Leonard Shostak's blog

Think outside the box! With the right marketing and creativity, we can stand out as entrepreneurs. Creating a giveaway promotion combining complimentary goods and services is guaranteed to give returns. Consider partnering with another business that can provide something your customers really need. This can amp up the value of both businesses and provides each of the businesses with potential customers. An example is a moving company and a carpet cleaning company that could offer complementary services.

Using social media to promote the arts is key to creating opportunities. It can be as simple as taking seemingly small steps. Keep in mind that social media isn’t going to solve your problems overnight, but it will put you and your talent in front of people who may never hear about you otherwise. These are the people who can make the difference in your career and can propel it forward. Here are a few ideas on what you can do:

Advertising for entrepreneurs can come at a high cost. Learning to do it ourselves can be our best option as entrepreneurs. The type of advertising will also depend on the type of business. Many self-promoting ideas can be better suited for different types of business, many can also be combined. Keep in mind that there are also non-traditional advertising techniques.

“Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people, who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.” – Steve Jobs

Keep in mind that self-promotion is a leadership skill and it is one worth having. It’s a benefit that every one of us can learn. It’s also an added bonus in our personal and professional lives. We can use it to enhance our credibility as we look to align ourselves with similar initiatives. As we self-promote, we gain more access to networks, people and overall business. We are seen as people who add value.

Here are some ways that we can self-promote ourselves: