For many small business owners, marketing is a necessary evil, pushed aside by urgent deadlines, everyday tasks, and an occasional crisis. It is one of those important, but not urgent tasks, categorized by Stephen Covey in his now iconic Time Quadrant Matrix.

Time Management Matrix

Let’s face it. Not every business owners is a born salesperson. This is especially true of service providers, who rely on their talent in a core competency to attract clients. The good news is that marketing is an acquired skill and you do not have to go to business school to learn how to do it. There is a wealth of useful marketing information on the internet and in books.

Following several choice business blogs is a simple way to pick up the necessary knowledge over time. While it might be difficult to implement a start-to-finish marketing strategy, you can decide to learn marketing in increments and apply this information consistently. In fact, marketing diva Fabienne Fredrickson says business owners must do something to market themselves every single day to escape the all too familiar feast-or-famine.

Fabienne’s fabulous blog is the first resource on my list of recommended reading.