“Without promotion something terrible happens – nothing!” – P.T. Barnum
Get excited about promoting yourself – three steps revealed
Last Wednesday through Saturday I hosted the inaugural Ultimate Writing Retreat™ in the Windy City. Five copywriters and I came together at the Hotel Allegro for three days of intense writing, brainstorming, Big Idea-generating, website revamping, and book launching.
I heard comments like, “I got great feedback, and gained clarity about where I am and what I need to do next,” and “Fantastic! A great way to jump start or refresh your dream.”
One writer also declared, “What happens here stays here.” In other words, we’re not letting all the secrets out. You’ll just have to come to one of the two remaining retreats this year, including the next one in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Until then, let me share one quick lesson today. I believe that if you do three simple things (not easy, but simple) up front, you’ll be a lot more excited about promoting your business.
1. Choose the right business name from the start.
This is crucial. A good name is good marketing. In addition, since you”ll be using this for your domain name, it must be easy to spell and easy to remember.
One of the best brainstorming playgrounds? Any domain registry site, like GoDaddy.com or Register.com. Go crazy looking up possible names.
Ask yourself, “Do I like it? Do I like saying it out loud? Does it have a nice ring to it? How would it sound on the radio? (whether you end up ever doing radio ads is irrelevant. If it doesn’t sound right now, it won’t sound right in any format.)
So what if you’ve already picked a name that’s not so good? Get a new domain name, now, and forward it to the old one.
A good name must:
- Clearly present what you do
- Convey your competitive edge
- Sell itself without explanation
- Have a positive ring to it
- Not limit you to a certain geographic area
- Attract the kind of clients you want
Now, once you have a good name …
2. Give yourself a good title
You’re in business for yourself so you can give yourself whatever name you’d like. Get creative with your title! Have fun. Who’s going to challenge you? Nobody.
A friend of mine once gave himself the title of “Chief Swashbuckling Officer.” (No, he wasn’t a pirate.) Two titles I used to use were “Chief Wordsmith and Marketing Strategist” and “Personal Trainer to Aspiring Copywriting Rock Stars.”
If you can, work the word “expert” into your title. For example, “Copywriter and Digital Marketing Expert,” or “Presentation Specialist and Video Marketing Expert.”
3. Write a book
Something magical happens when you utter those three magic words, “I’m an author.”
Writing a book will help you:
- Establish yourself as an expert
- Help you come up higher in search engine results
- Impress people in general
- Get your message out
- Attract clients
- Get booked as a speaker or radio guest
- Command higher fees
- and much more …
So, are you ready to get excited about promoting yourself? When you choose the right business name and give yourself a good title, you’ll get excited about getting the word out. Write a book, and you’ll be off-the-charts excited about marketing.
Who’s with me? Ready to relaunch your business? Are you up for the 60 day challenge to get your book done? Let me know if you’d like to really go for it by joining us in Santa Fe for the Ultimate Writing Retreat™.
It will be the most productive three days of writing you’ve ever had. Guaranteed. Early Invitation pricing for the Santa Fe retreat only goes until July 2, so don’t wait.
