MARKETING = FREEDOM

I bet if you’re reading this that freedom is a huge motivator for you. Why do I think this?

In the most obvious way, small business owners understand this implicitly: you have to make money to spend money.

Yes, I do mean it that way.

Especially here in Colorado which is not a cheap place to live or run a business…Businesses only survive if you make significantly more than you spend each month.

SIGNIFICANTLY MORE.

To do that, you absolutely must advertise no matter what anyone told you or a couple of good months seem to show you.

Advertising and marketing is no longer an option (it never really was anyway). You must do it now or face the consequences…

If you’re not bringing in business, you have no business.

In the most clearly obvious way, if your marketing sucks, you will be working a day job again in no time because your business will go broke.

And having no marketing is even worse!!

There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it. There is no moralizing your way out of it. (In fact, I think you can tell with pretty good certainty when a business will fail based on how much moralizing and blaming others/outside forces regularly happens.)

Have you ever wondered what really makes a marketing campaign work?

The answer is painfully obvious in hindsight:

You must understand your ideal client’s motivations, values, and needs and use that as your guiding principle set for all marketing choices.

A lot of people balk at this idea, like I’ve just told them the key to good marketing is kissing a vampire bat every morning until it becomes a toad and then seeking a princess to kiss it and turn it into a prince who will run your campaigns with magic and fairy dust…

And I get it: our culture thinks of marketers and marketing as crooks and scoundrels who swindle and manipulate the masses with our hypnotic skills. I mean, especially me — I was a world-class hypnotherapist professionally for several years. Spoooooooky.

And I might turn you into a chicken — or even a rooster — forever if you don’t pay your invoice. #TheHorrorTheHorror

While most people would never say this out loud, I think most people expect marketers to pull out some dark magic and a little manipulation. We’re just going to mindf–k the audience and blamo! Now, your product sells!!

But nothing could be further from the truth! (Well, I might make you a chicken — or something actually valuable like more confident in sales with hypnosis.)

People simply buy things they like that fit with their values and needs at the moment. You just need to speak to their desires and values rather than try to annoy or entertain them. (And yes, I know, I make annoying or entertaining ads depending on who you ask sometimes — BUT they are that way to grab quick attention in a way that is amusing and clearly selling.)

Think about it: if you want to convince your friend to eat at a new restaurant, are you going to tell them they have to eat there or else they will die painfully? Literally twist their arm? Send them a TikTok dance to a song like Justin Beiber’s “Yummy” showing the restaurant? Run some ridiculous NLP pattern set to convince them to be hungry then link that to the restaurant?

No!!

You’re just going to tell them about the restaurant in a way you think will make them interested in going. That’s all marketing really should do: get people in the door already interested in purchasing.

Wouldn’t it be great to get some good steak?

Wouldn’t it be great to get some margaritas?

A person thinking, “wouldn’t it be great to have or do (what you sell)?” is what we want.

All that other stuff is just stuff. “Accoutrement”.

Campaigns centered around manipulating people and clever logic actually fail more often than not.

If pressuring and lies worked, people wouldn’t smoke cigarettes or marijuana — remember the if you smoke weed, you’re supporting terrorism campaigns or this is your brain on drugs?

Wait, they’re smuggling marijuana in from the Middle East rather than Mexico and my brain is an egg cooking?!?

If you want a good chuckle, look into the effects of the “It’s Miller Time” campaign — stupid idea with stupid results. They sold people on the experience of drinking a beer after work, something they already do — but didn’t make it Miller specific.

“It’s Miller Time, let’s have a Coors!” Essentially “Miller time” = “happy hour”. It had basically no effect on sales as it was literally a campaign to make happy hour synonymous with Miller Time. But in doing so, you’re relabeling a generic time (drink beer after work time) as “Miller Time”. (A fallacy of division of sorts…)

Compare this to Claude Hopkins work with Schlitz beer that focused on the quality ingredients, time old tradition… essentially just saying “it’s a better beer: drink this instead of some crappy beer like Coors that isn’t specially made…” Schlitz didn’t do anything different from any other beer maker. But they did kick their competition’s ass for about a decade with that campaign.

And now of course, it’s common for beer ads to mention these things — but for people who remember the Schlitz ads, they are just also ran ads, i.e. they are seen as copied ads, not original ideas. This increases the power of the advertising as it polarizes your clients in your favor against your competition…

Cutesy slogans, nonsense, spray and pray, hot people… gimmicks. So many gimmicks are all most marketers have.

Whereas, we want to educate consumers who want products like ours to prefer ours because it better meets their needs and values

It’s like David Ogilvy points out over and over, if we follow the dictum to “sell and not entertain” and to focus on what benefits our product brings our clients, then we’ll be far ahead of the pack who mostly think the products they market and the people they market to are stupid and boring.

And the irony is that you can be incredibly entertaining to your audience in a way that speaks to them when you speak their language.

Marketing is simply understanding your client’s values, needs, and wants — what really drives them? — and then placing messages addressing that in places they already go to.

Simply speak to them like they are your wife, husband, friend, neighbor, mother, father…

Obviously this “simply” is not so simple without an understanding of how to do it…

The complexity of what is a “simple” task quickly overwhelms many of us when we start thinking about all the variables: age, gender, location, income… and then the really important ones: values, needs, drives, pressures, fears, frustrations, goals, who they want to be…

This is where I come in:

I’m a philosophy nerd who is interested in why people do the things they do. I’ve found that this question is intimately tied to the question of “who would do such a thing?” I am endlessly fascinated with this and am always researching something.

I don’t have a MBA (I would say it stands for “mostly bullshit anyway”). I know many failures who have them — and the business acumen of a dead dog. Whereas more often than not, the opposite is true… For instance, David Ogilvy, possibly the greatest marketer of the 20th century was a Scottish man who worked in France as a chef before starting his marketing agency. And a lot of the show Mad Men is based on his principles and books… Talk about an impact in marketing to be modeled for a TV show.

I like to be my own boss by helping people make more money by being their own boss. It really suits me and I want to help you do the same. Though it should be said this is not just for the money (or for me even about the money itself as I’m incredibly Spartan in my life), but what money represents: freedom.

What does freedom mean to you?

Providing for your family, doing things your own way, security and stability of income, a legacy to leave to your kids, teaching your kids they can do anything they put their mind to…

Might not be your reasons, but these are the reasons I hear most often.

So many business owners simply want to provide a better life for their kids, which I find to be an endearing driver though I am not a parent myself (and don’t intend on it). And it doesn’t matter if that’s not you specifically or me specifically — I know that most of my clients are parents and their passion and dedication is contagious. There’s a real synergy to figuring out a better way to provide for your family that drives so many successful or at least hardworking people. And being frank about it is a great way to connect with clients because then we’re on the same page: your goals are my goals for our work together.

How do you free yourself?

So if you’re reading this, are you thinking that marketing can free you from your problems or are you thinking about what marketing can free you to do? Are you thinking,”if I don’t really turn a good profit, in a few months, I’m going to be out of capital and screwed” or are you thinking, “Marketing can simplify my business efforts because I can get more clients with less effort”?

Remember how I said I bet if you’re reading this that freedom is a huge motivator for you?

An even more important reason than all I’ve said above is that I know this it’s another central trait of my ideal client and one of my highest values! You see, we work best with clients that are like us or what we’re used to.

In a nutshell, I want a freedom seeking person who is deeply driven to make their Colorado Springs business succeed and is fully invested in that success. They want to be my client with little to no sales pressure. (I hate high pressure sales: it sucks and is mostly pointless outside of boiler rooms and telemarketing centers…)

I want you to want me to help you and if you don’t I would rather find a client who can clearly see the value in what I do than twist your arm. I want someone who knows that I’m the right person to help you. 

Just like you want your clients and customers to feel about you!!

What does freedom mean to me?

I don’t like the power dynamics of working for someone else — especially if they’re stupid or a corporate behemoth so focused on numbers that the human aspects of business are non-existent. I worked for MCI and Landry’s (I was a certified trainer — what a joy, ha!). I learned things, but the jobs sucked a lot. I’ve worked for companies I felt were immoral or downright exploitative because I had few other options.

Holy shit, fuck that for everyone.

I want to live in a world where people are valued based on their contribution to the world and we all wake up excited to share our talents and to see what fascinating new things today brings. A world where merit, passion, and execution are everything. It’s no wonder entrepreneurship is so appealing to me as that is basically our world: we wake up unemployed everyday and if we don’t make it happen, nothing happens.

Entrepreneurs are judged almost entirely based upon our results.

You know this intimately, I’m sure!

This isn’t a possible reality for the whole world (unless you’re real into 19th and 20th century German philosophy and have a super strong imagination).

But I can foster something like it for those who also have this dream for their lives by helping businesses and non-profits find their fans and communicate with them effectively. Contributing to the growth of freedom one small business at a time… And of course, opening the world to the freedom you offer your customers and clients.

Living life based on your true passions and talents is a wonder to behold and one I hope to foster in as many people as I can.

I agree with Simone De Beauvoir: none of us is fully free until all of us are. We can get ourselves only so far, but the world is missing out on undiscovered genius, new ideas, innovative approaches…

This is what drives me. And feeling like I’m dismantling another little piece of corporate control isn’t bad either!

Let me be your co-captain

I free people from struggles with marketing and set the sail for success. I smash obstacles and have plans that stay the course.

Also, I sail along with you to help you adjust course and make sure you meet your goals. No excuses. Success I get paid, failure I don’t. Exactly the world you’re dealing with. That is my contribution and my reward. Money is nice, but it’s a means to an end for me — just like it is for you and the people who buy your products or services.

What does more money free you to do in your business? Your life? …

I want to free you to run your business more effectively so your life can be more up to you. And if after our work together you can spend more time with your children or doing the things you truly love in your business or life, then I am a very happy man.

I love freeing people from restrictions so they can create a life they’ve always dreamed of. Even in the abstract, the idea brings tears to my eyes. (I’m a sap: it’s true.)

What are you freeing your clients or customers from and freeing them to do?

Let me help you free yourself with more effective marketing!

If this sounds good to you, then let’s talk!

My consultations are free — if nothing else, you’ll get some new ideas about your marketing situation. So schedule one today! You have literally nothing to lose other than missing out on an incredibly valuable half an hour if you don’t schedule now!

>>>>> PUT SCHEDULING LINK HERE <<<<<<< ((CLICK HERE FOR MORE FREEDOM))

You can also call me (719) 425-9166 to schedule.

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More About Joshua Howard

Contrary to most philosophers (or at least the impression of us in the world), I don’t offer grandiose theories in my work.

I mostly speak without buzzwords or nonsense jargon that can’t be applied to reality. I easily could — I am an erudite fellow with diction and poise and I love the specificity of jargon terms — but it doesn’t really suit me or my modus operandi for life to be completely unintelligible to people who might not know about something or other. I like too many disparate things to ever find an audience!

I’d rather just clearly explain things and add jargon when it actually helps (like when two professionals talk to each other and it shortens conversations).

I deeply value clarity.

For instance, as someone who worked in the trenches on the inside (as a “search engine evaluator”), I’m keenly aware of what makes content and websites rank well. For a quick boost in SERP, we first need to adjust your snippets to answer under-represented search quandaries and focus your keyword strategy around H1/2/3 tags and semantically-laden keywords to create a nexus of keywords, categories, and tags. Then, make a silo out of the nexus and focus on disbursing keywords in a systemic order, properly written, and the right length for maximum SERP efficiency +/- your competitor’s current pages. Backlinks… Need that E-E-A-T? Running a YMYL site and just not noticing traction?

See?!? The buzzwords! IYKYK, but if not, I just said a bunch of nonsense phrases and came across as pompous. Silly, but also valuable to my UXO/SEO-focused clients to know I know, you know? I hope the confused can see the meta-point/joke and decide to schedule with my anyway, but who knows?

Instead of nonsense, I explain things pretty clearly and think through most of the planning for you. I offer completely actionable plans built off of solid frameworks that we implement together, but for most services, it’s actually mostly me doing the work.

I help you find clarity

Let’s be real: you’re not hiring me to tell you 715 ways you can run a marketing campaign — you want me to help you run one really good one from beginning to end that resonates with your clients.

I also love tinkering: I fuck around and find out a lot — and while there’s only gold in some of them there hills, the lessons in failure in the others are invaluable. Ms. Frizzle is my favorite imaginary character and we’re definitely going to take chances, get messy, and make mistakes.

I’m not a typical marketer

Again, not something a typical marketer would say. Stop paying for typical crap.

I’m not a typical marketer — and that’s exactly why you need me: I run marketing campaigns that work!

>>>>>>>> YO DUDE, THE CONSULT IS FREE <<<<<<<<<

Experience, Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness

But I totally get it: when you’re working with someone, you want to make sure they’re the right fit for you.

I do this too.

In fact, if you’re the wrong kind of client for me, I purposely write in a way to repel you… And I think you should too!

But I imagine you clicked on this page expecting to learn more about my Colorado Springs home, my experience in marketing, why I have expertise in marketing you should follow, the authority I bring to my marketing work, and what my level of trustworthiness is in the field.

So what is my experience?

In a nutshell: I have done a fair bit of sales; ran three companies before Rhizomatic Marketing — ironically, a rare trait in a marketer or “business consultant” (absolutely stupid reality, but sadly true far too often); ran dozens of websites for myself and others (“webmaster”); made money affiliate marketing (not a simple task); and worked as a “search engine evaluator” (a job with the most intense NDA I have ever signed).

But more spelled out, here is my experience and where that expertise comes from:

• Worked in telemarketing, door-to-door sales, and inbound sales
  • –> Been in the trenches doing sales for companies
• Ran a SEO company for two years and setup or facilitated dozens of campaigns, created thousands of pieces of content, worked with dozens of clients
• Bootstrapped a private pay hypnotherapy practice for three years and ran my own marketing campaigns
  • –> Been a solopreneur a few times…
• Co-owned an e-commerce store for three years learning the ins and outs of product listings, items that sell, why items sell or don’t, and product photography
• Webmastering several sites for others and personal affiliate blog sites and YouTube channels
• Worked as a “search engine evaluator” for four years learning the ins and outs of what makes a site better than another site from the inside of the beast itself… (NDAs cause silly descriptions)
  • –> I intimately know and have the guides about what makes a website valuable to “search engines” from the inside

Certifications

A lot of people think of certifications and degrees as “expertise” and “experience”. I actually separate these two quite clearly. Training is training. Practice is practice. There is a huge difference.

I have a lot of training and a lot of practice in the following topics. I can discuss them in pretty deep detail off the top of my head because I understand them well.

While marketing is a YMYL (your money, your life) topic, there really aren’t a lot of “proofs” beyond testimonials and case studies because marketers either succeed or fail — there really isn’t much middle ground and results in what I do — direct response advertising.

So, if you haven’t yet, I recommend you look at our testimonials page (forthcoming).

Yet, Google adds additional scrutiny to pages and sites about money, business, investing, medical issues, psychology, etc. in order to provide the most “authoritative” sources at the top of searches for these types of topics. They don’t want to recommend Jilly Juice to parents as a first or even tenth option for a child’s problem. Maybe result 1,111,111,101. They want people to have to purposely seek out potentially harmful information.

And while annoying if you’re say bootstrapping a new marketing agency, it’s actually really helpful for the consumer and the business in the long run as this also means that it’s harder for others to take your positions once you’ve attained them…

So if you just keep on keeping on in the right way, eventually, the tides will turn. Just like they will for me given more time.

But to spell out my certifications and training:

• NLP Practitioner Certification (NLP Seminars / Richard Bandler)
  • –> Powerful coaching method and persuasion framework
• Clinical Hypnotherapist (Denver School of Hypnotherapy)
  • –> Skilled and trained personal coach
• Master of Humanities (University of Colorado Denver)
  • –> Studied phenomenology (what it is to experience reality) and post-structuralism (how complex systems operate), almost a better training ground for coaching than NLP/hypnosis — yet, together, what a powerful mix!
  • –> I think about things differently because I am different — it’s not a gimmick: I legitimately am a weird dude who uses things that work from other aspects of life, even if they’re not designed for that purpose.
    • To see this in action, setup a consult or catch my local talk Marxeting: What Karl Marx Teaches Marketers. (NOTE: Basically no one who “hates” Marx has read beyond the Communist Manifesto — A PAMPHLET! The majority of his work is a critique of Adam Smith and John Locke focused on how capitalism fosters a system that creates the material and ideological conditions of our lives — “dialectical materialism”. He has a shitload of things to teach smart marketers as he has “outsider” perspectives on capitalist motivations.)
• A variety of Google marketing certifications
  • –> I’ve done the time to master these things so you don’t have to worry about anything — especially taking these boring classes.
• An endless list of non-certification training programs in marketing, personal coaching, business coaching
  • –> I obsessively study marketing and coaching theory, strategy, and tactics. (There aren’t “continuing education hours” or many certifications for marketers… My attempt at it because I think continuing education should be mandatory for all fields.)
• So many books
  • My favorite books on marketing because they are so practical and hands on:
    • Scientific Advertising by Claude Hopkins
    • Confessions of an Advertising Man by David Ogilvy
    • Kick-Ass Copywriting Secrets by John Carlton
    • How to Master the Art of Selling by Tom Hopkins