According to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy, small business creates between 60% and 80% of our country’s net new jobs, every year. To keep a small business growing, small business owners need to market effectively, often with a small budget.

Susan Voyles, owner of the public relations and marketing firm, Logos Communications, offers these five cost-free marketing ideas to small business owners.

#1 Don’t underestimate the importance of networking. If you belong to a professional organization, don’t waste your membership dues – get to know other people by becoming involved and networking.

# 2 Ask your customers for referrals. It takes far less effort (and money) to get a customer referral from an existing source, than trying to find new customers through advertising. Also, ask clients for reference letters you can use to win new business.

#3 Have a tagline that communicates what you do easily and clearly. Display it on your web site, in your ads, on your business card and brochure.

#4 Think beyond what you do now. Are there opportunities for business that are closely related to what you do now? Is there an opportunity being offered to you that is different than what you do, but you might be interested in trying? “When I started my business, I didn’t envision teaching at the college level. But I’ve taken opportunities to teach journalism and public relations courses at local colleges,” said Voyles. “It’s not my core business, but it’s something I enjoy and it brings in extra revenue.”

#5 Win an award. Awards are great opportunities for publicity and building your business reputation. Find out about your industry’s awards, community awards and professional organization awards, and get nominated (or nominate yourself). Also, consider nominating your best customers for awards. It improves customer relations and has the potential of associating your company with an award-winning business or individual. (Some awards do require entry fees, so this may require some marketing resources, but it could be well worth it.)

An employee who was fired for embezzlement starts circulating emails that inform people you are about to go out of business. A contractor is using your company email to send out solicitations to people to visit a gambling site she has created. You are selling your business to a long-time, trusted employee and want to assure your customers that everything remains in good hands – should you set up a blog?

In today’s business environment, where emails spread faster than a bad cold and blogs are the order of the day, every business should have a plan for communicating during a transition or crisis.

Whether it’s embezzlement, workplace accident, natural disaster, lawsuit or layoffs, every business owner should be prepared to communicate to both internal and external audiences. These audiences include employees, vendors, customers, business allies and the media.

Here are some tips for creating a communications plan that will guide you during those times of transition or crisis.

1. Designate a spokesperson. Your business should have only one or two key individuals that may speak to the media and respond to customers, vendors and employees during a critical situation. A spokesperson may be the owner, CEO, PR counsel, HR manager, attorney or another trusted individual. Only these individuals may take and respond to media and other inquiries. Once these individuals are identified, communicate this information to all employees.

2. Speak to employees first and be frank. Put safety and people issues first.

3. Never lie, cover up or say “no comment.” Give the facts as you know them.

4. Make sure you tell your side of the story, including key messages. If necessary, issue a press release with the facts and get it out to all pertinent audiences. Post information on your web site. If your business is responsible for what has happened, tell why it happened and how you will fix the problem.

5. Be timely in responding to inquiries. If a reporter calls, find out their deadline and ask if you can get back to them. Then prepare your message and call them back. Prepare a message ahead of time for when customers or vendors call.

6. Remember the three C’s – confidence, control and credibility. Have confidence when delivering the message. Exercise control over the message by having a designated spokesperson who communicates the key points. Maintain credibility at all times; if you don’t know an answer, say so and get back to the individual.

Create your communications plan, communicate it to employees and make sure they understand it. Remember, during any transition or crisis, your company’s hard-earned reputation is at stake. Take steps now to protect that reputation.

• Know the purpose of the speech or presentation and know your audience. Make your material relevant to the audience.
  
• Follow the time-tested rule: Tell them what you are going to say, say it and then tell them what you’ve just said.
  
• Build audience rapport. Be animated in your facial expressions and body language. Dress appropriately for the group you are addressing.
  
• Plan your visual aids ahead of time. Useful tools include overhead transparencies, handouts and computer visuals (i.e. PowerPoint).
  
• Do not memorize or read your speech. Only memorize the significant points and use notes or an outline to guide you.
  
• Be sensitive to diversity in your audience. Be cautious of your language and stay away from clichés.

When giving a presentation, you should prepare thoroughly, rehearse a lot, make sure to time yourself and check out the presentation room ahead of time. Greet the members of your audience and use stress-reduction techniques to remain calm.

During the presentation, it’s helpful to pause a moment before jumping right in and it’s best to have your introductory statement memorized so that you may make eye contact with your audience. As you are speaking, maintain eye contact and maintain complete control of your voice, vocabulary and speed.

Talking in front of a group will most likely be tough at first but with time it gets easier and can actually be fun. Just take a deep breath and remember your audience wants to hear what you have to say.

It can be as simple as a memo asking employees to review a new policy, or use a special entrance during business hours. Often, however, poor business writing can lead to such simple messages becoming unclear and the objects of the company rumor mill.

Sue Voyles, president of Logos Communications, Inc. points out that memos often take way too long to get to the point, and contain unclear language and inappropriate tone. Using jargon and confusing sentence structures causes employees to miss the point and put the memos aside, she said.

Problems created by unclear communication include:

• Extra effort to rework the memo
• Additional time to call and email people to explain the memo
• Frustration to the recipient of the memo

“Make memos simple and direct, skip the fluff and the large vocabulary,” said Voyles, who has written letters, memos, press releases and many business communications for 20 years. “Using a template can make the writing process easier. Finally, make sure your tone is suitable for your message.”

Readability plays a large factor in whether a memo is understood. Readability is measured based on:

• The number of syllables in a word
• The number of words in a sentence
• The number of ideas in a sentence

The more of these you use, the harder it will be for readers to understand.

Keeping the readability level to between eighth and 12th grade is ideal in business. Other ways to help readability include:

• Well-organized paragraphs
• Transitions to connect ideas
• Headings and listings to separate ideas
• Appropriate tone

The tone is very important because it reflects how one feels when reading or hearing the message, Voyles points out. It shows that the writer cares about the receiver of the message. It also reflects upon the writer personally as well as affecting morale and motivating people.

Clearly written business documents ensure reader comprehension and quick response, which is important with the high volume of information that gets passed through offices each day.

“Why say something in three sentences when you can say it in one?” Voyles points out. “Why say something in 12 words when you can say it in six?”
Voyles recommends writing communications so that the most important information is listed first, while descending to the least important. The communication should answer the following questions: Who, what, when, where, why and how.

Creating a template based on this simple structure will produce communications that are readily understood by everyone in the organization.

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Over a lifetime, 85 percent of a person’s success comes from communications skills and only 15 percent is information or education-based, according to a 30-year study by Carnegie-Mellon University. National speaker Dr. Lawrence Helms, psychotherapist and trainer, often shares this statistic when making presentations to businesses.

Having the right word is imperative in business because people are bombarded daily with hundreds of messages through e-mails, web sites, voice mails, television, newspapers, magazines and radio. If you want to make your business stand out, you need clear, concise words to cut through clutter and deliver your message static free.

Benefits of good communications are:

• Inform or educate your particular public.
• Persuade people to take certain actions (such as using your service or buying your product).
• Motivate employees to “pull for the team.”

A professional communicator can help you . . .

• Form reciprocal relationships with the media through arranging and monitoring press interviews, writing news releases, organizing press conferences and answering media inquiries and requests.
  
• Strengthen community relationships through open houses, tours and employee volunteer efforts to reflect the supportive nature of your business.
  
• Coordinate relationships with outside specialty groups, such as suppliers, educators, students, nonprofit organizations and competitors.

Among the most important aspects of public relations practice is setting clear goals, objectives, and targets for the tactics applied.

Components of a public relations plan include:

• Specific aim of the campaign and desired goal.
  
• Situational analysis, scope of assignment, target audiences, research methods, key messages, communications vehicles, project team, timing and fees.
  
• Detailed operating tactics, activities, responsibilities and deadlines.
  
• Clear evaluation methods.

Besides your external communications, don’t forget, your most important communication is with employees. A survey of 700 employees at 70 companies found that 54 percent felt that management didn’t explain its decisions well and another 64 percent said they didn’t believe what management told them, according to Steve Rivkin’s article “Mutiny in the Cafeteria,” published in Public Relations Strategist.

It’s unrealistic to expect business owners to handle all aspects of their company’s communications strategy. A professional communicator can make your business shine.

• Define your purpose. Do you want to inform, influence, motivate?
• Is the meeting part of a bigger picture? Define the pieces.
• Does this meeting need to lead to anything else?
• What information or actions needs to "stick" following the meeting?

• Who needs to be involved?
• Who else needs to know?
• What will make the right people want to participate? Try to “stand in their shoes.”

• Remember that calendars fill quickly
• Provide complete information – include details on who, what, when, where and why.
• Always provide a feedback loop for questions, arrangements, etc.
• Build in contingency plans – system failures, last minute attendees, follow-up info, etc.

• Provide directions to the site that include all of the variables; i.e., parking, security, entry doors, etc.
• Let them know the rules for participation and courtesy. (Don’t put phones on hold during a conference call, etc.)
• Send an agenda prior to the meeting. 

• Be sure the room setup works for the situation – adequate room, comfort, audio visual equipment (always test it beforehand).
• Plan the agenda with logical progression and adequate breaks.
• Make sure that speakers project their voices for all who are listening – back of the room, conference call, recording device, etc.  
• Provide refreshments, or at least access to resources, if the meeting will be longer than two hours.

• Acknowledge challenges as they occur, but emphasize the positive aspects of any topic.
• Realize that excitement and confidence will help sell ideas, while pointing out negatives will discourage participation.
• Make all participants feel like their involvement is important.

7.       End on a high note.

• What's the take-away that conveys we have momentum?
• Briefly summarize the outcomes.
• Always end with what's next.

Take back lost time: Local productivity expert tells tips in Women’s Health magazine
Energized Solutions also featured in ‘efficiency makeover’ contest

Dearborn, Mich. – People may be spending more hours than ever at the office, but almost six hours of every workday could be wasted time, according to Dearborn-based productivity expert Kathleen Alessandro.

Alessandro, president of Energized Solutions, discusses effective ways to navigate around the daily time wasters in the December 2008 edition of Women’s Health magazine. “E-mail pings, phone calls, blogs, instant messaging, texts, cubicle chitchat, and undefined meetings are taking an enormous chunk out of your plan for a productive day,” she said.

Alessandro told the magazine that one office interruption occurs every seven minutes and lasts an average of five minutes.  “That means up to 68 disruptions a day. All told, that’s 340 minutes, or 5.6 hours, gone from every day,” she noted.

Technology overuse, she added, only wastes more time. “Just because we can now communicate in a nanosecond doesn’t mean we should.”

Alessandro offered several valuable tips for gaining back those lost hours, including limiting e-mail checks to no more than three per day, setting aside dedicated time to get organized, and focusing on one task at a time. “Multitasking is making us crazy,” she said. “Take the time to do a task right the first time and save your double-duty act for no-brainers like walking the dog while exercising.”

In addition, Alessandro offered one lucky Women’s Health reader a free “efficiency makeover,” which includes three phone coaching sessions and one live webinar, and a selection of related materials, including copies of three of Alessandro-authored books.

Alessandro offers her clients a variety of systems and tools to help make their operations more efficient, as well as public seminars and one-on-one consultations. For information about Energized Solutions, call (313) 381-9222 or visit: http://energized-solutions.com.


Sue Voyles of Logos Communications Selected as Contributor by The Woman’s Advantage

Entrepreneur’s Advice Featured in 2009 Woman’s Advantage Calendar

Canton, MI  – Sue Voyles of Logos Communications, Inc. was selected from more than a thousand submissions to be featured in the 2009 Woman’s Advantage Calendar. The calendar will provide advice for women business owners from influential women leaders across the U.S. and Canada.
 
Mary Cantando, Growth Expert of The Woman’s Advantage, today announced that Sue Voyles’ advice will be included in the calendar which is to be released in September. The quote submitted by Voyles advised: “Never underestimate the power of your words … or your word.”

“Sue Voyles’ quote was selected because it was powerful yet easy to understand. Her idea is relevant to almost every woman in business today,” says Cantando. “Women business owners and those who dream of starting a business will learn so much from the advice provided by Sue and the other successful women quoted in the calendar."
 
The Woman’s Advantage 2009 Calendar will provide sound bites of advice on key business issues including: organization, promotion, sales, and human resources.

Logos Communications, Inc. of Canton, Mich. is a full-service public relations and marketing firm serving a wide range of small to medium-sized businesses.  It provides ongoing counsel to the Incentive Marketing Association and the Michigan Business and Professional Association and is Best Practices Certified™ through the Management Impact Institute. For more information about services, call (734) 667-2005.

Mary Cantando is a nationally-recognized expert on women business owners. She is the developer of the successful Woman's Advantage line of products, geared specifically to women entrepreneurs. As a member of the National Speakers’ Association, Cantando provides keynotes and workshops for women who want to grow their businesses.
 
The Woman’s Advantage is a line of information products, including books, workbooks, audio CDs, and calendars designed exclusively for successful women business owners. For more information, call 919-841-0401 or visit http://www.womansadvantage.biz/