Your clientele are on your doorstep. "Just five minutes away" is a powerful marketing message which as we'll see can be used in a wide variety of ways.

It reflects one of the key advantages of the small independent business - you're very convenient, buying from you is a doddle.

So take a timed five-minute walk in every direction from your showroom. Note what that includes: shops, offices, houses, pubs, hotels, car parks, transport. The works. It is an indisputable fact that a high proportion of the people within even that very immediate catchment area don't go past your shop, many don't even know you're there and most don't know what product range you sell.

If you're an active member of the local Chamber of Commerce or a councillor, you may already know all your business neighbours. But it's much likelier that you only know your immediate neighbours - and then not very well. Yet these are small business owners and managers, some of them distinctly successful. Go and introduce yourself. When they buy a kitchen or bathroom for their home, you should be the first person they ask and of course the quid pro quo applies too.

Networking like this is good for business in the long-term anyway but you aren't just being nice, you're actively seeking business.

Classically, can you quote any pubs and hotels for showers or bathroom fittings - they don't have to go to trade suppliers. Would an independent insurance broker like to offer a discount deal to all his home insurance clients? How many businesses would like to fit a shower on their premises - especially those with a green policy that encourages staff to cycle. I should add that asking for that business opportunity ought to be a follow-up contact to the initial meeting, otherwise you come across as a door-knocking salesman.

Invite them to pop in any time and just see what you're doing - the coffee pot is always on! A mixture of natural curiosity, occasional boredom and the need for a friendly face when they're disgruntled will drive visits. Even if they don't buy, it will make your premises busier and so attract other visitors.

As with the above example of the insurance broker, can you turn your product into somebody else's promotional offer? This is something that you can detail to every commercial neighbour. 'Win a new kitchen' is a great offer and it would be local entrants and a local winner. You'd give a hot deal to the promoting business and obviously, you'd want to mail all the losing entrants to invite them in - they want a kitchen!

"Let's all get rich together" is a common phrase used in the States. So think American! If your immediate locality includes other home related businesses you have a fine opportunity. Let's say there's a heating specialist, a double-glazing and conservatory showroom, a lighting specialist and a carpet showroom. All of you want to reach the same people. If you do it together, you can significantly reduce the cost of printed materials and tip-ins to the local paper while improving the quality at the same time. The customer could visit all of you on the same morning.

Let us not pretend that this is easy, but it is definitely practicable. You need a commercially aware printer who will do the legwork between the four of you and an agreement for split invoicing from every supplier involved.

You also need a positive mindset. Your promotional partners are not competitors; sure, you're all competing for the customer's money, and someone's going to do best of the four, but focus on the benefits - they're valuable.

Where you have large office premises within your five minute catchment area, talk to a senior director or the HR manager about staff incentives. If they run such a scheme, can you become part of it? This will involve a certain amount of planning and structure, but it could be very valuable. Is there a staff newsletter you could be featured in? Could you put a leaflet on everybody's desk? Is there a staff noticeboard where you can publicise yourself? Look out for these pin boards - plenty are free and none cost much. For instance, is there a library or college on your patch?

"You're less than five minutes from a new kitchen" I would suggest this approach to any five minute marketing activity. Note the 'less than'; it covers the whole area. In your visits to other businesses, you may notice poster sites, especially bus shelter sites that could direct customers to you. The providers details will be on the site and you can buy just one. They're not expensive and could prove to be your best ever advert. In these cases you can be more precise about time: "less than one minute...".

Car parks (and any cars parked in the street) are very tempting for a windscreen leaflet drop. Be extremely careful. First, the owners of the car park may have a policy of refusing to allow this - or they may charge (I would!). Secondly the local council can fine you if your leaflets become a source of litter.

That said, this is an ideal application of the five-minute principle. To encourage drivers to keep your leaflet, and thereby stop the litter issue at source, you could offer an incentive. How about "You're less than five minutes from a new kitchen and the chance to win two cinema tickets". To enter the draw they put contact details on the reverse of the leaflet and drop it in to your showroom. It is a mechanism for driving visits and because it's very easy to do (they are, after all, less than five minutes away) it gets results.

Especially because of that threat of a fine and because you want to be well regarded locally, rather than seen as a litter lout, I recommend you leaflet small areas and make a point of going back to clear up any discarded leaflets later. Yes, it's a pain, but it's worth it - people will see you being responsible and that will enhance your other activities. That responsibility might even attract favourable local press.

Another oddly contentious issue is A-boards. Ok, blocking the pavement is unreasonable but the A-board issue seems to cause more aggro between retailers than just about anything. But if the space is there, definitely use it. You can also think of where else to place a board with a direction sign on it. That nearby car park would be ideal. Ask the owner and make sure you put down your website address.

Do you have a railway station on your patch? They all have daily commuters. Gut feeling tells me that leafleting rail commuters will work better in the evening than the morning. You have a decent chance that they'll read it on the way home. I could see the five minute message working very nicely in relation to showers, especially on a hot summer's day when a refreshing shower is high on the commuter's priority list. Don't ignore the possibility of taking an advertising space at the station (trains aren't always on time, they tell me).

Don't you just love traffic jams? No? Well, start! If you have slow traffic going past or near your premises you have access to customers. Stand on a traffic island giving your leaflets to those poor, bored drivers as they edge past you. It might be good to stay open until 6pm on those days - equally, make sure your window display is eye-catching.