Have you gotten so busy just “doing business” that you forgot to keep up with everything else?

This is our forever challenge.

Stay consistent.  Be persistent.  Do the work.  Read more...

• Building content — making films, writing, shooting, illustrating, directing, whatever — daily.
• Building contacts — seeing people, writing people, talking with people, attending industry events — daily, weekly.
• Building ideas — free time to create, structured time to strategize and random times to be inspired.
• Building promotions — creating, launching and following up on getting Seen and Remembered.
• Building relationships — caring for clients by doing outstanding work, over-delivering and staying in-touch.

GET UP.  GET OUT.  GET MOVING.

Make contact!

When you are not in the world, you can start to feel isolated.  Marketing is all about being seen.  Develop ways to be making contacts.  Take a class.  Join an organization.  Attend a gallery showing.  Have a beer with friends. Talk a walk, take a hike, take a moment to see the world.  Make dinner for others.  Bring food to the unfortunate.

Talk with friends. Be a friend.  Call.  Email.  Spend time together.  Don’t waste time complaining.  Deliver negative thoughts to your therapist (no therapist but lots of negative thoughts? time to get one!) Work on changing (reframing) your thinking.  And if you cannot afford it/don’t believe in it — join an acting class or comedy class and change your thinking.  Read more...

Word-of-Mouth is someone else telling others all about us!

Word-of-Mouth is golden.  It’s great when the “mouth” it comes from is huge and has a large audience.  Many of us swear that it’s the best and only marketing we’ll ever need.

As creative entrepreneurs we often shun speaking about ourselves, we value “the other” person saying we’re incredible, perfect for the job and the exact fit for which they’re looking.  When friends, colleagues and strangers say that we are the best one, the only one and then come find us– we love it.  Read more...

Talk About Me — Please.

Many people say they only want word-of-mouth business but don’t do the work to make it happen. It takes thought, planning and doing to become your best marketing plan.

• You must be visible to your market.
• You must be “the best” to that market.
• You must do great work for that market.
• You must stay connected to that market.

Word-of-mouth is my primary source of business acquisition.  But it didn’t “just happen.” I had to produce and be seen by many.  I had to demonstrate my talents, views and expertise over and over.  Read more...

Here are 5 of the Most Over Used Excuses and a little talk about how they help keep business away.

Are you spending hours describing, passionately, to others how hard you work, how much you work and how it is just NOT WORKING?

1. There are not enough hours in the day for all the work I need to do.  Read more...

Too many blogs are a jumble of the person’s musings — vomit from the heart.
Maybe there is something of value there but it stinks getting to it.

Quit Excuses!
The first thing that is required of every creative and entrepreneur is to completely quit excuses, accept total responsibility and get moving to try something different to get more of what YOU want.

There are a million really good reasons why you are where you are. Now make a plan to get out of there and into what you want.

Find Money!
Most businesspeople understand this. Many entrepreneurs don’t. Without money, business does not happen. So go make it, borrow it, steal it or marry it.  Read more...

Don’t let the following tips fool you. They are simple, but they are the foundation of great business.

1. Be a Decent Human Being. Good manners and gratitude are a huge deal. Being outgoing and caring for others are powerful values that shine in your work.
2. Do Great Work. There is no way around this. You must put the energy and imagination into producing kickass work. Unless you can create mind-blowing product, you might as well quit now and get a “regular” job (apologies to those in traditional jobs which are no longer “regular!”)
3. Show Your Work. If no one “really” sees your work, you’ll never be remembered or bought. Figure out how you will break into the world of being “seen,” make a plan and then do it. Over and over and over…so you will be “remembered.”
4. Over Deliver. When you get someone’s attention, make sure you are worth the attention. Then, get back to them in a “together” way. Be totally engaged EVERY time you meet. This is how you get to work with them for life. We seek people “who get things done!”
5. Follow Up. YOU need to keep after it – day after day, month after month. Again, I’m sorry. Nobody’s going to hold your hand. Aggressive sales tactics are for chumps. You’ll cash in by making basic human connections, by simply being available and keeping in touch. There are so many ways to do this.
Everyone Needs A Plan.

A well thought-out and organized plan dramatically increases your odds of succeeding as an entrepreneur.

It allows you to:

Know where you are.
Know where you’re going.
Be efficient.
Work with focus.
Do great work.
Use money smartly.
Work productively.
Get more clients.
Be SEEN.
Be REMEMBERED.

•  Your Plan gives you guidance, reminds you of your goals and breaks all the work down into manageable steps. It is the map of your hopes, dreams and ideas for your business.

•  Your Plan takes time, thought and work to produce. Many entrepreneurs find this process difficult.  Don’t go it alone.  Marketing Creatives has worked with hundreds of entrepreneurs to create their own Custom One-Year Plan.  Read more...