Today we’re talking about the current state of online marketing and I’m giving you permission to be your true, awesome self.
I’m super excited to have the opportunity to share some of the latest and greatest marketing strategies, tools, tips, and tactics…
And all the things that are really going to help take your business and marketing results to the next level and hopefully way beyond that.
I had a pretty powerful day the other day and I really wanted to share it with you.
You see, I had a couple really good conversations with some friends and mentors that I really look up to…
Not only are they incredibly genuinely good people…
They’ve also built massive, multi-million-dollar companies, and they’ve done it ethically and authentically.
(And all the other things that I like to preach about with you)
So, the long and short of it is, that they gave me some really good insight and some really good ideas…
And I paired that with some thoughts and some recognition of things that I’ve been seeing going on in the online marketing space for ages.
And, well, it left me kind of speechless.
(Which, if you know me, is rare.)
But probably the worst part of this all is that I realized that I may have been part of the problem!
And my commitment to you ends now.
Here’s what I’m talking about.
I’ve been involved in the online or internet or digital marketing space for over five years now…
(Which in internet marketing years is like 1000 real years, because this is an industry that chews up and spits out people faster than fashion or Hollywood…)
Now, how I’ve managed to survive and thrive all these years is another story entirely, and it calls for a different article for a different day…
The Cliffs Notes are that it’s a combination of authenticity and putting service over selling.
But again, we’ll get to that some other day.
So, in my time doing online marketing, and doing digital marketing strategy for myself, clients, and students…
I’ve seen a lot of stuff go down.
Now first, we had the “all hail the guru” and “look at my Lamborghini” period…
(Which I’m sure you’re all familiar with if you’ve had a social media account for any length of time)
Where you see pictures of expensive cars, or people with their mansions, or the “look at me, I’m so smart” type posts…
We also saw the rise of those infamous screen sharing posts.
The ones that showed income reports of how much people were supposedly making online…
Well this was a period where excess was praised and anything you could do to look super mega rich was fair game.
I saw a tonne of people bursting onto the scene, renting Ferraris, renting beach houses, renting some friends, taking a bunch of pictures, post them all over, and then disappear almost overnight.
Fortunately, this was never really my style, because man oh man, was it ever shady.
But, like all things, the pendulum swings.
And where we’re at now is the “guru-bashing” period.
Live in a van, sell all your stuff, and live a minimalist lifestyle.
Don’t talk too much about your success, and don’t be too flashy, period.
Sure, success is still okay, but don’t talk about it too much, and don’t make yourself look like a guru or expert who actually knows what you’re talking about…
Just in case it makes you look self-absorbed or egotistical.
Sadly, this extreme is just as bad as the previous one.
And again, this is where I’ve acted as part of the problem more than the solution; by adopting more of this style than the former one because it resonated with me a little more.
But again, neither of these extremes are healthy in regards to your business.
Now, of course you don’t want to be that clichéd fake internet marketer posting all those fake rented photos in front of your fake rented stuff selling people garbage for too much money…
But the extreme is also true where you don’t want to hide your success and you don’t want to hide everything you’re capable of doing and all the value you’re capable of providing.
So don’t hide your success just to validate others’ lack of it.
You’ve worked hard, you’ve earned it, and you have something of value to offer the world.
It’s okay to be a role model.
It’s okay to be successful.
And it’s okay to kick some *beep* and take some names!
And it’s okay to share all of this with your people, your audience, and your clients and customers…
Both as motivation, and as inspiration.
So, my appeal to you is this:
Just be you, the best version of you, what ever that is.
And don’t be afraid to kick *beep* and take names.
The world needs you to.
