What I Mean by “Marketing”
The word “marketing” can often be seen as a soulless one and one without any true meaning. In my career, I have heard people define it as many things, from “making things pretty” to “trying to sell people crap that they don’t need”. My Mac dictionary defines it: “the action or business of promoting and selling products or services, including market research and advertising.”
None of these definitions jive with me. They are too simplistic and reductionist. They don’t say a thing about the most important consideration in marketing—your client. Marketing is a big waste of time if you never bother to understand and connect with your target market. Marketing isn’t about you, it is about understanding and solving the pains (problems) of your clients.
To me, marketing is:
- connecting with your ideal client
- generating business
- creating loyalty through client experience
To put it simply, it is Mindful Marketing. It is looking at marketing from a more holistic point-of-view.
We Are All Marketing to Each Other
Each of us believes that consciousness should be present in all aspects of our lives, including our business practices. As such, our business activities invariably end up appealing to clients of a similar mindset. We are all marketing to people just like us, to Cultural Creatives. We have created a new type of business, conscious commerce. Businesses created by Cultural Creatives for Cultural Creatives.
‘Modern’ techniques of marketing don’t work on us. We aren’t looking to buy “stuff” instead we are looking for things that will make our lives work better. We are looking for experiences, not products and services. We want to build businesses that will uplift spirits, educate, soothe, inspire and enlighten.
How to Market to Innerpreneurs and Cultural Creatives
- Be Authentic
Innerpreneurs remaining authentic may be a growing concern as conscious commerce grows in popularity; as it may be difficult for us to connect with and hire marketing experts that practice the type of marketing we believe in. As you may already experience, finding mindful experts for all of our innerpreneurial business activities, e.g., accounting, can be difficult. This is why I feel it is important for us to begin connecting. Lets make it easier on all of us to find and work with each other. - Appeal to Your Clients’ Head and Heart
Provide your clients with all the information they need to make a decision (CC’s shop with their heads) but provide it in a way that makes them feel connected to your offering (CC’s buy with their hearts). - Don’t Be Afraid to Challenge Convention
Take your own road. Your clients will be attracted to it. - Be Transparent
Simply tell the truth. Your clients will see right through gimmicks or tricks and may quickly discount you because of it. - Connect With and Challenge Your Clients’ Mind
Cultural Creatives like to dig into the layers of ideas. Use that concept in your advertising messages. Layer them. Make them curious about you. - Get Involved
It’s been coined cause marketing. Get your business involved in causes. It could be as simple as volunteering your professional help to a non-for-profit or powering your office with renewable energy. Either way, show your clients that you walk the walk, as well as talk the talk. - Get Personal
We love hearing people’s stories. Make your personal and business story be available to your clients. - Help Your Clients with Word-of-Mouth
Make it easy for them to educate others on your offerings. Cultural Creatives love spreading good ideas. The internet is the best tool for this. To encourage word-of-mouth, make sure you have a website at the very least.
Are there other marketing strategies that connect with you?
