White hat marketing
One of the biggest mindset shifts I’ve had while running a small nonprofit has been coming to understand the importance of marketing.
Marketing is not (or shouldn’t be) the duplicitous art of trying to persuade people to buy crap that they don’t really want or need; rather it’s the process of making something of use in such a way that it will actually be used, and of helping the people you’re serving to understand what you’re offering and how it might make things better.
Marketing is for them, not for you.
The marketing acid test
Seth Godin’s test for telling the difference between good and bad marketing is a good one: “If they knew everything you know about the product, would they still be eager to buy?”
The answer should be yes: good marketing is an act of generosity.
Copy Cat
Margo Aaron gets the tone right here:
You have something people want. The problem is, they don’t realise that they want it. They’re not clicking on your emails, they’re not hitting by, they’re not sharing your posts. They’re not really noticing the thing that you have.
Something is disconnected. Between the thing that you have, that you know would be helpful, that you know could change their life, that you know that they want deep down if only you had the right words to reach them.
If only you were able to put an offer in front of them that resonated, something that made them look up and go “That’s it! That’s the thing! That’s the thing I need.”
You need copywriting.
…
… to help them see that you can help them to get where they want to go.
Margo Aaron – The Copy Workshop trailer
Happy thought at the end
If Margo’s copy persuades you to take her course on copywriting then it’s likely to be a course worth taking.