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I highly recommend Your Music, Your People, a recently released short ebook by Derek Sivers.

You can buy a copy or read the whole thing for free at that link. (How cool is that.)

The book is ostensibly written for independent musicians, but the messages apply equally to independent consultants.

Here’s a quote:

“Marketing means making it easy for people to notice you, relate to you, remember you, and tell their friends about you.

Marketing means listening for what people need, and creating something surprisingly tailored for them.

Marketing means getting to know people, making a deeper connection, and keeping in touch.”

Last week I shared the video of David A. Fields discussing the importance of crafting your fishing line. Here is Sivers with a similar message:

A curious answer to the most common question People will always and forever ask you, “What kind of music do you do?” You will always and forever have to answer that question. So have a good description prepared in advance. Many musicians avoid answering by saying, “We play all styles.” No you don’t. That’s like saying, “I speak all languages.” Many musicians avoid answering by saying, “We are totally unique.” No you’re not. If you use notes, instruments, beats, or words, you’re not totally unique. If you give people a non-answer like this, you lose them. You had the chance to make a fan, and you blew it. They won’t remember you because you gave them nothing to remember. You didn’t make them curious. Imagine if you had said, “We sound like the smell of fresh baked bread.”