There are a million and one marketing books that will teach you tricks to get your product or service our there in the world and noticed. This book is focused on marketing you. In many areas of our lives, especially if we are not traditional marketers, we are the product that must be ‘sold’ to others. In order to best accomplish this task, whether we are an artist, a politician, an engineer, a teacher, or pretty much anybody in any profession, is to understand the way the world sees us.
Our author has spent her entire career as a professional marketer and after many years working for various companies, she has now compiled the ultimate guide to discovering how to ‘market’ individuals. One of the main themes of her work is that instead of focusing on our strengths, we should highlight our differences. “Different is better than better,” she writes, because while we may not necessarily be better than our competition, we are already different. Focusing on our differences and what makes us unique is the best way to stand out and capitalize on our strengths.
In order to discover what makes us truly unique, Hogshead has created an online personality test that can be taken in addition to reading her book. The answers will tell you what your Primary and Secondary Advantages are, and the chart included in the book will tell you your Archetype. This is how the world sees you and is the way that you add distinct value. There are seven main advantages we might be ascribed broken down as follows:
Power personalities speak the language of confidence.
Passion personalities speak the language of relationship.
Mystique personalities speak the language of listening.
Prestige personalities speak the language of excellence.
Alert personalities speak the language of details.
Innovation personalities speak the language of creativity.
Trust personalities speak the language of stability.
As an example, my primary advantage is passion and my secondary is innovation, and my archetype is The Catalyst. According to her charts (and verified by my life experiences) us catalysts are out-of-the-box thinkers, very energizing, and can be very social when we ‘turn on the juice.’ We are creative thinkers who love to connect with others in myriad ways. So, according to our author, this is what I should focus on when I want to add value to others. Indeed, as an artist, I thrive when coming up with creative solutions to problems and I also love bringing others together.
Hogshead has organized her chart into 49 archetypes depending on your combination of advantages, each with their own unique characteristics and unique ability to add value. This brings us to the second theme of her work: Marketing is all about being fascinating. At a time when most people have the attention span of a goldfish, being able to fascinate others and hold their attention is a huge challenge and of paramount importance. In order to be successful, we need to lean into our strengths and recognize that while we may not be able to learn to be as fascinating as the next person, we can certainly unlearn the ways in which we are boring. This brings us back to our first theme, which is highlighting what makes us different and unique. If we put them together, we see that to be our most effective selves we must embrace what makes us different and use these traits to hold other people’s attention. This is how we market ourselves, and it all hinges on how the world sees us.