Did you know you were a marketer?

Steven Bell does an amazing job of making sure that academic librarians are kept-up, including yours truly (thank you!), as he showed me a MUST-READ blog post entitled, You ARE a marketer. Deal with it. (Amen!) from the Creating Passionate Users blog.

I say it's a must read because the post gets at what the real essence of marketing is - a means of connecting with our patrons. Not connecting in an artificial, "fluff" kind of way mind you, but bridging the gap between what we have to offer and patrons' needs. The post also discusses the negative connotations associated with marketing/marketers, which I bet at least some of you have witnessed coming up in conversations with colleagues. The author even suggests devising a new word for marketing, which I've thought of doing before too but without any luck. As the post points out, all of us are marketers anyway so it's time to face the music. Be sure to look at the comparison between "Old School Marketing" and "Neo-marketing" (great for showing to skeptics). After reading, you'll be well-armed to get out there and market with pride!