Over the years I've gently changed the way I do my marketing.

What I've come to realise is that “little and often” beats “big and infrequent”.

If we're only communicating with our potential clients quite rarely, then it has to have a huge impact every time.

Not only does that put a ton of pressure on us, not only is it really difficult to market so well that we have a huge impact every time – it can also misfire.

In these cynical times, if your marketing is trying too hard to persuade (because it's the only shot you've got) then your client's defences will go up. They'll feel like they're being sold to and won't trust the message.

But if you're communicating with them frequently, it doesn't have to be perfect every time. And you don't have to have a huge sales pitch in each communication.

For example: since I switched to emailing a few times a week rather than a few times a month it's meant that in each of my emails I can focus on sharing valuable information first, and just including a short message about what I have to sell.

Over time, it adds up and has more impact than when I emailed infrequently and had to put more in each individual email about what I was selling.

I guess it's a bit like learning at the right pace over time, rather than cramming for an exam and forgetting it all a few days later.

The “little and often” philosophy also fits well with the time pressures our clients are under. Thinking of emails again, a huge monthly email is likely to get filed to be read later (and then never read). A shorter email every few days can be quickly read when it comes in.

Little and often isn't just about email. It works for networking, giving presentations, appearing in the press.

It's easier to do. And it has more impact. As long as you can be systematic about it and keep it up.