Get Strategic With Your Marketing

You might turn your own passions into a niche and then find riches in niches. Love to golf? Why not specialize in putting together golf tournaments and golf outings? Whatever your hobby or interest, you can become the expert in equestrian promotions, or the go-to person for promoting 5Ks and other running events. Travel, poker, auto racing, basketball, tennis -- what activities do you love? How can you make a living with your passion? You have thousands of fun ideas that can enhance any affinity group. Become the expert.

We often advertise how we have nearly a million products that can carry an imprint. Why try to be okay at all of them when you could pick a product category and become the expert at apparel, or writing instruments, or awards. The premium incentive industry is double the size of the promotional products industry and there is room for more experts.

Becoming an expert by focusing could also mean creating a niche among the types of buyers that you specialize in. Take a look at your best clients and determine what your best client might look like. You could niche into buyers by gender, age, C-Level, admins or even alma maters.

Learn to become a marketer. This means having a vision of what success will look like and who you can best serve. It will mean making a plan. Have the discipline to make a plan and dig into what your strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities are. Be resolute in working your plan. Learn to say NO to anything that keeps you from your ultimate destination. Be willing to pass up the easy in order to stay on the path that will get you to where you want to go. Remember: Your "Stop Doing List" is more important than your "To-Do" List.