Just about everybody agrees that marketing yourself and your book or writing services is important, yet most of us have problems being immodest enough to do this effectively. The answer can be getting someone else to do it for you.

One great example: Patricia Gallagher, author of the book "Raising Happy Kids on a Reasonable Budget" had tried without success to get on the Oprah Winfrey Show and said to her kids, jokingly, that anybody who gets Mommy on the show will earn fifty dollars. Her nine-year-old, Katelyn, wrote a letter that started, "Dear Oprah Winfrey, My Mommy wrote a book..." and decorated it with stickers.

A producer phoned, sent out a camera crew and invited Katelyn and her mother to appear on the show.

Testimonials are another way of getting others to help sell you. For instance, I am creating a multi-media course on how to pitch effectively. As I teach my live workshops on this topic, I videotape or audiotape peoples feedback at the end of the day. I will use these comments as testimonials for the multi-media course.

By the way, its best to make video or audiotapes because you can transcribe them and use the print version for query letters or book proposals, and then put the videos or audios up on your website.

ACTION: Who can help you tell your story? It may not be your children, but if you're creating a brochure or other sales tool, why not use testimonials from satisfied clients or customers? Or have it written by your best friend, who can talk about the great successes you've had, or even your mother, saying how proud she is that you have become such a good whatever. In the crowded information marketplace, these kind of unusual approaches will capture people's attention.

Jurgen Wolff
http://www.timetowrite.com