Marketing is like Gardening

If you can grow a plant, you can do your own marketing.

As I tend the heat-wilted flowers in my garden, I am reminded that marketing skills are so similar:

1. If you plant an idea, or a seed, then something will grow once it's tended. If we don't nurture our garden (or business) and keep it watered, keep developing or promoting our services then no one can find us and we'll just wilt. Sometimes it's as easy as a few blogs or networking meetings to 'water' your business and keep your clientele fruitful.

2. Something might sprout that you least expect. I've had a california poppy sprout when I planted basil seeds. I'd not known that there had already been poppy seeds latent in the earth near the basil. Same as launching a business with one service and later realizing clients really need something that was only a 'seed' of the original idea.

For example, I've a client (www.herecomestheguide.com) who writes a book & website about great locations (and certified professionals) for weddings and events. While we originally thought the book was the 'way', it turns out our add-on idea (our latent seeds) offering virtual tours was at least as beneficial to clients as our amazing write-ups.

3. Weed out what doesn't work. My friend, Beth, says a 'weed is just a plant out of place'. But if you've some task, client or even computer program that's not working properly, it's time to weed it out so your business has the room to flourish-exactly like a garden.

I found I'd been resisting getting quickbooks set up to track my financials for years & years, preferring my old excel spreadsheet system. Perhaps I was in denial about finances in my early years, fearing if my business wasn't profitable enough, worried I'd have to get a full time job, yikes. But once I weeded my fear and 'planted' quickbooks, I was able to see a picture of my business that allowed me to understand what to promote and which things were simply taking too much time for too little profit, ahhh knowledge is bliss. Removing old weeds allowed for new growth.