My first steps in the business world, started with a small computer shop. I was selling computers, basically buying parts from suppliers and I put together each computer and sold them. That was in 1997 and I was the novice entrpreneur. I didn’t know how to market my business. I only knew the technical site of setting up computers. I believe I had this talent that not everyone had and that was my competitive advantage and being the ideal businessman, I thought that with that alone, I will be selling like pancakes. I then realized it was all a dream and I was not equiped with most of the business skills I needed. A lot has changed from then and today. And one of the early lessons I was learning during my computer shop years was how to promote my business.
A few of my successful campaigns were pretty simple, and here were some of the successful ones. These are not really novel ideas, but I just want to point out for the novice entrepeneurs, it still took me hard work learning how to sell and market, and I was not a salesman nor a marketing major.
1. Flyers at the local computer schools. There were 2 computer schools in my locality that time. (Today there are more.) And I always made it a point, during the very first day of classes, where there are a lot of freshmen aiming to be computer professionals one day, I should be there at the gate, the entrace of the school. And I give away flyers and give a real good price as a freshman promo. Many of the students had no computer and they were going to pursue a degree in computer science. It just would be great to grab their attention right away.
2. Going to events. There was a time when a major rock band had a concert inside the local high school. I know if I give flyers in a concert, the flyers go straight to the trash. So I simply printed discount cards. And it says special concert promo price and just placed a single complete computer promo along with contact information. And I give it a time limit to avail the promo to give a sense of urgency.
3. Sponsoring signs. The church needs a sign, community events need signs, some schools need signs. And I would simply ask them if they want me to sponsor their signs and in exchange I get some minimal exposure in the sign.
These are very simple. Some like common sense to many of us. But amazing how simple ideas can sometimes make a large impact on your business. Some may take giant quantum leaps right away, but some may take very many tiny baby steps until you really benefit from your promotional efforts. One of the books that taught me everything and even more techniques was 101 Ways to Promote Yourself.
The lessons learned from this book by Raleigh Pinskey was priceless and the book is not expensive. And the book was very language friendly for the business beginner. After reading her book, I have learned even more ideas.
