Helping Others Find An Audience

Of course, by "an audience" I refer to people who are engaged and interested in what someone is creating or saying or selling.

I met today with the owner of an up and coming commercial web site selling specialty products. He has a narrow niche and a loyal following. He's ready to step up from his current plateau of sales and operations.

About every concept we discussed has been taught by Seth Godin.

We discussed search engine marketing (SEM) and search engine optimization (SEO). We talked about viral videos, blogs, and social media. Next time we meet we'll discuss he concept of social gestures and social objects.

What I liked about the guy (one of the things I liked about him) was his desire to avoid cynical, interruption-based marketing (you know, the I-don't-care-if-I-offend-50- people-for-every-5-orders-fulfilled" mentality of direct marketing), and instead has created genuine interest in his business. As a result of his keeping his promises and staying true to his story, he has very satisfied customers.

But he needs more customers and he wants to stay the course as to the tone and character of his site.

He has the beginnings of a remarkable story. I'm eager for our next meeting and brainstorming and analyzing and shaping a strategic plan for marketing to his email subscribers and bringing the right people to his site.

Many have said that each web site is a small needle in a huge haystack. I am eager to watch his progress.... when duties of confidentiality have run their course, I may be able to share additional details that I believe will be quite fun to learn about.