Good day, good people.
I know a panegyric is a speech providing accolades. But if it is written, I would call it advertising, marketing and publicity. If written by a person about one’s self, I would call it self-promotion.
Self-promoting is embarrassing to me, and I do it grudgingly. It appears to be the accepted practice today particularly on the Internet. But is there a difference between self-promotion and using a proxy or surrogate, hiring a company or someone to do your publicity, sales and marketing? Other than, it is not embarrassing when someone else blows the horn and you are not blowing your own? Is any recipient of the sales pitch, publicity or marketing campaign fooled? Does the recipient of the campaign believe a word of the copy?
Self-promotion reminds me of Donald Trump’s presidential aspiratory pretense. Was he sincere? Only he knows. Or, was he as the commentators say, “He is just a self-promoting, egocentric blowhard.”
Herman Cain campaigned to be the president. He led the viewers of the Republican presidential debates to believe he was sincere. Was he? Only he knows. Or, was it as the experts, the talking heads on television said. “He was promoting his lobbying business, his books, his motivational speaking availability and was really running for a job as president of his own radio or television talk show.”
The key to self-promotion in the world of the Internet is getting attention. Surfers have an attention span of 1/50th of a second. If they do not see what they want in the span they are gone. So no matter the number of blogs you write, YouTube videos you display or how many tweets you send — attention is king. And, how to get it is the queen. She needs to be very attractive, seductive, tenacious and very well-dressed.
If you believe you are right, you must be persistent. Your writing is its own reward. It is trying to the best of your ability to make an important contribution to our society. When you come face to face with the apparent insurmountable, remember your goal, be resolute, never quit, for as long as you play the game you increase your chances of winning. The only way to kill an idea is with a better idea. If you believe, truly believe, then let us read your idea — your story. After all, the reader is the final judge, give the reader the opportunity. And therefore, it is alright to engage in self-promotion to bring a better idea to the fore.
Gore Vidal said of John Updike, “. . . he’s just another boring little middle-class boy hustling his way to the top if he can do it.” Hustling in the context of this quote is a synonym for self-promoting. Is society a better place because of the “hustling” of John Updike? Did he make a contribution to the betterment of our society? I believe so to both questions. What is your opinion?
What is your thought on self-promotion and the questions asked above?
Contacting me with comments and constructive criticisms with honesty and pleasantness, their constant companions, will always be welcome.
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{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I believe there is very little difference between self-promotion vs hiring a company or individual to do your publicity, sales, and marketing. Promoting oneself, or what one has created, gives that person the opportunity to show the consumer their passion in their product. On the other hand, hiring a professional could perhaps pursue other avenues of marketing that an indivisual might not think of on their own. Either way you will have to blow ycur own horn- either to the public as a whole or to the firm you hire so they can promote what you are hiring them to promote.
Molly, thank you for the comment, well done.