Marketing Awards Make Awesome Marketing Tools for Home Based Business

When we hear of others winning marketing awards, we tend to think that they are people who have really got ‘their act together’ and are very good, or very lucky, or both.  We seldom think of a home based business being able to win an award.

We don’t realise that because so many business operators feel this way, that in fact, very few actually will take the trouble to enter marketing awards – they don’t think they have a chance. Wrong! With such low numbers of entrants in most marketing awards, the chances of winning are much greater than you think, even for a home based business.

So why do people enter marketing awards? The reasons vary, but many businesses devote a major part of their marketing and promotion plan to entering awards. Most businesses are aware of the importance of marketing, yet many feel that to have a marketing strategy means they will have to expend ‘big bucks’. Wrong!

Marketing strategies can include such things as networking, developing a website, using social media, creating joint ventures, doing a mail (or email) drop’ indeed anything that lets potential customers know about your product can be deemed as a marketing strategy.  And these strategies are well suited to home based business.

You simply do not have to have a marketing and promotion department or a third party developing your marketing strategy for you; or even a dedicated marketing employee. You can be a sole operator working from a home based business and you can still create successful marketing and promotion campaigns. Just remember to measure the success of each campaign e.g. how many new clients or how much was the dollar value from the specific campaign and include this information in your submission when entering marketing awards.

Most businesses do not enter marketing awards just to win. They enter to force themselves to look carefully at the structure, goals and outcomes of their business. Others enter marketing awards because it offers them the opportunity to network with fellow business operators who also ‘think they run successful businesses’ (or they would not have entered for marketing awards in the first place).

These fellow businesses operators are often open to joint venture partnerships and alliances. Still others enter to meet the dignitaries who present the awards, offering great photo opportunities for future marketing and promotional content for their home based business.

Entering marketing awards can certainly add to your credibility and winning is the icing on the cake. So perhaps the question should be ‘why don’t people enter awards?’ There are many business awards available and you can find one or more to suit your type of business, so don’t procrastinate. Get your act together and decide to enter a marketing award this year!

ENTER THE MCEI MARKETING AWARDS 2010 AND WIN GREAT PRIZES.