Anonymity is the Greatest Barrier to Business Success

This brings me to one of my favorite pieces of advice: anonymity is the greatest barrier to business success.

I first discovered this gem during a marketing workshop hosted by a guy named David Avrin. He’s known throughout the speaking industry as ‘The Visibility Coach’ who helps professionals raise their profiles and their profits.

I first met David in the halls of our annual National Speakers Association conference. When I gave him one of my business cards, he instantly loved my idea. ‘Scott, this nametag/approachability thing is genius!’ he said. ‘I wish I would have thought of that myself!’

To my surprise, a few hours later David did something incredibly nice; something incredible VISIBLE, that I’ll never forget. During his workshop called ‘Maximize Your Profile and Your Profits,’ Dave held up a copy of HELLO, my name is Scott in front of 200 people and said, ‘Does everybody know Scott Ginsberg? He’s known around the world as ‘The Nametag Guy,’ and he’s sitting right over there,’ David said as he pointed to my increasingly blushing cheeks.

‘Scott has no idea I’m about to do this, but here’s a copy of is his first book. It’s a perfect example of what this workshop is all about. And I think it’s one of the most brilliant and unique ideas I’ve ever heard of!’

Whoa. Didn’t see that one coming.

And so, when David’s program was complete, at least 20 people I’d never met came right up to me and introduced themselves! Many of them simply inquired about the reactions to wearing a nametag, while others posed questions about my books and speaking programs. All in all, David’s mere mention of my book made feel like a celebrity, albeit for a few minutes.

After the room cleared out, it was just David and me. I walked up to the stage and thanked him for his most generous gesture. He said he was happy to do it. I also thanked him for the powerful quotation during his awesome workshop.

Long story short, I ended up taking him on as my publicist. And with his help, I secured interviews on a wide variety of major media outlets. And now, thinking back to our first meeting, I know exactly why I hired David in the first place. Because after listening to him speak, I thought to myself, ‘This guy KNOWS visibility.’ And he’s helped my career tremendously.

Scott’s Success7
How’s your visibility? Could it be better? Here is a list of seven ideas to make sure you’re not winking in the dark…

1) Spend 15 minutes a day reading and posting comments on other people’s blogs. Be sure to include a link to your website at the end of your post.

2) Go through your contact database and call 20 people you haven’t talked to in a while. When they ask why you’re calling, say, “Well, today I’m calling all of my friends I haven’t heard from in a while – just to say hey!”

3) Go to Subway and drop 10 of your business cards in the Free Lunch Bowl every day for a week.

4) Go to a sit-down restaurant and leave a big tip and 2 business cards with the same waitress four days in a row. On the fifth day, go to lunch with a few customers. Sit at the same table. They’ll be impressed when your waitress says, “Hey Steve, good to see you again!”

5) Publish one article a week on any one of the hundreds of websites that accept published works from outside contributors. Don’t forget to include a short bio about you and your company at the end!

6) Sponsor a local chamber of commerce, rotary club or other civic event. Give people a handy take-home reference sheet based on your expertise. While you’re attending the event, be funny, be cool, be approachable, be UNFORGETTABLE.

7) Google yourself. Find out who’s talking about you. If nobody is talking about you, repeat steps 1-6.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
Is your business anonymous?