Question: I'm about to unveil my new business idea at a trade show. How can I get peoples attention and attract them to my booth?

Question by: Collin

Tell a Story with Your Visuals

"Use your visual marketing tools - the stand, the brochures, the flyers and even what you wear - to tell the story behind your idea rather than focus purely on the idea itself. Everybody loves to hear a story so focus on your booth as the place to tell this story rather than purely sell your idea and you'll likely stand out from the crowd. "

- Lea Woodward | Co-Founder, Inspiring Ventures

Don't Rush It!

"With trade shows you're lucky if you get 30 seconds which will ultimately lead to a sale. Use different visuals (no toys, yoyos or pens) to attract people and multi-media works well if you have a screen that people can look at quickly. Once they're in the booth, interact with them as genuinely as possible to get their info. Never try to close on the first conversation!"

- Ishita Gupta | Founder, Publisher, Fear.less Magazine

Create a Reason for Engagement

"Whether it's a game or a contest, promote something that bring people to your booth in excitement. The more creative and interesting the idea is, the more conversations you will have, relationships you will build, and success you will see from your presence at the event. "

- Logan Lenz | Founder / President, Endagon

Follow @loganlenz

#LiveTwitterStreams

"Social Media is all the rage right now, and one of the best ways to get peoples attention at trade shows is to put up a live Twitter stream and create your own hash tag. You can display it on your iPad or a flat screen.This will definitely draw crowds. Maybe even do a giveaway for a free iPad if people drop their business cards in a bowl for your marketing list also! "

- Kris Ruby | President, Ruby Media Group

Follow @sparklingruby

Presell Your Product

"Prior to laying down the carpet and putting up your booth, research some potential clients and ask them to stop by. People travel in groups at conventions and if your potential client does in fact come by, they often times will bring their friend(s). "

- Sean Devlin | Co-founder / Dir Prod Dev, Front Rush

Follow @frontrush

Show Your Stars

"If you have a bit of credibility behind you or your business, show that loud and proud first, this way, people can know your business idea is one worth hearing if you were a successful entrepreneur in a past life, or if through extensive research, your business idea is guaranteed to succeed."

- Danny Wong | Co-Founder, Blank Label Group, Inc.

Create Show Buzz

"As a NEWBIE to the show, work with the show manager to take advantage of attendee lists and onsite exposure. Talk to trade publications who will be at the show as well, try to get something in their "show" edition. It may cost you a few more marketing dollars than you had planned initially but if you can close business at the show it'll be worth it."

- Jerry Piscitelli | Owner / Inventor, Portopong LLC

Follow @@portopong

Free Autographed Books

"Buy a book related to your industry in bulk, and have the author there to sign copies. People will flock to your booth, and tell others about it. Ask for a name and email in exchange for a signed copy. While people wait in line, take the time to talk with them. Don't make it your mission to sell. Make it your mission to have them take the first step -giving you permission to contact them later."

- Shama Kabani | CEO, The Marketing Zen Group

Follow @@shama

Invite! Engage! Plan Ahead!

"Advertise to your clients, leads, suppliers and contacts to attend the show. Plan what the booth would be like, material would you be giving away, how many should be at your booth to field the visitors, how would you collect their info to make sure they come back after the trade show. All of this needs to be planned ahead to ensure a successful participation."

- Devesh Dwivedi | CEO, Breaking The 9 To 5 Jail

Follow @Break9to55Jail

Launch a Press Blitz

"Create media frenzy by executing a press blitz that includes introductions to local media, targeted press release distribution and a media alert prior to attending the show. Develop a contest or giveaway to generate interest and offer the media an incentive for stopping by your booth. Look for ways to expand reach beyond your booth and get people talking prior to your arrival."

- Erica Nicole | Founder and CEO, YFS Magazine: Young, Fabulous & Self Employed

Make Your Trade Show Presence Customer Friendly

"Set up your booth with the customer in mind. No table should be between you and the customer--it's a barrier! No cell phones in the booth or chatting with your colleague when customers are walking past--it shows you are not interested in engaging! No reading badges--you are there to CONNECT! Get out in front of your booth and invite people to learn about your product by asking them questions!"

- Vanessa Nornberg | President, Metal Mafia

Choose your colors and images wisely

" A properly placed image, colors and call to action can create head turning behavior from your audience which is exactly what you want. Don't skimp on making your image "larger than life" as it will carry you through the times and will keep the attention on your brand. "

- Nick Friedman | President, College Hunks Hauling Junk

Forget the Booth Altogether!

"At any tradeshow, it is vital that you go to them, not wait for them to come to your booth. More effective than paying several thousand dollars and waiting for people to come, is walking around the tradeshow with your business cards and smile. Talk to people, make your rounds and collect cards. I guarantee this strategy will be more successful and much more cost effective than booth-ing."

- Zach Cutler | Founder and CEO, Cutler Group

Follow @thecutlergroup

Be Genuine Instead of Sales-y

"No one likes an aggressive salesman. Instead, really connect and engage with the folks who stop by your display. Determine their pain points and decide how you can help them resolve those issues."

- Heather Huhman | Founder & President, Come Recommended

Follow @heatherhuhman

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. The YEC promotes entrepreneurship as a solution to unemployment and underemployment and provides entrepreneurs with access to tools, mentorship, and resources that support each stage of their business’s development and growth.

Gift © by asenat29 (2006)

I’m not responsible for everything.

When I started out in business with an eagerness to please my clients—no matter what—I put more stress on myself than I needed to. For instance, sometimes I would work on a project that required someone else to give me information before I could move forward. Unfortunately, they didn’t always feel the same sense of responsibility to meet deadlines that I felt. That meant that they gave me what I needed to complete the project at the last minute, and then I had to work really late to get everything finished on time.

Over the years, I learned to set boundaries and to realize that I’m not responsible for other people outside of my organization running behind. Instead of stressing out and trying to pick up all the slack, I give clients regular progress reports and warn them if someone has not kept their agreement to deliver on time. I’ve found that in general clients are very understanding and that this strategy reduces overwhelm tremendously.

Packaging leads to success—or failure.

One of my biggest joys as an entrepreneur is that I have a ton of flexibility in my life and variety in my work. When I began my business, I actually preferred contract work that didn’t tie me down on a long-term basis. I saw this as giving me more freedom.

But after almost six years of full-time entrepreneurship, I’ve found that offering “retainer” contracts where my company is paid on a monthly basis and larger three- to six-month programs is a huge key to success. When you have larger contracts, you even out your cash flow, reduce your sales and marketing time and build a long-term, value-packed relationship with your clients.

Sales is fun—really!

I’ve always enjoyed marketing: Strengths in networking and communicating have come naturally to me from the time I first started toddling around. However, I used to detest the thought of sales. I thought it was enough to tell people what I did and then they would know to hire me if they needed me.

Once I got into the time coaching business where I help people who have struggled with time management for years, I realized that marketing was not enough. I needed to know how to sell to get chronic procrastinators into a coaching program that would really transform their lives. I invested in sales training so I could learn the art and science of sales, and I found I loved it! Selling done well is providing the right people with the right solutions to overcome their challenges. Since I love empowering people to be successful, sales calls are now one of my greatest joys!

Elizabeth Grace Saunders is the founder and CEO of Real Life E®, a time management life coaching and training company that empowers individuals who feel guilty, overwhelmed and frustrated to accomplish more with peace and confidence through an exclusive Schedule Makeover^TM process.

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of the country’s most promising young entrepreneurs. The YEC promotes entrepreneurship as a solution to youth unemployment and underemployment and provides its members with access to tools, mentorship, and resources that support each stage of a business’s development and growth.

Relaxing on the beach © by Andrew Osterberg (2008)

“Live your passion. Do what you love. Help people. The money will follow.” - Anonymous

Do you know what the most important ingredient was in all the case studies profiled the Generation YouTube episode of 20/20?

Was it experience, fame or education? No. The most important ingredient was that these people were incredibly passionate about what they were broadcasting. The world is drawn to people who share their passion.

There are so many ways to make money doing what you love. You just have to pick one and go for it. You can immediately start making money from what excites you—I’m talking by tomorrow. Whether it’s a single dollar or a thousand, you are capable of helping people through your passions, and they’re willing to pay you for it. Here are a few ways to make some form of money from your talents and interests:

1. Charge for an hour of work as a consultant. Find the people or businesses who desperately need advice the subject of your passion. People actually often start businesses about things they don’t actually know about!
2. Charge for an hour as a coach. If your passion has to do with personal or life topics, go help someone declutter their home, maximize their schedule, get on a few more dates, lose ten pounds—anything is fair game. Send an email to a group of friends to ask if they know someone who needs your help, put up an ad on Craigslist or mention it on your blog. You don’t need to mount a massive marketing effort, you only need one client to get started.
3. Host a seminar or workshop. Pick a topic that excites you, outline the key points and make a simple PowerPoint out of it. I once did this for one of my favorite strategy books, How to Win Friends and Influence People. Worried about not getting enough participants? If you only get a few, then make it intimate. If you only get one? Looks like you’ve got your first coaching client. Nice work.
4. Create a video interview series. Start interviewing inspiring people. Not only is it something others want to watch but you getting to interview and connect with rockstars is the best part. David Siteman Garland has done an exceptional job with this at The Rise to The Top.
5. Create an online course. Have some fun with it like Jules Clancy’s Virtual Cookery School over at of Stone Soup. Or maybe make it simple and creative like Mondo Beyond’s dreaming big classes. Or go really deep like Jonathan Mead has done with Trailblazer or Corbett Barr with TrafficSchool, Adam Baker with You vs Debt and Lewis Howes with Video Traffic Academy. Develop these once and they make money for a long time to come.
6. Teach someone one-on-one. Tutor someone on the topic you know inside and out. Parents are always looking for the person who can provide a breakthrough for their child. Check out eduFire, TeachStreet or Mindflash for teaching folks one-on-one or one-to-many.
7. Write a guide. Maybe it’s a PDF report or eBook. It doesn’t have to be that long, as long as it’s helpful. You might already have the content from what you’ve written on your blog, journal or elsewhere. Package it up and sell it. That’s exactly what I’m doing with How To Live Off Your Passion (although mine does happen to be a bit more in-depth).
8. Create a podcast. Put together a talk or interview and put it up with a price on it. Then promote it a bit. Either do this with new content or take your existing work and turn it into audio and upload it to iTunes. Pat Flynn has done a great job with this at Smart Passive Income.
9. Outsource yourself. Showcase your talents. Get a seller’s account on sites like Elance, Odesk and Fiverr.com. Fill out your bio and get your services on the market! Fiverr is a fun and easy place to start—everyone sells their services for five bucks. Even if someone doesn’t hire you right away, being on these sites is a huge credibility builder. When you market your services, provide a link to your profiles on these sites (and any other work you have online).
10. Film a video. These are best for visual tutorials like fitness or computer instruction. Amber Zuckswert has knocked it out of the park with her virtual pilates classes at Epic Self and Laura Roeder built a seven-figure business inside of two years by teaching non web savvy folks how to use Twitter and Facebook.

Scott Dinsmore is the founder of LiveYourLegend, where he writes and helps people discover passion & purpose and do work they love. Check out his latest articles or download his free Epic Work Toolkit. He is a member of The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. The YEC promotes entrepreneurship as a solution to unemployment and underemployment and provides entrepreneurs with access to tools, mentorship, and resources that support each stage of their business’s development and growth.

Question: I've set up marketing channels on all of the usual suspects (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc). Are there any boutique social networks that I should be leveraging for my business? What's your favorite?

Question by: Patrick

Quora.com

"If you want to be perceived as an expert in your field, then Quora.com is a good choice. It allows you to answer questions people have concerning your topic and industry. If people find your expertise valuable, they will go to your company's website and discover what services you offer."

- Dan Schawbel | Founder, Millennial Branding

Follow @DanSchawbel

Get Specific

"Honestly, the ones you'll want to target will be ultra-specific to your business. Most of the broad-spectrum, smaller social networks are just copies of the big players, and so won't be terribly useful. If you search for networks that are specific to your niche, however, you'll get a lot better results for your time."

- Colin Wright | CEO, Exile Lifestyle

Follow @colinismyname

LinkedIn Answers

"There are a lot of savvy professionals on LinkedIn, many of which ask questions to supplement and broaden their knowledge. Pick a few verticals where you're knowledgeable and become a go-to-resource. With each value-driven answer you will accumulate momentum, driving more and more people not only to your profile, but to your business."

- Ryan Stephens | Founder, Ryan Stephens Marketing

Follow @Ryan Stephens

The Patch (AOL)

"The Patch is a micro blogging/news outlet owned by AOL. They are very tied into social media and are all about connecting with users in real time.You should definitely leverage one of these local news sites and turn it into your own boutique social media outlet as all of their content is distributed to their twitter and facebook fans. Leverage the network they already have built up if you are new."

- Kris Ruby | President, Ruby Media Group

Follow @sparklingruby

Reddit Ads

"Play with the Reddit alien and get ready to roll around with the vicious trolls who will stop at nothing to talk down your business, but of all the trolls on Reddit, you'll probably find a good few that'll just love what you're doing and will be the most vocal evangelists."

- Danny Wong | Co-Founder, Blank Label Group, Inc.

Hootsuite.com

"Hootsuite.com isn't a social network but it helps you manage the biggies -- Facebook and Twitter -- make sure you're getting the most out of the "usual suspects" first, then definitely branch out to a more niche community! In fact, you'll probably discover where the boutique social networks are through stronger use of Twitter & Facebook."

- Tammy Tibbetts | She's the First

Stumbleupon

"Stumbleupon boasts a huge following and boy, oh, boy can it drive you traffic! I highly recommend using it to get new followers by tagging your pages and then liking similar websites or products."

- Vanessa Van Petten | CEO and Author, Science of People

Follow @vvanpetten

Find the Forums for Your Industry

"Every industry at niche has a forum — some of which look like they were designed a decade ago. Appearance doesn't matter, though: you need to dive in and connect with people who are truly relevant for your specialty. Broad social networks only get you broad access. You need specific connections to the people who will really be interested in buying from you."

- Thursday Bram | Consultant, Hyper Modern Consulting

Follow @ThursdayB

Blogs

"Every industry has a handful of blogs that act as hubs for movers and shakers. Seek out those blogs and offer to guest post or simply post in the comments area with your feedback. It's probable that these blogs will also lead you to other boutique social networks."

- Lisa Nicole Bell | CEO, Inspired Life Media Group

Follow @LisaNicoleBell

Focus on what works

"You should take a look at where your customers are spending time. For instance, you might find that based upon your customer's online activities you should have a presence on Flickr, Path or another site that best suites your marketing activities while at the same time presenting your business as top of mind to your customers."

- Jeff Slobotski | Founder, Silicon Prairie News

Become a Local Catch

"Depending on your business you should try Location Based Services like Foursquare and Facebook Places to give an extra dimension to drawing in potential customers. These services allow you to offer incentives when customers `check-in' by visiting your business and every time they do they can alert their friends and contacts which gives your business more visibility."

- Natalie Sisson | Chief Trouble Maker, Suitcase Entrepreneur

Follow @@nataliesisson

Yelp Me!

"Yelp.com is a local business review and social networking site. The social web functionality on Yelp is unique and can help your business build a strong business reputation through positive feedback. The Yelp forum is also an excellent resource for increased online socialization with potential customers."

- Anthony Saladino | Co-Founder & CEO, Kitchen Cabinet Kings

Follow @cabinetkings

You Need to Use Them All

"If you focus on just one area then you are limiting your potential. Not everyone uses each channel. If you increase your breadth of tools you will increase your odds of success and growth. There are millions of people out there that don't use Facebook. There millions that use Twitter more and YouTube less. You want to grab all of them, so you have to be as many places as you possibly can. "

- Fredrick Nijm | Co-founder and CEO, Addoway.com

LinkedIn Groups to the Rescue!

"If you're looking to spice up your word-of-mouth marketing strategy, you should seriously consider establishing a LinkedIn group. I'm increasingly pleased with this platform, and presents a solid way of establishing professional credibility on an already credible base (LinkedIn itself)."

- Matt Gartland | Founder and Editor, Winning Edits

Follow @MattGartland

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. The YEC promotes entrepreneurship as a solution to unemployment and underemployment and provides entrepreneurs with access to tools, mentorship, and resources that support each stage of their business’s development and growth.

I blame the post office © by Dvortygirl (2009)

Treat yours customers as if they were newspapers reporters; this is the new mantra for savvy companies of all sizes.

As consumers, we’ve become disenchanted with advertising and marketing of all sorts, having being duped, tricked or made to feel foolish on more than one occasion. The last true medium that holds sway is referrals from friends, colleagues, or online reviews from the likes of Yelp, AngiesList or TripAdvisor. According to a survey by the American Marketing Association, 90 percent of consumers trust peer reviews and 70 percent trust online reviews. It’s the last, true, medium that many consumers turn to when faced when inundated with choice, and confused by similar-sounding sales pitches.

Perhaps it is because reviews are the last sacred ground, that a flurry of outrage spread like wildfire across the Internet when news leaked that Reverb Communications (a PR agency) was paying interns to write positive reviews on iTunes for their clients Apps. Or when the occasional Amazon.com author gets ousted for disparaging competing books while positively reviewing their own. If you can’t trust advertising messages, and you can’t trust reviews, what else is left?

Based on my experience growing 99designs into a company that earns 7-figures per month, based largely on word of mouth, here are my three golden rules:

1. Think long-term reputation vs. short-term profit. Trying to optimize profit on a sale-by-sale basis is a fool’s game, leads to frustrated customers and lost repeat business. When FedEx left an eBags package without a signature at our office building over the weekend which got stolen, a single email to the company resulted in a quick refund to my credit card. Compare that to a recent experience with a National Retailer, where a request for an exchange or refund took two store visits, three people, and more than 90 minutes of waiting while employees scoured the back-room for inventory that turned out to be non-existant.Even Apple lived up to its reputation recently, happily issuing me a partial refund on a laptop order after I failed to claim a discount I was eligible for. It would have been easy to transfer me around different departments, put me on hold, or outright say “no” to retroactively applying the discount. But the first person I spoke to happily made it happen even though they had no idea that we had 90+ employees on MacBook’s that we regularly refresh, spending thousands in the process. You never know who the customer is on the other end.
2. Identify your top customers and make them feel special. With many companies, the most feverently loyal customers represent a disproportionately huge chunk of revenue. Knowing who those people are — and giving them special attention — is a must-do for every company. I recently had a conversation with the founder of a large Las Vegas based conference that’s been running for more than 10 years who used Klout.com to identify his most influential attendees. By offering just a little bit extra (free limo service to and from the airport), a dozen influencers directly contributed to over 100 additional tickets being sold with almost no additional marketing costs.
3. Make yourself available. I had my personal cell phone number on sitepoint.com for 10-years (a site visited by more than 2.5 million people every month and ranked Top 1000 in the world), and was happy to answer more than 30 calls on Christmas Day, when a special deal we were running on the website went wonky. These days, we have dedicated support reps for us on three continents, and we’ve never outsourced to a call centre to cut costs.

Tony Hsieh from Zappos says his company loves to talk to customers, and classifies customer service as a marketing investment, rather than an expense that must constantly be slashed and analyzed. Zappos has no metrics that reps have to hit around calls per hour, average time per call, or other silly nonsense that leads frustrated customers.

Some businesses are even taking it a step further, by turning their most prolific fans into advocates and online sales people. Under Armour and Skullcandy have recruited an online sales force made up of their most loyal and knowledgable customers and are paying them with cash and gear for answering live chat requests from prospective customers on their websites. After all, who better to make authentic product recommendations and answer detailed product questions, than the customers already using them? No outsourced call centre team can match the passion, product knowledge and helpfulness of your most ardent supporters. There is hope.

Matt Mickiewicz started his first company while still in High School, and has leveraged his early success into 3 profitable businesses which have have published 50+ web design books in 20 languages, paid designers over $24 million for their graphic design work through 99designs, and helped entrepreneurs sell over $60 million in websites and domain names on Flippa. Matt is also a member of The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. The YEC promotes entrepreneurship as a solution to unemployment and underemployment and provides entrepreneurs with access to tools, mentorship, and resources that support each stage of their business’s development and growth.

Fail Road © by Dagny Scott (2008)

I failed at something today. In fact, I fail at something almost every day. It seems strange to admit that. I usually like to hide my weaknesses, but failure is common to the human experience. So why hide it?

Failure is especially common to the entrepreneurial experience. Being an entrepreneur is all about blazing new trails—something that simply cannot be done without a share of disappointments, embarrassments, and yes, failures. Here’s the question though: Can failure be a good thing? I believe so.

The way we respond to our failures has the power to shape us. If we sulk, falter, and permanently fail, we risk being shaped in a damaging way. If we take specific steps to overcome our failures, learn from them, and improve as a result, they will make us stronger. But of course, everyone knows that. The challenge lies in actually doing it. As businesspeople we must find the motivation to respond in a positive way even when the odds are stacked against us. How can we succeed in doing so?

As a young entrepreneur I can personally attest to this fact. My first attempt at starting a business failed completely. After 14 months and a net income of minus $800, I closed the doors. Right on the heels of that fiasco, my second venture found itself in a six-figure hole before it even got off the ground. Three months after my original projected start date, my website was unfinished and I was out of money. My developers walked out on me. I had wasted money on things I didn’t need, and I didn’t have money for things that were really important. By some accounts this would make me an epic failure.

When I realized that I was out of money and out of time, I had three choices: scrap the project, find more money, or launch a partially completed product. Highlighting another lesson I learned from failing in business, I chose the third option. Many entrepreneurs tend toward the idea that if they can’t do something right, they would rather not do it at all. When it comes to business though, few things are perfect, and nothing is ever complete. Smart companies start small and gradually increase the complexity of their offerings at a sustainable rate. Failure presents the perfect opportunity to realign priorities and establish clear direction.

If you’ve failed at something colossally, it probably happened because you were reaching outside of your comfort zone. In the process, you surpassed many of those around who refused to extend themselves; which is why they didn’t fail. To fail big, you have to think big and try big. At the point where you fail, there is a good chance you’ve already surpassed your competition.

Looking back, I’m so thankful that I didn’t give up. Within six months, my fledgling company was debt free and had enough cash on hand to reach our development goals. Within 12 months, we were on track to make seven-figure annual earnings and experienced exponential growth. To echo the words of American businessman and writer, Dale Carnegie, “discouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success.”

So the next time you are facing failure, embrace it. You’re probably closer to success than you think!

Robert Sofia is a nationally recognized author, award winning public speaker, and practice management thought leader. He has developed marketing strategies for Fortune 500® companies, personally coaches hundreds of financial advisers nationwide, and is the C.O.O and co-founder of Platinum Advisor Marketing Strategies. He is a member of The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. The YEC promotes entrepreneurship as a solution to unemployment and underemployment and provides entrepreneurs with access to tools, mentorship, and resources that support each stage of their business’s development and growth.

Magazines © by Hector Alejandro (2009)

Whether in architecture, dry cleaning, plumbing or legal services, it is critical business owners understand the importance of marketing their brands. Marketing, after all, is a central mechanism for business growth.

Too often entrepreneurs get lost in the decision of which marketing channels to choose. Direct mail may be effective for local businesses, while national television ads tend to suit large corporations well. Most recently, online marketing tools like websites and social media have taken center stage.

Entrepreneurs with limited budgets must choose which marketing mix best suits their particular businesses. If implemented well, any marketing channel can be effective. Unfortunately, high costs are usually associated with strong campaigns.

The most powerful and cost effective marketing tool is publicity. Publicity, the art of attracting media attention, directly increases a brand’s target market visibility, which directly boosts sales.

While advertising is paid for, publicity is prayed for. This is easy to understand. As an entrepreneur, would you rather pay $100,000 for a Forbes back cover ad or be featured on the front cover editorially at no charge? Would you rather purchase a $40,000 commercial ad during the Daily Show or be an invited guest on the show?

Unlike the paid science of dollar-per-inch advertising, publicity is an art of skillfully presenting and persuading journalists to cover stories. Ad space is sold, while editorial space is earned. Getting featured depends solely on newsworthiness and compel, not payment.

The publicity appeal is clear for young entrepreneurs, whose greatest asset is often business savvy and greatest hindrance is usually cash availability. Since advertising requires tremendous monetary investment and publicity requires only time investment (and sometimes minor costs), the latter is clearly preferable.

Passionate entrepreneurs who lack cash can successfully market their ventures with publicity. And those who do so will find additional benefits that no advertising campaign can deliver:

1. Credibility. A cover story in TIME magazine or interview an on CNN brings tremendous credibility to you and your brand. Being featured in the media establishes prestige and an implied sense of endorsement from the network that covers your story.
   
   
2. No tune-outs. With the advent of online and social media, consumers have learned to tune out ads and focus on content. People are more likely to remember an article on your firm than an advertisement. Marketing campaigns that focus on content (publicity) attract viewers, while those centered on ads experience high tune-out rates.
   
   
3. Ability to use as marketing collateral. Once featured in a media outlet, you can incorporate the coverage into your marketing package. Whether reprinting a magazine article to include in your marketing presentation or embedding a television interview on your website, showcasing your coverage in the media can be a great marketing tool for impressing potential clients, investors and other stakeholders.
   
   
4. Tremendous cost savings. Being featured in the media is free. While there may be minor costs associated with a successful publicity campaign, the overwhelming required input is time.

Zach Cutler is a dynamic entrepreneur and communications expert that founded Cutler Group in 2009. He has expertise in helping high-tech companies achieve major media attention. He is also a member of The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. The YEC promotes entrepreneurship as a solution to unemployment and underemployment and provides entrepreneurs with access to tools, mentorship, and resources that support each stage of their business’s development and growth.

Question: What are your best tips for turning a passion into your profession?

See the Value in Yourself

"When you first brainstorm business ideas, you may doubt that anyone will ever pay you to do what you love. Remind yourself that people will pay for what they need, and that the activity you love may be out of the realm of possibility for a client to do themselves. For example, you're willing to pay the plumber to fix that leak because it's outside your skill set. What can you do that others can't?"

- Steph Auteri | career coach, writer, and editor, Word Nerd Pro

Follow @stephauteri

Embrace the Fear

"If you're terrified, you're on the right track. Ignore the naysayers. Turning your passion into your profession is risky, especially if you're starting out on your own. I worked for free for a bit before I was approached by my first client to serve as their director of marketing. Embrace the fear, dream big, and when everything works out, it makes the victory that much sweeter."

- Sydney Owen | Main Peanut in the Packet, 3Ring Media

Put in the Effort

"The best way to turn your passion into your profession is to start publishing your knowledge on a topic every single day. If people like what you have to say and benefit from it, you will have potential clients to work with on a consulting or advertising basis."

- Dan Schawbel | Founder, Millennial Branding

Follow @DanSchawbel

Passion as Passion Is Different Than Passion as a Business

"Start viewing your passion as a business. If you can do it as a side hustle while you're still working I suggest you do so. Learn the ins and outs of your passion as a business. Are you willing to charge people for what you love? Will they pay? Who else is doing the same thing? Learn and simultaneously act on turning your passion into a business, from where you are, with what you have."

- Michael Bruny | International Speaker | Coach | Author, Ambassador Bruny.Com

Follow @AmbassadorBruny

Improve Your Business Skills

"You're probably already pretty good at your passion but in order to turn this into a profitable venture, you're going to need to have all sorts of other skills -- such as marketing, business strategy, finance and more. If you can put as much time and effort into these areas of your business as you do into your passion, you'll have a greater chance of success."

- Lea Woodward | Co-Founder, Inspiring Ventures

Embrace What Makes You Unique

"Figure out what sets you apart from everyone else who is just as enthusiastic about your passion as you are. Embrace that unique quality and build upon it. When your work is also your passion, you'll need to make a living from it, and having a niche will allow you to do that much more easily."

- Colin Wright | CEO, Exile Lifestyle

Follow @colinismyname

Do a Little Bit Every Day

"Turning a passion into a profession can be a lot of work -- no matter how fun and rewarding it is. Don't wait until you have every single puzzle piece in place to get started. You may only be able to dedicate 15 minutes a day -- but start anyway! Everyone starts somewhere, and this will allow you to build momentum over time."

- Jenny Blake | Founder, Life After College

Follow @jenny_blake

Be Ready for a Little Less Passion

"The thing about turning your passion into your profession is that something you love will become work. That's not necessarily a problem, but it can mean letting go of a little passion and letting something you once loved become a little more ho-hum. You have to be ready for that beforehand or you can wind up burned out on something you enjoyed."

- Thursday Bram | Consultant, Hyper Modern Consulting

Follow @ThursdayB

The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) is an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. The YEC promotes entrepreneurship as a solution to unemployment and underemployment and provides entrepreneurs with access to tools, mentorship, and resources that support each stage of their business’s development and growth.

Office Building at Night © oatsy40 (2012)

While there are many industries resilient to the ebb and flow of the economy, the majority of small businesses can be defined in some way as cyclical—or reliant on the general economy. When the economy takes a dive, many small businesses tend go with it.

At the same time, a poor economy tends to scare and, in most cases deter many potential business owners away from opening their own company; though, it shouldn’t.

However, I am living proof as the CEO of a recruiting company whose bottom line is very dependent on the hiring fluctuations both in the U.S. and abroad, as well as the general health of American business. Because of this, running an executive search firm in today’s economy required a new thought process and approach to business. While other staffing firms are and have been going under or downsizing immensely, my company is currently hiring and leasing additional office space.

How am I able to do this? Below, are four rarely discussed tips for those aspiring to successfully open any business in today’s economy:

1. Avoid negativity. As the owner of an executive search firm, you think that I would be glued to the job reports every week.  It is quite the opposite. I don’t have time for bleak news. We have broken internal recruiting records on the same days as horrific job numbers were reported. I know that as the CEO, if I don’t remain positive, I risk the negativity spreading through my subordinates. I’ve learned that the key is to stay around positive, upbeat and successful people.
   
   
2. Follow your passion, no matter how bad you think the industry may be. When choosing which business to start, you must only consider those industries that truly interest you regardless of how badly they may have suffered. Many young entrepreneurs make a big mistake by letting the current economy decide what type of business they should open instead of the other way around. Good economic conditions are always helpful to the success of a business, but a favorable economy pales in comparison to a passionate CEO.
   
   
3. Regardless of the unemployment rate, good employees are hard to find; appreciate them. Some companies that come to us think that they can get employees on the cheap simply because the jobless rate is high. Reality soon sets in. Exceptional employees are still exceptionally hard to locate, procure and retain and. Despite the economy, the talented are not going to work for free or on a discounted rate. When you find the right employees, make sure you pay them well and do not allow the current economic situation to justify you treating them with anything less than absolute respect.
   
   
4. Keep a stiff upper-lip. Entrepreneurship is hard; it is often frustrating and, just when you think you have everything in place, a setback comes your way. The current economic conditions do add to the frustration, but you can’t let outside factors determine your success as an entrepreneur. When things don’t go your way, it is imperative you keep fighting. A bad economy is no excuse for an entrepreneur to quit fighting. There is always light at the end of the tunnel.

Despite the current economic conditions, now can still be a great time to start a business. As young entrepreneurs, we can’t wait for another economic boom like the late 1990′s, we must create an economic boom for our generation. After all, the economy is reliant on us more than we should be reliant on it.

Ken Sundheim is the CEO of KAS Placement who founded his executive search firm after skimming a random staffing book purchased on a whim from the entrepreneurship section of Barnes & Noble. He is also a member of The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. The YEC promotes entrepreneurship as a solution to unemployment and underemployment and provides entrepreneurs with access to tools, mentorship, and resources that support each stage of their business’s development and growth.

silicon-valley-yun_1764 © by Revol Web (2009)

Rumor has it that you have to raise money in order to survive in Silicon Valley. Most people are afraid of moving there because of the money factor. Well, I spent the last three months in Mountain View and my costs totaled just shy of $250. If I can do it, anyone can do it. It just depends on how badly you want it.

Let’s go over the major costs:

Rent

I was lucky enough to have a cousin in Menlo Park who offered me a room behind his house. Three months of free rent and utilities certainly helped. Thankfully, my grandparents also lived about two hours away, so during the weekends I stayed with them. If you have any family or friends in the area, just ask, and if not, try to find a cheap housing arrangement on Craigslist or AirBNB.

Food

I’m proud to say that I spent approximately $20 on food this summer, thanks to a strategy I perfected over time. First off, breakfast. The office where I worked provided an incredible breakfast each morning: oatmeal, cereal, yogurt, bagels, fruit and more. Lunch, I either had toasted bagels and cream cheese at the office or I made sure to schedule lunch with someone that would be happy to cover it, ahead of time. For dinner, I attended events with delicious food every night.

The two best part of events are networking and eating. Thanks to EpicLaunch, I was able to obtain a complimentary press pass for most events. I found out about 95% of events by religiously reading Startup Digest, Plancast and Garys Guide. Be creative; a meal doesn’t have to be in a restaurant or at home in a traditional way. If you open up yourself to other options you’ll certainly be able to save money.

Transportation

My primary method of transportation was a bike that I borrowed from a friend. When I needed to travel long distances I biked to the train station and bought eligible discount tickets since I was under 18. On most days, I took the train which, unfortunately, made up the bulk of my costs for the summer.

Office Space and Infrastructure

One of the greatest benefits to being a part of the Teens In Tech incubator was having access to many resources at no cost. First off, we had incredible office space at Appcelerator. The incubator also provided us with free hosting, incredible mentors and educational workshops.

Clothing

Throughout this experience I gained an entire suitcase of clothing—for free. Throughout my stay, I collected over 30 startup shirts, including: Klout, Disqus, Mozilla, Bump, Udemy,Livefyre, Meebo, Evernote, Waze, Salesforce, Olark, Teens In Tech, WePay, Uservoice,Formspring and many, many more. I will admit that I had to pay $15 for my own startup shirt to represent MySchoolHelp. Since I only bought one and wore it almost every other day I made a serious investment in Axe deodorant. If you’re interested in seeing pictures of some of the shirts feel free to take a look here.

Swag

Asides from shirts, I also needed business cards, stickers and magnets. I printed business cards through Vistaprint, which was the cheapest option and included a 50% discount. Since I had hosted a custom magnet giveaway on EpicLaunch earlier in the summer, the sponsor company, Uprinting, provided me with 100 of my own in return. And thanks to my buddy Noah Kagan at AppSumo, we worked out a deal to promote AppSumo on EpicLaunch and he gave me access to their StickerMule deal for free.

As Kyle Macdonald described me on Twitter: I’m “epic frugal,” which is certainly true, but it was all for the greater good for my startup. For all the aspiring entrepreneurs out there who want to make their way to Silicon Valley, believe me—it’s 100% worth it.

Ben Lang is an 18-year-old entrepreneur and the founder of the popular blog for young entrepreneurs, EpicLaunch. Ben’s entrepreneurial journey began at age 14 when he started his own eBay business, and he is considered a thought leader for teenage entrepreneurship. Ben is also a member of The Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only nonprofit organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. The YEC promotes entrepreneurship as a solution to unemployment and underemployment and provides entrepreneurs with access to tools, mentorship, and resources that support each stage of their business’s development and growth.