The post I e-mail most is this:<\/p>\n
\nPermission Marketing<\/a><\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\nThat’s Seth Godin on permission marketing.<\/p>\n
Read it and weep.\u00c2\u00a0 Because it tells you all those nineties marketing tricks are history.\u00c2\u00a0 You’ve got to earn your audience.\u00c2\u00a0 By gaining their trust, by not abusing them, by giving them something they’re interested in.<\/p>\n
The reason I e-mail this post most is because every single day I receive multiple unsolicited e-mails.\u00c2\u00a0 Worse, it’s oftentimes people putting me on their mailing lists.\u00c2\u00a0 Forcing me to hit "unsubscribe" to get off.\u00c2\u00a0 Even worse, most lists don’t include an unsubscribe button.\u00c2\u00a0 You e-mail the perpetrator again and again, but you still get the e-mail.<\/p>\n
Then there are the PR people, sending me over the top praise for crap.\u00c2\u00a0 Like I care about what you’re getting paid to promote? YOU’RE getting paid, not ME!<\/p>\n
It’s much harder now.\u00c2\u00a0 But the dividends are far greater.\u00c2\u00a0 If you play by the new rules.<\/p>\n
So please read the above-referenced post.\u00c2\u00a0 And think twice before hitting send.<\/p>\n
But I’m not writing this to tell you about permission marketing.\u00c2\u00a0 I want to tell you about Seth’s new book promotion.<\/p>\n
That’s how Seth Godin makes his money, selling books.\u00c2\u00a0 And doing live appearances driven by his online fame and the success of said books.\u00c2\u00a0 He does no consulting, he gives his information online away for free, taking no ads in the process.<\/p>\n
But how do you promote a book today?<\/p>\n
You could spam everybody in your address book.<\/p>\n
Like that’s gonna work.<\/p>\n
Or you could buy a mailing list.<\/p>\n
All the traditional efforts are like the person who insists on giving you their unsolicited CD.\u00c2\u00a0 It doesn’t work.\u00c2\u00a0 It makes the perpetrator feel good, that he’s done something, but if you think the execs you lay them on are going to listen to them, you’ve got another thing coming.\u00c2\u00a0 Furthermore, it’s easier to listen online.\u00c2\u00a0 But that doesn’t make you feel as good.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, the old promotion paradigm is broken.\u00c2\u00a0 There are fewer traditional media outlets with less time and space for books (and music!)<\/p>\n
So, you’ve got to motivate your core audience.<\/p>\n
By delivering something they want.<\/p>\n
And it’s even better if the average person can’t get it.<\/p>\n
How about the band sending x number of followers the new tracks BEFORE they’re released!\u00c2\u00a0 That’s how you create buzz.\u00c2\u00a0 Not by going on the "Today Show" after polishing your track with Timbaland to crap.\u00c2\u00a0 Can you imagine how special all those people will feel?\u00c2\u00a0 They’ll tell everybody they know about your music.<\/p>\n
But Seth sells books.\u00c2\u00a0 You can download a book, but it’s not as special as the real deal.\u00c2\u00a0 And people feel better when they get something they perceive as having value.\u00c2\u00a0 (I know, I know, you’re questioning why I don’t want to get your CD, as stated above. The difference is I DON’T WANT YOUR CD!\u00c2\u00a0 This only works if someone WANTS what you’ve got.\u00c2\u00a0 Then, to have something tangible adds value.)<\/p>\n
But books cost money.\u00c2\u00a0 To print.\u00c2\u00a0 And to sell.<\/p>\n
But every project has a marketing budget.\u00c2\u00a0 Maybe instead of spending it on old media, you should go to your true fans, who can spread the word a la Malcolm Gladwell’s "Tipping Point".<\/p>\n
But if you’re a star, and Seth is one in the world of business books, you can’t send a tome to everyone.\u00c2\u00a0 How do you separate the wheat from the chaff?<\/p>\n
This is where Seth reveals his genius idea.<\/p>\n
And make no mistake, it’s always about the idea.\u00c2\u00a0 Which can come in a flash.\u00c2\u00a0 Via one individual.\u00c2\u00a0 Whether it be Keith Richards waking up with a riff in his head and then recording the legendary line from "Satisfaction" into a portable recorder or Steve Jobs deciding to make…<\/p>\n
And Jobs is a good example.\u00c2\u00a0 Because he doesn’t add more team to get to the end.\u00c2\u00a0 He just selects the right people and focuses and drives them.\u00c2\u00a0 It’s not about quantity, but quality.<\/p>\n
But you knew that.<\/p>\n
So, how did Seth Godin achieve his goal?<\/p>\n
By requiring you to donate to charity to get a book!<\/p>\n
Voila, isn’t that simple and fascinating?\u00c2\u00a0 Isn’t that pure genius?<\/p>\n
To get an advance copy of the book (three weeks before the general public can buy it), you’ve just got to make a minimum $30 donation to the Acumen Fund.\u00c2\u00a0 You can do the research, but it’s a great cause.\u00c2\u00a0 And all the money minus PayPal’s 2% fee goes to Acumen.\u00c2\u00a0 And only the first 3,000 people who donate can get the book.<\/p>\n
So, how does this translate to the music business?<\/p>\n
KISS should have given a copy of their new opus to the first 5,000 people who donated to a charity.\u00c2\u00a0 Maybe just digital files, you know the KISS Army wants it.<\/p>\n
But Gene is so interested in putting dollars in his own wallet, he can’t see the glory of charity, how it makes people feel good to donate, makes them feel good if you donate too.<\/p>\n
For big bands with bad images, this is a no-brainer.<\/p>\n
And for less significant acts, it’s a way to bond fans to you.<\/p>\n
You accomplish your mission.\u00c2\u00a0 Getting your product in the hands of those who can best promote it.\u00c2\u00a0 And you don’t look greedy, but philanthropic in the process.<\/p>\n
This is twenty first century promotion.<\/p>\n
Let’s see who does it in the music industry first.<\/p>\n
But don’t cock it up!\u00c2\u00a0 It’s got to be simple, sans hype (i.e. you don’t put out a press release, you just post a simple notice on a Website, like Radiohead did with "In Rainbows") and transparent.\u00c2\u00a0 This is how U2 should have released "Get On Your Boots".\u00c2\u00a0 It could even be how they could break a new track.<\/p>\n
Talk amongst yourselves.<\/p>\n
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