Sell Buzz 06/05 Marketing blogs, broadcasting your expertise and more

Ever dream of having a talk-show gig? It may not be sofar-fetched. According to Chris Witting, president of Syndication NetworksCorp. in Morton Grove, Illinois, there are 10,000 radiostations, a burgeoning internet-radio market and satellite-radiostations that need programming.

"You don't need broadcasting experience," saysWitting. "What you really need is an area of expertise thatpeople want to hear about."

Beth Gallob, 53, and Monica Mariani, 42, did it. Their show,Beth& Monica's Small Business Marketplace, airs once amonth on Fountain Hills, Arizona-based KFHX. They got the gig whenGallob met one of the station's volunteers, who mentioned theneed for new shows. Gallob asked Mariani, who owns a graphic designand consulting company and with whom she had collaborated on a fewprojects, to develop the idea with her, and before long, they wereon the air.

"We wanted to find a venue that could help small businessesand help us find new ways of promoting our own businesses,"says Gallob, who owns a marketing communications firm.

Think radio is for you? Witting shares these tips:

• Put your show concept on paper, including potential topics,guests, show length and format.

• Approach small stations. They're usually more eager forprogramming.

• Once on the air, offer your show to stations in other markets.Self-syndicating can be a far-reaching way of promoting yourbusiness--or maybe even generating a revenue stream.

Quick Pick

There are blogs on virtually every topic, including marketing.Here's a short list of the cream of the crop:

• Smallbusinessbranding: Although it bills itself aspart website, part blog, it's really more of the latter, withgreat content that doesn't just take marketing advice at facevalue. Every small business will find some take-away value.

• MarketingVOX: Read this blog (or better yet, have ite-mailed to you daily), and your colleagues will wonder how youknow about every major marketing story in the media.

• BrandAutopsy: Irreverent and smart, this marketing catch-allnarrative probes everything from your brand's phone voice tothe secret power of NPR sponsorships. And its recaps of the latestand greatest marketing titles will have you frequenting your localbookstore.