So where do we go from here?

If you want something bad enough, you will think of a way to make it happen.  Learning how to promote yourself and your own business sounds a lot easier than it actually is.  I know firsthand that the personal feeling of satisfaction is great and the payout even greater.

Since I am very much of aware of what the problem is (and in this case it's getting people to know who you are), I had to figure out how to get it done.

From a business perspective, I knew that you had to pick your brand and then run with it.  For me, my business (Four Brothers Publications) is editing and ghostwriting.  These are two of my passions so why not incorporate them into my business?  The next thing is to update my website to reflect the services that I'm offering.  Originally, my website was set up to be able to sell my book, but it wasn't until now that I really thought about selling "me".  I had to determine what my hook was going to be...or more succinctly put, what is my selling point?  What would make people want to do business with me?

I decided to pull on my previous unpleasant experiences with entrepreneurs in the past and do the opposite of what they did.  You see, when you are in business for yourself, the thing that I've come to realize is that it's not just the product or services that you are offering that is of great importance.  You are also selling an experience...and if your clients have a good experience, they will continue to do business with you, which translates to loyalty.  They will also unwittingly become a walking, talking, breathing commercial for you.  They will tell others about their experience with you.  But this works as a double-edged sword.  If you're client has a bad experience with you, they will tell twice as many people.  I have my Facebook page for my business linked to my website and I'm now ready to start my advertising campaign for the business.

As for the book, I have PR cards printed and I'm going to several major cities with a friend and hand them out.  I know that most of my cards will wind up on the ground, but if 5% of the people that I hand those cards out to like the synopsis on the back, hopefully, they will go to look for the book in a local area bookstore or go to my website to purchase it.

I have updated my press releases to target my specific audience.  For instance, I know that two of the characters in the book are Christian, and they rely heavily on their Christian faith to get through some of the circumstances in the story.  One press release will play up those characters and that angle of the plot, and then I will send those to church groups, even if the book overall may be deemed "non-christian".  One of the characters is gay and there are circumstances that are specific to the gay community that are addressed within the storyline.  As a result, one press release will play up his situation and it will be aimed at groups in and of the LGBT community.  You have the urban fiction reading crowd; and since one of the characters is a dealer, I've written a press release to target that audience.  Do you see where I'm going with this?

I'll let you know how I do...but the one thing that rings true to me is that failure is not an option for me.  I've come too far and invested too much time, money and energy to stop now.

So my friend, stay true to your dream.  Keep it moving forward at all times, and as I tell one of my clients on a consistent basis...'Do you to the 10th Power'!

Love and Peace,

J.L. Whitehead

The disparities in American culture

ARTICLE THAT RAN ON THE EXAMINER

 

There’s a saying that I’ve heard echoed in my family that goes something like this: “Someone’s got to be rich and someone’s got to be poor”.  I didn’t really understand it then since at the time, I thought that I didn’t fit either extreme.  My family wasn’t wealthy but we were by no means poor.  We always had a roof over our heads and somehow, we always managed to have just enough to get by.

            I had just crossed the Benjamin Franklin Bridge, coming from downtown Philadelphia into New Jersey when just to my left; I spied what initially appeared to be the tops of tents.  Someone had mentioned to me in passing that there was a tent city where people actually lived year round.  I didn’t believe it until I saw it for myself.

            To think that people live in conditions like this in one of the wealthiest nations in the world is not only a shame; it is a direct insult to humanity.  Have we become so engrossed in our own personal gain that we have forgotten that there are people far worse off than we can ever imagine being ourselves?  Have we become so numb to the plight of our fellow man that we forget that somewhere out there, someone is going without the barest of necessities?

            I don’t begrudge wealthy people their wealth; but the simple reality of the matter is that we are living in a time where the wealthy do indeed get wealthier and the poorer get poorer.  Transition Park is a place located in Camden, NJ were people actually live because they simply have no place else to go.  It is a place initially established as temporary residence until permanent housing can be found for the people that have to live there.

            There are those who will go about their daily business thinking that the poor of this country have a roof over their head even if it is in a run-down tenement somewhere, and those that don’t are simply mentally ill or have a substance abuse problem.  This may be part of the problem.

            But when you get to the heart of the matter, the gap between the haves and have nots is simply too great to ignore.  As I look at these pictures, I can’t help but think that somewhere, there’s someone that is upset that they will have to forgo one of the three vacations that they are allowed to take this year.  That is a reality for some of the citizens of this country.  I look at these pictures and I realize that this is just as much a reality for citizens of this country, and I can’t help but think of another saying that I grew up with.  That saying is: “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

J.L. Whitehead