You could sum up M.K. Hobson's Guerilla 101 Marketing tip in one sentence: Join an organization. What's great about her advice is that not only did she follow it, but her example organization happens to be ours. If you're not yet a BU member, read on. If you've joined BU but forgotten why, read on. And if you've never realized all the potential in being a member of BU, including participating in BU events, read on. Here's hoping you'll get inspired to take a more active role in our organization, and for heaven sakes you Northwest Broads, please send Hobson an email and introduce yourselves.

April 2006

Guerilla Marketing 101: Marketing Broad Universe
by M.K. Hobson
www.demimonde.com

M.K. Hobson lives in Oregon City, OR with her husband and daughter. She can be reached at mkhobson@sff.net

This section of the Broadsheet is frequently used for offering tips on how to market one's own work—a noble undertaking, to be sure. Each and every writer is always looking for new and exciting ways to market their work. However, in this issue I thought I'd do something a little different and talk about marketing from a slightly different angle—ways you can participate in marketing the Broad Universe organization.

Um ... and you're writing about this instead of how to market my own work, why?
With any professional organization, the benefit its members derive from participating is directly proportional to the organization's strength. Where some professional organizations derive their strength from coffers stuffed to bursting by high membership fees, organizations like Broad Universe derive a great deal of their strength from direct member participation. The more people we have involved, the greater our voice... and the greater our voice, the more people we'll have involved. QED.

The Four P™ Broad Universe Marketing System
Being that I'm a marketing person by day, and given that marketing people like to develop PowerPoints that feature crazy nonsensical "systems" that they can trademark and write up into books and translate into gazillions on the conference speaking circuit, I hereby present The Four P™ Broad Universe Marketing System.

• Promote
• Participate
• Prepare
• Pay it Forward

Promote
Let's start with the most obvious one first, the one that's really kind of an umbrella for all the rest. Promote. The concepts of promotion are simple—get the word out there and keep it out there. Repetition is key. My partner at the firm where I work is fond of quoting a familiar statistic; on average, people have to see an advertising message 12 times before it becomes ingrained enough in their consciousness for them to even consider taking action. Therefore, whatever method you use to promote the organization—whether it's on your blog, or when you're on panels at cons, or to other members of your writing group—make it a point to mention it more often. Like 12 times more often. You get the picture.

Participate
At this year's CascadiaCon, I participated in my first rapid-fire group reading, along with Amy Hanson. After that experience, I was excited by the opportunity to organize a reading at Orycon. But I hit a bit of a stumbling block. I wasn't able to find enough readers. This was probably due, in large part, to the fact that the con as a whole had a rather sparse attendance of writers because everyone was off gallivanting around at World Fantasy. No matter. I've moved on.

Anyway, the upshot of this (and it probably goes without saying) is that if there's a Broad Universe reading at a convention that you're attending, sign up to read. Many people might demur out of modesty or humbleness, or because they feel they already have a reading, or because they've read enough. However, when you participate in a Broad Universe reading, you're not just promoting yourself and your own work, you're promoting the organization by your participation. Even if you don't have a new book, or a new story, if you see there's a Broad Universe reading at a convention you're attending, show up. If you decide not to read, at least show up and bring friends. At the very least, talk up the reading in the publicity venue of your choice. If you keep a blog, mention that there's a reading coming up, even if it's at a con you're not going to be attending. Fire up the message boards. Pixels cost nothing, and the slight amount of additional typing you'll do will make your fingers that much more shapely and gorgeous.

Prepare
OK, back to Orycon. Here I am, I've organized a reading and I'm the only one signed up to read. Now, I was faced with a dilemma. Should I feed the raging bonfire of my unquenchable ego, or was there a higher and better use to which the time could be put? The higher and better use I came up with was to use the time to host a Broad Universe orientation for any writers who wanted to learn more and possibly join. To prepare for this, I made up flyers and posted them around the con. I printed out a few dozen copies of the Broad Universe overview sheet, which can be found in PDF form on the Broad Universe Web site. I also spent some time reading over the site, trying to prepare myself to answer questions. There are many useful resources on the Broad Universe site, and it would be nice, as new resources are developed, to alert the group to their existence so others can take advantage of them. If you design a flyer, or a poster, or an informational brochure that you think is particularly elegant, you can alert the group by dropping an email to Nancy Jane Moore. She can send an email to the membership and let everyone know that the resource is available. The concept of create once, use many times cannot be underestimated.

Pay it Forward
Orycon. The big day arrived. I'd put up my posters, I'd folded up some fliers, I'd come up with witty and cogent answers to potential questions. I was ready.

One person showed up.

She was a young writer who was hoping to get into Clarion. She'd been a quarter-finalist in the Writers of the Future, and had seen her first story published in a small anthology. I explained the concept of Broad Universe to her and gave her the PDF of the flyer from the Website. I thought the whole thing was going to be a bit of a bust. Except it wasn't. Because instead of giving some kind of presentation, I ended up just talking. To one person. For about an hour. She asked questions: Was it usual to expect editors to want major changes in stories? How many magazines still send galleys out? Was Clarion really worth the time and money?

I answered her questions as best I could. It was actually surprising to me just how many of her questions I could answer with the authority of experience. I shared my experiences with her, offered her my email and the URL of my blog, and invited her to stay in touch if she had questions.

Looking back on the small distance I've come over the past couple of years (and looking forward to the much greater distance I still have to travel) I have to say that I couldn't have done it without dozens of more experienced writers willing to pay it forward. I can't think of any better way to build the reputation of Broad Universe and ensure a healthy increase in membership for years to come.

My point ... and I do have one
In our busy creative lives, it's easy to rely on the oft-referred to, yet mysteriously omniabsent "someone else." Believe me, I know. "Someone else" is as familiar to me as that invisible little guy in the Family Circus comics. It's so nice to imagine that "someone else" is running around out there, leaving little line-dash trails between the houses, talking up the group, posting emails, writing newsletters, spilling Jeffy's milk ...

There are plenty of "someone elses." This organization is rich with them. But they need your help. Joining is only the first step. You also have to join in. Oh, and publish lots of stuff. Because really, in the final analysis, it's the "P" that's probably the most important of all.