You can be the best at what you do but it doesn’t matter if nobody knows it outside of your small circle.

Marketing is the best investment you can make in yourself – when business is good but especially when it’s not.

It’s one of those things for which you simply just have to make the time.

Your goal when creating a marketing and business development strategy is to be top of mind in a consistent, helpful way so that when clients have a need for services in your area, they think of YOU.

I know that it can seem daunting to make the time for marketing.

It can also feel demotivating when you see your peers and colleagues get opportunities such as speaking engagements, press mentions and article placements that you know you could do better than them.

They didn’t get them based on pure luck or the fact that they’re the best at what they do.

It involves making a strategic effort to build your brand and learning to be okay with hearing no sometimes. It has it has to do with asking for a speaking role when you pay for a sponsorship. And it has to do with building relationships and networking.

How I built my personal brand

The New York State lotto slogan is “You need to be in it to win it,” and I really hope you take that to heart here.

So many great things in my career have happened as a result of these kinds of visibility opportunities, which can lead to so many other doors opening.

Most opportunities that I’ve gotten didn’t just appear in my inbox – I had to make them happen. I put myself forth for speaking at conferences. I have a number of speaking proposals already written that I can easily edit and submit. I raised my hand for volunteer opportunities in industry organizations. I submitted articles to various publications.

And you can as well.

Commit to your own personal branding. It doesn’t take a lot of time. You don’t have to do things you don’t like, so if public speaking, blogging, social media, recording videos or article writing isn’t for you, don’t do it. Find what works for you. When you do the things that you like to do, you’ll be more motivated to do them and you’ll do them better.

It’s an investment in you. It’s an investment in your brand, your network and business development.

Whatever you do, don’t watch from the sidelines as your peers and competitors do it.

Did I motivate you to do more marketing? Pick one or two things you’ve wanted to do and focus on those goals.

Here’s a video with more about how to do this: