Marketing yourself and your business is an ongoing process (or it should be if you want to succeed), but it doesn't have to be hard work, cold calling customers to see if they are willing to buy whatever it is you are trying to sell. There is an important element in that you understand, but marketing your business it is not just about getting new people through the door.

Some things I would like you to consider as you go about your working week:

1. Your voice is one of the most important elements in sales. When you answer the phone, are you genuinely pleased to receive the call or is the person on the other end of the line breaking your concentration / annoying you by calling? Believe me when I say that your emotional state is evident in your voice, even if you don't think it is. So a hint - if you are having a bad day, turn on the answering machine, that way you won't lose your customers. Second hint - make sure the message on your answering machine sounds professional...or at least doesn't sound bored / stupid / arrogant....and if you don't know what you sound like - call your number and listen to the voice and the message - it can be very enlightening.

2. Your stationery. Imagine that every piece of paper that leaves your business is a marketing tool (hint - it is) what is your stationery saying about you? Cheap and nasty? Business like? Sophisticated? Add your corporate brand to the equation - do you ensure that your brand is on each piece of paper / quote / compliment slip / business card? Does it attract or detract from the message that you are trying to convey? The type face / font used. Imagine sending your resume to a prospective employer. Would you send a creased, dirty, poorly written, grammatically wrong document with a multitude of spelling errors? Put it like this - I hope not.

3. The words that you use. Are you over familiar with your clients, or straight to the point? It could be argued that you don't need to be "business like" with people that you know well. But unless you are related - would suggest refraining from being too friendly with your clients (if you know what I mean).

4. What you say - the old adage is true, never promise what you can't deliver. You will lose more customers in that way than you would ever have thought possible. And once you've lost them, you will forever struggle to get them back. It's called the leaky bucket syndrome. If you fail to look after your clients in a way that is mutually beneficial to you both, you will forever be looking for new customers to replace the ones you've just annoyed.