The drip drip drip of Internet Marketing

August 10, 2008

Seth Godin has a way of saying so much in so little. Check out his latest post:

I discovered a lucky secret the hard way about thirty years ago: you can outlast the other guys if you try. If you stick at stuff that bores them, it accrues. Drip, drip, drip you win.

No one likes to write content for their BANS sites. Every category? Really? Do I have too? What If I just promote the hell out of it on Twitter or Squidoo? Nope. You need good content. You need to keep people coming back.

Seth continues:

It still takes ten years to become a success, web or no web. The frustrating part is that you see your tactics fail right away. The good news is that over time, you get the satisfaction of watching those tactics succeed right away.

This is why 90% of bloggers fail. This is why people will buy BANS software, setup a couple sites, and give up shortly thereafter. Seth continues on with a similar premise:

The trap: Show up at a new social network, invest two hours, be really aggressive with people, make some noise and then leave in disgust.

The trap: Use all your money to build a fancy website and leave no money or patience for the hundred revisions you’ll need to do.

The trap: read the tech blogs and fall in love with the bleeding-edge hip sites and lose focus on the long-term players that deliver real value.

The trap: sprint all day and run out of energy before the marathon even starts.

There are overnight success stories. There are guys that accidentally stumbled upon something great and now work just a few hours a week for a six figure income. But those guys are the exception. Not the rule. Chances are, if you are convinced you are one of those “exceptions”, you’re not.

Seth:

The media wants overnight successes (so they have someone to tear down). Ignore them. Ignore the early adopter critics that never have enough to play with. Ignore your investors that want proven tactics and predictable instant results. Listen instead to your real customers, to your vision and make something for the long haul. Because that’s how long it’s going to take, guys.

Amen. Seth, I want to have your baby.

Posted in Internet Marketing