Swipe File #17: Learning vs. Selling

Short and sweet today. And as promised, no fillers. Enjoy!

Some Non-Obvious Advice on Thought Leadership via @randfish

Truly non-obvious thoughts from one of the smartest guys out there.

#7: Obvious Advice is Largely Useless

Non-obvious advice is very useful. Surprising, non-obvious advice is even better. Best of all is surprising, non-obvious advice delivered in a memorable way.

If you’re trying to determine if a piece of content is worth creating or spreading or including in a public presentation, ask yourself if it fits these criteria. If so, it’s far more likely to be well-received and to grow your profile.

Understanding the Job via @claychristensen

This short video looks and feels incredibly cheesy but give it a chance. Clay Christensen does a great job explaining how to discover what job your product is being hired to perform.

Learning vs. Selling via @jimmy_daly

My own thoughts on when to sell and who to sell to. Plus, why we scrapped our autoresponder for a single email.

The reason our campaign failed is because we put selling before learning.

When a new person subscribes to our blog, we know they are looking for more information about email marketing because it’s clearly stated in the opt-ins.

But we really don’t know if they are looking for a new email marketing tool. Or if they are in a position to make a purchase. Or if they would even be a good fit as a Vero customer. Assuming that every person interested in your content is also interested in your product is a fundamental mistake.

Have a great week!

Jimmy

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