Creating partnerships with complementary businesses can help promote and build both of your businesses. But breaking the ice, and telling them what you do without sounding salesy can be tricky. You know that you're a good fit, but in order to connect you need them to see it too. Here is a template that I use to help build my intro emails for collaborating with other businesses. How do I know them? How did I learn about their business? Include a compliment, and list some details so it's clear that you really are familiar with their work, and you're not just sending them a form email. I heard your interview on the Business Babes podcast, about your jewelry design business, and your opinion on stylish clothing was so right! I loved how you thought that great clothing can really improve ... Continue Reading
25 Free Ways to Market Your Business
Marketing on a shoe-string budget can be challenging. Check out this list of 25 free things you can do to market your business and jump-start your marketing efforts. Post a free Ad on your local online free classifieds website (Craigslist, Kijiji, etc...) Write a Blog Post and Share it on all of your social media pages. Be sure to include a compelling, and "shareable" image. Give new life to old content. Promote an old blog post on your social media pages, and new blog posts. Join and take part in Facebook groups relevant to your niche. Avoid straight-up advertising. Instead, focus on providing valuable content, and taking part in conversations. Create an info-graphic. Check out Canva if you need some help designing one. Build your list. Add an optin form to your website, and ... Continue Reading
My Favorite Free Business Tools
Starting, and running a business can get expensive. Finding a few free tools that work with your business can really help. These are a few of my favorite free business tools. Gmail Boomerang - Schedule your emails in Gmail. Docracy - Free resource for contracts. A great place to start planning for meeting with your lawyer. Pexels - The best free stock photos complied from around the web (be sure to check licensing on individual pics). You Can Book Me - Client booking calendar. Start with a free plan and work your way up as your business grows. Google Apps: Docs, Sheets, and Slides for Business documents. Google Hangouts for group calls. Google Drive for file sharing. Good Hangout on Air - Free Webinars. Skype for free video calls. Canva - Free graphic design ... Continue Reading