I just finished writing a syllabus for MK337 “Marketing on the Internet,” a course I’ll be teaching in the spring at Thomas College.
I’m very excited about these 16 weeks! One of the projects for each student will be to actually market something, a prodcut, service, membership site…just about anything!
In addition to blogs and articles on the web, the text books include:
It’s an undergraduate course, but if you want to join us, I’m sure the Thomas College registrar might be able to help.
There wasn’t anyway to report the message. So I replied telling the sender that it was an inappropriate. My exact response was:
This type of spam is incredibly inappropriate for LinkedIn.
Please don’t ever mail me this kind of message again.
His heated response, basically telling me he was offended that I was so ungrateful for the incredible opportunity he’d offered. Check out his last paragraph:
If you’re so self-righteous that you can “do business” then feel free to remove me from your contact list. Don’t be such a priss. If you’re not interested then just archive the message, don’t snivel about it.
My email may have been out of line. I might have been better saying something like “I’m am confused by this use of LinkedIn. Please don’t include me on this list.”
But the way to win over me if I screw up is not by calling me names. (I’m not even sure what he means by “do business.”)
Have any of you received blind, spam-like email on LinkedIn?
I finally read the Jim Collins interview from Inc. magazine called “How to Thrive in 2009.”
I’m a fan of his books Built to Last and Good to Great so the fact that I loved this article is no big surprise.
Here are some tidbits:
How do you define entrepreneurship?
I take a broad view of it. The traditional definition — founding an entity designed to make money — is too narrow for me. I see entrepreneurship as more of a life concept. We all make choices about how we live our lives. You can take a paint-by-numbers approach, or you can start with a blank canvas. When you paint by numbers, the end result is guaranteed. You know what it’s going to be, and it might be good, but it will never be a masterpiece. Starting with a blank canvas is the only way to get a masterpiece, but you could also blow up. So, are you going to pick the paint-by-numbers kit or the blank canvas? That’s a life question, not a business question.
I like paint-by-numbers. It’s a great feeling as a first born to “get it right.” But, personally, I’d really prefer to create a masterpiece.
Here’s another one:
It has to do with your ability to handle risk, no?
Not risk. Ambiguity. People confuse the two. My students used to come to me at Stanford and say, “I’d really like to do something on my own, but I’m just not ready to take that much risk. So I took the job with IBM.” And I would say, “You’re not ready for risk? What’s the first thing you learn about investing? Never put all your eggs in one basket. You’ve just put all your eggs in one basket that is held by somebody else.” As an entrepreneur, you know what the risks are. You see them. You understand them. You manage them. If you join someone else’s company, you may not know those risks, and not because they don’t exist. You just can’t see them, and so you can’t manage them. That’s a much more exposed position than the entrepreneur faces. But there’s lower ambiguity on the paint-by-numbers path: very clear but more risky. The entrepreneurial path: very ambiguous but less risk. Of course, the truth is that it’s all ambiguous, anyway. If you think you can predict the future, you’re crazy.
Isn’t the difference between ambiguity and risk a helpful distinction?! Those of us who’ve grown up seeing companies layoff employees know that cradle-to-grave security left the social contract decades ago. Having all your eggs in the “job” basket is indeed risky.
“I don’t think the communications revolution that we are going through is about some reinvention of storytelling or journalistic creed.
The way we tell stories has evolved over the years, but beginning, middle and end still works. Ethical and accurate information will still rule.
I think the revolution is happening because of access. Access to powerful tools and access to global distribution in an increasingly connected planet.”
“As old business models fail, I expect to see an influx of independent, purpose-driven collaborations. Small teams with passionate experts operating for the public good. The new world of open access makes this possible.”
“Marc Andreessen sent an email in the Fall of 1993 to only 12 people. Mosaic, the first web browser, spread virally and changed how we communicate with each other.
Connectivity is the new killer app.”
“It’s true that less people care about Congo than Britney’s belly button. For me, it’s not about reaching the largest possible audience; pandering to the lowest common denominator. It’s about reaching the right audience with a relevant message.
Today, there is a robust infrastructure in place to reach these specific audiences and to create real change.”
I firmly believe this is one of the most exciting times to be alive. We live far more connected than ever before, so our stories can have a far bigger positive impact than ever before.
Especially if they’re told well.
How will you be telling your story in 2009?
[Warning- the following is a shameless plug: If you work in a nonprofit, check out my fundraising seminar on nonprofit storytelling. It covers the basics of crafting effective stories, how to categorize stories to make collecting them easier, and how to help your board members and volunteers tell the stories you are. Good stuff! The shameless plug is over.]
And I’m pleased that some folks from my local Rotary Club are getting into the game! Well this morning, one of those guys tweeted “I need a Twitter tutor!” I passed that on to some twitter stream. Here are some of the responses I got:
SCATJ @marcapitman for your friend @chrisgaunce: follow others for a while and jump in when you see something that strikes a chord with you
One of the most important things I learned from Chris Brogan is to use the same “identity” across platforms. For me, that meant I started using “marcapitman” for
Personally, I think one of the best ways to get started on Twitter is to follow alot of people and see how they’re using it. Twitter user Mark Hayward has a great list of 97 suggestions in his blog post 97 Remarkable Ways to Diversify Your Network in a Down Economy.
And you can use tools like search.twitter.com and Twellow. They’ll let you see who’s tweeting on topics of interest to you. Or find people in particular careers or in specific of the world.
and tools like TweetLater help me automate some Twitter actions so I can focus on those in the evening. (I also write my blog posts in the evening but publish them so they get tweeted during the day.)
helping me connect with really cool people in the media and other professions, and
Twitter is really helping me expand my network from right here in Waterville, Maine USA. I now am in regular communication with people all over the world. I was already talking to people around the world with my fundraising ezine. But now they get to talk back to me. During the Olympics I was even tweeting with the NBC folks in China! Sure made the games seem a lot closer?
I’m going to pass this on to Chris. I’m not exactly sure it’s the “Twitter tutor” he was hoping for, but it’s a start!
What would you recommend he do if you were his Twitter tutor?
I once heard that the average book sells only about 500 copies. With the ease and variety of publishing options, and the ever-increasing number of bany books being published every year, this number seemed credible.
And as an author with a new book coming out, it was quite sobering. So I set a goal to sell 500 copies in my first year.
Today I get to say, “Thank you!”
My publisher just told me that Ask Without Fear! has sold 590 copies in it’s first four months!
With no major PR budget or ad push, I know this has been selling by word of mouth. Thanks for helping get the word out!
From the comments of readers, I know that the material in this book is:
helping “normal” people get excited about fundraising and, even better,
giving them the tools do it.
I know many of you have purchased a copy. And many more have recommended it to your friends. So once again, thank you!
My local baristas strongly encouraged me to try to get Ask Without Fear! into Starbucks in conjunction with the National Philanthropy days in November. The "grassroots" appeal of the book is perfect for the typical Starbucks customer.
Naturally, as a former barista, I loved the idea! I think it’d be awesome to have Ask Without Fear! featured in stores!
So I found the agency that arranges for book promotions. Their email is: bookbreak@wma.com. I’ve emailed a couple times but haven’t heard anything back.
WHY NATIONAL PHILANTHROPY DAY?
National Philanthropy Day is November 15 but groups celebrate it whenever it’s convenient to their previously scheduled events. So there’s a long "celebration" time for National Philanthropy. It also positions Starbucks as a proponent of philanthropy and partnering with the communities it serves.
WHY MY BOOK?
I wrote "Ask Without Fear!" to be a simple guide to inspire and equip normal people to start raising money for their favorite causes. Definitely a grassroots thing.
The book is available through distributors like Ingram and all the major retailers including Barnes & Nobles and Amazon. And the book has been featured and positively reviewed in national print publications as well as on the blogosphere.
Would you send them a quick email today encouraging them to do a "National Philanthropy Day" promotion featuring Ask Without Fear!? The email address is bookbreak@wma.com. Getting an email from you will really help!
I once heard that the average book sells only about 500 copies. With the ease and variety of publishing options, and the ever-increasing number of bany books being published every year, this number seemed credible. 
