staying current

Spend Time With Your Target Demographic

A friend writes books
(creates products)
for teenagers.

She spends at least
one day a month
at
the coffee shop
or the park
or a popular social media filming spot
or other places
teenagers gather.

And she observes.
She pretends she is looking
at her phone.
She listens
and she learns
and she applies that learning
to her stories.

Her stories (products)
hit bestseller lists
partially for that reason.

Spend time
with your target demographic,
preferably unnoticed.

Learn what is currently important
to them.

And apply that learning
to your products/services.

A buddy posted
“You know you’re old
when you recognize
more songs in the grocery store
than you do on the radio.”

That should read
“You know you’re out of touch…”
because if we stay current,
if we continue to
listen to the latest songs,
we WILL recognize the ones played
on the radio.

It is ‘work’
to stay current,
whether we are
20 years old
or 80 years old.

If we’re older,
especially,
the songs, TV shows, latest fashions,
hot new colors
aren’t designed
for our demographics.
It takes research
to understand their appeal
and their full meaning.

But if we want to stay relevant
and if we want our businesses
to stay relevant,
we have to gain
that understanding.

Do the work.
Stay current.

Don’t Pay For Twitter Verification

A year ago,
Twitter Verification,
the blue checkmark
on profiles,
told the world
your business was legit.
It was important.

People battled
to get that blue checkmark.

Now, post EM,
the blue checkmark
tells the world
your account
is a scam account.

Blue checkmarks
are purchased
for a monthly fee.

No one important
will pay
for social media.
They feel
the social media platforms
should pay THEM
but they were willing
to use it for free.

Don’t pay
for a blue checkmark.
Not at this point
in time.

Listen To The Warnings

A buddy
called me a doomer
a couple of days ago.
He said
he didn’t want to hear
any more negativity.

That’s fine.
I prefer not to talk
about possible challenges.
I would rather
talk about TV shows
and other trivial topics.

I shared those insights
because I’d feel guilty
if his already struggling business
failed
or he and his family suffered hardships
because I HADN’T warned him.

No one wants to tell you
bad news.
It is a total bummer
for the messenger.

We tell you bad news
because we care about you,
because we feel
you should know about it.

You don’t have to act on
these warnings.
But, at the very least,
listen to them.

It is a communication
of caring.