I've been to her show four times. I even held her hand for 30 seconds (and then didn't wash it for 24 hours). And yes, I actually HAVE talked to her personally - for the thirty seconds while I was holding her hand.
So, yes that's my claim to fame.
And, one of my favorite sections of Oprah's magazine is her "What I Know for Sure" segment, where she highlights a personal revelation that she has about life.
So, in keeping with this idea, I'm going to share with you "What I Know for Sure About Marketing." It's just a quick compilation of what I've learned over the years.
• Building a small business is a JOURNEY...you're in it for the ADVENTURE. You actually never ARRIVE.
• The minute your stop marketing is the minute your business stops growing.
• A great marketing plan will help you reach your business goals up to 150 percent faster.
• Magnificent marketing is immune to the economy.
• The secret to small business success? Relationships first, sales second.
• For your marketing to grab hold of the public, it needs to be bold, different and gutsy.
• To be a great marketer, you have to move outside of your comfort zone.
• Show your prospects how you will solve their problems, and you've consummated the sale.
• If you're not going to be exceptional, then you might as well not be in business at all.
• Repetition. Repetition. Repetition. Now THAT's what I call good marketing!
• A business grows in the exact proportion to its marketing efforts.
• Here's the quickest way to small business failure: Blend in with the crowd.
• Stop INTERRUPTING and start INTERACTING.
• It is far more impressive what OTHERS say about your business than what YOU say about your business.
• Marketing is EVERY SINGLE INTERACTION that you have with your clients, prospects and customers.
• In the world of marketing, it's always better to be CLEAR than CLEVER.
• Your prospects are exposed to over 4,000 ads a day...what are YOU doing to get noticed?
• Get out there and GET NOTICED!
• The secret to small business success? Take action every day, even when you're not in the mood.
• A terrible thing happens without marketing...NOTHING!
• Stop talking and start doing. I'd rather see imperfect action than a perfect plan.
• You have TWO choices: 1) Take care of your customer, OR 2) Send them to your competition.
• The only way to the top is through solid and consistent marketing.
• Let your small business uniqueness SHINE so bright, it blinds your competition.
• Only the consistent and persistent marketers survive.
• The big shots are just the little shots who keep marketing.
• Small business success is entirely dependent on your marketing efforts.
• It's a complete MYTH that you have to spend money to make money in the world of marketing.
• The customer doesn't want your "sales pitch." Instead they're looking for a relationship.
• Only market to the small percentage of people who need your product or service and ignore the rest.
• Always remember that your prospects only spend money when they feel SAFE, HAPPY and GOOD.
So there you have it. A few nuggets of shoestring marketing wisdom that will help you on your small business journey.