In A Nutshell

So there are probably a million or so articles, websites, web pages, books, videos, tweets and other whatnots devoted to the subject of marketing and using the new tools of the web. I don’t claim to have consumed them all, or even most of them for that fact, but I have sampled a decent amount of material from those I consider to be the best. If not the best, at least those who seem to be pushing the right buttons and making the most progress.

Now I don’t intend to trivialize an extremely complicated matter, but I believe a good summation of the proper way to win on the new web, using the emerging set of tools; can be surmised as such:

  1. Auscultate
  2. Participate
  3. Create

That’s it. A three step process. Let me explain.

Auscultate – OK, I fudged a little bit on this one for the sake of maintaining the rhyming scheme, but hear me out. I borrowed this term from the medical community. It means (roughly) to listen to sounds arising from within the organs. Such as a heart beat or a breath from the lungs. In this case I’m simplifying it to mean listen.

The first step in helping your business or personal brand win on the web is to listen. What are people already saying about you? What are they saying about your brand? Your products? Your service?

People are talking. Do you know what they are saying?

While the literal definition of auscultate may be of medical nature, you can ask any small business entrepreneur about the importance of public opinion and they will tell you that brand image and public acceptance is the heartbeat and breath of air to their business. So I think the term is appropriate.

Participate – Once you have an understanding of what’s being said about you, your industry or niche, the next step is to start participating in the dialogue. To Join the Conversation so to speak (note: Amazon affiliate link).

Participation is like dipping your toe into the water before jumping in. Participation is a step above observation and a step below content origination. It is commenting on blogs, connecting with peers on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.

Create – After participation comes creation. This is when you step up your efforts and presence online. You become an active member of multiple communities; perhaps lead your own community. You would likely maintain a blog or website at this point too.

The Create stage is where you get to show off your stuff to your audience. To share your personal opinions, insights and expertise. You create video, record audio and write, write, write. All with the purpose of moving the needle in your industry or niche forward. This is your chance to differentiate yourself from the rest of the herd and stand out.

Having completed those steps will get you into a pretty elite group of content creators, But I know you are not going to be satisfied with just being part of the crowd. So let’s add a fourth category: Dominate.

Dominate – This is where you start kicking ass. Being the best in your category and seeing the tangible proof in your sales or income. You become a coveted speaker, author, expert…whatever in your field. Whatever it is, your one of the best.

So there are my three four steps:

  1. Auscultate
  2. Participate
  3. Create
  4. Dominate

Now this is an extremely top-level view of some very complicated and time consuming methods. Think of it as a framework or roadmap for us to follow. I’ll be devoting a lot of time on each of these categories and sub categories in this blog. Stay tuned.

Tags: , , , , ,

No comments yet.

Leave a Reply