Yes, we are all busy. Even if we aren't and keep ourselves busy (yes, I too often spend time messing with things that aren't really that important). But if we don't let the world know what great things we can do for them, we'll find ourselves with even more time to work on those not so important things.

Marketing is tough. It is! It's time consuming, it's stressful, it's confusing, it's overwhelming…. so let's get started, huh?

It's really not that bad if you are willing to commit. And here is a list of 5 things you can do to make it less stressful. First thing to do is get a pen and piece of paper, or better yet grab some post-it  note so you can make move your ideas around while you are brain dumping. Don't do this on your computer or tablet, it's easier to work with paper, then once you have a framework transfer it to your tech-tool of choice to maintain.

  1. Commit: This is the hardest most challenging step in anything you do, not just Marketing. You have to be willing to stick with it to get the results you need. Understand I am looking in a mirror when I say that-I'm as guilty as anyone… I get distracted by many shiny new objects.
  2. Set Goals: What do you want out of this effort? More clients, more exposure, more engagement? Is it add more clients? Make more presentations? Close more sales? If you have a goal in place, it will be easier to be sure you don't stray and get side tracked. List 5 things you want to accomplish. Keep it to 5, don't over do it as it will dilute the focus.
  3. Strategy: Once you have the goals you can focus on the plan to achieve it. The most important thing here is how much time are you going to Commit to your strategy to achieve you goals? It doesn't have to eat up all your day, but block out some time. Start with 30 minutes a day at 10 am to plan and another 30 minutes at 5 pm to recap for the next day's session. If everyday it too much, try M-W-F, or Tues-Thur (but make it 60 min to maintain the amount of time).
  4. Tools: Pick the tools you are going to use for your efforts.
    • Web Based Tools: Social Media, like twitter, Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook? Blogging? Podcasting? Email? A combination of some of these will be most effective. I am making an assumption here that you already have a website up and running. If not stop reading this and get that done. More than 80% of all research start with a web search, so if you don't have a presence on the web, there is no need to go further.
    • Print Tools: Ok, not so much a tool you would think of, but print such as flyers and advertising still gives them something to hold on to and can be designed in such a way to provide relevant information to your audience.
    • Direct Mail: Still one of the most powerful tools to get the right message to the right people in a cost effective manner. Also with the technology in data and personalization, you can truly target your content with high impact in more powerful ways than ever before. You can segment your list, customize the offers and content based on demographics, location, past purchase, The more relevant the messaging, the better the response.
  5. Results, Pivot, and Reboot: As part of this process, set time to review how it's going. Are you achieving the results you want? If not, where are you seeing success?Maybe it's time to Pivot the strategy and refocus on what is working. Then Reboot. It doesn't mean forget the original strategy, but building on the success. It also is an opportunity to take a fresh look at what's working as you move forward. Remember, this isn't an overnight thing. Marketing is not a Sprint, it's a Marathon. It's a life-long business process. If you're not ready for that reality, you will be hard pressed to ever get to the results you want.

The good news is that once you have this plan and process in place, you can delegate it. Who else in your office can manage this for you, or an outside partner? Never forget the power of those outside your organization. Your time is money, and your efforts should be focus may be better suited in other areas once you have the goals in place. But always stay involved. I do believe if you are a leader in your organization – You should be part of this process. But then let someone take the reigns, so you can focus on the business. Then you can just grab that 15 minutes and the end of the day to keep engaged in the process.

What's your process? I'd love to hear about them. Marketing is a vibrant community. We can learn a lot from watching what other do.