It’s time to smell the roses for small business owners. You should be congratulated if you have survived this far. It’s no doubt been a tough world and that surviving was difficult. You did well if you did your research. It’s time to think about the future. Read more.

In the “good old days”, you could just be in business and do business. You only had to open your door and people would start coming. Unfortunately, those days may never come back. You need to don your marketing hat and look for new ways to attract business in the future. You will have to learn new ways of marketing that are outside of your normal knowledge and skill set. It doesn’t mean that you can’t hire someone or learn how to do it.

Create a website. More people are turning to the Internet for their needs. This is especially true for younger people. Even the older generation, including me, is affected by this. I don’t recall the last time I used the phone directory to find something. The phone book is not as useful to me as a website. You need a website as soon as possible if you do not have one.

Social Media – Use social media to build relationships and communicate with your customers. Social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and others are popular among younger people. I must admit, I was really put off by the idea of social media sites. Who cares about what I ate for lunch, when I went to sleep, etc.? After a few months of this nonsense, I began putting my business ideas and thoughts into action and started to attract a different class of people. They were the people I wanted to be in constant contact with. Consider it.

Google and Yahoo both have local business directories. Your business will be more visible. Google your business type, city and check out the results. Type in San Diego plumbers and see what you find. Are your competitors on the site? Are you there?

Join clubs and organizations such as the Kiwanis, Lions or your local Better Business Bureau chapter to learn how to network. You may think that this is a waste of your time, but it could be a great opportunity.

Send out press releases about current topics that affect your small businesses to local newspapers. Send out a release about what homeowners can to do reduce their heating costs this winter. Make sure it is timely and valuable to ensure it gains traction.