The Studio Source.com

On Monday I wrote a post about the hazards of comparing yourself to others and how to define your own success. I had a clever little idea to link it to today’s post, where I talked about looking to your competition to see how they do their marketing, so you can make yours great. An elegant paradox, no?

There’s a wrinkle.

Part of the reason I started The Studio Source was because I was having trouble finding information that would help me with my own business. I’m always looking for ways to improve, and since I can’t seem to keep my mouth shut, I want to share that information with other people. So I started learning more. A few weeks ago I signed up for a membership site that has a forum and instructional teleconferences. I rarely call in because of my schedule; I get the recordings afterwards.

The calls are on Wednesdays. You will undoubtedly observe that today is Wednesday. (If I were a fiction writer, I’d point out this is where I build suspense.)

So I don’t call in, because I’m trying to get this embryonic blog on its feet and produce some content. (If you’ve never done this kind of thing before, or if you’ve never started a business, please be advised there is a certain amount of fear involved.) I figure I’ll write a few posts and introduce myself on the forum to get some comments going (note to new bloggers: approximately 1% of visitors leave comments). Since the good people on the forum are all marketing and business types and clearly comfortable in an online community, they’re a good bet for some friendly support.

I rifle through my In box to retrieve my login ID and spot the reminder for today’s call, which I’ve ignored until now. I click on the message, read the topic for the call, and my stomach climbs into my throat.

I won’t know for sure until I either hear the recording in a couple of days, or my marketing guru replies to my sad, sad message, but I’m about 99% sure that the topic of the call and my earlier post are the same bloody topic.

At least I didn’t go blundering into the forum with a big hello. I don’t care if people think I’m a lunatic. I don’t care if they think I’m some kind of freak who can’t make up her mind between art and business. I care if they think I’m unethical. Because I’m not.

So what to do? Yank today’s post and edit Monday’s? Head to the forum and tell everyone hello and by the way, if I ripped off today’s call I promise I was completely unaware, and no, I’m not a skank?

Go to Plan B
This is where I remind you that marketing is marketing, more or less. The difference (in my own entirely original opinion) is how you finesse it. It makes sense to talk about business with someone who has firsthand experience in your field, because every profession has its challenges and peculiarities. Those people get you. They know how it feels when you rely on your talent to pay the bills. It’s a good connection to make.

How this is about marketing
My dilemma isn’t so different from yours. There are lots of artists, designers, writers, craftspeople and crafters (yes, there’s a difference; maybe we’ll talk about that sometime), butchers, bakers, and candlestick makers. There’s going to be some overlap. Sometimes it may leave you mortified.

One of the most important things you can do as a creative, as well as in your marketing, is to be authentic. And resourceful. If I trashed my earlier post, I wouldn’t get to write this one, would I?

Feel free to share your lemons-to-lemonade stories, or tales of mortification, anytime.