Need some ideas for promoting and booking

We stay pretty busy. I usually have a festival or some birthday parties...this is the first Saturday that I have had off in forever. So I am working on networking and other business things. I really want to expand my business. I am having my Website done...it was a long process. My little brother is doing it. He started last year and was diagnosed with a brain tumor, God is good and he is all better now. So, we have been working without a regular Website. He promised to get it done this week, but he is also an artist and does graphic design and stays really busy.

I have signed up on Party Pop and Gigsalad (which I don't get much from) and those free things. I try to put lots of ads on Craigs List, which I often get bookings from. I am getting ready to do a massive outreach to businesses, and I am looking for suggestions and ideas. I have never volunteered at an event for free, because I fortunately have always been paid and had no real need to offer services for free. But, I am not opposed to doing things for free...if it gets me business.

I would really like to know what some of you guys do to promote yourself and how you get this type of work full time. We live close to Dollywood. I have tried several times to get in there. I finally got permission to send a portfolio in for review. But just have not done it...to be honest I don't really know what to send. Help???

Part pop, party planner, event active, kiji, merchant circle, facebook, gig salad.
Wix.com has great templates to make your own website for free.
Do a google search for face painter or face painting your stat & city & see which companies come up. Then get on them, link you web to them if you can, put on photos & have an awesome write up.
When I did all this my calendar filled.
I've done some direct mailing. It paid for itself & brought me some business, but not as much as I was hoping for.
Cold calls. I dedicate some time each week to cold call potential companies that might be interested in a face painter(that's how I got my Haunted House & a possible in with a really popular new restaurant that does concerts, events, etc.).
For cold calling, you have to understand & except a no w/o rejection. Out of 50 calls over a 6 month period 48 have been no. But 2 have been yes & are big jobs!

I have been off to a really slow start but I dropped off a flyer at the Little Gym and they called me to paint at their Halloween party. They said they wouldn't be able to pay me cash but they would add a credit to my nieces account. So I will be bringing alot of business cards and flyers for the parents to take and the credit will be my Christmas gift to my niece. Hopefully this trade will work out in my favor. It's worth a try. Now I'm thinking that talking to local daycares, the YMCA, and other childrens centers will be beneficial.

I do a lot of footwork. I was trying to break in to the Bar/Bat Mitzvah circuit so I used some census data & looked up local Jewish day schools & went around those neighborhoods passing out my flyer. I booked 1 party so far just waiting on deposit! I don't consider it booked until I see the $$$$!!!!

A couple of things that have come up lately - I sent a msg to a large event promoter on face book - that worked.
Also if you have large permanent markets near you, you can approach people with permanent stores and ask them if they are interested in having you come in to paint and splitting a percentage with them - that gives more regular work. This would work in my opinion - I haven't tried it but was lucky enough to have one store owner contact me after seeing me paint at a public event, so I would think more of them would be interested if asked.
I have to say - I get 99% of all my corporate clients through them finding my site on google or through an Entertainment agency.
I only get private birthday parties through free listings and parenting websites.
So IMHO it's worth it to build a great, easy to use site, and advertise it on reputable websites that will improve your listings ranking.
If you are looking fo more local birthday party work - then you can't go past putting signs up in the park... works everytime.

I have been using google adwords and it's been pretty good... relatively affordable for the amount of traffic it can bring and it has really bumped up my page on the search engines! You can select geographically where you want it to show and what keywords you want it to do... but you'll even show up on sites like about.com and youtube in the sponsored ads section!

These all sound great! I have not thought of fliers in the park. I put up a couple at my bank but was really trying to figure out where else that I could go to just "solicit" some work.

What ideas do you guys have for sending in promotional kits to the theme park? They requested my portfolio, biography, and booking information...I have not worked anything requiring "booking information" is that the dates I am available and rates?

Thanks!

for "booking information" I'd just put prices, your available dates could change at a moment's notice and it's not their business unless it's a date that they want you.