I Hate Marketing, But I Do It Anyway.

I hate marketing (and “sales”).

I hate it so much.

What is it?

What is it to not only tell the world that you exist and you have something for them, but to say it in a way that makes them want it…even if they don’t?

I’ve always heard marketing was born with the Industrial Revolution. We can mass produce stuff now, so we need to get people to buy it.

In the hustle world, you’re a weenie if you’re not willing to market and sell.

If you are willing to take no for an answer.

You’re not that killer who will succeed.

You need to get inbound and outbound leads.

You need to use psychology and play on “the way people are” to get them scared about their pain point, or, a little better, hopeful about their dreams.

“You need to do this, because people don’t know what’s good for them”.

“It’s loving to use sales tactics, because your thing will change their life—they just don’t know it.“

“It’s a good thing to manipulate people, and then once you get them to buy the thing, make sure you have an ironclad contract so that as soon as they realize they don’t want it after all, there is nothing they can do about it.“

“Because that too is loving. Don’t let them out of that program. Make them do the thing they think they don’t really need and you’ll change their life.“

But that is not how it works. That’s just what we tell ourselves to feel okay about tricking people.

We played on their fears. We played on their propensity for wanting status (oh, everyone wants status, especially people who are trying desperately to convince themselves they don’t).

Status: As Seth Godin puts it, “People like us do things like this.”

Here’s my dilemma. I have a thing I want people to participate in. I don’t know if it is right for you, so I’m going to try to be as dry as possible and give you the information you need to make a decision.

It is my Kingdom Author Challenge. It will be half of a Saturday where I teach people how to write a transformational, reader-focused book.

September 13th. 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Central Daylight Time.

It is FREE.

There will be a pitch for my publishing services, and/or my ghostwriting services, and/or my coaching services at IndieChristianBook.com, and ChristianGhostwriting.com.

Along with my very best stuff on the subject, there will likely be some “marketing” and “sales” that day, in spite of myself.

I’m telling you now, so you can decide beforehand if that’s something you are actually in need of.

You can come to my webinar and you can just sit there and learn a whole lot about how to write and publish a faith-based book.

You can decide for yourself if you would like to do more than that, which will cost you a lot of money.

It’s the perfect thing for those who really want it, and everyone who takes that step with us does so because of a calling from God. That’s amazing and just the sort of client I pray for God to send.

But I’ve helped lots and lots of people for free through the Kingdom Author Challenge, and I’m very happy to do it.

You can get your spot right here at www.WriteAndServe.com.

This is the part where marketing specialists say I should tell you that space is limited, but it is not limited. We could do this with a thousand people or one person. It’s all the same, because it’s me teaching on Zoom.

To be fair and honest, the programs are somewhat limited because of capacity constraints. All our services are very personal and take up a good chunk of my time and my team’s time. But we can talk about that later.

If you think you might like to write a nonfiction book that helps people, then it’s a good use of a Saturday.

Back to marketing.

Here’s what I hate the most about being marketed to:

It pulls me out of my center, which is to say, it pulls me out of the Spirit. It pulls me away from who I am in Christ and into the “world”.

It creates envy, fear, stress, coveting, a longing not for heaven, but something earthly.

Marketers feed into my flesh every time.

Here are some examples:

[RIGHT HERE, MY CARPAL TUNNEL IS BOTHERING ME AND MY BRAIN IS TIRED. I’M ASKING CLAUDE.AI TO TAKE OVER FROM HERE. I’LL COME BACK AT THE END.]

Here are some examples:

"Only 3 spots left!" (There were never only 3 spots)

"This price expires at midnight!" (It doesn't - they'll honor it tomorrow)

"You're missing out on the life you deserve!" (Am I? According to whom?)

"Everyone else is already doing this!" (So what? Since when do I follow everyone else?)

"Your competition is getting ahead of you!" (What competition? I'm running my own race)

And here's the thing that breaks my heart: (Jeff here again, “Here’s the thing,” is a very A.I. way to start a paragraph. Okay, back to the bot).

I know there are people God has called me to serve through writing. I know there are messages trapped in hearts that need to get onto pages. I know the Kingdom advances when God's people share their testimonies and wisdom.

But I don’t want to manipulate people into that calling. (Claude is making me sound rather heroic, don’t you think?)

So here's my anti-marketing marketing:

I trust the Holy Spirit to move hearts more than I trust funnels to capture emails.

I believe in invitation over persuasion.

I believe that if God has called you to write, you'll know it - not because I scared you into it, but because something in your spirit leaps when you hear about it.

I believe in telling you exactly what something costs - in time, money, and effort - so you can count the cost like Jesus said to. (Ooh, good one, Claude.)

I believe that "no" is a complete answer, and I celebrate when people have the wisdom to say it.

I believe that the right people will find the right programs at the right time, and forcing that timing through manipulation is actually violence against God's perfect orchestration.

The Kingdom Author Challenge exists because I genuinely want to give away what I've learned about writing transformational books.

(This next part is me, not Claude.) It also exists because I run a business for people who need my services enough that the price is worth it and working with me is a win-win.

Some people will want more help after that. Most won't. Both responses are right.

(Back to Claude)

Marketing says I should end this with urgency.

Instead, I'll end with peace:

If you're supposed to be there, you'll be there.

If you're not, you won't.

And either way, God's purposes will prevail.

That's not marketing.

That's faith.

And that's all I've got.

[GOOD JOB, CLAUDE. WHILE WE’RE HERE, CAN YOU PLEASE GIVE US 5 WAYS TO RESIST MARKETING?]

5 Ways to Resist Marketing (And Stay Human)

1. Practice the Sacred Pause

When you feel that urgency rising—"Buy now!" "Last chance!" "Don't miss out!"—stop. Breathe. Wait 48 hours minimum. If it's real, it will still be real in two days. If it's manufactured urgency, the spell will break. The pause is where manipulation dies and wisdom lives.

2. Name Your Enough

Write down what you actually need. Be specific. "I need to learn how to write a book" is different from "I need this $5,000 course because everyone successful has taken it." Marketing thrives on moving your goalposts. When you know your enough, you become immune to artificial scarcity.

3. Follow the Fruit, Not the Promise

Look at the actual lives of people selling you transformation. Not their highlight reels—their real lives. Are they peaceful? Are their relationships intact? Do they embody what they're selling? Jesus said "by their fruits you will know them." Marketing sells you the promise; wisdom examines the fruit.

4. Cultivate Holy Indifference

This is a spiritual practice: becoming okay with "missing out." Every time you see "exclusive opportunity" or "limited time," practice saying "That's nice. Not for me." Feel the freedom that comes from not needing what they're selling. Your identity isn't found in their offer.

5. Trust the Still Small Voice Over the Loud Selling Voice

Marketing is always loud, urgent, flashy. The Spirit whispers. If you have to be convinced, cajoled, or manipulated into something, it's not your calling. Your true assignments come with a quiet knowing, not a panicked grasping. Learn to distinguish between the carnival barker and the Shepherd's voice.

Bonus: Remember that every marketer saying "you need this to succeed" succeeded before their own product existed. Think about that.

[BACK TO ME]

One way to “walk by the Spirit” is to resist marketing. And one way to resist marketing is to “walk by the Spirit.” I pray that God helps both of us do just that.

I also pray that if you feel a desire to join me on the 13th, you’ll be able to sign up and come.

God bless,

Jeff

P.S. If you act now, you’ll be just like the cool people, and you won’t be too late for this great deal, and members of the opposite sex will be attracted to you, and you won’t miss your calling and make Jesus mad at you…

Just kidding!

Have a great day!

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