Darren Barefoot and Julie Szabo sent me a physical card to my work address that told me to check out a unique URL where there was an advanced copy of the book waiting for me, a personalized page “Hi Jeremiah” and this original and unique video they made just for me (embedded above). The card was a nice touch, as they realized I’m overloaded with emails and messages and pitches.
One of the chapters in their social media marketing book is on blogger outreach. They get an “A” for creativity, originality, and thoughtfulness, and based upon this little demonstration, if the book is half as good as their approach, it’ll be a winner.
Of course, if you’re trying to get me to blog about you, you’ll have to step up the game in creativity.
Quite a nice card!
Would you be so kind as to review the book once you’ve gotten a spare moment to read it?
Thanks!
Nice personal touch! I reviewed their book a little while ago and commended them for practicing what they preach.
They use the tips and tricks they describe in the own book to promote it, which shows they product works – which should help it become a success.
It’s an excellent book for people thinking of getting into or just getting into social media marketing.
If you are interested you can read my review here:
http://www.taxidrivermarketing.com/?p=24
How random! I used to go to school with Julie Szabo!
When I first viewed their video it was at 44 plays.
They should really remove that “Hi Jeremiah!” page now so that all your readers don’t download the book for free instead of paying. I know you didn’t provide the URL, but it’s not too hard to guess…
Great thinking by these two. Sample chapters look great! I wonder if they should now add a bonus chapter, “Getting great bloggers to link to your videos”.
David got one too
http://www.socialmediaready.com/david/
But I think he was an author.
Sample chapters available there.
How much time did it take them to do all this?
-10 minutes to write and send card
-5 minutes to create and upload the video
-2 minutes to recreate the existing page
-Since this is using existing tools, the costs are nil.
Whats the return? Most of my videos get over 600 views, plus I tweeted it to my network, so that’s a lot of exposure –for very little investment.
Jeremiah: Thanks for the write-up, and I’m glad you liked the approach.
Susanna: That is random. You can find her on Facebook if you want to talk to her.
Corey: You make a good point–it’s a risk of this approach. I just went and made a bunch of those dedicated pages private. I also checked our analytics, and happily there was no obvious evidence of misdeeds. Of course, with an information product like this, you’re always fighting a losing battle. We should be so lucky that people want to go considerable lengths to steal our book.
Thanks Darren
Corey is a smart guy, I work with him, there’s not a lot that will slip past him.
I just finished reading it last night. It’s a quick read for any newbies who want to dive into social media marketing, and a great book to recommend to clients who don’t quite understand the social media landscape. See, their tactics/advice in the book do work because you posted their video and wrote about them. Cheers!
😉
May I add to the list of attributes helpful in getting noticed and watched: be tremendously easy on the eyes. I am being entirely sincere: these are two very attractive people! Julie’s smile literally made me smile, every time she tossed one out there. I also thought they crafted their video very thoughtfully, in some rather subtle and powerful ways. That part, I might be able to mimic.
Beth: Actually, that’s not us. We hired a couple of local actors to…just kidding. Thanks for the kind words.
There marketing approach is certainly novel. I’m considering buying the ebook but $29 seems pretty steep for a 100 page book. I’ll read the review that’s mentioned in Daan’s comment. Is the book for newbie bloggers or can someone who’s been blogging for a year benefit from it?
Ginny: The book is really targeted at marketers. If you’ve got 71 seconds, check out this video, as it discusses the target audience and content of the book in more detail:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NsZSbsigtb8
I must get around to posting the table of contents–I suspect that would help as well.
You know this is all too damn funny to a guy like me who is 49 years old and has been around this track before.
My first huge job I got because of notes I sent to key person that I interviewed as a reporter. I had a recent podcast with one of the classic fathers of relationship building Harvey Mackay. He is the author of several New York Times best sellers including Swim With the Sharks.
http://tinyurl.com/2uz2uy
I think what Darren and Julie have done is solid. I’ve read some of there posts and saw the videos. It’s good solid stuff. It’s not novel, nor should it be unique.
It’s a card. Direct mail, imagine that, a social media book promoted with a card and a postage stamp. (please don’t split hairs I know the card was probably hand written and it wasn’t from a database) Nonetheless it was snail mail.
That means a couple of things 1) Jeremiah was having a slow day so timing played a role or 2) People care. They cared enough to do something that was more difficult than zip off an email. They actually got Jeremiah to physically interact with their words.
Thank God, I’m not a dinosaur. A note, it’s the most social of social media. The reason some might think this is novel is because so many have moved away from it. To me, it’s validation that the physical world still matters, that some people still get joy out of seeing ink spread from the pen to the page almost flowing from their fingers tips to convey a thought from their mind to that of another. What a wonderful experience.
Congratulations on the book, I look forward to reading it.
Albert Maruggi
all the best Jeremiah
The tactics are fine – the execution is lowsy. Julie needs to improve the effectiveness of her delivery – too many ers and pauses.
The ebook is less than average in content – you would do better to buy a book from amazon on the subject and there are a number to choose from.
And Jeremiah – that is very big headed of you in terms of telling people they have to be more creative. The really influential bloggers I’ve found are much more approachable. You sound very arrogant. Was that your intention?
Lucy: Wahoo, our first negative review. What, in particular, did you think was “less than average”? I’d love to get your specific feedback so that we can address your concerns in version 2.0 of the book.
As for the video, our goal wasn’t utter slickness. If it was, I wouldn’t have used the dodgy camera on our MacBook. It’s supposed to be personal and informal (the handwritten pink cards were the same way). I think we would have gotten worse results if we’d been too polished in our approach. As you’ve read the book, you know we emphasize honest, forthright engagement. But maybe you disagree with that?
Lucy,
The intention was to let marketers know this tactic used by Darren is done (and now documented) yes, marketers will need to step up their game in terms of creativity. Not just now, not just because of the book, but always.
You didn’t include her last name, or URL, but just approach the conversation with three negatives. While I listen to all feedback, I get the sense you’re just here to stir up the pot. Was that your intention?
Send me an email if I’m mistaken, and we can chat further, I’m listening.
Creative marketing efforts have to be applauded. And when they’re effective, then they should be noted. I think it’s wonderful that Jeremiah highlighted Darren & Julie’s efforts here.
And I don’t think it’s big-headed that Jeremiah suggest that people be creative. Creativity & continually thinking of new ways to market your product is the key to success (social media only provides the tools to transfer the message). We need to be reminded of that & seeing examples sparks ideas.
And Lucy – if you read Jeremiah on a regular basis, you’ll find that he freely shares his talents & knowledge as well as providing mentorship & adding considerable value to his community.
I like the idea, but joking about somebody’s name is too risky. Plus, it ate up valuable time.
Video pitches need to be as short and compelling as possible.
I envision the time when these video pitches will be overused to the point where journalists and bloggers might not bother with them. But for the time being, they work.
Joan: Joking about Jeremiah’s name makes it compelling. Sure, it’s a little risky, but I find that ‘safe’ is less compelling, and thus less successful.
The worst case scenario isn’t that Jeremiah posts, angry and indignant about us abusing his good name. The worst case is that he doesn’t post at all. It’s that old truism about wanting people to love you or hate you, just not ignore you.
Plus, it’s a calculated risk. Well, it would have been if I’d thought about it a lot. I didn’t, but obviously I figured Jeremiah was big enough to not get upset about my lame bullfrog joke.
And you’re absolutely right on the video pitch thing. I’d be surprised if it lasts through 2008. These things are a moving target, and always will be.
Am I allowed to say that I don’t like the look of their site? It just feels a little dated design wise, which isn’t great in terms of first impressions. They’re positioning themselves as experts who have up to the minute knowledge on a modern topic – but the design doesn’t communicate or reinforce that.
What does everyone else think?