How Much Should You Really Spend on Marketing?
I can’t tell you how many people talk about or ask this, “How much should I spend on marketing for my business?” I can tell you this, no matter what anyone says NEVER underestimate WOM (word of mouth). This is the easiest and cheapest of all of them and it never fails! I have read so many books on how to market your business or what you should do to get the word out about your business but what it truly boils down to is simply spread the word!
Get out there and get people talking about you!
When you get a new customer, make sure to go out of your way for them and treat them with how you would want to be treated. When you do this you will get the customer talking about how great your business is and then they tell a few people that tell a few other people and before you know it, you have 8-10 new customers. Yes it’s that easy. BUT don’t forget, you need to reach out to people too. Don’t just think that once you create this business that people are going to flow right into the store (some people really think this, I didn’t say it for my health).
How do you get people talking about you? Well do what I just mentioned above and also, have no limits! You want people to talk about your business right? Then don’t be afraid to get out there and make your business known. One of the coolest things I read one time was about when Starbucks started out. They hired a person to glue their coffee cup to the top of their car and drive around with it there. You can imagine that many people were starring and stopping trying to tell the guy he left his cup on his car (thinking they were helping him out). While at the same time while they tried getting his attention, many of them thought “Ah! A cup of coffee sounds lovely right about now.” They had a nice little jump that day in the surrounding Starbucks stores that day for sure. This is something simple but very creative, that is what I mean don’t limit yourself! Throw traditional marketing out the door except word of mouth of course. Believe me word or mouth will travel fast if you do something out of the ordinary.
So to answer your question on how much you should really pay…I would say pay nothing. What I mean is if you are starting up there are so many things you can do to start generating talk about your company before you go to a fancy marketing company that will literally charge you an arm and a leg and sometimes that stuff does not always work. Take things into your own hands at first, if you are smart enough to run a business then you are smart enough to come up with some great ideas to market your business. Get creative and don’t hold back! If you do then someone else is just going to do what I just said and leave you in the dust, so get up and do it!
A Community for Entrepreneurs
As an entrepreneur you are born with a drive to create ideas and make them come to life. You fail over and over, sometimes it takes a while to see your ideas go big and it can be frustrating. It’s always nice to get encouragement from others that are in the same boat as you. Well I have found a great community of entrepreneurs that encourage each other, it’s called Entrepreneur Enclave.
They are doing this great thing called a “TwitView” where they interview entrepreneurs over Twitter and then post them on their site promoting them and their idea/business. I had the privilege of doing a “TwitView” with Matt (the founder) and it was so much fun! Here is the interview: @BusinessBeware “TwitView”
If you are an entrepreneur you need to get involved with this great community! Entrepreneur Enclave
Are You A Toilet Paper Entrepreneur?
You’re probably wondering what in the world that title is I’m sure if you have never heard or Mike Michalowicz and his book “The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur.” If you are a TPE, you are able to take the last three sheets on a roll and manage rather than call for help… I read this book and it was exactly what I needed to hear and that extra push that I needed. 
If you like motivational, inspiring, in your face, tell it like is kind of book then this the book to read. It’s not your typical business/entrepreneur books that you see and read. I have read many books on entrepreneurship and what business tactics are best etc. but none of them give you that extra push to get up and do something like this one does. Many business books are written by people who have a long list of schooling rather than actual real experience of what they’re telling you. Wouldn’t you rather read about someone who has been there at the bottom, making their way to the top by true and actual hard work? Only a few people become overnight successes (very few) and the rest of us truly have to work to make our dream come true and Mike did just that. Yes some of it may be in your face but that’s what being an entrepreneur is, a go getter. If you don’t have the passion to work towards what you want to do then it won’t ever work and that’s what Mike is trying to get across to you. If everything was easy would we truly appreciate it? When you read the book you will understand why he is a “Toilet Paper Entrepreneur.” He simply asks you “what are you going to do when you are stuck with only three sheets left on a toilet paper roll?” He teaches you not to call for help but to make due with what you got…
ALSO make sure to check out other readers of the TPE book and about their businesses. Check out who is #46, I bet you will never guess…HA! Click here for the post
Twitter Book (NotAlwaysRight) & T-shirt (Biz Beware) Contest!
Business Beware and NotAlwaysRight.com teaming up!
Win a free copy of Not Always Right’s new book, Not Always Right: Hilarious and Horrific Tales of Customers Gone Wrong just for using Twitter! Even better: you’ll also get a chance to win a free t-shirt from our friends at BusinessBeware.biz!
To enter, simply do the following:
1) Follow Not Always Right and Business Beware on Twitter.
2) Tweet the following line:
Win Not Always Right’s new book and a Business Beware tee! http://bit.ly/narbb Just follow @notalwaysright and @businessbeware and retweet.
That’s it! Just enter before Monday, December 7th, at 11:59 pm PST for your chance to win. We’ll be giving away a total of 10 copies of our book and 10 t-shirts to lucky winners.
Good luck!
Excuse Me, Do You Work Here?
I want to tell you about something that happened to me today as I was in the grocery store and yes this is a true story…
After a nice workout I figured I better stock up on some food and hit the grocery store on my way back home. I casually walked down the aisles picking up the odds and ends that I needed and in one aisle I was squatting down to get something from the bottom shelf as I felt someone about knock me over. I looked up and this woman (snooty woman) said “Um do you work here?” I looked at her for a second thinking “you just about ran me over and now you’re asking if I work here” (thinking to myself of course). I know I had a dumbfounded look on my face as I stood up (thinking surely she will see I am not in the store’s attire) she said “don’t ever stare at me like that, I will have your job!” Still confused (pissed actually) I decided to play along with her. ”What is it you need mam,” She says “The sauce that I always buy is not in it’s usual spot.” As I stand there puzzled and still unsure how she has not put two and two together that I don’t work there I reply with “Well it’s right there, the one you are looking for and that’s not a big inconvenience…” She gave me a look your mom gives you when they say your middle name and you know you’re in trouble. ”Where is your manager, you NEVER talk like that to a customer?!” I smile sheepishly and say “oh he is right over here let me go get him.” She follows me before I have the chance to tell the poor guy about the situation and she blurts out to him “your employee is one rude person who should be fired right now for the indecent things she said to me!” The manager confused looking at me and then looking at her said “Mam, what are you talking about,” and she jumps in again about how rude I was (thinking to myself: lady you are the one that about ran me over with your cart in the first place) When the manager finally gets a chance to get a word in he says (and realizes that I was playing along and calmly grins at me) ”Mrs., I am very sorry about this and I will take the necessary actions and deal with this. I am sorry about the inconvenience. As she struts away looking back at me like oh I told you! I turn to the manager and we both laugh. I finished my shopping and saw the lovely person in line so I got in the other one right across where she could see me and I saw her eyes cut at me like “what on earth are you doing in line?!” She walked out right before me and as I make my way to the car (we happened to be parked right next to each other ironically) and I said “have a good night!” I saw her standing there in the parking lot clueless as I was wondering how she did not realize that I was not a worker there…
TRUE STORY.
Watch out for customers like this and if they are rude like this then at least have a little fun with it! Enjoy your weekend!
Get Customers To Pay Up with a Business Beware Letter!
Okay people great news! We have launched our new service that is available to all businesses to take advantage of! If you have slow or non-paying customers you need to let us send them a letter like a collections agency would but we don’t charge you a percentage!! No joke!! Customers use the Better Business Bureau as leverage if they are not happy, so why not use Business Beware as yours?! Take advantage of this! Many of the businesses are chiming in and letting us know that when the letter is sent out that they see a check in the mail! You got to try it out!
For more information on this visit our site, and on the homepage you will see more info about this awesome new service we offer : BusinessBeware.biz
*side note: the awesome little doodle on the sheet is from Allonzo Inc. Designs HUGE fan!
Must Read Books for Women Entrepreneurs!
If you are a woman and you are an entrepreneur or getting ready to branch out on your own and start a business, you need to check out this list of books! Whether you need some good tips, information or just a motivational pick me up take a second and see if one of these books might help you out.
Mike Michalowicz from TheToiletPaperEntrepreneur.com got reviews from all different women entrepreneurs and their suggestions for books to read. AND make sure you check out my recommendation too 
Hint: Business Beware logo is sitting beside my suggestion… Check out the article here: Must Read Books for Women Entrepreneurs
Problem Customers Send That-a-Way!
Do what the sign says and send your problem customers on over BusinessBeware.biz (well don’t send them to us, put them on the site so others can know about them).
**also we don’t give out free donuts, wouldn’t that be awesome though? we do accept donations though
