What you’re talking about is business development. For my own business and many others, I’ve found that a blend of approaches to business development is best, and many good options are listed here already.

What appears to be missing, however, is cold calling. Yes, the gut-wrenching (for most) practice of calling many people you don’t know (or going door-to-door in denser markets) and educating them about you and your service.

Ultimately, building your business is a numbers game: The more people who know about it, the more likely you are to find someone who can use your services today, six months down the road, one year out or even three years into the future (a pleasant surprise that boosted my business significantly). Consider cold calling foundational—a core way to promote you, your services and your drive in a targeted fashion.

Sorry, I didn’t say easy or painless, but cold calling can be an incredibly valuable tool in your business development plan.

Good luck and let me know if you need more assistance.