E-Book Overview
Real marketing isn't about racking up clicks and tweets; it's about connection, empathy, and making a difference.
Over the past quarter century, Seth Godin has taught and inspired millions of entrepreneurs, marketers, leaders, and fans from all walks of life, via his blog, online courses, lectures, and bestselling books. He is the inventor of countless ideas and phrases that have made their way into mainstream business language, from Permission Marketing to Purple Cow to Tribes to The Dip. Now, for the first time, Godin offers the core of his marketing wisdom in one accessible, timeless package. At the heart of his approach is a big idea: Great marketers don't use consumers to solve their company's problem; they use marketing to solve other people's problems. They don't just make noise; they make the world better. Truly powerful marketing is grounded in empathy, generosity, and emotional labor. This book teaches you how to identify your smallest viable audience; draw on the right signals and signs to position your offering; build trust and permission with your target market; speak to the narratives your audience tells themselves about status, affiliation, and dominance; spot opportunities to create and release tension; and give people the tools to achieve their goals. It's time for marketers to stop lying, spamming, and feeling guilty about their work. It's time to stop confusing social media metrics with true connections. It's time to stop wasting money on stolen attention that won't pay off in the long run. This is Marketing offers a better approach that will still apply for decades to come, no matter how the tactics of marketing continue to evolve.
E-Book Content
Portfolio/Penguin An imprint of Penguin Random House LLC 375 Hudson Street New York, New York 10014
Copyright © 2018 by Seth Godin Penguin supports copyright. Copyright fuels creativity, encourages diverse voices, promotes free speech, and creates a vibrant culture. Thank you for buying an authorized edition of this book and for complying with copyright laws by not reproducing, scanning, or distributing any part of it in any form without permission. You are supporting writers and allowing Penguin to continue to publish books for every reader. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Godin, Seth, author. Title: This is marketing / Seth Godin. Description: New York : Portfolio/Penguin, [2018] | Includes index. Identifiers: LCCN 2018041567 (print) | LCCN 2018042423 (ebook) | ISBN 9780525540847 (Ebook) | ISBN 9780525540830 (hardcover) Subjects: LCSH: Marketing. Classification: LCC HF5415 (ebook) | LCC HF5415 .G5783 2018 (print) | DDC 658.8—dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018041567 While the author has made every effort to provide accurate telephone numbers, Internet addresses, and other contact information at the time of publication, neither the publisher nor the author assumes any responsibility for errors, or for changes that occur after publication. Further, the publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content. Version_1
For Leo, Anna, Mo, Sammy, Alex, Bernadette, and Shawn . . . And for all the fresh voices that make our lives better
CONTENTS TITLE PAGE COPYRIGHT DEDICATION AUTHOR’S NOTE
Chapter One Not Mass, Not Spam, Not Shameful . . . Chapter Two The Marketer Learns to See Chapter Three Marketing Changes People Through Stories, Connections, and Experience Chapter Four The Smallest Viable Market Chapter Five In Search of “Better” Chapter Six Beyond Commodities Chapter Seven The Canvas of Dreams and Desires Chapter Eight More of the Who: Seeking the Smallest Viable Market Chapter Nine People Like Us Do Things Like This Chapter Ten
Trust and Tension C