Marketing 101: Keep it simple

I recently met with a small business owner who was just looking to rejuvenate her business. She met with me because she was interested in Facebook advertising.
She was already sold on the idea of Facebook advertising, but wasn't sure how to go about it. She wanted me to help start running ads.
But as we started discussing her goals, it became clear to me that Facebook advertising wasn't the right first step with her. What she needed to do was simply put herself out there in her face-to-face interactions and pitch her business. I'm convinced she'll have a much better conversion rate if she just starts telling people what she offers than if she starts spending hundreds of dollars on Facebook.
She admitted to me that she was uncomfortable with "putting herself out there." And I get it. It is HARD to take the first step and try to sell your services. It feels icky to most people except those who are natural-born sales people. But guess what, no one will know about your business if you don't tell anyone!
I often think that business owners want to find a magic pill -- a paid advertising campaign -- that will miraculously bring qualified customers to their doorstep. But the reality is, for most businesses starting out, it's much cheaper (sometimes free!) to just tell people that you meet what you do. It may not feel comfortable at first, but it will feel comfortable eventually.