Ten Minute Marketing

One of the things that puts my clients off marketing their business is the overwhelm of what to do, where to even begin and the sheer lack of time. Most entrepreneurs and small business owners are juggling running their businesses, modern family life and trying to manage the marketing, finances and day-to-day operations all simultaneously. It’s easy to see how things can slip.

So I’ve created five ten-minute marketing exercises you can do (one for each working day of the week) that will slowly but surely make a difference to your business, slotting into your life simply and stress-free.

On Monday: Make a Connection

No more, just one connection. What do I mean by this? I mean reach out to someone. This can be an ideal customer, someone in your industry, a complimentary business (eg if you’re a wedding photographer, perhaps a venue) or just someone you love the content of. Reach out and say something meaningful. This could be in the shape of following them and leaving a really positive yet authentic comment (not one of these “awesome content” type comments) or you could even reach out and send them a direct message telling them why you love what they are doing. This is not about promoting yourself – it’s about creating authentic connection with someone.

On Tuesday: Pitch an Article

Today take ten minutes to email a magazine, a blog or a podcast to ask to feature or create a guest article. Simply drop an email, link to your website and say a bit about what you do and what you would like to talk about. Send! Tuesday marketing: done.

On Wednesday: Get an Opinion

Formally known as market research, today is a good day to ask your audience. Simply put a poll out on your social media stories to find out what your customers want from you. Takes five minutes and the feedback helps you refine what you are offering your audience.

On Thursday: Plan a Social Media Update

Not write one, plan one. People always fire off a quick social update but so often these are knee-jerk and not written with strategy. So today think about what you want to say tomorrow or next week. What do you want to be talking about? How do you want to position yourself? Consider this then plan what you’re going to say – you can write it out properly now if you’ve got the time or later. But the key thing is, not just to say something but to say the right thing – planning before penning.

On Friday: Do a Creativity Drive

If you’re anything like me, you’re on a mad school run first thing every morning. But my favourite thing to do is get creative after school drop-off. This could be going for a run, a sea swim or simply going for a drive. One of the best places to get ideas is while driving. I like to drive around the sea front then pull up and sit with the window open and a flask of coffee. The rules are: no phone, no social media, no radio and no distractions. Just drive and let your mind unwind – I think you’ll find the creativity flows when the car moves.

That’s it! Five simple ways to market your business in ten minutes a day without become overwhelmed or overthinking it. Here we have covered marketing communications and PR, marketing planning and marketing research, all in in less than an hour a week.