As mom entrepreneurs, you and I want to put ourselves out there in various ways that show our expertise in an authentic way. One terrific way to do this is using publicity effectively.

Publicity is far more powerful than advertising, and a successful publicity campaign can lead to credibility for you and your business. And of course the good news is that it’s free.

At the Metromom Online Success Telesummit, I spoke with Shannon Cherry, a Power Publicist and Metromom herself. If you follow her insider secrets that the top public relation pros use, you will be able to greatly increase your visibility.

So what are two ways of marketing your business with the media?

· Use Google News Alerts. Put in a handful of keyword content that is in and around your expertise and what you do. Google will email you those news stories as they’re happening and then you can use it as an opportunity to call your local reporters about your expertise so you can be interviewed and piggyback on it.

Shannon recommended you say something like this, “I noticed there’s a trend among mom entrepreneurs about such and such. I can give you information on …” And here’s the key to creating a sense of urgency, ask them, “Would you like to interview me today?”

Marketing is about building relationships. People have to know, like and trust you. To do that, you’ll want to position yourself as the expert for the media. They’re craving your content as much as we are craving them to put our content in there.

Which brings us to the second tip:

· Set up a blog that works as an Online Media Room. Journalists have said they want their own resources area on your website. Shannon suggested having a separate page on a separate domain devoted for journalists although they aren’t the only ones who will be using it. It should be set up properly with keywords so it is search engine friendly.

You’ll want to include a bio on your company and expertise. Have a fact sheet about your specific focus of expertise. List the topics of “evergreen” or timeless story ideas that you can talk about . This will ensure them that you are an expert and can answer their questions.

We discussed so many simple tactics on getting ourselves out there. If you would like to listen to my entire interview with Shannon Cherry, “How to Use Publicity to Drive Traffic (and Business) to Your Website”, click here. The tips you’ll pick up will give you the most bang for your buck and will get your business noticed.

I am honored to be participating in Gina Bell’s How Does She Do It? Tele-Series happening October 16th and 17th.

This thought-provoking interview series exposes the comparison trap as it relates to “success” stereotypes and draws attention to how our knee-jerk reaction to compare ourselves to others or to “model success” the wrong way sabotages authenticity and confidence.

The series also reveals the top five challenges that women in business online commonly face and directs the how does she do it question to these relevant topics with the intention of protecting your authenticity.

“How Does She Do It?” is a common question we wonder when success appears so effortless for others and we’re not getting the results we want. But, it’s when we look externally for validation and confirmation that our ideas have value that self-doubt can be triggered and we fall into the trap.

So, are you ready to join us in drawing a line in the sand?

Are you ready to break free from the cookie-cutter/copycat approach to modeling success so you can create success your way, authentically and with confidence?

I’m proud to be one of 16 successful women (such as Carla Young, Mary Pat Kavanaugh, Laura West, Shannon Cherry and Marie Forleo, to name a few) who are speaking up to reveal our own experiences with comparison. Our goal is to provide valuable insight, share lessons learned and inspire you to take YOUR next steps all from a caring and supportive approach that protects your authenticity.

The tele-series starts October 16th at 10 AM EST and you can listen to the interviews FREE when you register at http://bit.ly/1wpo0R.

I truly believe in the power of setting intentions and believe even more that when you put a voice to them, and share them with others, something magical happens.

While preparing for the Metromom Telesummit I was looking for ways to get the word out and share it with as many women as possible. One of my intentions was to get a segment on the Today show.

I shared this with many different people and I put out feelers to those who I thought might have connections from my local TV station to my new friend and publicist Shannon Cherry. I even posted it on Twitter weeks before my event.

Two weeks before the Telesummit went live, I got an email from a connection at Ladies Who Launch saying a Today Show producer was looking to do a segment on women whose husbands have lost their jobs. Wow, I fit that bill perfectly.

I checked with my husband to make sure he was comfortable with my going on national TV about our situation. With his support I sent in a response to the Today Show and let them know that I could share some additional information for the piece.

Within moments, the producer and I were emailing back and forth with each other (in between her own live news segments on NBC’s NY morning show). She invited me to participate in a coffee shop gathering where three other women would share how our husband’s job loss had affected us. The piece was a lot of fun to be a part of (I  was amazed at how much footage (and coffees) were required to get down to the few seconds of TV coverage.)

On Mother’s Day I shared with my sister-in-law that my Today Show piece was airing in two days. "That’s amazing Kim, just last month you told me you were going to be on the Today Show, and look, now you are". I back pedaled (and minimized the whole thing) a bit saying the piece wasn’t about Metromom, or my event, and I’d probably only be on for a few seconds. "Who cares?” she said, “What’s amazing is that you said you’d make it happen and you did".

At that moment I realized the value of sharing my intention to be on the Today Show. I was stating my belief. We’re often taught to be modest and not put out “pie in the sky ideas”. What’s the good in that? Who do we really serve by staying small? There’s a lot to be said about believing and dreaming and that’s something I know I want to teach my children.

Did I really make it happen because I put it “out there”? Will it lead to other opportunities? I believe yes to both questions, and I will continue to ask for what I want and trust that I’ll get it. I hope you’ll do the same. (Please share an intention that you’d like to manifest.)

Here’s the segment for you to view – there are some really valuable tips for women with out of work husbands:

I just finished recording my Wrap-Up call for the Metromom Online Success Telesummit where I shared my highlights. It’s been a fascinating two weeks as I interviewed 18 different internet marketing experts who shared tips on how to maximize your online presence.

I think what I found the most interesting was how the expertise of the different speakers weaved together. In the end I discovered consistent references to what it takes to be successful in today’s economy.

Let me share some of my highlights of the four online success principle I discovered:

1. You Need to be Authentic

One theme that kept coming up from was the importance of being authentic in your marketing. I heard it from Nancy Marmolejo as she talked about social networking, Michele PW as she shared copywriting tips, and Wendy Maynard as she discussed blogging. They all said basically the same thing – the key to being successful online is to be authentic and create relationships that are mutually beneficial. Laura West then really pulled this authenticity theme together when she spoke about “Attraction Marketing.”

2. Make Sure You Use Every Avenue to Connect

Jennifer Odear and Caleb Scoville really helped clarify how you can maximize your expertise by using all the different ways of communicating. Jennifer spoke about recycling your content and using it in your blog, articles, press releases, newsletters and more. Then Caleb shared how to take that very same content and use it in podcasts and YouTube videos.

What’s great is that once you have some content there are so many ways to get it out there. Alicia Forest gave great tips on using content to build your list. Amy Miyamoto showed how to tie your content into your social networking, Shannon Cherry shared publicity tips and Ty Downing shared easy-to-implement SEO ideas.

3. Women Need Foolproof Systems

Busy women juggling a business and a family need more then great ideas. They need help implementing proven systems that will get the money pouring in. Beth Schneider and Erin Blaskie gave fantastic tips on how to build a solid team and then create systems to keep things running smoothly. Jennifer Haubein shared how technology can help you set-up a website that helps you build relationships effortlessly. Debbye Cannon shared tips specific to moms on how to keep their family thriving as they build their business.

4. Get Your Mindset Prepared for Success

No amount of internet marketing strategies will help you achieve your goals if you’re stuck with a negative attitude or mindset. Victoria Colligan and Traci Long , from Ladies Who Launch, were truly inspirational as they shared how to take the next step in your business. Gina Bell shared how to identify and eliminate resistance to self-promotion and success.

The Metromom Online Success Telesummit (now called The Online Success Toolkit) is available for you to listen to. Click here to learn more! Once you listen I’d love to hear your feedback so come back and post your comments. What were some of the highlights for you?

For two days (48 hours total) on Friday May 1st and Saturday May 2nd, 18 speakers will share their wisdom about taking your online business to the next level. Not only is the content incredibly “how-to” focused but it’s F^REE. You’ll have the opportunity to learn from speakers such as Nancy Marmolejo, Michele PW, Victoria Colligan, Shannon Cherry, Alicia Forest, Laura West, Gina Bell & more. Enjoy the video and learn more by visiting this page.

Learn more by visiting: http://MetromomTelesummit.com

With our current economy, you’ve probably been hearing a lot of bad news lately. Well, I want to share some good news with you. Women entrepreneurs, especially moms, are harnessing the power and flexibility of internet marketing to design businesses and lifestyles on their own terms. They’re making millions of dollars working-at-home on their own schedule.

Take a look at a recent article in Time magazine about our changing times, “At no other time in recent history has it been easier or cheaper to start a new kind of company.” The article goes on to discuss the advantages of Web-based businesses that cost almost nothing to get off the ground and can turn into great moneymakers.

Whether you want to get a new business off the ground or just want to use the Internet to expand your current business income, you need more than great ideas. Basically, there are the three things you must know in order to grow your business and maximize your time and energy.

• You need to know which internet marketing strategies will work best for your business.
• You need to be building your team because you can’t go it alone.
• You need to start implementing proven systems that will get the money pouring in.

If you’re serious about taking your business to the next level I hope you’ll join me for on May 1st & 2nd for the F^REE Metromom Online Success Telesummit. It really is F^REE to listen to 18 online marketing experts (like Nancy Marmolejo, Shannon Cherry, Beth Schneider, Michele PW, Alicia Forest) share the latest techniques and creative ways to build your business and thrive in this new economy.  During the Summit you can listen to what you want, when you want (completely around your schedule) so there isn’t a single reason why you shouldn’t check it out.  #mtmm09