CLIENT: “Rebecca, does it bug you when you see other coaches throwing around words like “truth” and “vulnerability” as marketing tactics, but who aren’t actually being that vulnerable?
ME: No, and here’s why. The Universe is ALWAYS listening and when you declare that you’re all about truth, authenticity and vulnerability, you WILL be given an initiation. An opportunity to walk your talk (many, in fact).
This is exactly what happened to me last summer, when I posted in a Facebook group for a mastermind I was part of to promote my “Feel-good marketing formula” live call, and recieved a flood of negative feedback criticizing the post, questioning my intentions, etc.
I felt like the biggest fraud/loser ever – but instead of hiding that and pretting everything was flowing along beautifully (what my ego wanted to do) I TALKED ABOUT IT. Publicly.
I published the monst honest/scary/tender post I’d ever written on Facebook, and interestingly, it was the first time I went “mini-viral.” Hundreds of likes and comments.
Since then the opportunities to be vulnerable haven’t stopped (basically if you are a human you will have no shortage of “vulnerable marketing content” lol).
All of that to say…
I actually do a happy dance whenever I see someone embracing vulnerability in their marketing. I want it desperately.
1) For selfish reasons – it makes my FB newsfeed FAR more interesting to read.
2) Because I want to live in a world where people feel less shame, where social media is a force of connection rather than isolation and comparison.
3) I know in my gut that if people aren’t actually willing to WALK THE WALK of vulnerability and authenticity – no one will listen or care (talking about something without embodying it is boring).
Seriously.
We’re all getting wiser and more intuitive by the day. We can FEEL when a message is not really true and it does NOT inspire us to whip out our credit cards.
So no, people using truth and authenticity as marketing tactics do not worry me in the slightest – because doing so won’t actually work (in the long term) unless they actually do the work. And the work? Is something I desperately want more people to do.