In the early days of launching my business, I never turned down a speaking invitation or media interview. That led to all sorts of surprises.

On a warm Saturday evening one September, I got a call from my travel agent. “You’re on television,” she announced. The cable program produced by our library system was rerunning an interview I had done months earlier.

Soon after it was first broadcast, I called to make an appointment with my dentist. As soon as the receptionist found out who she was talking to, she said, “Dr. Klein just saw you on television.”

A couple of months later, I went in for my annual physical. When my doctor came in, she didn’t greet me with her usual, “How are you, Barbara?” Instead, she burst into the room exclaiming, “I heard you on public radio!”

Shortly after that, I was in my hometown for an uncle’s funeral. I dashed into the church bathroom before the service and was cornered by a woman I barely remembered who demanded to know if I had been on television. I assured her that I had, although she wasn’t certain about where or when she’d seen me. “I thought that was you,” she said smugly.

After all this time, I suppose I should be getting blase about this sort of recognition, but I’m not.

Which brings me to the point of this. While any savvy entrepreneur welcomes free publicity for their business, shyness or inexperience in dealing with the media keeps too many great stories from being told.

But putting yourself in the spotlight can have an impact far greater than you can ever imagine.

The more venues you can find, the more diverse your promotion efforts, the more familiarity you create. This all adds to your credibility and, ultimately, profitability.

It just makes sense to set aside time regularly to generate publicity.

Write a tip sheet and turn it into a news release.

Contact the producer of a local talk show.

Call up your neighborhood newspaper and pitch a story idea to a reporter whose work you have liked.

Write a letter to the editor of a newspaper or magazine.

Don’t be shy about blowing your own horn. You never know who will say, “Hey, I saw you on television!”