the bragging salesperson—we can redefine self promotion to fit our personalities and still benefit our growing small businesses.
It might be worth your while to do a couple of things to jump-start your self promotion efforts—first, think of other small business owners you know whom you admire for their approach to marketing and public relations. If you can identify what it is about these business owner’s approaches that you like and want to emulate, you can then find things to imitate and adopt for your own self promotions. Secondly, get creative—do some research and brainstorming and try to come up with fun, creative ways to promote yourself and your business that do not seem obnoxious or pushy or whatever it is you detest about “self promotion.” I have done some writing about ways you can even donate to charity and contribute to community events while promoting your business.
Release yourself from the stigma of “self promotion” and remember that marketing and public relations are important for the health of our businesses, we just need to find ways of doing it that make us feel GOOD.
Also: Understanding Visibility for Your Business
Donating Products and Services to Charity Events
Should You Use Promotional Products?