Mind Your Business

Maintain Your Marketing Momentum.

According to Chase's Calendar of Events, June is Entrepreneurs "Do It Yourself" Marketing Month. At Make Mine Pink, we've talked a lot about the different ways we can market our businesses by ourselves. You probably are already using some marketing techniques that are working well for you.

But are you maintaining your marketing momentum?

Here is what I mean... When we first open for business, we are usually highly focused on our marketing. We know we need to get that first paying customer. Then we have to find the next customer, and the next one after that. And that means we need to be continually marketing ourselves.

But then we start to get busy keeping up with our customers and looking after other aspects of our business.  With so many new customers contacting us, we suddenly no longer have the time to market our businesses like we used to. We might even believe we don't have to market ourselves as aggressively since we have all the sales we need... for right now.

Then the pendulum swings the other way and, for whatever reason, our best customers no longer need us. The phone calls and emails from potential new customers stop. And we're back to having to market ourselves intensely to find that next customer.If any of this sounds familiar to you, know that you're not alone! This trap is easy for any business owner to fall into. In fact, most of us do.

With so many balls to juggle, we sometimes tend to focus just on what needs our attention NOW and put off what we think can wait. So when business is good, that means we might neglect our marketing.

But if you can maintain your marketing momentum, you will avoid these feast or famine cycles in your business. Because you are always marketing, your business will always continue to grow steadily, not in spurts and stops.

One way you can make marketing a regular part of your routine, even during busy times, is to set a marketing schedule. Schedule time each week for various marketing tasks.  Let's say your blog is an important part of your marketing strategy, but when times are busy you neglect it. Break the task down into manageable pieces and schedule time each day to work on them. So, you could schedule time on Monday to brainstorm blog ideas. On Tuesday you could set aside some time for writing a rough draft, and so on. Whatever marketing techniques you like to use, set aside a little bit of time each day to do them.

Another approach to maintaining your momentum is by using marketing checklists. Break each of your marketing tasks into small steps and turn them into a checklist. Then, when you have a few spare minutes for marketing, refer to your checklist to see what you need to do. This saves you time because you don't have to remember what you did last week, or wonder what you should do next. Even if you have limited time each day for marketing your business, you will always be moving forward.

June might be the official "Do It Yourself" Marketing Month. But if you plan how you'll market your business every day, your business will continue to grow year round. 

Joyce Lucas, Founder
Make Mine Pink

How to stay positively focused on your business when a confidence crisis strikes

How is your confidence holding up? 

If you were to say that it's a little bit shaky at times, I wouldn't be surprised. The course of entrepreneurship is a bumpy one, filled with speed bumps and potholes that can make the most confident among us question our abilities.

A better question might be, how are you going to avert your next confidence crisis?

A "confidence crisis" is when a sudden lack of confidence creeps into your business and you lose your momentum and focus. It might keep you from taking an important step. You could start second-guessing yourself, even if you know your first instincts are usually right. Even if the crisis lasts for just a short time, that's time you could have been moving forward instead of standing still, wondering if you really have what it takes.

You probably already have myriad achievements and accomplishments to prove, even to yourself (because we're usually our harshest critics), that you truly are successful. But they're easy to forget, especially when you're under a cloud of self-doubt.

The next time self-doubt looms, take action by creating a board that records all your achievements and successes. Much like a vision board or gratitude board, an achievement board is a reminder of your successes to keep you positively focused. A folder, box, or a file on your computer can serve this purpose too. I like the idea of a board because I can hang it on my wall so it's always within view when I need a confidence boost.

Here are some of the things you can include on your achievement board to remind yourself of your successes, your talents, and your creativity:

Positive customer comments and testimonials. Look through your email for all the positive things people have said about you. If you haven't been in business long enough to have a collection of these, it's never to early to start building it. Ask your favorite customers or colleagues if they could write a testimonial for you.

Pictures of your favorite projects. Do you remember how inspired you felt while you working on them? How much pride you felt in your work when they were finally completed? 

Awards you've won and positive reviews you've received. If you've been featured in a magazine, the article should go on the board too.

The profit statement from your best day, month, or year in business. That's a tangible reminder of your success and an encouragement to make it happen again.

It’s natural that there will be times when we question ourselves and our abilities. The key to averting a confidence crisis is to take steps, like creating an achievement board, to remind yourself of everything you've accomplished so far and to keep yourself positively focused in your business. It's time to be your one woman/man cheer-leading squad.

Joyce Lucas, Founder
Make Mine Pink

Taking a Summer Vacation – and Leaving Your Business Behind

Small business owners are notorious for not taking vacations from their businesses. We start working for ourselves because we want the freedom of being a small business owner. But then we devote ourselves 120% to our businesses and our clientele and forget that we need to nurture ourselves as well. 

Even if you do give yourself a break once in while, you might not completely break away from your business. Have you ever checked your business email while you're supposedly on vacation? I know I have.

As a small business owner, I know every customer interaction can make a big difference. It’s easy to be of the mindset that you don’t want to miss any opportunities, but I have also learned how important it is to take a true break from my business every once in a while.

How can you give yourself the vacation you need, while making sure your business won't suffer in your absence?  If you’re ready to take an honest to goodness vacation away from business, here are a few tips to keep things running smoothly while you’re away.

The first thing you'll need to do is decide how much of a disconnect you can handle. If you want a complete break, you’ll need to announce you're closing up shop for a little while. Posting a sign on the front page of your website is one way to handle your closure. If your website has a "Contact Me" page, you might also want to add a closure notice there, in case they missed the front page.

If you have a Facebook page, be sure and post a note that you’ll be gone and send out a tweet or two letting your followers know. Your business blog is another place to post your closure notice. Write a blog post announcing you'll be unavailable for a while. And that email list you've been building? Send out a notice to your subscribers as well.

Even though you'll do your best to let everyone know in advance, some contacts might miss your notice and still try to email you. In order to reach everyone, you can also set up an auto-responder on your email account saying that you're on vacation and let them know when you'll get back to them.
While you should take an occasional break from your business, customer service is still important. An upset customer might email about a problem they've discovered with their order or  a potential new customer might try to get in touch.  In these cases, sometimes a "Closed for Vacation" sign and a friendly auto-responder message can be a missed opportunity to make things right, or gain new business.  By the time you get back from your vacation, the unhappy customer might be demanding a refund and the potential new customer may have found somewhere else to shop.
This is why it's also a good idea to have someone screen your incoming email while you're away. They can alert you of any potential problems so you can address them or or instruct them how to handle the situation at hand. Sometimes a personal note from you explaining the situation and your concern, and your commitment to handle it promptly upon your return is enough to defuse a potential problem and gain the trust of a potential customer.

If all of this is just a little too disconnected for you, and your way of vacationing is like mine, you may want to stay in touch, even if on a limited basis.  Try and limit your time to checking e-mail, answering only necessary ones. Schedule blog posts to automatically post at different times during your absence, and if you really want to stay in touch, you can use services like Hootsuite to schedule Facebook posts and tweets. Sharing some of your vacation hi-lights can be a good way to keep your friends and fans engaged and connected with you on a personal level. After-all, this is “social networking” But only if it fun and relaxing for you.

Joyce Lucas
Make Mine Pink
Cottage Collections

Are you selling your products on the second most popular website yet?

Promoting Your Products on the World's Second Most Popular Website

Just recently, Facebook surpassed Yahoo to become the second most popular website on the internet.  http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2010/02/facebook-beats-yahoo.html If you haven't started using Facebook for your business, maybe this is motivation to give it another look.
You probably already know that Facebook lets you share your blog posts, show off photos, connect with old customers and friends, and find new ones. Something else I've been doing on Facebook, though, is setting up fan pages to promote my businesses.  That's something you might want to do to for your business and your products too.
A fan page is like a public profile you can use to share your business and your products with other Facebook users. It promotes your business via word-of-mouth. When your "fans" interact with your page by leaving a comment, sharing a picture, or even by becoming a fan, it shows up in their news feed, which all their friends can see.
You might be wondering how Facebook fans become paying customers. After all, it's nice to be popular, but what we really want if we’re in business, is to build relationships with potential customers. I’d much rather buy from someone I know and trust, than doing a search on Google. I’d much rather give my business to other small businesses like myself and I’m sure others feel the same. This is your opportunity to connect on a personal level, just like any little shop in small town USA.
To make it easy for your fans to buy from you, you'll want to include all the details about your business on your fan page, especially where fans can buy your products. Then use your creativity to come up with ideas to keep fans returning to your page and learning more about your products.

Some ideas you can try are keeping your page updated with fresh photos of projects you're working on right now, holding contests just for your fans, giving away gift certificates for your products, offering weekly specials for fans only. Something that has worked well to keep my fans coming back regularly is genuine interaction. It doesn’t matter how many fans you have if you don’t get to know your fans and let them get to know you.

To set up your fan page, I've found the easiest place to start is http://www.facebook.com/pages/create.php . Here you can name your page and choose a category for your business. After you've created your page, you can add a profile picture. Here you have an opportunity to add more than just a small image of yourself. Did you know that Facebook allows you to add a 200 x 600 pixel image? Do you realize just how much information you can get into a 200 x 600 image? Much more than just an image of yourself or your logo. On your page, you can upload as many photos as you want. There is a tab where fans can publish reviews of your products and a discussion board where they can get to know each other.
When your page is set up and ready for company, just click the "Publish this Page" link to share your page with everyone else on Facebook. Remember to become a fan of your own page!  Now it will show up in your profile so your friends can see it and become fans too. You can also "suggest" that your friends become fans of your page by clicking the "Suggest to Friends" link.
One way that has worked to get fans for my pages is to promote the page with a Facebook ad. It's a cost-effective way to advertise your business. You can choose exactly who will see your ad, and you only pay for click-throughs and new fans.

Do you see how easy it can be to promote your products on the second most popular website? As your fans spread the word about how much fun they're having on your page, their numbers will grow and so will your business.

Joyce Lucas, Founder
Cottage Collections
Make Mine Pink

Fan Pages:
Make Mine Pink
Cottage Collections

How to Grow Your Mailing List

When you have a big sale coming up, you've just added an exciting new product to your store, or if you've decided to offer a last-minute special... who wants to know about it?
The people on your mailing list do!
The shoppers and potential customers who subscribe to your mailing list are genuinely interested what you sell. These are the people who are eager to hear about your special offers and your new additions. And they are the people who are most likely to buy from you again and again. So, you can see how important it is to grow your mailing list and find as many of these valuable subscribers as possible.

I can think of several different ways you can start to grow a mailing list of qualified prospects and potential customers. Here are a few you might want to try.

The most obvious, of course, is to place a newsletter sign up box somewhere on your website. I think most of us have a form on our websites or blogs that visitors can fill in to receive our updates. Did you know that where your box is positioned can affect how many people sign up? To be most effective, you want to have it in a prominent place on your website, preferably somewhere near the top of the screen. You might want to experiment by putting it different places and seeing which position attracts the most subscribers.

Another simple way to grow your mailing list is to invite the subscribers you have right now to forward their copy of your newsletter to a friend who might be interested in it. It sounds almost too simple, but it works! When I receive an article I really enjoy, I'm happy to pass it along to a friend that I think will find it helpful too.  In your newsletter, include a little note of how to sign up, so the friends can subscribe and get their own copy next time.

And how many emails do you send out in a day?  At the end of each one, offer your newsletter in your signature, and include a link to your sign up page.

When you write articles, do the same. In your "About the Author" paragraph at the end, include an invitation to sign up for your mailing list. Mention your mailing list in every piece of communication that leaves your desk.

Remember to offer your newsletter to prospects and customers you meet in person, too. Consider having a sign up sheet in your studio or shop where they can sign up to receive your latest news and specials.

Another idea I like is to offer your newsletter on your voicemail message.

Whenever you're interviewed about your business or teach a class, mention your newsletter.

Make it a habit to offer your newsletter at every opportunity, starting today.  Soon you will have a healthy list of customers and prospects who are eager to hear your latest news, and are ready to buy from you again and again.

Joyce Lucas, Founder
Make Mine Pink

Finding Inspiration for Your Business Blog

It seems that every internet marketing and business expert I hear these days is telling us that we need to blog more often. Even the publicity experts say that keeping our blogs updated might be more important than sending out press releases. Are you listening to the same voices I am?
So, you probably don't need to be convinced that it's important to blog for your business. But do you know what you should be blogging about? Sometimes it isn't that we don't know what to do; it's that we don't know exactly how to do it that holds us back.
If you aren't blogging yet because you don't know what to say, I've put together a short list of some places you can always look for inspiration and ideas. Even if you are blogging regularly, you might find these suggestions helpful too.
First of all, you can always blog about your business. This is a business blog, after all. But that doesn't mean you have to come across as formal and boring.  To keep your readers interested, you can write about topics like how customers use your most popular products. Or highlight some differences between you and your competitors, and then show why your products are better. Are you showing your products somewhere soon? Blog about it! Let your readers know your business is growing and you're doing exciting things.
Let your workspace inspire a few of your blog posts.  I know I'm not the only one who is fascinated by watching artists at work. It's exciting to watch the creative process in action. Give your blog visitors a peek into your studio to see what really goes on. Show off what you're working on right now. If you're feeling brave, you can even make a video of yourself hard at work, or give a virtual tour of your studio. Don't worry about the mess – it only makes you more approachable.
Spotlight some of your customers in your blog, though you may want to ask their permission first. Answer a commonly asked question or two. Share customers' comments or testimonials about your products and your outstanding customer service. Post a few pictures of how your customers are displaying your products in their homes.
You can give your blog visitors a glimpse of your personal side too. Have you read a good article lately, or one that made you angry? Blogging about it will encourage your visitors to comment and start a conversation with you. Have you achieved something you're really proud of? Even if it's not business-related, brag about it on your blog. Engage your readers and customers by letting them get to know another side of you.
Finally, remember that you don't have to blog all on your own. Go ahead and invite a business colleague to guest blog for you. Maybe you can do the same for her when she's stuck for ideas. Post a video or a photo that made you laugh, just for fun.  Hold a contest or a poll for your blog readers, then blog about the results.

We can all agree that blogging for business is important. But once you discover how easy it is to find new ideas for your blog, I think you'll agree it's enjoyable too.

Happy Blogging!
Joyce Lucas, Founder
Make Mine Pink & Cottage Collections

What makes your business extraordinary?

Do you remember when it seemed that the most important thing was to be just like everyone else? I learned very early in my business career  that the things that make us unique are often the same things that can make us extraordinary.

But have you ever considered what makes your business unique? If not, you could be missing out on creating a business that's really wonderfully unique and successful.

When I ask business owners what makes their businesses stand out from everyone else's, I'm surprised by how few are able to describe what's special about them. Sometimes it makes me wonder, if you don't know why I should buy from you instead of somebody else, then... why should I?

Maybe the trouble is we're still holding onto the old belief that we're supposed to look like everyone else. It's time to let that idea go and embrace what makes you exciting and original!
If you can't easily answer the question, "What makes your business different from everyone else's?" here's your chance to find out.

I've come up with three questions you can ask yourself to discover your business's unique qualities and use them to build a business that's out of the ordinary.

When you're uncovering what makes your business one-of-a-kind, the first question you'll need to ask yourself is, "What do I do?" If you dig deep down to the core of what you really do, I know you'll find something that makes you stand out from the crowd.
For example, do you design unique artwork or do you create fun ways for your customers to express themselves? Do you just refinish antique furniture or do you help busy people reflect on simpler times? When you examine what you really do, you'll discover it's something that no one else does.

Next, ask yourself why your customers buy from you instead of someone else. What makes you different from businesses that are similar to yours?  
You'll be able to glean a few ideas of your own by visiting your competitors' websites or stores. To get more in-depth answers, ask your customers why they decided to purchase from you instead of from the shop down the street. Their feedback will probably reflect your business's unique strengths. Now, you need to find out how can you build on those strengths, and make sure everyone else knows about them too.

Finally, why do you do what you do? Is this something you've dreamed of doing since you were a little girl? Did you simply take advantage of an opportunity that came your way? Do you find sincere joy in helping others add beauty to their lives? This is a very personal question, but one I can assure you that we all have the answer to.. You might need to listen to your heart to find this answer.

The reasons that you do what you do are a very big part of what make your business unique. Each of your customers benefits from everything you put into your work, from the quality of what you produce to the pleasure they'll find in talking to you about their purchase. The part of yourself that you pour into your business is something that can't be replicated by anyone. It makes your business unique!

Now that you've discovered what makes your business stand out in the crowd, it's time to let those qualities shine. Get ready to share your true heart and find an extraordinary business!

Joyce Lucas, Founder & CEO
Make Mine Pink
Cottage Collections

Romancing your business on Valentines Day and everyday.

Romancing Your Business – Making Everyday Valentine's Day for Your Small Business.

I've often heard people say that they don't celebrate Valentine's Day. It's too commercialized or they believe that when you really care about someone, there should be romance in your relationship everyday. Whether you celebrate Valentine's Day or not, they do make a good point. Giving a relationship the attention it needs only one day a year won't make up for an inattentive partner the rest of the year. You need to keep it alive and exciting all the time. But that doesn't mean that you can't celebrate special times or events. Every business needs a few exciting things up their sleeve.!

Owning a business is a lot like being in a relationship with someone you care about very much about. So much in fact, that you anticipate spending many years with it. And just like a relationship, it's not showy displays of affection one day a year that help it grow. It's the tiny details, remembered everyday, that help that relationship blossom and reach its ultimate potential. Here are some simple ways you can romance your business to make everyday Valentine's Day for your small business.

Give your business the daily attention it needs.

If you have a website, spend a few minutes working on the content each day. One of the most essential elements of any successful website is its content. Regularly updated products, photos and relevant content, will keep your customers and visitors coming back over and over again to see what new and exciting things you have to offer.

Make a schedule to market your business 2-3 times each week and stick to it. As your business grows, increase the marketing to a little bit each and every day.
We often think that marketing has to cost a lot of money, or that it's hard to do. But in reality, marketing is simply telling people about how your business can help them, then telling them over and over again. We do this every day when we use social marketing tools like twitter, facebook, linked in and even blogging.
If you use these tools effectively, you should see a huge increase in interest. The best part? It's absolutely free and puts you and your business in front of millions of people.

Some of the most effective marketing techniques don't cost a penny, and they can easily be added to your daily routine. For example, if you've written an article for your website or blog, let others know by updating your status on facebook and tweeting on twitter! Let your viewers know that can reprint it so long as they give a link back to your business. Make your tweets and Facebook posts count. Give a link to your article and watch your traffic and mailing lists grow!

It's critical that you build up your mailing list with interested customers and clients. Your objective is to get their name on your list and then keep your business right in front of them by "keeping them entertained."

Marketing your business offline can be free and easy too! Hold a class at your community center to educate your market on how your services can improve their lives. Sponsor charity and community events and put on your very best "business dress". Don't volunteer to donate a product that you have in your clearance section. Donate the best of your very best. Remember, only one person wins the prize, but how many others might want to buy it? All these methods can keep help keep your your business in front of your market and are easy to do.

How many of you are members of your local Chamber of Commerce? This is also a low cost but worthwhile way to keep your community informed about your business.

Just like any relationship, your business needs your love and attention to flourish. It's hard to give the promotional side of your business the attention it needs if you are distracted by other things. Perhaps it's time to start thinking about getting some help for your business? Maybe it's time to start building your very own dream team of people that are passionate and love what you are doing.

Small business owners tend to wear too many hats. Thinking that you can do all, be all, will just dilute your effectiveness and even worse, make you cranky because you are frustrated and exhausted. There's nothing worse than a cranky business owner. As a consumer, I want to feel like a valued customer when I shop with you. If you can't make me feel that way, I know there are others that can.

Figure out what is distracting you from goals. Make a list of what you do each day for a week. At the end of the week, look at that list and see what is working and what isn't. Get rid of the things that are not benefiting your business. Goals are meant to be revised. Make new, smaller and attainable goals if this works best for you. When you start seeing more and more goals reached, it will give you the confidence you need to reach for even bigger and better goals.

Keep the romance with your business alive in 2010 and as you begin to make it a priority, you'll start to see exciting changes. And like the law of attraction.. "like attracts like" You'll see customers seeking you out because there's just something special about you and your business.

Pretty soon every day will feel like Valentine's Day. Not just for you, but for your valued and loyal customers and clients.

Joyce Lucas, Founder
Make Mine Pink

"The Disney Way" can be your way too!

I read the Disney Way a few months back and this month, the Make Mine Pink book club has chosen The Disney Way as their book to review. For those that joined the book club, you're in for a pleasant surprise. For those that didn't, I hope you'll have the opportunity in the very near future to read this book. It will change the way you view your own business.

A Successful Small Business Doesn't Need Fairy Dust... or a Good Economy

With so many big box businesses closing, this can be an unnerving time for any small business owner. After all, if the big boys can't make it right now, who are you to believe YOU can?

You may even be entertaining thoughts of packing up your dreams and bringing them out again when the economy's a little bit better... or at least when there's not so much media doom and gloom.

The truth is, though, big dreams and small businesses have never needed sunny days or good economies to succeed. Even Walt Disney, the man who created magic for millions of people, didn't factor fairy dust into his plans. Instead, his formula for success was simply: "Dream, believe, dare and do."

Big dreams are a good place to start, but the way we make dreams happen hasn't changed one bit. No matter what everyone else is saying, success is still achieved one small step at a time.

Believe in yourself and your small business. As a small business owner, you have more creativity and flexibility than any big business, which means your business isn't limited by anything except the limits you choose to put in place. Success is yours for the taking and it does not require fairy dust or optimistic media reports.

What you do need is a goal, and a plan for how to reach that goal. What does success in 2009 mean for you? Think big! Don't hold back just because of the media reports. What is it you REALLY want to achieve this year?

With that picture in your mind, you might hear a little voice telling you, "It can't  happen.  Cut your marketing budget and lay low. You'll be lucky to keep the customers you have."

Do you hear it?

Good.

That's the voice you should not be listening to this year. That voice just repeats what it hears everybody else say. If you follow its advice, you'll be heading down the same path as everyone else.

Instead, ask yourself, "What do I need to do each week to reach my goals for 2009?" then do it consistently, regardless of media hype or outward circumstances.

Is big business closing? This is your chance to shine like never before. Take advantage of it, and make this is your time to stand out. 

Are you still planning to cut your marketing budget? Before you do, consider the message that will send to your customers. If they don't see your business in the places they're used to seeing you, they're going to assume that hard times are affecting you as well.

Instead, let your customers see that you believe in yourself and your business. Show them that you have chosen to not participate in this recession. Show them they can feel confident about doing business with you because you're not going anywhere.

There has never been anything magical about making dreams come true. It's time to do things the Disney way,  "Dream, believe, dare and do," and realize your dreams of owning a successful small business:

How about making a little magic of your own?

Joyce Lucas, Founder
Make Mine Pink

Stampington & Co stands out in a crowd

When we first started hearing the media report about the decline of the economy, and then again after months of media hysteria, I stood firm to my belief that if you want to succeed in this economy you have to turn a deaf ear to the media and do something to make your business stand out in the crowd. I believed that this was not the time to cut costs on marketing your business, but instead an opportunity to gain a very big presence by investing all of your time and resources into building an even better brand.

After reading Jenny Doh's (Editor-in-Chief & Director of Publishing for Stampington & Co ) facebook post and then the newsweek article "Can anything save magazines?" I want to jump up and down and say "See, I told you so!" But I won't. Instead I'll say Congratulatons Stampington & Company. It's clear that you not only have an incredibly creative team, but a smart one as well. For now I'll celebrate my validation and your success.

Joyce Lucas, Founder
Make Mine Pink.