You have something to offer your customers. Maybe it’s a useful product or a service that will make their lives easier. But unless you’ve just come up with a new invention no one’s ever heard of, the odds are there are other people out there doing something very similar to what you’re doing. That means that in order to make some real money, you need to differentiate yourself from the competition. And one way to do that is by becoming an authority figure in your industry.
Of course, that’s much easier said than done. But here are a number of steps you can follow to get that respect and trust you desire.
Step 1: Carve out your niche.
First things first, with so much competition out there, you need to narrow your product or service down to the smallest niche possible. This will allow you to truly decide who your competition is, as well as who your ideal customer would be. The more specific the niche, the easier it will be to become a big name in the field due to the fact that there will be less competition.
Step 2: Blog, blog, blog.
Once you’ve narrowed things down, blogging is the easiest starting point. Anyone can go to wordpress.com or a similar site and easily build a blog. From there, start churning out posts related to what you do. Now the idea here isn’t to sell yourself. Instead, provide useful information on your product or service. For instance, if you’re a personal injury lawyer, you might write about different types of cases, recent product recalls, etc.
Step 3: Become an author.
I’m not saying you need to go out and find a publisher. Instead, you can either self-publish a book or even just create an eBook that relates to your field. Have no clue how to write a book? All you need to do is employ a ghostwriter to do the dirty work for you. Just make sure they provide relevant samples.
Step 4: Give presentations.
Another easy way to become well known is to offer speaking engagements. Even if you find not many people showing up, your name will get out and you will eventually be seen as someone “in the know” about your given field. Universities are often a good place to start for this, or you could even host webinars, so you can give a presentation without leaving your home or office.
Step 5: Be active on forums.
It’s also necessary to connect with others in your field. Online forums present the easiest and possibly most effective means for this. Just do a Google search to find forums where business people such as yourself hangout and talk. For example, if you’re a plumber, you might want to find forums where people ask questions and plumbers provide answers. Once you find the right forum, jump in headfirst and get to conversing!
Step 6: Continue your education.
Remember, learning is not a destination. It’s a journey. So don’t assume you know all there is to know about your niche. Instead, look for continuing education opportunities so you can stay at the top of your field. These classes and seminars may also provide you with good opportunities for networking.
Would you consider yourself a well-respected name in your industry? How did you achieve this feat?
This article is written by Mickie Kennedy, founder of eReleases (https://www.ereleases.com), the online leader in affordable press release distribution. Grab three free ebooks, including the Big Press Release Book and Twitter Tactics, here: https://www.ereleases.com/free-offer/big-press-release-samples-book/