You know it’s a problem when you find yourself warily viewing every email and social media post — like it’s a dirty old man pushing to get what he wants — without regard for what you want.
What’s the catch?
Where is this leading?
What does he want from me?
I know I’m not the only one weary of the “product launch cycles” of online marketing.
I’m so OVER launching. Watching launches. Being launched.
I’d rather pick up a slug from my garden with my bare hands (do you knoooooow how gross they are?!!) than plan my next 5-part video series that requires multiple opt-in pages, timers, affiliate rah-rah, downloadable PDFs and a 57 email sequence.
What if… (launches were dead)?
What if I offer a bunch of valuable content and perspective because it might help an entrepreneur who feels like she’s the only one with that problem? (But NEVER is, btw.)
What if people relate to what I have to say and ask to work with me without being subjected to crazy ass launches?
And what if I occasionally offer a new product and say, “hey, I noticed this problem so I created this thing to resolve it if you want it.”
Or “I’ve got room for two more in this group. Would you like to join us?”
In a culture of shortcuts and the fast buck, what if I play the long game?
Imagine A World Where We Could Live Launch-Less And Prosper!
Would you prefer that sort of relationship?
Where I treat you like the real human you are?
When I say something — when I’ve got something to say?
And respect your ability to know what’s good for you — without being manipulated to buy into the hype?
Where I don’t overload your inbox with 21 days of emails to pimp my upcoming program?
(Hey, I’m not exaggerating. I’ve been guilty of following the advice of those “proven success formulas” that train us to do it that way. Sorry! )
Here’s The Flaw In This Plan…
(Brace yourself because what I have to say next will piss a few people off.)
Despite any suspicion we might have, our craving for drama trumps it.
We love intrigue. And bitch fights. And blood and guts. And car chases. And love scenes.
All of the programming that we consume on TV and social media has numbed us to reason.
We’ve been trained to binge on hours and hours of TV in one sitting.
Hell, I’m not immune.
I spent an entire gorgeous weekend watching Season 4 of Glee.
And that led to me Googling why Cory Monteith wasn’t in the last two episodes when Mr. Shu made this big deal out of Finn helping them win Regionals. Or Nationals. Or whatever they were competing in. I zoned out.
(Although I did notice they should NOT have won because they totally lacked the passion that the returning grads tried to teach them. What’s her name didn’t even hit a single high note. WTF?!)
And that’s not much different than our relationship with our Inboxes because there’s a desperate need for *fillment.
Not fulfillment.
*Fillment is keeping busy and believing that’s a good thing. Even if there’s no redeeming value.
I remember the stage when I had no flipping idea what to do next in my business. I would *fill(ment) my time by talking to my friend Jacqueline on the phone for hoooooouuuuuuurs about “Think & Grow Rich” and other heady topics. *Obviously before we figured out that Facebook could suck up an entire day.*
I was avoiding the “real” work of delivering value.
It’s like thinking that any activity is better than no activity. That signing up for any course is a step in the right direction. And that’s partly true.
Except it costs money and takes energy. So why not sign up for the right thing, at the right time?
(It’ll make more time for bingeing on This Is Us, if that’s your carrot, btw.)
But too often we don’t always think we know what’s right for us until it lands in our Inbox 15 times. And voila! We’re either worn down or it must be meant to be!!
Because we’ve been trained like freakin’ monkeys (if monkeys had laptops and smartphones) to sign up for the “going fast, price increase coming, hurry up or you’ll miss out, we’re starting in 2 minutes, only ONE spot left” emails that divide our attention.
That panic trigger works like a charm on our ape brains.
If you don’t believe me, sharpen your pencil and calculate your ROI on all the programs you’ve bought that promised big returns. Including the ones you didn’t even crack open. *As she unlocks direct eye contact.*
(btw – Did you know the DNA of apes is only 2% different than humans? So maybe it’s not so farfetched that we revert to our monkey brain so easily.)
In Order For This Launch-Less Approach To Work, We’ve Got To Detox From Treating Our Inbox Like Our Netflix Watchlist.
What style of communication do you respond best to?
a) Anything written with value, straight talk and reason — and a dose of humor!
or
b) I need to be tricked into helping myself so gimme teasers, intrigue and manipulation. And I’m totally cool with being another number in someone’s massive launch.
If you answered a)
Stop trying to force yourself (I’m talking to you, girlfriend) to fit into what I refer to as the XY Economy™. The XY Economy™ is a machine of (masculine) behaviors and beliefs that informs everything about how we run our businesses. Especially our marketing tactics. And I’ve got a LOT more to say about it if you’ve had enough of Bro’ Marketing™ and want to find new ways to build a steady, sustainable business.
If you answered b)
Fantastic. I’m a very stable genius and have I got a deal for you! I’ve got a spectacular program starting in 90 seconds and I’ve only got one more spot open. It’s only $100,000 and gives you the complete bulletproof blueprint to make millions in milliseconds. It’s going to be HUGE!!
* Oh, who am I kidding. You won’t see any messages like that from me. I caaaaaaan’t…
Cut out the Inbox fluff.
I can’t imagine I’m the only one who wants to do business the human way.
And do less, not more.
My entire approach is designed to meet you where you are in the Entrepreneur’s Evolution. *There I go talking sense again. Get used to it.
And if you have doubts before you dip in your toe, read my promise to you.
Yes, I believe we can live launch-less and prosper.
