Getting the Word out - Marketing Your Business Opportunity
A Home Business Article Contributed by Sharon Hill
Marketing Your Chosen Business Opportunity
No matter how good your product or service, your business opportunity will not turn out to be any opportunity for you at all if you don't market it. There are many ways of doing this, and we'll take a look at them here.
Search Engines - Folks Have Got to Find Your Business Opportunity
Things are changing rapidly in the world of search engines. So many that used to be free are now charging for top placement. But there are still a lot of freebies out there. The top search engines are Yahoo, Google, Ask Jeeves, AltaVista, Hotbot, Lycos, Webcrawler and AOL. To submit your site is generally pretty simple. Just go to each of the search engines and peruse the home page for instructions.
The key to being found is to have your business opportunity web site copy full of relevant keywords. Think about who is going to look for your type of product or service and what they might call it. These are your keywords.
A Contact List is a Business Opportunity Must
You may already have a contact list. Do you have a Christmas card list, for instance? Or a rolodex? Or a pile of business cards you've gathered and didn't really know what to do with? Start combining those into one list. These are your first contacts. If you're sending out e-mails (and you should) be careful it's not seen as spam. One quick message to folks you know - a hey, how ya doing? How's it been going since the last time we talked? Here's what I'm doing. won't be seen as spam. But don't send a second unless you get some positive feedback.
Network is Crucial for Your Business Opportunity Success
Everything you do, everyone you talk to, everywhere you go is an opportunity to expand your business. When you pay your bills by mail include your business card and brochure. You never know if the person who works at the electric company may not have a carpet that needs cleaning or a new lipstick from your Avon collection.
Set up a signature on all your e-mails. It's a cinch to do, no matter who your provider. The signature should be short, including your business name, contact info, a slogan or one sentence piece of information about your product or service, and a link to your website. Which brings us to your next method of marketing your business opportunity.
Your Business Opportunity Needs an Internet Home
While you can spend hundreds or thousands of dollars creating a dynamic web site, you don't need to. Of course, if you're selling web-site building software your site should be terrific. But, if you sell loans by phone, offer dog walking service, etc. you just need to have a reasonably attractive 3 or 4 page site which gives folks the info they need - who you are, what you do, and how they get a hold of you.
There are books and sites that will teach you to build your own site. Another resource is your local community or technical college. You may find a student here who is eager to earn a little extra money while gaining experience and something to put on their resume for when it comes time to start the hunt for their "real job."
One last note - Before you do anything else sit down and write up a 30 second "speech" about your company. This is about all the time you'll have in most informal situations. Memorize it; practice it. Make it as natural as introducing yourself by name. Then use it everywhere. Word of mouth is a powerful tool. Use it wisely.
