This week, Mia’s column features Ashley MacIntyre, founder of MacIntyre Communications, a small start-up that specializes in celebrity endorsement and event management. A young, very motivated entrepreneur , MacIntyre’s passion for networking and punchy marketing techniques got Mia thinking about the lessons small-business owners can learn from how she promotes her business.

 Mia writes: “Whether it is a snapshot of the celebrities she works with or the decor of events she has organized, when presenting her marketing collateral to a potential client her work isn’t crowded by text or heavy messaging – she lets the images speak for themselves.”

 Mia discusses how businesses spend so much time crafting the perfect messaging, that it sometimes comes out so dense it doesn’t catch the target audience’s attention.

 “As entrepreneurs, we have a huge opportunity to let the images of our successes speak for themselves,” she writes.

 Check out Mia’s column every Thursday in the Globe and Mail’s Report on Business.

This week, Mia’s column addresses the hesitation that some business owners have about integrating social networking into their public relations strategy.

She writes: “The idea of putting yourself and your products on display for uncensored, uncontrolled commentary may seem scary – but if it’s done right, the benefits are staggering.”

In the column, Mia features a truly inspiring entrepreneur: Hana Zalzal, president and founder of the globally successful CARGO Cosmetics. Zalzal has found innovative ways to use social networking tools such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter to seek product feedback and improve customer loyalty, fully inviting her customers to “co-parent” the CARGO brand.  Even more uniquely, Zalzal personally checks each and every post on her company Facebook page.

“As business leaders, our companies and our brands are so important to us,” writes Mia. “We engage advisory boards, conduct surveys and hold focus groups to ensure we’re on the right track. Social media has taken public engagement to the next level: with a bit of investment and a solid strategy, much stronger relationships with our customers are right at our fingertips.”

Check out her column every Thursday in the Globe and Mail’s Report on Business.

In her latest column, Mia writes about the holy grail of product placement – being featured by a daytime TV star such as Oprah Winfrey or Ellen DeGeneres.

She writes: “Last week, two of my colleagues came to me with a huge win: they had caught the attention of Ms. Winfrey’s producers for one of our Canadian clients. As an entrepreneur at a small or mid-sized company, you may not think the goal is attainable, but with a unique product and a solid strategy you shouldn’t be afraid to reach out to the stars.”

In the column, Mia shares practical pitching tips and advice, and encourages companies to be bold, think beyond borders, and never underestimate the interest in their products.

Check out her column every Thursday in the Globe and Mail’s Report on Business.