WTF Marketing - Latest Comments

Re: The #1 Avoidable Headache For Small Business Owners: Website Woes

narayannepal — Mon, 26 Sep 2022 01:04:05 -0000

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Re: 7 cost-effective alternatives to that popular online program

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Re: Most marketing is total bullshit.

DearMishuDad — Wed, 14 Feb 2018 15:16:56 -0000

Humor was always one of the BEST thing to use for marketing. I will also add that using humor in UX of a product is an awesome way to gain people trust too!
Good stuff, @Nick Armstrong !

Re: Fuck “Fake It Till You Make It”

Nick Armstrong — Tue, 02 Feb 2016 12:56:25 -0000

Thanks Ariana!

My end-game, back in the day, was ending hunger in Fort Collins. That didn't happen - but not because of lack of resolve, but because when I set out to do it, I didn't understand the fundamental challenges of doing it - and after a while, I discovered a crucial roadblock I'd missed.

Fort Collins is relentlessly information siloed; in order to actually accomplish lasting good work, we have to actually remove the silos FIRST. There's a blog post about this in the works for next week! :-D

Re: Fuck “Fake It Till You Make It”

Ariana Friedlander — Sat, 30 Jan 2016 11:26:13 -0000

Great post Nick! I appreciate you being so vulnerable too.

You make so many great points here, especially about honesty and knowing ones self. Those two go hand-in-hand in a prolific creative practice. Bridging the gap between where you want to go and where you are is a continuous process. And it is rather dynamic. I find the more I know the more fluid I need to be in defining my end game. Negotiating between what's flexible and where I must draw consistent boundaries in order to remain true to me.
And these endeavors, the challenging ones that are worth doing, always take more time, more effort, more energy then I expect at the onset...at least that's been my experience!

Re: Why Rituals Matter

Nicole Fende — Wed, 03 Jun 2015 12:09:49 -0000

Nick the world would be a much smaller, sadder place without your writing. As someone who bought your WTF calendar (will there be another?) and owns a WTF Coffee Mug (with the coffee PSA) I relish your unique brand of optimism, snark and business acumen. It never fails to bring a smile to my face.

The insights about ritual hit me at two levels. First I have a morning ritual, not routine, in picking out my coffee mug for the day. Do I need a strong get er done mentality? Then the WTF PSA mug comes out. Reminder everything is possible? Mug for my first book. And so on.

Second I realized that while I have some client recognition rituals I need to be ensure it becomes an acknowledged part of my process. My clients deserve to feel that warm fuzzy after they trust me with their hard earned money.

Re: Why Rituals Matter

SandyMcD — Mon, 01 Jun 2015 04:35:02 -0000

Great comment Mel about Word Carnival being a ritual and that's why it matters so much. Nick, you are one out of the box. Truly. I had never thought to examine ritual and routine. It makes so much sense of so much. Even the tiny wee things.

I was thinking as I read that perhaps there are occasions when rituals are allowed to become routine, and then they usually stop or are abandoned. That's sad and worth thinking further on. Your ideas also made me realise that I'm heavily invested in creating ritual, mostly in my family life. Hadn't realised that until reading this.

And a very revealing thought. Now I know why I have been poor at email marketing. I haven't made it a ritual. Something sacred that was about sharing, serving, caring, not a chore. More reflection.

Re: Why Rituals Matter

Carol Lynn Rivera — Fri, 29 May 2015 09:08:46 -0000

I totally love and appreciate this distinction. It's funny how you don't really think about these things but now that you mentioned it, I'm like OH YEAH! Routine really does suck. And I think people confuse these 2 things when they try to give you helpful advice. Like how getting into a routine will help you stay on track and all that - when I really think they mean ritual.

My ritual these days usually revolves around eating pop tarts at 2PM with my cat on my feet. Hey, it works :)

Re: Why Rituals Matter

Melanie Kissell — Thu, 28 May 2015 14:59:36 -0000

Too wonderful for words! :)

One might consider our monthly word carnival a routine but I see it as ritual. And if for some reason it dissolved, I'd be sad. I look forward to the brainstorming sessions, the laughs, the jokes, the inspiration, carnival day, even the rants ... all of it. It's absolutely ritualized in my mind.

Star-studded idea to share the difference between routine and ritual. You shine! :)

Re: Why Rituals Matter

Tea Silvestre Godfrey — Thu, 28 May 2015 12:23:35 -0000

Lootcrate sounds amazing. And YES YES YES to rituals. Especially around writing. Without them, I'd be lost. I've been playing around with the #100DayProject (as you know) and painting small watercolors each day. We're at the halfway mark and I can tell you, somewhere around Day 30, things started to really flow. The daily ritual of painting something after dinner, alone in my room? Priceless. And it's opened up so much other creative energy for me. Love this post! (And the one you wrote for B&B.)

Re: Most marketing is total bullshit.

Nicole Fende — Tue, 12 May 2015 09:23:07 -0000

Nick probably my favorite thing about you IS your sense of humor, and how you apply it so effectively to business. The humor allows you to be blunt yet takes the edge off. Unless of course the recipient is a pearl clutcher who faints at the hint of "bad language" in which case they just need to look elsewhere. Your humor also makes things memorable. I often point people to your Zombie / Scope Creep PSA - it drives the point home and it *sticks*. I think in the end it works for you because its honesty with a purpose, a good intention to help.

Re: Most marketing is total bullshit.

Nick Armstrong — Wed, 06 May 2015 15:28:23 -0000

Thanks Sandy! I can get you the high-res version, lol.

I do have a penchant for telling folks what I think, even if they will disagree. My latest efforts have to do with not engaging the trolls.

Re: Most marketing is total bullshit.

SandyMcD — Wed, 06 May 2015 00:55:52 -0000

Nick, I can't get past your cartoon at the top. It says it all. Both hilarious and painful when applied to a history of client servicing. I want to blow it up and have a laugh about it every day. Now that I no longer client service. Otherwise, I would blow it up and cry.

Your gold is knowing how to say go away directly and without an agenda. Or stay because we have good work to do, with humour.

It's true that if we work for people for the wrong reasons we do them a disservice as much as we do ourselves. Sort of off white and tannish grey. Nothing very bright or win win about that. Thanks as always for the laugh.

Re: 7 cost-effective alternatives to that popular online program

Nick Armstrong — Tue, 05 May 2015 12:20:45 -0000

Thanks Tom! I loved your article on the topic too: http://trafficsmartmarketin...

Testimonials is by and large the BEST metric for a good course, and making sure there are varied testimonials from folks who you can actually click through and see who they are (and not just the blogger's buddies).

Re: Most marketing is total bullshit.

Nick Armstrong — Tue, 05 May 2015 11:43:55 -0000

You betcha Melanie! I so appreciate you stopping by. You do indeed have a grand sense of humor and it brings a lot of extra light to your blog posts.

Having a sense of humor lets you laugh off things like being fired or ideas rejected. The best kind of humor is self-deprecating in my mind. As long as you don't actually believe the crap you're making fun of yourself for, it's all good.

Re: Most marketing is total bullshit.

Nick Armstrong — Tue, 05 May 2015 11:42:15 -0000

"Here's a cookie and a blanket, go take a timeout/nap in the corner please," can often work wonders. Or getting drunk with the client can help too.

Re: Most marketing is total bullshit.

Nick Armstrong — Tue, 05 May 2015 11:41:31 -0000

Aww, right back at you Tea. I learned a lot about how to cajole clients while listening intently to Prosperity's Kitchen contestants talk about their needs and wants.

It was a huge learning opportunity and one I greatly treasure (in fact, I'm drinking coffee out of the mug right now!)

Small business owners can (and must) learn a lot of different skills, but among the most important: listening and effective communication.

Re: Most marketing is total bullshit.

Nick Armstrong — Tue, 05 May 2015 11:39:51 -0000

Thanks Carol Lynn - I mastered it over the course of a lot of mistakes. You take on the wrong client and BOOM, suddenly you have a way to learn the art again and again. I'd say the art isn't in picking the battles, but learning to discern where the client's real concern is. If there's anxiety around a new product launch, it probably means the previous attempts might not have gone as expected. If there's a drive to get lots of social shares, it means that an existing client pool may be drying up. You have to tease out the real concern to truly keep your clients happy, otherwise it'll just happen again next time.

But you speak the absolute #TRUTH when it comes to "If you don't listen to my best advice, GTFO". I've fired clients for that kind of attitude. When they don't listen, they don't come around, and they don't help you sort things out, or they don't keep their end of the bargain, they're too much trouble to work with.

Re: Most marketing is total bullshit.

Melanie Kissell — Wed, 29 Apr 2015 19:41:52 -0000

I've always believed a sense of humor is a person's grandest and most valuable asset, Nick. I pride myself in having a pretty good one but yours takes the cake. Nobody but NOBODY can turn marketing into a laughing matter like you! ;-)

Sharon calls it a "perspective adjustment". She's too kind. I say the client's 'tude needs a tune-up! Same thing in my book.

Thank you for being you, Nick. :)

Re: Most marketing is total bullshit.

Carol Lynn Rivera — Wed, 29 Apr 2015 12:36:22 -0000

I am on board with the idea of throwing a big, fat WTF in the face of clients who insist on THE WRONG THING. You seem to have mastered this art. For me it depends on the client. Some are touchier than others. Some you have to coddle and cajole and others you can just toss a glass of cold water over their head with a grin. I have to admit there are times I will just "do what they want". Sometimes there is no arguing. Or at least sometimes it's too exhausting to keep on arguing. I feel like if I've given you my best ideas and advice and you still want to pay me NOT to do that? Whatevs. Typically those are short term things which, once all parties realize it was maybe not the best idea, we can get back on the same page. I don't think I could work with someone if the entire relationship was built around "whatever you want, dear."

Re: Most marketing is total bullshit.

Tea Silvestre Godfrey — Wed, 29 Apr 2015 12:04:06 -0000

I don't have your sense of humor, but I do push back (gently) with clients who are reaching for the wrong things. In my case, I tend to use logic and reason wrapped up in a tone that feels like a hug. They never feel overly chastised and totally get that I have their utmost success as my first priority. But YOU - you've got a sense of humor. And you know what to do with it. It's why we love you.

Re: 7 cost-effective alternatives to that popular online program

Nick Armstrong — Thu, 19 Feb 2015 17:31:11 -0000

You bet Jacqueline! :-D The price tag on some of those online products probably should make you think about how many massages you could get instead!

Re: 7 cost-effective alternatives to that popular online program

Jacqueline Steudler — Thu, 19 Feb 2015 16:14:05 -0000

Just in time to remind me of my mantra for this year: "Stay away from all the shiny promisses of getting rich fast instead invest in self-care." (smile)
Thank you once more Nick!

Re: Social Media ROI’s not hard to track, you’re just asking the wrong questions

Nick Armstrong — Wed, 18 Feb 2015 22:10:02 -0000

Yeah, knowing what questions to ask is usually a matter of experience and previous failure, haha. So, that kind of knowledge comes at a price - either bought via an expert or purchased step by step through a bad experience.

Re: 7 cost-effective alternatives to that popular online program

Nick Armstrong — Wed, 18 Feb 2015 21:58:44 -0000

Thanks so much Kitto!

Yeah - I think that false sense of urgency, that guilt at *not* spending our money, is a really common thing. Whatever, I'd rather have money to pay employees or upgrade my tech.

I almost called this post, "I (blank)-Schooled your mom last night," if that helps you figure out which affiliate program I'm talking about. The affiliate program went totally nuts last year and it was damn near inescapable.