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Homework Asgt. · MKT 232, FTCC

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Sam the Bachata Cat
Sam the Bachata Cat, 2020.

Lab Assignment 4.1 · WordPress

Social Media Marketing (Aug. – Dec. 2022), MKT 232, FTCC, Fayetteville, NC. Publish your post to make sure it will be available to readers online (double-check that it is also published and visible online when not logged in to WordPress in your web browser).

Discussion Asgt. 4 · What are the advantages of using video in social media?

Video metaphorically represents “where it’s at” when gaining attention and ascending the value ladder (or descending the marketing funnel). On p. 157 of the text, the authors cite research that bemoans the shrinking attention span of the average person, less “than that of a goldfish, or less than 12 seconds.”

Do we have today shorter attention spans? Or do we have less patience? And why? Maybe because today we experience many more competing requests for attention than before? Thus, wouldn’t that require faster decision-making about how to spend one’s attention?

If a picture speaks a thousand words, then a video speaks a chapter or more. If a marketer wants to compete for attention, he must quickly deliver as much utility to the consumer as possible. Video does that more than text alone.

Video, too, also expands a marketer’s reach beyond one language. My phone settings and history signal advertisers that I consume content in Spanish and sometimes Tagalog. I remember seeing a video commercial for cellular service in Spanish on my phone.

At first, what struck me, was the interracial romance in the commercial between an Asian male and a White female, which is rare in American programming. Spanish language text appeared, and I disregarded it as “interracial,” as Hispanic culture does not typically place much weight on demographic differences.

Then I saw the same commercial again, with English language text. It was genius. The characters did not speak. They could be anywhere. Anyone watching the video, regardless of language, would likely connect emotionally with the content. The advertiser easily localized the text. One does not get this kind of impact with text alone.

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Book Review · The Agency – Build, Grow, Repeat

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Reading another excellent.

A story worth reading on developing a digital marketing agency.  302 pages.  Business management, digital marketing.  I think many would readily connect with Luca’s backstory of years of initial struggle before serendipitously discovering his niche in life.

I love how organized Luca wrote the book.  The title itself outlines the contents and leaves the reader with a way of thinking that organizes into success.  Even if one doesn’t intend to create a marketing firm, he can use this as an example of how to write a book.

Like many other bestselling internet marketers, Luca doesn’t go into the tactics or step-by-step instructions on button-pushing.  Technology today moves too fast.  He aims for a more evergreen approach in sharing his strategies and principles leading up to his success.  The following represent three of my biggest takeaways from each section of the book.

PURPOSE-DRIVE, FLAT, AND FAST

Build.  Purpose-driven, flat, and fast.  Within this section of the book, Luca shares a description of the general structure of his agency.  He emphasizes purpose first.  Our previous generations seem to hate getting asked why, but what other question proves more critical?  What other question drives the team during uncertainty?  Luca also shares the importance of flattening hierarchies and decentralization to achieve the speed needed to win in today’s world.

CONDUCT NETWORKING EVENTS

Grow.  Attend networking events, and conduct networking events.  Among the chapters in this part, the mention of leading a networking event triggered a lightbulb moment for me.  As in, “Oh, yeah.  Why didn’t I think of that?”  Call it a house party in today’s world of COVID-19 or hold a virtual get-together.  But you don’t have to wait for someone else to announce an event.

AVOID WEAK LANGUAGE

Repeat (or Scale). Avoid weak language.  Well, among the other principles in this section, this one resonated with me as an author.  Too many written systems, as well as correspondence, suffer from fillers – words that don’t further value.  One easy hack to discover the written equivalents of “umm” or “so…” consists of simply asking whether a portion of writing contributes to the intended message.  It seems obvious, but many of us don’t write the way we speak.  In so doing, we swing the metaphorical pendulum too far the other way, into wordiness and trying too hard to sound smart.

RESOURCES

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Book Review · List Building Lifestyle

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Brian, reading a great book on email marketing

Recommend.  91 pages.  Entrepreneurship and email marketing.  Igor Kheifets, like nearly all of my favorite authors and entrepreneurs, push through the grind for years before finally striking the epiphany (or set of epiphanies) that rapidly precipitated his success.  Rapid, that is, in comparison to the years before.

He hosts a podcast titled “The List Building Lifestyle Show.”  On the show, Igor has interviewed legends in American entrepreneurialism such as Robert Kiyosaki, Russell Brunson, Chris Voss, Anik Singal, and Mark Manson, to name a few.  I’ve read books by all of these men.

In the book, Igor jumps quickly into the meat of his content, adding his personal experiences along the way.  My favorite parts of the book consisted of Igor relating his struggles with such platforms as Facebook, Google, and even within his own niche of email marketing.

My three big takeaways from this book:  (1) marketing success may narrow to just two parts, a great offer, and the right audience; (2) your audience wants to hear about its problems, and not yours; and (3) build your own ladder and climb it.

RIGHT HOOK, RIGHT POND

First, make a great offer to the right audience.  Some writers suggest beginning the entrepreneurial journey with the product – your passion, your unique value.  Others suggest starting with the audience.  Igor subscribes to the latter, and on p. 65, quotes Gary Halbert as saying that the “most profitable habit you can cultivate is to always be on the lookout for hungry markets.”  With the size of the planet, it doesn’t matter where you start, so long as you do.  Although, by beginning with the audience, in a way, you already possess a soft proof of concept.

YOUR AUDIENCE WANTS TO HEAR ABOUT ITS OWN PROBLEMS

Second, talk more about your audience’s problems than yours.  Igor brings this up in response to his clients’ questions about what to talk about in their emails.  Emotional connection precedes physical connection, whether that means intimacy or negotiating a deal.  Consistent with advice on allowing for vulnerability and putting “yourself out there,” Igor shares that that does work.  But talking about the other person’s problems works even better on conversion rates.  The market doesn’t care about your hopes, dreams, and struggles – it cares about itself.  Give the audience what belongs to the audience.

YOUR LADDER, NOT SOMEONE ELSE’S

Third, build and climb your own ladder.  If you left your job (or intend to) as a way to become your own boss, it follows then that you shouldn’t let platforms like Facebook or Google become your next boss.  When the algorithms inevitably change, expect a slap to your income.  Your email marketing list represents your own ladder, your own platform.

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Book Review · The Iceberg Effect

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The Iceberg Effect (2020) by Dean Holland

Recommend.  163 pages.  Entrepreneurship, internet marketing, and direct marketing.  Dean Holland began his entrepreneurial journey in the early 2000s.  Today, he collaborates alongside marketing legends such as Russell Brunson, who wrote the foreword.

The book begins with his outward journey of struggling with school and work, wanting more from life, and achieving initial successes and setbacks.  He then delves into the inner journey, citing themes familiar to readers of entrepreneurship and success stories.  He discusses Carol Dweck’s illustration of the growth mindset vs. fixed mindset, Sakichi Toyoda’s “Five Whys,” and Vilfredo Pareto’s “80/20” rule.

PUT IT IN WRITING

My first big takeaway from the book is to put it in writing.  The writing becomes the system of systems.  Two sections in the book leave room for writing.  I think most readers prefer to skip the homework suggested by authors.  However, homework like this takes a life of its own in clarifying goals and their necessary steps.  If one hasn’t already done something similar, it carves a path towards success.

DEATH OF TRADITIONAL AFFILIATE MARKETING

Second, the death of traditional affiliate marketing.  For those new to the model, affiliate marketing means promoting someone else’s product.  The link to Dean’s book here consists of an “affiliate link,” meaning that if you click it and buy the book, I get a small payment as commission.  Dean labels as traditional, the model of promoting one product with nothing further.  This worked well enough in the early 2000s.  Since then, the cost to acquire a one-time customer has increased dramatically.  Therefore, it no longer proves as profitable to promote only one product and nothing further.  This brings us to the Iceberg Effect.

THE ICEBERG EFFECT

Third, the iceberg. Successful marketers, whether affiliate marketers, or other types of entrepreneurs, offer a front-end product (the tip of the iceberg), and a back-end.  The back-end represents the value ladder that a repeat customer, or raving fan, ascends.  Dean describes how he structures his funnel or value ladder.  In general, the further along the customer journey, the more intimate the interaction.

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DIY to IDIFY

There exist doodads at retailers like Walmart that transform do-it-yourself (DIY) to I’ll-do-it-for-you (IDIFY or IWDIFY) at a price much more than it would’ve cost me to DIY; at least, in terms of money. But there are those out there who value convenience over money.

Another source of inspiration and creativity for me as I walk down the Walmart aisles and watch what people buy.

In the electronics section, I’ve seen this plastic device that hangs around a cell phone charger plug, to cradle the phone off the ground as it charges near the wall socket.

Before that hit the market, I’d transform the excess cable length into a hammock-like-thing for my phone, like a Soldier in the field with 550 cord.

When I saw that someone had commercialized the same solution, I thought, “Wow. How many times have I solved something DIY just to soon see someone else commercialize it into IDIFY?”

LEARNING

I’m still developing my present app concept. It’s taking much longer than I anticipated, given the nature the app. It’s a financial app that requires APIs to view financial info, much like Credit Karma or Mint.

This morning, I conceived of a physical product that I’d like to take to market. Since I didn’t conceive of it the way I initially intended (research first what’s already winning, then develop), I’m going to have to research it next.

I prefer digital products more. Still, this one’s easy. I’m not sharing it publicly yet. I need to do my research.

I do want to share my plan. Maybe someone reading this has an even better way to get a physical product from conception to market.

INNOVATION AND PRODUCTION

(1) Use Google Slides to sketch a product design or just make it.

(2) Post a job on Upwork.com to research demand and prices.

(3) Post a job on 99designs.com for the packaging design.

(4) Find a product developer on Alibaba.com.

(5) Order an initial quantity of about 100, maybe less.

(6) Create a listing on Amazon.com.

(7) Ship to Amazon FBA (Fulfillment By Amazon).

(8) Observe the market.

MARKETING AND DISTRIBUTION

Will anyone want it? Will anyone even learn of it existing? Don’t know yet. My concept is pretty cheap to make, per unit. It currently doesn’t exist on the market (although, the reason may be that no one wants it). Guess I’ll find out!