Because our culture has done such a good job of training people—especially creative types—to be embarrassed about being proud of anything that smacks of self-promotion, I sometimes have trouble convincing clients that it isn’t necessary to brand their campaigns as “shameless” because when they do, they are putting an unspoken subtext into the universe that they should be ashamed of something. Marketing is not self-aggrandizement. It is not bragging. It is not even selling.
True marketing is generous. It’s about making friends. It’s about doing for others without being asked and, yes, when one is asked, too. My favorite marketing anecdotes usually have something to do with networking and giving. Remember the song, “Little Things Mean A Lot?” So I remember when Joan Stewart sent me an endorsement for my SharingwithWriters newsletter out of the blue—and that was years ago. And I’ll remember an off-the-cuff e-mail I received from Denise Cassino just recently. She said, “I sent out a notice to all my clients to check out your books on marketing” in the midst of an e-mail conversation about something else! Both women are well-known in marketing and have loyal clients and associates. Their word is trusted. Their words and the way they use them—it turns out—is “generous marketing.”
So what kind of generous marketing gift can you give someone today?
ABOUT THE BLOGGER
Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including the award-winning second edition of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher; The multi award-winning second edition of The Frugal Editor; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor .
It's those little things that mean so much. That's why we have to give of ourselves. It will come back tenfold.
ReplyDeleteEvery person who attends my publishing and promoting seminars knows about The Frugal Book Promoter!