I have been asked to co-teach a class on Marketing, so I have decided to blog about my brainstorming and thinking about what Marketing looks like in today’s Marketplace. I am doing it here so that I will have one place to find all my notes, and have the input from you if you want to chip in and help.

I am starting the process by just doing some brainstorming about the subject of Marketing.

Why Are You Teaching About Marketing?
That is a great question. I guess the best answer to that is that I am on the front lines in the business world making these decisions, and I have a vantage point from the front lines.

I was a Transportation and Logistics major at the University of Arkansas, but I have never worked in that field. I am actually in the Communications and media field. I bring a fresh perspective to the conversation because I still have fresh eyes. I didn’t come into this industry with any expectations, I just did it.

If I were to compare my experience in marketing to learning how to play an instrument (I play guitar) it would go something like this. There are two ways to learn how to play an instrument:

Option 1:
Hire a teacher who will teach you everything about the instrument and teach you how to read music. The great thing about this method is that you produce artists with very predictable talents. You can place a sheet of music in front of them and they can read and perform that music as written. The problem is most of the students taught to play an instrument this way are handcuffed when there is no sheet music to reference.

Option 2:
Pick up the instrument and mimic what you hear until you learn how to play it. The great thing about this type of artist is they are very inventive and flexible. They tend to be more creative with their instrument sooner. They think outside the box because no one has shown then the “right way”. The problem here is they can be a bit unpredictable. You may want them to just read the sheet music but instead you get something different every time. Leading this type of individual can be a bit unnerving, but if you can learn to trust them, the outcome will be better because their artistry is mixed with yours to make something you never dreamed possible.

I come at marketing from the second road. I do have some training because of my degree, but most of everything I know about marketing comes from being out in the marketplace. I am self-taught.

If there was ever a time when the self-taught marketer may be a good bet it is now. The marketplace has been turned upside down by the internet. We are now in an era of post-scarcity. We now have unlimited choice. This is great for the customer, but it makes it nearly impossible for the marketer break through the noise.

We are in the era of the guerrilla marketer who breaks the rules and communicates her message in new ways, and in new forums. Old channels of communication are becoming less effective in the face of the myriad options consumers have in finding entertainment. This means that broadcast messaging will be less and less effective, but conversely, marketers have more ability now than ever to direct their message right at its intended audience.

These are the days were marketers are going to have to be inventive and willing to work hard to get their message heard, but astute marketers will find the advantages of this new world.