The YOUtility of Helping vs Selling Marketing Programs

I spend Chapter 5 of my new book, The Invisible Sale, discussing the strategic shift content marketing oriented sales & marketing teams must accept to find and win the invisible buyer. Today’s buyers are looking for advice not advertising and the brands that figure that out and successfully deploy that strategy first will enjoy enormous first mover advantage.

My friend Jay Baer calls this approach YOUtility. And while I touch on the subject in the overall discussion of finding and winning the invisible sale, Jay dives deep into the concept of helping versus selling content in his new New York Times Bestseller — YOUtility.

Jay was nice enough to give me an advance copy when we last saw each other and I read it cover to cover the next day. YOUtility is full of great information, better ideas and something like 35 case studies that Jay plucked from the real world examples he both sees and has helped create.

His Top-of-Mind-Awareness to Frame-of-Mine-Awareness to Friend-of-Mine Awareness to reminds me of my own Propinquity Marketing approach. I also loved Chapter 12, Keeping Score, where Jay talks about various approaches you might take to metric your efforts and establish the all important ROI.

Best of all, Jay doesn’t just talk about YOUtility, he gives you Six Blueprints to Create YOUtility so that you can go from reading about YOUtility to actually creating it in your marketing efforts.

If you read the archives here you’ll notice that I don’t review and recommend books often, but this is one that you should purchase. Jay is truly one of the smartest folks you’ll find in the digital marketing space and he’s offering a ton of that insight to you for less than $20. Be smart and take him up on it.

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About the author

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Tom is 30 year veteran of the sales & marketing industry with a penchant for stiff drinks, good debates and showing others how to combine the power of digital platforms and technology with the science of persuasion to turn conversations into customers.

He is the founder of Converse Digital, a former contributing writer for Advertising Age, and author of The Invisible Sale regarded by readers as a "must-read for any marketing and sales team."

The Invisible Sale has been described as: showing the reader how to rip down the communication barrier between sales and marketing teams in an easy-to-digest look at how both teams can work together to attract, measure, and close prospects in today's online landscape.

In the book, Tom breaks down his entire business development process, honed over a decade of practice, to create the ultimate field guide for anyone tasked with creating an effective business development program for themselves, their agency, or company.

And for those seeking to learn more about the art and science of persuasion, modern digitally oriented prospecting, effective lead nurturing without becoming a nuisance and closing more business deals, Tom has authored hundreds of articles available via his Painless Prospecting Newsletter Archives.

He is also a highly sought after sales & marketing keynote speaker who has graced stages in 52 cities, 27 states, and 7 countries spread across 4 continents.

He primarily speaking on topics of sales, business development, social selling, social media and the power of consumer experiences shared via social media as the ultimate form of advertising.

Tom's probably best known for his incredibly successful, groundbreaking social media campaign to rebrand Mardi Gras from "girls gone wild" to "family friendly fun" using nothing other than social media. That work led him to create his signature tourism marketing keynote -- The Soundtrack of our Life: Leveraging Visitor Experiences To Drive Visitation.

Too learn more about Tom's most requested talks, or check his availability, visit his professional speaker page.

You can also follow him on Twitter or connect with him on LinkedIn.