• There’s a very old story.

    A shepherd boy is bored tending his sheep, and so to amuse himself, he shouts ‘Wolf, Wolf!” And the villagers come running to save him, and discover it was a ruse. And he laughs.

    And then he does it again, and they still fall for it, bitterly.

    The third time, an actual wolf shows up, but the villagers don’t. They don’t believe him when he cries ‘wolf’. And so the wolf eats all the sheep, and maybe it eats the shepherd boy too.

    And the moral of the tale is that no-one believes a liar, even when they’re telling the truth.

    Everyone is shouting for your attention

    I have a special folder in my gmail inbox.

    When I sign up to someone’s email list, I use an address that funnels all their emails into that folder. It’s a very full folder.

    I’m on some of the lists, because they’re people I like to read. Folks like Danielle LaPorte, Michael Ellsberg, James Altucher and Seth Godin.

    And the rest I’m on because they’re my peers, or my competitors, and I like to keep a track of my market and see what other people are doing.

    And for the most part, I fucking hate the marketing emails they send me.

    I’ll skim down the list and look at all the clever subject lines designed to hook me into opening them up. And it’s like 100 people at a party all shouting at the same time to get my attention.

    And it makes me want to click away and never come back.

    Just get as many people to open it as possible

    I studied online marketing, and email marketing for quite a while, then I practiced for quite a while, then I taught it a bit. Now I’m fucking with the ‘rules’.

    I know the tactics to get people to open emails.

    I look at all these mails in my special folder and I’m impressed, because some of these people are really good. Better than I am. The subject lines are persuasive and clever and enticing.

    And if you could get more people to open your email by using a good subject line, why not do it, right?

    That’s what the marketing aficionados teach. It’s all about the subject lines. Good ones get more people to open your email. Bad ones get less.

    Simple.

    Except I think the principle is (deeply) flawed. Because everyone is crying wolf.

    Subject: I’m dying. And this is the last email I’ll ever send to you

    It would work, right? People would open this in their droves.

    But what do you do with the next email?

    Subject: Only kidding. I’m not dead, but you can get a discount on my new thing

    I remember when we were selling our course at Waking Up the Workplace. I wanted as many people as possible to open the mail. So I used this.

    Subject: This is the most important email you’ll receive from us this year

    It worked!

    It also didn’t feel that good. But I was ok with that, since I wanted people to buy the thing, because it was a good course. And they did.

    But now I’m trying out a different approach.

    Don’t be persuasive

    “Hey buddy. Have you ever suffered from not finding your purpose? Well I was just like you too, until I discovered these 5 principles of living a successful life. And now I have a 6-figure business. Click here to learn the secret. But do it today, otherwise this message will self-destruct.”

    And maybe they do click the link, and maybe they’re underwhelmed.

    And maybe they never open your email again.

    And you wonder why your business is not really flowing.

    So you go even harder at your marketing…

    With this site, I decided to do things differently.

    I wanted my email list to be a quiet place. One where I didn’t shout for my reader’s attention.

    I wanted it to feel like I was sitting in a coffee house with a friend, and quietly leaning over…

    “Hey man. I’ve been working on this thing. It’s about slurpies. I just finished it, so if you’re interested, take a look. I hope you dig it.”

    And if people are interested, then they do check it out, and hopefully they like it.

    And then next time I let them know about something, they’ll check it out again, because they liked it last time.

    And then I don’t have to persuade them of anything. Because it’s like a friend making a recommendation. And they trust my word.

    It’s not a magic spade

    “It’s a spade. If you want to dig a hole, it will help you.”

    And if no-one’s interested in your spade, go make something else. Or find people who love holes.

    Don’t try and trick people into checking out your spade by telling them it’s magic. Or that it will help them discover their purpose. Or enlarge their penis.

    It’s a good spade. That’s enough.

    And if it’s actually not a good spade? Then get your priorities straight, and stop marketing junk, rather than creating great stuff.

    This is all very well, but does it work?

    A valid question. Ask me in another 4 years for the definitive answer.

    But what I can tell you, is that by focusing on my writing, not hyping shit, and aiming for trust, not email opens, I’ve consequently got a consistent email open rate that’s higher than any list I’ve ever seen.

    Now, my list is still small, and maybe this is front loaded goodwill, and I snaffled the loyal friends and followers early on, which massaged the numbers.

    Could be.

    Like I said, time will tell.

    But either way, I’m pretty sure that if you measure it over the long term, trust is going to beat the shit out of persuasion.

    Plus it just feels good.

     

    Ewan Townhead

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  • There is a disease at work in our marketing. It’s afflicting everything we do. It is chronic short-termism.

    The desperation to succeed at my new launch, so that my ego doesn’t get kicked in the teeth, and my bank balance doesn’t dip into the stress zone. The eagerness to get as many people to sign up on my list as I can, so that I don’t have to deal with my loneliness and insecurity.

    The disease of short-termism narrows our eyes onto the immediate need in front of us. And it can come with a whole host of side effects…

    • egoic manipulation
    • failing integrity
    • cringing inauthenticity
    • slimy sales
    • clichéd copy-writing
    • uninspired offers.

    The antidote is realizing the bigger game you’re playing.

    The game where you create a thriving tribe. One that endures. One that will ultimately go way beyond you and your work. One that is here for decades to come.

    There’s an African proverb that says: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

    A tribe will go far, reach far, and make an impact we can’t even conceptualize from where we are.

    When you cultivate a thriving tribe, you create a thriving ecosystem. When you devote yourself to the service of your tribe’s growth, they will grow. When your tribe grows, they will serve you in return, and support your leadership of them.

    A thriving tribe is not only the basis of a truly successful business, it is the basis of a truly successful movement. One where your business can spawn business for others. One where collaboration and cross-pollination feed something entirely new.

    So, here are 4 principles that you want to cultivate, as you cultivate your tribe. 4 principles that when cultivated, will create a thriving tribe.

    1. Intimacy

    I feel you. I feel connected to you. I feel close to you.

    Intimacy is making the inmost known. It’s the closeness that is created when we show ourselves to one another.

    When we are intimate with one another, we are weaving a pattern of interconnectedness. When we are intimate, we create community.

    You create intimacy with your tribe when you show yourself. You start the dance of intimacy when you take the first step.

    When you are truly vulnerable, your tribe will be truly vulnerable in return.

    My most uncomfortably revealing articles have been the ones that people have emailed me about the most, sharing their own tender stories. Intimately showing your inner world creates a space for others to intimately show theirs.

    Intimacy is about the space between us. Intimacy is the sensation of deep connection. People no longer want adequate. People no longer want useful. People want deep meaning.

    Create deep intimacy with your tribe, and you create something meaningful to which people can belong. Create intimacy, and you create belongingness.

    2. Authority

    I’ve witnessed your expertise. I’ve felt your power. I’ve followed your advice, and it worked.

    Authority is what you must practice, if you are to lead your tribe.

    Authority is what is created when you speak your wisdom and serve those who have gathered. Authority is what is revealed when you tap into your natural power.

    Authority is authoring new wisdom.

    As you continually discover more of what you have to say, and your tribe are continually helped by your teaching, your authority will be established.

    Authority is not power over someone. Authority is not assumed or abused.

    Authority is what people recognize in you, when you consistently step into your own genius, and create wisdom and insight that helps them.

    Your tribe give you authority only when you demonstrate your competence to lead them. You step into that authority, when you trust in your ability to create life.

    Authority is what enables people to follow you. A leader leads through wisdom and power. Disseminate your wisdom. Channel your power. Lead your tribe.

    3. Trust

    I know you. I believe you. I can rely on you. I trust you.

    Trust is what all marketing should be designed to create. Trust is what very little marketing actually does create. Most marketing erodes trust, fast.

    If I’m focused solely on maximizing sales for my new thing, then all I need to do is create enough trust that I get you to click buy. After that, I don’t care.

    Trust takes time to create. Because trust is what I feel when I’ve related with you over time, and believe I can rely on your integrity.

    If your actions are in alignment with your espousal, if you walk what you talk, and you do it consistently, you’re enabling me to create trust for you.

    When your tribe trusts you, you don’t need to use marketing psychology to persuade them to buy your new thing. You can just tell them about it, and they’ll buy it if serves them.

    When your tribe trusts you, you don’t need to shout loudly about how amazing your latest offering is, and why it’s going to change their life. You can simply share your heart, and they’ll listen.

    Trust is the antidote to a loud and crowded marketplace. When you have a tribe that deeply trusts you, you can whisper rather than shout. You can offer rather than push. You can create rather than take.

    4. Permission

    Change me. I give you full permission.

    Permission is the agreement to let things through.

    Permission is what your tribe gifts to you when they believe in your authority. Permission is what they activate when they trust you, when they know you, when they choose to follow you.

    Permission is the agreement to be permeable. When something is permeable, it lets things through it.

    A permeable membrane is one that lets water through. A permeable tribe is one that lets you impact them deeply.

    They give you permission to change them.

    They give you permission to love them so fully that they cannot remain the same. They give you permission to challenge their assumed smallness. They give you permission to beckon to their wholeness.

    Permission is what opens up a giant space. One in which we can all change one another. One in which the tribe can establish a whole new way. One in which we can transform things. Forever.

    You Can’t Fail

    Your work is your Work. Your work is to create what you’re here to create. That’s not a short term game, that’s a life-time game, at least.

    You can’t fail at it. You can only turn away from it.

    Go and feed your gathering tribe. They’re hungry for your wisdom. They’re aching for your power. They want to trust you. They’re eager to know you, get intimate with you.

    Go and serve them today, so that they give you even deeper permission to change them tomorrow.

     

    Ewan Townhead

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