I'm dying right now. DYINNGGGGG.
My college friend, Andee—a (hilarious) running coach for desk-potato entrepreneurs who need to get off their ass (*raises hand sheepishly*)—just texted me a link, right? And here's the freakin' preview:
Um, WE KNOW THAT GIRL! That was young, naive 2009 Ash—a previous version of myself that, apparently, used to look okay in red?!?!?! (I never wear red anymore because I think it exacerbates the redness around my nose. Thank you, Irish-heritage broken capillaries!)
So you know what this link is?! It's a link to a *very* old, adorable article in the Philadelphia Inquirer, alllllllll about me & The Middle Finger Project. ? And it was when the site was brand-new and I had just launched it! I had just started writing, but didn't yet have much of an audience yet. So, I decided to take it upon myself to get myself some exposure.
More on how I did that in a second.
But first, I am DYING for three reasons:
- They still called us “Gen Y!” AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
- Did I really get quoted saying, “People think I'm an airhead…”????? <—WHYYYYY WOULD I SAY THAT, AND WHY WOULD SHE WRITE THAT. GOD.
- What…the hell…was that bit….about selling white strips….to Chileans. Jesus, I sound like a total raging cultural elitist. (I was getting into the import/export business but didn't realize the implications of that work until later. But, hey, at least I was throwing my hat into the entrepreneurial ring!)
Anyway—the fact that she sent me that link is just perfect timing, because we just got done with our inaugural session of 48 to Freedom, and one of the topics we ended with was: “Great, I've got this online business now, but how do I get anyone to NOTICE IT?”
That's a bit too broad of a topic to go into for a weekend “let's get your online business up and running” retreat—so I thought we could spend a couple of weeks talking about that here on the blog. Together! (Make sure you subscribe so you get the emails.)
Plus, it's March, and I always talk about getting exposure for your business every March as a partner sponsor of Selena Soo's Impacting Millions program, coming up on the 30th. Selena teaches people how to get their small business featured ALLLLLLLLL over the internet and get featured in major publications like Oprah magazine, and since my specialty as “the writerly bitch”—new business card?—is selling with words, I always run a special series in conjunction that helps you sound like a million bucks on paper.
So, let's make you sound like a million bucks, shall we?!
I'm going to be emailing you tons of fun this week and next with my top tips for sounding like a million bucks on paper, including a boat-ton of before/after bios I wrote for students last year. Because 90% of the battle?! Is knowing how to word what you do in such a way that other people are instantly like WHOA.
You can have the coolest business in the world, but if you can't communicate what you do with power, you might as well be invisible. <–Ouch. Socks you right in the gut.
And unfortunately, it all comes down to how well you can talk about what you do (especially if you're an introvert). Except that's actually a FORTUNATE thing, because it's the one thing you can change the quickest…without having to invest a single dime! Unlike a major website overhaul or brand-new headshots, words are free: you've just got to learn how to put them together using science + art.
So! One answer to the question “how do I get anyone to notice me?!” is, of course, paid advertising—but who the hell has thousands of dollars a month for that when they're just starting out? No one. EETTTTT, scratching you off the list.
Which brings us to the other answer: learn how to hack exposure for yourself…for free. You know, like I did back in 2009—getting yourself featured in newspapers, websites, magazines, podcasts, newsletters, TV—even when you're a baby, just starting out, wearing a “notice-me flame-red coat.” And even when you have little experience, zero “success stories,” and zero connections. ? Like, hello, I did not have a book deal then, or any other typical “credentials” that most people think they need in order to get featured in places. All I had was an idea.
And I also knew how to frame that idea in such a way that an editor would pay *attention*.
This. Is. Key.
HOWEVER…before you can even think about sending in your work to an editor, anywhere?
There's ONE thing you *need* to nail. One mission-critical thing you *have* to get right. This is the difference between getting noticed…and getting crickets. Not just with editors of magazines, but with clients and, well, anyone.
And it's also the one thing most people do. not. have.
What is it?
*dun dun dunnnnnnnnnnnn*
I'll let Selena kick off the conversation with this training video that explains what that thing is! ? Click to watch her talk for a few minutes, and you'll learn THE MISSING INGREDIENT that you need to get noticed (even though most people don't even realize they're missing it.)
>>> Find out the missing ingredient >>>
Then I'll holler at you tomorrow and show you the actual word-for-word pitch I sent to the editor that got me featured in that newspaper…without having a single connection. And then I'll unpack THE THING I HAD that made her want to feature me—the thing that Selena talks about in her video.
Make sure you catch the video now so you know what I'm talking about tomorrow!
Then, I'll see you here in your inbox, DAH-LINK. Make sure you're subscribed!
To getting massive eyeballs on your little biz…for free, baby.
Ash