Lights, Camera, Action!
Do you dream of promoting your business on
Oprah or the
Today show, but don't know where to start? Here's the inside scoop on harnessing the power of TV--so get ready for your close-up.
When interior designer Lee Snijders first appeared on HGTV's
popular decorating show Designers' Challenge in 2002, he
assumed he'd get a flurry of inquiries from prospects and some
promising leads for new work. What he didn't expect was an
avalanche of new business.
"During the first commercial break, my girlfriend and I
checked my e-mail, and I already had 15 e-mails from people
requesting whole home designs," says Snijders, founder of
Lee
Snijders Designs. "By the next morning, I had received 225
e-mails. I was ecstatic."
Such is the power of TV, that all-pervasive electronic medium
that entertains us, educates us and lifts our spirits. More
important for entrepreneurs, TV can provide a wealth of
opportunities for promoting products and services to a wide
audience you otherwise might not reach-and without the exorbitant
expenses associated with paid advertising.
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"Every time that show airs, it's like a free commercial
for me," Snijders, 36, says. "My Web site lights up, the
e-mails come in, and I get a new influx of clients. It has been
surreal for me."
And that modest first appearance has paid off for Snijders in
another significant way: In addition to making two more appearances
on Designers' Challenge, he landed his own HGTV show,
Design on a Dime, last year, and his innovative work is now
seen regularly by 88 million viewers. He's also in the enviable
position of pursuing licensing deals and endorsements that one day
could be worth millions.
"Being on TV can make you a millionaire-or it can have
absolutely no effect on your business at all," says Susan
Harrow, a media coach and marketing strategist in Oakland,
California, and author of The Ultimate Guide to Getting Booked on Oprah:
Ten Steps to Becoming a Guest on the World's Top Talk
Show. "For your career to take off, you must prepare
in advance to make the most of your TV appearances."
And here are four steps to help you do just that.
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