How To Think About Authentic Marketing (a new approach)

The goal is to:

• Be yourself

• Find your soul tribe

• Monetize your creativity

• And have a good ass time doing it

You will discover:

1. The most powerful concept in marketing

2. How to get infinite authentic content ideas

3. How to market in an authentic way that actually gets results

This letter explores how I got my mind clear about marketing my work in an authentic way in the digital age (and how you can too).

After reading this letter, you will have more clarity about how to start showing up as your authentic self, start to find your fans, and thrive in the new economy.

If you don't want to rely on an incredibly unlikely series of lucky events happening to you, this short read will be insanely valuable for you.

My Dilemma

Ever since I became an adult, I’ve had a guilty pleasure…

I became ridiculously obsessed with studying advertising, copywriting, branding and marketing.

I’ve read all the books, spent thousands on courses, worked as a copywriter, freelanced as a social media manager, a specialist on the Google Ads support, built websites, and tried basically every way to make money online.

While this was an incredible learning experience, sure, I was stuck with an inner conflict which annoyed the living crap out of me.

No matter how hard I tried, it was always a challenge to fit my colorful ass into the bleak business world because… In the shadows, deep down, I was really an artist… I was a creative person, a visionary, a dreamer, an entertainer, a truth seeker. And I always had to suppress this part of me to force fit my round peg into the square hole of society because that’s where I belonged. Or at least so I thought.

So naturally I was afraid to put myself out there, in front of everyone, and show them who I really was. To accept and own that vulnerable part of myself... It was the scariest thing in the world.

So I would make deeply personal music in the dark, and dream of one day being courageous enough to show people…

Funnily enough, I was much better at helping other people with marketing, but hopeless when it came to promoting my own stuff.

It felt wrong. It felt weird. It was uncomfortable. It was scary. It made me cringe.

It’s crazy because I had created something beautiful to share with the world. I should want to share it…

But social media?

Exposing my heart for the world to see?

Nooo thank you. Not for me. Nope. Uh-uh.

This was my dilemma for the longest time; the bane of my existence.

But today, I am proud to say I’ve finally been able to slay the dragon that held me back for so long.

I’ve come out on the other side and have transcended the fear and discomfort associated with being an entrepreneurial artist.

And now I want to teach you how to do the same.

Here’s some of my recent growth:

• I went from shy, depressed and insecure to a confident content creator and freestyle rapper

• I’ve shown up authentically and shared my soul on social media for the past 2 years, but especially the past couple of months.

• I got my personal music accepted into some official Spotify playlists

• I grew my Threads account from 0 to 700+ followers in my first 30 days by being real AF

• I made dozens of friends & fans in my first couple of weeks on Threads

• I received 100s of new listeners in the first few weeks of promoting my own music, and keep getting consistent streams.

Being an obsessive person addicted to learning and experimenting, I have learned so much in the past 6 years of the marketing world. Not to mention the 2 years of being raw on social media, and having dissected the mindset, worldview & philosophy needed to thrive in the new economy as your true self.

Now this doesn’t mean I don’t experience anxiety anymore. I’m human. I have bad days. But it’s much less now than it was before. I am now able to show up more authentically online. Through everything I’ve learned over years, I know that I can help you do that as well. My goal here is to educate and inspire you to develop the right mindset, to find your fans and have a good time while eventually getting paid for being your beautiful self. That is the goal.

So anyway, I’ve been thinking a lot about this problem we have with putting ourselves out there, and exposing our work with the world.

While it’s definitely a human thing to want to be loved and appreciated, I think the reason why we creative people struggle so much with this is because we are low-key highly sensitive people.

This sensitivity makes us talented creators, yes, but terrible marketers.

Because to market, advertise, promote something effectively… you need to have kind of a cold detachment to the results. You can never take things personally. You have to be as sober as a judge, look straight at the data and make the right decisions.

So to be successful as an indie creator, you need to step into the entrepreneurial mindset for a bit and think that “this is just data, and we’re simply testing things here”. And if something fails, you’ll be back tomorrow with the same level of enthusiasm. You keep pushing on relentlessly, despite how you feel. That is the entrepreneurial artist's way.

Because if you are an indie creator, you are more than likely also the marketer of your work. You are both the artist and the entrepreneur wrapped into one.

And this can be incredibly difficult at times because we’re not just marketing any old piece of junk here, we’re literally giving people the directions back to our sensitive little hearts…

Just imagine serving others on a platter: 

"Here's a piece of my heart, this is what I love more than anything, this is who I am…" 🫣

It takes real GUTS to do that. Let’s be real.

You risk being rejected, embarrassed, ignored and judged.

Not for who you pretend to be, but for who you really are.

That’s why to be a true artist, a creative person, out there, today, promoting your shit, is nothing short of heroic. Seriously.

If you are a creator who puts your work out there consistently, then you deserve some freakin’ respect. Because that is not easy. That takes real courage. 🤜🤛

And I’m with you, in the arena, fighting the same demons. I’m by your side, cheering you on. I’m your trusty blacksmith, forging you the shields and swords necessary to win. You can count on me to show up for you.

Now back to my story of how I overcame this shit…

So yeah, like I was saying, it just didn't feel right for me to promote my work.

It was like these two opposing worlds of mine would never team up and collab. Kind of like a split-personality type disorder. I was completely at odds with myself. I was either working on a business or I was making art, but never both.

It just didn’t feel right to market my own music, to make content, I felt like I had to sacrifice a piece of my integrity. And I didn’t want to do that. I refused to show up fake because that’s not who I am.

So I would rarely post anything, or share the songs I made with my followers (except for a quick little Instagram story snippet here and there).

And this used to drive me crazy. Really. Because I wanted to share my art with the world, but felt so much resistance to do so. “How the hell was I supposed to fix this problem?”, I thought to myself.

It wasn’t as easy as following some step-by-step formula for me. Nope. I was different. I needed to go deeper. Much deeper. I needed to find the answer. 

The path ahead of me was one of transformational growth, and so naturally I felt strong resistance in the pursuit. “How do I combine my love for being authentic and making art… with business and advertising? How do I reconcile these two opposing forces inside of me?”…

After years of head-banging against the wall, it led me to crack open my stubborn mind and discover what actually worked…

I finally figured out how to successfully promote my shit to the world with the confidence of a 5-year old in a batman costume.

I discovered how to show up as myself, with no need to pretend or be fake.

A genuine way to share my art, and grow an audience of like-minded spirits and actually feel good about it.

I discovered what I like to call “authentic marketing” and finding my soul tribe.

Combining art & advertising in an authentic way that actually gets results.

This was the only way I was ever going to have a fulfilling career as a creative person.

I discovered… The Power of Empathy

I always thought art was all about the artist and everybody else can just f*ck off if they don’t like it.

While I still sort of feel that way, I discovered that I can be authentic and make what I want to make, while still making fans along the way. Because it turns out, I am not a martian. I am not an alien. And neither are you. Or maybe we are... But we’re not the only aliens out there!

Now, while authenticity is about being true to yourself and others – I’m being a bit unpredictable here I guess – by explaining the concept of “authentic marketing” from the opposite viewpoint, namely, the perspective of the market, of the other person, from a place of understanding others.

This is because we don’t want to be stubbornly selfish here, and make this all about ourselves. We want to grow and include other people on this journey. Let me explain.

If you really want to reach anybody effectively, and share your work with the world, you’re going to have to step out of your own bubble to see things from the perspective of the audience.

We are entertainers too, you know. We are also performers. And we want to provide great experiences for our fans. That’s our other half, if you will. Without our fans, we can’t be successful with our work.

In short, we need to learn “marketing”.

But don’t worry, you don’t need to sell your soul in order to be an effective marketer. Not at all.

There is a way for us to do this in a way that is cool and authentic.

Which is what I'll teach you in these letters.

The Most Powerful Concept I Learned From Studying Marketing 

One thing everybody gets wrong about marketing is that it is not about using slick words and glossy images to somehow “hypnotize” people to buy. 

It’s not about discounts or special deals or annoying people.

It’s not even about having the best product.

Rather… it’s about empathy. 

Real, deep, human empathy.

The greatest marketers and salespeople are paradoxically the people with the most empathy. They are the best listeners with the most curiosity of how they can help you get what you want. Because the only way we succeed in life (as a creator) is by helping others.

Now here’s the problem I keep seeing:

Through the years, I’ve seen soo many artists who insist that people should rise to their level.

They will use big words to sound smart and sophisticated, they will post artsy pictures without any context, their branding is all over the place and their content seems to lack any form of structure and clarity.

They stubbornly refuse to play the game by its rules, insisting on doing things their way, and as a result they keep failing over and over again. It’s remarkably common.

They’re like:
“I felt like posting this today, here it is, here’s my work, here’s my art!” without any serious consideration of the person that’s gonna see it.

While this might be very “authentic”... It's also very immature. It’s… selfish. It’s just unproductive.

Let’s be real.

If you’re not going to make an effort to be at least a little entertaining, then you should honestly just save it for yourself and stop wasting our time.

And it’s not just artists we’re talking about here, it’s very common in the business world too.

Every damn day on social media I keep seeing this. I’ve had clients like this. And basically everyone who isn’t a creator is like this. I used to suffer from the disease myself as well…

It’s the path of least resistance when it comes to marketing. To be lazy and selfish. To barely consider the person on the other end.

Now, looking at this from a bit of distance, isn't it crazy to assume people will just know what the hell you’re talking about without context and some decent storytelling?

(like especially when you’ve invested little to no time in understanding how social media works, how human psychology works, and what effective advertising even looks like… c’mon guys)

You can’t just, for example, post your work once a week on your Instagram stories without context and expect results. That’s just… insane.

Here’s the reality:

People are busy. People are stressed. People are tired.

Imagine them always having 20+ tabs open with music blaring and kids screaming in the background. It’s not too far from reality.

Everyone is deep in their own little bubble. They can’t see whatever it is that you see so clearly.  Let’s be real guys. Their social media algorithms have been trained for years to provide them with the biggest dopamine hits possible. And you’re competing with that.

So yeah. People are numb these days. They are someplace else, thinking about something completely different. Just like the student in the back of the classroom, with his headphones, sketching doodles in his notebook… and you’re that boring old teacher.

How do you grab that student’s attention? Easy.

You have to start posting more about…

…SEX!

Nah, I’m just kidding.

Here’s exactly how you do it:

• Learn the art of crafting compelling hooks / headlines / titles / thumbnails

• Make your content as interesting as possible for who you want to reach

• Tell better stories (stories are everything)

• Become a student of human psychology

• Study advertising principles

• Make it entertaining

• Or beautiful

• Or funny

• Please!

And whatever you do, don’t be boring. Ever.

That is the “kiss of death” as a famous millionaire marketer once said. (Dan Kennedy, the OG)

Now, unless you’re actually looking for a manager to take care of this, it’s your job to learn it.

Is it hard? Yes. But you have so many tools and resources at your disposal these days, man. And don’t forget you have your own beautiful creative mind. You can do anything. And luckily, you also have me, and I am here to teach you everything I’ve learned through years of unimaginable pain and suffering.

Just do the things I listed out above. OK? Do them on repeat.

Drill your message into our heads so we’ll remember you. Repetition is good. Especially if you have something important to share. You will need to repeat it often. Very often. Keep posting. The only person who is going to remember is you. Remember: nobody cares. Nobody finds you annoying. And even if they do - they're not your fans - so f*ck them. So just keep posting. Keep promoting. That’s what your fans want from you. And that’s how you’re gonna grow.

So always be pushing your message, day in and day out, in a way that’s simple and entertaining.

And this requires empathy because you have to picture the other person’s experience and make it better. 

So to summarize:

If you truly believe in your product, song or service — and that it can really benefit someone’s life, it’s your job to learn how to advertise the damn thing in a way that actually captures people’s attention.

You can't just expect people to instantly know what the hell you’re talking about. To instantly recognize your greatness. You have to break it down. You have to simplify it. By a lot. And you have to format it into the specific social media cultures you’re using. It is what it is.

In the context of Instagram, for a quick example, you never post videos that are 2+ minutes long, that take forever getting into. You keep them less than 90 seconds, and the first 3 seconds are absolutely crucial, or you’re gonna get scrolled. That’s what gets results.

So, in essence:

• Practice your empathy

• Understand social media

• Become a student of marketing

“What the hell does this have to do with being authentic?”

Look. This is what makes marketing effective. When we accept that, we can start being authentic in a way that gets results. Which is what we want, right? We want results. We’re not just crazy people ranting into the void. We want to actually grow a following we can spread our work to. That’s why we’re here.

Okay, that makes sense, so what do I do?

Great question.

First, you need to ask yourself:

who are you even creating this for?

For me, that is my younger self, which means any creator struggling with the same issues I used to struggle with. So it’s very easy for me to talk and empathize with this person in my material because… I used to be them. I understand his personality, problems and desires.

And so, just to make this super easy for you, if you want to grow a personal brand, I always recommend to focus on creating for someone with the same personality type as you. (This will also allow you to be as authentic as possible; no need to water yourself down) Your content is now a conversation with that person only. Forget everyone else. I know this is hard but here’s the thing:

You CAN’T talk to everyone at the same time. Imagine if you would have the same conversation with a 5 year old, an old lady, and someone in their early twenties. You can’t. We’re all different. We all have different personality types. So you have to get specific here. There’s no way around it. Pick one.

When you know who you want to reach, ask yourself:

What is the single most valuable thing I could possibly say to them?

When you get crystal clear on these things, you’ll be able to effortlessly create new content, and promote your stuff with confidence. You’ll know what your message is and who you’re talking to. The words will just flow out of you.

Take me as an example. I know that the person I speak to is someone who values authenticity, individuality, philosophy, art, marketing, entrepreneurship and personal development. They vibe with me because we are like minded. People who don’t value those things don't like me or my content and that’s okay. You can’t please everyone.

• What You Do

• What You Stand For

• Who You’re Creating For

Fill these out for yourself and keep them in mind.

By knowing all of this, I understand more or less what my content should look like.

Boom. I now have infinite ideas about what to post.

So that’s why I’m posting things like:

• Raw and real truths about myself.

• Educational content about marketing.

• Inspirational posts about personal development.

• Philosophical musings about business, life, art and media.

• But I also shitpost, freestyle rap & entertain because I just happen to be a playful guy.

This all comes naturally to me because it springs from my personality, my values and my interests.

But remember, these things will only speak to a specific type of person.

The average person will NOT resonate with these things, but the kind of person I am creating for will looove that shit.

So by continuing to be authentic and specific in my content, I am now someone else’s special flavor they can’t get from anywhere else. That someone is in my tribe. And that’s the only person out there that would pay me for being me. So that’s the only person I give a care about. (the only person I can inspire and help are people who actually resonate with the real me, my art and my message. I say that’s working smart, not hard.)

But none of this would even matter if I hadn’t first learned how to write, speak and market my work in a persuasive way.

And it also wouldn’t matter if I didn’t post consistently, and provided actual value to people. It wouldn’t matter unless I had empathy.

Because you can have the coolest material in the world, but one post a week is probably not going to be enough. You need to be more repetitive. (if this is uncomfortable for you right now, know that this will become easy with practice, experience, understanding and clarity)

Your brand needs to stand for something. You need to show up to entertain or educate your fans and future fans regularly. This is how you will become noticed and remembered. This is how you attract a loyal following of fans these days. OK?

So, if you have an important message, a beautiful work of art, or a life changing business, then it is equally your job to figure out how to market and present it. Just like it is the unspoken task of a teacher to adapt herself to the unique learning style of her student. If you really care about spreading your message, you can’t have everything your way. It’s not all about you. You have to be a little selfless here and provide value to people.

This is the only way you are going to amass an audience to distribute your work to. (without relying on luck)

When you have a decent following on social media, you can start to monetize your creativity. (get paid for being yourself)

When you have a following, you can advertise to thousands of people FOR FREE.

Do you realize how crazy that is??

This has NEVER been possible in the history of mankind… and you’re still complaining?

Get over yourself.

There are solutions to whatever problems you have right now. You have free tools at your disposal and you have the potential to reach millions of people every day. Focus on the positives. Adopt a growth mindset. Become a winner. Enjoy the process of figuring things out.

All we have to do is shape our marketing material to fit the mold of the media and the marketplace. We have to be students of the platforms, and be curious about what resonates and what doesn’t. Always.

To reiterate, you cannot be selfish here, can’t have ego, can’t be entitled, can’t be stubborn. You can’t worry about what some people are going to think about you. You can’t hold onto an image of who you should be. Of who you were in the past. Of who your friends want you to be. You have to let go of all that shit. Your marketing needs to be as effective as possible for the person you seek to inspire. That’s it. You need to be in service of your work and its distribution, both. In short, you have to GROW. You have to be a risk taker. You have to be an entrepreneur.

And you’re also gonna have to become a mad scientist here alright, constantly experimenting with what works and what doesn’t.

The goal is to keep searching for the perfect combination of what is authentic to you, and what other people also happen to resonate with.
And this takes TIME. You cannot expect results with anything less than 7 months of consistently trying. That’s just the reality. I’m not here to lie to you and make it seem easier than it is like other people do just so you’ll buy their online course.

But if you commit yourself to this lifestyle, you will end up finding the middle way at some point; the intersection between the two:

Authentic Marketing = What you love + What the market loves

When you find the winning combination, you will love creating content & promoting yourself and your work. You’ll have your tribe of people who love you and your work. And that is an amazing feeling. That’s when you can really start to enjoy the process of being yourself and sharing your work on social media.

If you’re not counting on luck to make your dreams come true, the only way to win is by:

1. Understanding who you are

2. Understanding what people respond to

3. Understanding the platforms you’re using

The only way you will learn all of this is by experience. AKA, Data. Shit tons of data. Always be testing. What worked for someone else might not work for you.

And don’t worry about having perfect content right now. Just keep testing and developing your style. This is how you’re going to succeed in the long run. Remember that this is a game, not life or death. If you post something embarrassing today, most people will forget it by tomorrow. Trust me. Maybe it’s tough love when I say this but you are not as important as you think (yet). This will be scary for a while, but your courage will grow, and I will teach you how to be a badass and not give a f*ck what people think of you.

When you know what resonates, that’s when you can actually start to distribute your real work, because now they’re actually paying attention to you. Which is the point. We don’t wanna be posting to crickets. We want to change people’s lives.

Once you get the hang of things, you will develop your own marketing strategy, your own style, people will start to become true fans, and like I said you will start to actually love promoting your work.

That’s the ultimate goal with authentic marketing.

To get you there.

So wrapping Things up

Let’s be clear. I’m not saying this is going to be easy. Great things always take time and courage. This is your life’s work we’re talking about here. Accept that it’s gonna take a lot of time and effort to figure out your unique place in the digital world. Your place between authenticity and the market. Most likely, it’s going to include a lot of falling flat on the face. We’re learning how to walk here, with the confidence of an ostrich, before we set off, and transform into an eagle that can soar high in the sky. 

And I believe that it’s fundamentally our life task as artists, to find out who we are and how to coexist with the rest of the world. How to use our gifts to benefit mankind and inspire the human spirit. That’s how we’re going to make a real impact. And that’s no easy task, but definitely a worthy one.

So let’s go.

I hope you enjoyed this newsletter.

Stay blessed,

Robin Mo

PS.

In the upcoming newsletters we will talk about:

• How to find your soul tribe

• How think about distributing your work on social media

• The mindset that changed my life from shy to confident