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— Ann Gynn

Recently, I asked for book recommendations for the Content Marketing Institute’s annual gift list. In my LinkedIn post, I mentioned that authors could suggest their own book. Several authors did so, and one mentioned that they appreciated that note because they wouldn’t have shared their title otherwise.

They accomplished a lot by publishing a book, and yet, they still didn’t feel comfortable submitting that hard work to the list.

Self-promotion, especially for solo entrepreneurs and creators, is a viable and often necessary marketing strategy. Still, many people cringe at the thought of promoting themselves. If that’s you, reframe your view. Self-promotion is about making sure people know who you are and how you can help them. You do it for the betterment of the business, not your ego. And it will lead to visibility, trust, and opportunities.

Of course, this type of promotion requires a deft hand so your target audience doesn’t see it as boasting or self-aggrandizing. How can you do that?

Nominate yourself for best-of awards, business-related rankings, and other unique opportunities. If the organizers don’t explicitly state that self-nominations are accepted and you’re hesitant to submit, ask if it’s allowed. If not, ask a friendly peer in your industry to submit on your behalf. Offer to do the same for them down the road. Your awards promotion will not only create awareness but also bring instant credibility.

Talk about your work. Take your audience behind the scenes. Give them a tour or a snapshot of your workspace. Explain or shoot a video of the process to create a product or service. This tactic also works with outtakes, too. Who doesn’t love to chuckle at a good blooper? By humanizing you and your work, your audience can gain a more personal connection to the business and the entrepreneur.

Publish case studies. Spotlighting your clients allows you to shine a light on your work. Keep it straightforward with a simple problem-solution-outcome model. You don’t need to go on and on; short stories work well, too.

Share your wins (and losses). Social media runs amok with self-promotion. Use it for good business. Don’t say, “Great for me, I landed a new client.” Instead, make the win a secondary item in the post and make the answer to a prospect’s question that led them to become a new client the primary item.

If you win one of those awards or see your name and a curated list, share the honor and congratulate and tag others who made the grade, too. At worst, this gets the other honorees’ attention. At best, it gets the attention of their audience, which may be similar to yours.

Make a top 10 list. Year-end or new-year content works well for self-promotion without feeling too salesy. Think Spotify’s annual Wrap content is customized for each subscriber based on their listening habits. You could use your data to craft lists, such as:

Your audience likes to see themselves or what their peers are up to. They can also benefit from knowing what you envision will happen.

Self-promotion doesn’t have to feel awkward or self-serving. When you approach self-promotion as a way to help people understand your expertise, it stops being about you and starts being about service.

This week: Decide on one self-promotion tactic and get it scheduled to go public before the end of the year. Need more ideas? Reply to this email. I’ll ask a few questions and send you a few personalized ideas.

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