From Bunny Slippers to Business Plans
Last week, I posted about an upcoming meetup I was attending, for NY bloggers. Well, the day has come and, though I’m waffling about going due to some dread virus I seem to be coming down with (though I suspect I’m just allergic to the new kitten, I thought I’d address an issue that often comes up at networking events: social anxiety.
Over the past few months, I’ve struggled to find new freelance projects to supplement my regular proofreading and blogging income. Only recently was I able to admit to myself the reason for this partially self-imposed period of limbo: I wasn’t sure what I was looking for.
Obviously, it’s impossible to put together an effective marketing campaign when you’re not quite sure what you’re marketing, or who you’re marketing to. After the jump, the three most basic questions you need to ask yourself before launching your own campaign:
This past week, I’ve had to face the fact that — if I don’t begin to self-market myself more aggressively — my at-home business will never grow. Which is why I focused on self-marketing all week long, with:
Still, even when we know all there is to know about the logistics of self-marketing, we can still have difficulty implementing the necessary steps. Much of this is due to fear.
The other day, we discussed using online social networking for our own selfish, self-marketing needs.
Now comes the hard part.
Though I myself can be a bit…um…socially challenged when it comes to facing a group of complete strangers (liquor helps), I’ve found that meeting someone face-to-face can do wonders for making you stick out in one’s mind.
So I’d like to suggest leaving your computers behind, at least for an evening, and checking out some of the following settings:
When I left my full-time job about a year ago, I was lucky in that I didn’t need to actively seek out work. My one regular proofing gig was snagged through a job ad forwarded to me by a former classmate. And all my other work came to me similarly, through friends and former co-workers who were aware that I was forging ahead on my own.
Such passivity only works up to a point, though and, recently, I found that I had hit a wall. If I wanted to grow my business, I had to bust my ass a bit more. This terrified me. I’m a shy gal, and had probably ended up as a writer/proofreader because of the quiet reclusiveness it afforded me. Thankfully, it’s possible to cover a lot of ground marketing-wise on the web alone:
After reading a ton of Twitter-happy posts over at ProBlogger, I went ahead and opened up my own account. After all, Darren Rowse of ProBlogger believes you can tweet your way to blogging success, while Jen A. Miller showed MediaBistro readers how to twitter in order to promote their books.
I still haven’t gotten the hang of tweeting regularly (or even knowing what’s worth tweeting), but I feel as if Twitter can be an invaluable marketing tool when used in a self-aware and targeted way.
Have any of you used your Twitter accounts to promote a blog or other business? Link to your Twitter profile in the comments!
I attended my very first Jersey Bloggers meetup just last week, along with my husband, who was attending as part of the Metro NJ PHP Meetup Group, and the Northern NJ MySQL Meetup Group. The three groups apparently rendezvous every month at a local Panera Bread.
I was eager to meet bloggers closer to home. I’ve been attending MediaBistro cocktail parties for years now, and when I had met up with the NY Bloggers Meetup Group, I had met a lot of great people, and even scored a paying gig through one of my new acquaintances!
My NJ meetup, however, ended up being far different from what I had expected.
