Try these plans at your own peril.

So, how would you describe your marketing plan?

1. Throw mud at the wall and hope something will stick…
2. Build it and they will come…
3. Try anything once…

We’ve all tried at least one of these plans at some point in our online business careers. You know from experience that, unless you’re really lucky, those plans won’t work. Of course, the last thing you want to do as a business owner is rely on luck. It’s going to run out eventually…

What’s wrong with these approaches? Why won’t they work?

1. Throw much at the wall and hope something will stick:

Unless you have thousands of dollars to spend on marketing and plenty of business to make up for it, this method will leave you with very sad results. You might get lucky, as you’re slinging the mud, and find one technique that works. But chances are, even if you do, you’ll be so busy cleaning up your mess that you won’t know success as it stares you in the eyes.So, enough of the metaphors. I have been here. One day I send out an email newsletter to my paltry mailing list, the next I place banner ads on a few sites. Then I post on a few random message boards that I think might have members of my target market.

And then I wonder why none of it worked. Why?

Because I didn’t stick with anything. Your best method of getting results from your marketing efforts are to pick proven marketing strategies and then follow through with them.

2. Build it and they will come:

You’ve build a shiny new website, filling it with great content and products that you know your target market is dying to buy. But they aren’t. You can barely get your mother to the site. What’s up?Back in the 90s, if you put a website up and told a few friends, chances are, you could get a ton of traffic with little effort. Back then, websites were a novelty. If you knew enough to build the site in the first place, you most likely had the resources to get it in front of the online public.

But that’s not true anymore. Anyone can build a website. Anyone can get their site in a search engine. But not anyone can get the top rankings they need to generate traffic and therefore make sales.

3. Try anything once:

In today’s marketing environment, you can’t try something once, and if it doesn’t have shock and awe results, toss it aside. You have to start out with an understanding that you’re going after long-term results, not short term. So, for example, if you choose article marketing, you’ve got to understand that 30,000 visitors aren’t going to show up on your virtual doorstep tomorrow, if you submit three articles to directories tonight. However, over time, if you continue to steadily write high-quality articles, add them to directories and other webmasters use them on their sites, your traffic will increase. Again, this is over time. Unless you have a large marketing budget, worthy of a Madison Avenue advertising agency, you’re not going to be able to get overnight results.

My advice? Create a plan that features a smart assortment of marketing techniques, both online and off. Maybe a do some article marketing, blogging, press release writing and a targeted postcard campaign in your area. Keep in mind that you’re going for slow and steady. It’s the turtle that wins the race…

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Using a local business expo is a great way to promote your online business. You will be in front of a whole new market; and you never know who is looking for your products. Here are some tips for holding a local business expo.

Decide On Which Type of Expo to Have
There are many types of expos to have; for instance, you could have a business-to-business expo, where the sole purpose is to bring business owners together for networking. You can also have an expo that targets a specific consumer market, such as an expo focused on organic products. You will also want to make decisions regarding the cost to exhibitors and guests. You can charge your exhibitors a booth rental fee large enough to cover all the costs and allow your guests to have free admission or you can charge a lower fee for booths and require the guests to pay a nominal entry fee.

Find a Location
When you first begin organizing expos, it is better to start small and work your way up. Check around with local hotels, community centers and restaurants to see if they have conference rooms for rent.

Find Sponsors & Exhibitors
You will want to call upon local businesses to find exhibitors and sponsors. An exhibitor is someone who rents a booth and has it set up to meet and greet the expo’s guests. A sponsor is someone who has donated money to help you pay the costs of the event or donated a prize that will be won by a guest at the event. You may also want to check with the local high school or college and put in a request for interns to help you organize and set up the event. The students will work for you for free in exchange for the experience.

Publicize Your Event
When you plan your budget, make sure you allot a portion for publicity. You can receive free publicity by sending press releases to local newspapers, radio and television stations. However, you will also want to consider taking ads out in within the media in order to draw the best crowd possible.

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This week I spoke about THE secret to success at Product Seller’s Talk Radio. And today, I see that Rich Schefen, of Strategic Profits has taken the topic and gone a step further:

You can’t become successful by chasing 10 different rabbits. You’ve got to focus on one, and actually catch it. Then you can go on to the next one.

You can read more on his thoughts about focusing your business and you can listen to my thoughts on THE secret to business success.

Now go find something to DO!

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