What I Know for Sure About Marketing

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.

Jessica Swanson may be contacted at http://www.shoestringmarketingkit.com/ jessica@jessicaswanson.com

Jessica Swanson, “The Shoestring Marketer,” has helped entrepreneurs, all over the world, explode their businesses using cutting-edge, proven and completely free marketing strategies. To download your FREE Marketing Kit, which has helped thousands of entrepreneurs, just like you, learn the exact techniques for marketing their businesses for NO-COST, visit: Shoestring Marketing Kit