I fully understand Amanda Waring’s promotional dilemma – when you start a business like Mama Jewels around family commitments both time and money are stretched. Francine Pickering’s 9 Golden Rules provide some solid principles but HOW can Amanda, and everyone else in her position, actually get promoting?

Three things to avoid when promoting a business:

1. Advertising; Amanda has already wasted money on an advert in an obscure magazine. Unless you have a significant budget to sustain an advertising campaign, including advert design, forget it. There are better uses for your money.
2. Networking in the wrong streams; take a lesson from Mike Southon, FT Columnist and try to meet people who can really move your business forward. If Amanda is promoting to the trade, buyers and suppliers, and even a potential future buyer of her business, she needs to be seen at the big jewellery trade events. Local Chamber of Commerce or Federation of Small Business (FSB) events could be a waste of time.
3. Direct mail; falls into the same category as advertising if you are on a very limited budget.

Tips for Public Relations

I’ve estimated the time you need each month:

Keep a diary or blog of your business

Keep a diary or blog of your business story from the start because offering you and your business as a case study for the press does work well for small firms. inafishbowl provides Amanda with a flying start, but others should set aside 15 mins a week to keep a log. Take a look at the national papers and their small business editors such as Daily Express (Maisha Frost), Sunday Times (Rachel Bridge) and Daily Telegraph (Richard Tyler) and see how they handle news stories illustrated by a case study.

Allow 1 hour a month: 15 mins a week

Tell your target media about your news

Local press want local characters and successes and most are happy to receive a call followed by an email with the main points of your news. You don’t have to be a wizard press release writer. What makes news? Is what you are doing of interest to the likely reader, listener or viewer? Put yourself in the shoes of the journalist and ask yourself, so what? What’s different about this news? Allow four hours a month minimum for this activity depending on the number of press contacts you make. If you can make it join me and Daily Express journalist at the next British Library media workshop.

Allow 4 hours a month

Use audio and video content to bring your business message alive

These days, recording a pod cast (audio programme of around 15 mins) or shooting a short video can be done by you to a professional standard. The equipment can be borrowed, but is also inexpensive if your business merits regular recordings. Even editing software is easy to use, so have a go. A decent piece of video posted to YouTube and on your website will attract interest. But make sure your target audience know it’s there.

Allow 4 hours a month

To answer Amanda and those of you in the same quandary, set aside at least 1 day a month on the kind of promotional activity I’ve described. There will be plenty more to do later, but this will get you off the starting blocks.

Let us know through inafishbowl.com comments how you get on, or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

WARNING
A final word of warning; get your business model right in terms of production and delivery before going full throttle on promotion. Press coverage in a major national paper could sink your business if you aren’t ready for the possible rush. Use PR and other strategies with care under the watchful guidance of a business adviser.