I keep popping over to Survey Monkey, who are hosting my survey about internet marketing. There is such a broad spectrum of feedback, and aside from some really clear pointers to me as I develop this site, some comments have given me great food for thought.
One of my questions is about how we are perceived through our marketing and our comfort or lack of it as we set about telling people what it is we do and how we can help them ("what's in it for them"). The question is intentionally slightly vague, and there is a box in which respondents can add their own thoughts. I also provide a range of ways one might feel about marketing, including linking it with "showing off".
One respondent has made valid points along the lines of "so what if it is'"and pointed out that there is a hidden negative in the statement. S/he is right of course. Perhaps I should have written "in a bad way" in brackets after the statement because, it's true, I do see showing off as a negative. And what's more, from the responses I've had, so do many of the survey's participants. But that response has really got me thinking, and validates where I'm coming from on this, I think. I have in my head my mum's definition of "showing off" which involved loud children, performing at all times, rather than being. But she also saw performance in general as "showing off", which is ludicrous. Now, I personally don't see marketing in a negative way - I DO see the way in which we are sometimes expected to display ourselves (see earlier posting re Sales Letter websites) as out of step with my values, but that is something else.
As you can probably tell, my thinking on this is evolving. But all the feedback, including this very valuable comment that I've picked up on here, is reinforcing my belief that many people are looking for a different way to present themselves and their work, with pride.
