Recently on Pantheon, Star Foster pondered about what it means for the Pagan community to go mainstream. There was a lot of good discussion, but one point that struck me was the oft-repeated argument that there is a lot of good Pagan work going on in the community, but it doesn't always get much attention in the Pagan media. Star and Cara Schulz rightfully pointed out that we can't give it attention if we don't know it's happening. Others added that Pagans aren't always very good at marketing (or even returning phone calls). It got me thinking about some of the strategies that businesses use to engage with their customers and whether those strategies could be adapted by the Pagan community. Absolutely!
1. Decide what it's about
When Selena Fox talks to the media, which she does often and with great success, she talks about Paganism and what the Pagan community wants, needs, deserves, and has accomplished. Selena is a force of nature, works tirelessly, and gets a lot done, but she never makes it about her. She never boasts about how wonderful she is or complains about how tired she is (and she is wonderful and I imagine she must be very tired by the end of her day). You need to decide if the work you do is about you or the service. If it's about you, then you will likely be accused of self-aggrandizement and people will lose interest quickly. If it's about the service, people will always want to hear more about what you're doing. That's why we can't get enough of Selena and other Pagans like her.
2. Start with what you've got
Check your email every day. Check your voice mail and return phone calls. Do you have a newsletter? Add just a few people to the list of recipients, including your local Pagan media.
3. Get listed on the Witches' Voice
It's free to be listed on the Witches' Voice and it's one of the most popular resources for Pagans to find local people, groups, shops, and events. It's one of the easiest ways you can immediately begin to draw more attention to your activities.
4. Start a website
People will look for you online; that's just a given nowadays. A website doesn't have to be expensive nor complicated. It's better if you can dish out $20 for the annual fee of your own domain, but the Pagan community is pretty relaxed and forgiving about such things. A free option such as Google Sites would be adequate. A blogging platform such as WordPress or Google Blogger is also a good option. These platforms provide free templates to make the designing process easy. They also make editing quick and easy so you can update your site periodically.
5. Embrace social media
According to a recent study, marketers plan to increase their social media budgets by 47% in the coming year. Facebook launched in 2004 and while something else will replace it eventually, social media - that is, the technology to turn communication into dialogue - is not going away. If you think Twitter is all about telling the world what you're having for lunch, check out Las Vegas Pagan Pride, which just runs a schedule of events and has over 1,000 followers, or Rowan Pendragon who has amassed over 2,000 followers by sharing inspirational quotes, magickal information and other tips, and engaging others in conversation. Social media sites are the easiest and quickest way to reach an audience online in real time and your online friends are an excellent source for help and new ideas.
6. Explore communities
There are other sites that you can use instead of or in addition to the well-known social sites. Meetup.com and Pagan-specific online communities such as PaganSpace.net are good options to help spread the word about your work.
7. Whatever you do, enjoy it and do it well
You don't have to start a website and a blog and be on Facebook and be on Twitter and be on Google+ and be on PaganSpace. If you can manage all these and more, great! But if not, don't despair. It's better to do one thing well than a lot of things mediocrely. If you find one of these that you actually like, it won't be a chore to engage in it.
8. Outsource
There are a number of legitimate reasons why you may not be able to do the marketing for yourself or your organization. Perhaps you lack the hardware, you have a terrible internet connection, you work better with people than machines, you think Angry Birds is a Dominionist conspiracy and want nothing to do with the internet. It's true that setting up your strategy can be time-consuming, but once it's up and running, maintaining it all doesn't have to take more than about an hour or two a week. And lucky for you, there are others than can help you or do the work altogether. Tap into your community.
9. Barter
One common complaint from Pagans is the lack of money. All the marketing mediums mentioned above - websites, blogs, social media sites and communities - have zero cost attached to them. In fact, you can actually make money off your website and blog. Only the possibility of outsourcing may have a price, but that doesn't mean you have to pay it with cash. The Pagan community has a deep pool of talent and skills that includes teaching, developing and leading ritual, creating art, divination, crafting ritual tools, making jewelry, and much more, and don't neglect the skills that support your livelihood. Offer what you have to get what you want.
These are just a few easy methods to help promote your work. Do you have other ideas? I'd love to hear them!
0 comments:
Post a Comment