I love it that I still have connections within Professional Organizers of Canada! Following my successful presentation last month for the Southwestern Ontario Chapter, I’m thrilled to announce that I’ll be speaking at two Chapter meetings in May. Here are the details of these and other upcoming professional organizer events in Ontario.

On Monday, May 10, I’ll be speaking about Facebook for Professional Organizers for the Halton-Peel Chapter, at Tansley Woods, 1996 Itabashi Way, Burlington. Doors open at 6:45, and the meeting runs to about 9:00. All members and guests are requested to RSVP to halton-peel@organizersincanada.com.

On Wednesday, May 26, I’ll be speaking about Organizing for Personality Types for the North-GTA Chapter, at Williams Coffee Pub, 192 McEwan Drive East, Bolton. Doors open at 6:30, and the meeting runs to about 9:00. All members and guests are requested to RSVP to north-gta@organizersincanada.com.

Both of the above meetings are free for POC members and $15 for guests. I’m looking forward to talking to some of my former colleagues, as well as meeting many of my online contacts face-to-face for the first time.

Of course, it’s not all about me, and there are some other educational activities taking place in the area that you won’t want to miss!

The POC Toronto Chapter is holding a Professional Development Day on Tuesday, May 11, featuring three dynamic speakers, who will address Business Planning, Communication, and Media Relations. It sounds like a fantastic event and I would love to go myself, but my calendar for May is pretty full, since I’ve signed up for the Social Media Success Summit.

Jane Woolsey of ProfessionalOrganizers.com told me that she is planning to attend, so it would be a great chance to ask her any questions you might have about getting started as a professional organizer. (Be sure to sign up for her Solutions newsletter, if you’re not already a subscriber, because in her May issue she’s going to be announcing a Special Summer Price on the next Comprehensive Training Program for Professional Organizers in Toronto!)

Wherever you are, there are countless educational events taking place not just in May, but every month. Never say you are too busy or can’t afford it! Instead, consider the value of lifelong learning, both for your business, and for yourself.

If you want to earn more – learn more. If you want to get more out of the world you must put more into the world. For, after all, men will get no more out of life than they put into it.

William J.H. Boetcker

Please visit Your Organizing Business to read and comment on Learning Opportunities for Professional Organizers in Southern Ontario.

Starting your own organizing business is an exciting adventure, but before you can become successful, you need to let as many people as possible know that you exist. Until you have money coming in, you may be reluctant to invest in advertising, but that’s probably a good thing, as paid ads are rarely cost-effective for service businesses. You can reach a larger audience in a much more powerful way by getting your business mentioned on TV or radio, or in newspapers, magazines, or other publications. And the best part is, it won’t cost you a small fortune!

Being quoted as an expert in your field has a lot more impact on readers than merely purchasing an ad, because it shows that someone other than you values your knowledge, thereby building your reputation and growing your business brand. Furthermore, people often skip over advertisements, unless they are truly creative. Honestly, when you’re reading a magazine or newspaper, how many ads do you pay attention to?

So how can you get the media to notice YOU?

The traditional method is to send out a press release whenever you have something newsworthy to share. Perhaps you’ve won an award, or maybe you’re the first professional organizer in your small town. Media contacts are inundated with releases every day, so if your story offers something unique, you have a much better chance of getting noticed.

When I was a new professional organizer, I decided to take part in National Organizing Week. That particular year, Professional Organizers in Canada (POC) had selected Big Brothers and Big Sisters as the national charity who would receive free organizing services from members across Canada. After contacting my local organization to make arrangements, I customized the press release template I’d received from POC and sent it out to the local media. The people at the local TV station were so surprised to learn that there was such a thing as National Organizing Week that they decided to come and interview me for the evening news! I’m not going to lie to you and say that I was inundated with phone calls and emails from potential clients after that, but people did mention for several months that they’d seen my interview, and to this day I’m able to say that I’ve been featured as an organizing expert on CH News, which enhances my credibility.

Keep in mind that reporters and journalists do not rely on press releases for their story lines. Topics are often assigned to them by editors, or they may have their own ideas to pursue. For this reason, a strong online presence can be very beneficial. I’ve been approached by media contacts on a number of occasions just because my website or my blog came up when they conducted an online search on the topic they were researching! If you’re not doing as well in the search engines as you should be, I’d love to help you. I can’t promise to get you on the first page of search results (although I’ve achieved that for many of my clients) because there are just too many factors involved, and you should beware of anyone who makes that claim, but I’d be happy to create and implement a search engine optimization strategy for you. Feel free to contact me any time!

Because searching the web can be such a daunting and time-consuming task, many reporters in search of experts to interview submit their requests to Peter Shankman, who compiles the requests and emails them to subscribers three times per day. As I scan each email, I let my clients know of any inquiries that might be of interest to them. Of course they – and you – can also become a subscriber by signing up at http://helpareporter.com/. Urgent requests are also posted on Twitter, at http://twitter.com/helpareporter.

I’d love to hear about your media success stories too!

Please visit Your Organizing Business to read and comment on How to Get Media Exposure.