How the Internet is ruining the business of specialized skills.

“Google it.” We’ve all said and done it. In fact, in May 2011, Google had over 1 billion unique visitors. Google is such a major part of our culture that it has recently been added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary as a transitive verb. (Note: I had to use the Merriam-Webster dictionary shortly after this to look up transitive verb)

Because we have the ability to Google any information at anytime on our PCs, laptops, smart phones, and tablets we can virtually obtain any knowledge we desire. Savvy Internet users have been taking advantage of this for years in order to learn anything from the ingredients in hollandaise sauce to step-by-step instructions on how to knit. This is an incredibly powerful tool that creates a sense of cohesion throughout the world as well as allows us to broaden our sense of understanding on a variety of topics, no matter how mundane. But this powerful tool is not without its concerns…

Google creates a “jack of all trades,” out of every person, and this can throw a wrench into the plans of many small business owners. Just the other day my husband Googled instructions on how to replace a tail light in our foreign car to avoid going to the auto mechanic. Across the globe, Google users are finding out how to bypass specialty service businesses in order to save money. From fixing a computer at home to avoid a repair fee to booking a vacation online to negate the need for a travel agent, specialty shops everywhere are taking a hit.

Having the power to Google allows us a virtual world that should be milked for every drop of information. Specialty shops and small businesses may have taken a hit, but the advent of the Internet causes so many facets of business to evolve. It will be interesting (and telling) to discover how specialty service shops and businesses deal with ongoing trend of the do-it-yourselfer.

Have you ever known someone that has had a great idea, product or story, and thought, “The world should know about this! ,”? If you haven’t, one day you will. You will also be faced with the prospect of either helping that person get that message or product out to the world, or find yourself encouraging them to do so. Most likely that person will say, “nah” because they don’t understand or are scared of marketing. But without marketing a product, service or story; nothing happens.

What may surprise you, coming from someone who works in the digital marketing space, is I don’t think marketing on the internet is always the best answer or the only answer for every company. Okay, get back off the floor and read on. It amazes me that people really think there is a “silver bullet” and spend thousands of dollars trying to find it. They also believe that everything online can somehow be put on autopilot and that that alone will catapult them to the top of the massive search engine heap. One day that might be true, but not today. That’s why every aspect of marketing should be considered; online and off to build a comprehensive, strategic marketing campaign.

So now that we have established that marketing online and off isn’t that easy, what do you do to best market your product, service or story? Well, this is where good marketing strategies take center stage. However, I want to warn you; it takes work. You have to know what you are getting yourself into. Discovery, story, information and dialog take place. Taking advantage of all strengths and assets and finding resources to help fill in the gaps. Understand, this a battle! No one would walk onto a battle field today with nothing but a pocketknife and a stick. That’s why getting all the ammunition and weaponry available is a must!

The great news is all the above is more accessible than ever before to all levels of business, including solopreneurs and small businesses. Know going in that if you want to win at selling a product, service or story, then understand that marketing strategies matter. Without really thinking through your marketing you end up squandering your strengths and loosing assets thus becoming frustrated. When I hear someone say “that thing (the internet/TV ad, etc.) doesn’t work”, I know there walks someone who didn’t have a marketing strategy, and that my friend is why marketing strategy matters.

I say of myself that I am an Idea Junkie. I am in love with new thoughts of all sorts, but especially if they are creative thoughts. I regularly express my creativity in music, photography, videography, motion graphics, graphics design, web design and entrepreneurial pursuits. (The last one might not seem purely creative, but in my experience, it has been the same kind of thrill and frustration I have had in any other highly creative and worthwhile pursuit.)

So for the balance of this post, and through the means of a list of questions, I will lay out the path I want to explore in this series of posts about Creative Process.

1. What constitutes creativity? Is it a uniquely human process?
2. Are there “Creatives” and “Non-Creatives”, or is everyone inherently creative?
3. Are there hard creative limits or only self-imposed limitations?
4. How do we grow creatively? What holds us back or keeps us in a rut?
5. Can creativity be a community-centered experience, or is it only an individual pursuit?

I hope this will be a fun and inspiring little jaunt, examining the fertile recesses of our own grey matter, and challenging the notions about ourselves, which we may have internalized without even realizing it.