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Steamboat Springs — Small business owners have a short period of time to attract vacationers into their doors.

That is the thinking behind this month's Success Steps Breakfast, which will focus on ad-vertising and marketing.

"It's that time of year when we have a lot more visitors in town," said Randy Rudasics, manager of the Bogue Enterprise Center and counselor at the Small Business Res-ource Center. "People need a reminder on how to get the most from their advertising dollar."

The Advertising and Marketing for a Small Business seminar will be from 7:30 to 9 a.m. at Colorado Mountain College's Bogue Hall. Each month a different topic is chosen for the Success Steps Breakfast, which is put on by the Business Resource Center, SCORE, Colorado Mountain College Small Business Resource Center and Routt County Economic Development Cooperative. For 2007, the seminars will be held the second Wednesday of each month. The cost of each seminar is $10, which includes a continental breakfast starting at 7:15 a.m.

This week's program will be hosted by Samantha Johnston, who has worked in newspaper marketing and advertising for eight years. She is the regional advertising director for the Steamboat Pilot & Today, Hayden Valley Press and Craig Daily Press newspapers and will receive her master's degree in business administration in January.

Johnston said it is important for small businesses to make a commitment to advertising and marketing early on, even though it can sometimes be costly.

"The reason it's so important is because so many small businesses fail because they never caught on," Johnston said.

She will discuss marketing campaigns, targeting audiences, advertising frequency, timing, how much to spend and how to choose the appropriate medium to get the message out.

She will answer questions business owners may have specific to their businesses.

Johnston will present lists of the top ten things to do and the top ten things not to do.

What not to do?

"One of the easiest ways to fail is to not set a budget," Johnston said.

What to do?

"Make advertising a priority," she said. "You have to make a commitment."

-To reach Matt Stensland, call 871-4210

or e-mail mstensland@steamboatpilot.com