Marketing is our topic for today’s #AuthorToolBoxBlogHop. Well, this topic seems really strange to me; I’m one of those people who hates marketing. As such, I think it might be useful to talk a little about what holds us back and how we can get ourselves acclimated to the wonderful world of community building.
I picked up this book on Marketing: The 1-Page Marketing Plan and I kind of hate it. I hate marketing and it’s a book about marketing so what did I expect? I did not expect to find it so salutary. There is a lot that I bristle at in this book but it can’t be denied that its tips really do the trick, at least for me.
The greatest lesson this book taught me is how there is a three phase process, like a three act play structure, of people coming in cold to your work and becoming fans or customers. Each act or phase has its own challenges and goals.
Something that was holding me back all this time was that it felt all kinds of wrong to treat people like customers right out of the gate; and this is something I see a lot of other authors of all levels doing. It comes through as we plead with people out there to notice what we are working on, and hopefully to buy books (if you are published). And I was right; that’s the wrong way to go about it.
It’s okay to slow down and build a community– something that I love. I love bringing people together over shared interests. Relax, be yourself, socialize– and this is coming from an introvert. I am very pleased with the small group of people who choose to interact with my posts, to follow me on social media. I’m over the moon when they strike up a conversation. All of this is good marketing, and I haven’t hated a minute.
That’s all from me today. It’s my birthday! So I’m off to do some much needed R&R.
Please comment if you can relate at all to hating marketing, or struggling with it as I have. Or maybe you love it and have some sage words of advice for me. Drop me a line in either case; I’d love to hear from you. 🙂
I think a lot of people have the wrong idea about marketing, and that’s why they hate it (marketing major speaking). Try reading This is Marketing by Seth Godin or Sticky Branding by Jeremy Miller, then tell me if you still hate marketing 🙂
And Happy Birthday!
Happy birthday, or belated birthday! Sorry I’m late to post. What a week it’s been. I studied marketing, have worked in marketing positions for years, and it’s a love-hate relationship. I love the creative aspects of it, and that’s what keeps me interested if any of the tasks get repetitive or mundane. Great post, Sonia. I’m interested in hearing more about this three-phase process. I’m not sure I remember hearing anything about that before.
Happy belated birthday! And happy hop day 🙂
I also dislike marketing, and reading your post it’s becoming a little clearer to me *why* I hate it. Trying to talk to strangers is hard enough for me and treating them like customers from the first just rubs me entirely the wrong way. As I read your thoughts about creating community first it sounded so right!
Thanks for sharing your marketing woes! I work as a marketer fulltime, but I must say, to me, it’s easier to market a product that you didn’t make as opposed to your own creative work. But I find the best marketing I can do with my own writing now is to talk about it with the same enthusiasm as people who love Marvel or Star Wars movies talk about them. Being excited about what you’ve made is the best marketing when starting out.