Marketing for Weirdos
Don’t wanna read a super-long sales page? Here’s the TLDR:
4 week online course about content marketing for people who don’t like marketing
90 minute Marketing Class every Monday (yes, class is recorded!)
90 minute Office Hours session every Tuesday
$570 (financial options copiously available)
Mondays and Tuesdays from 1:00pm-2:30pm Eastern time
November 25 - December 17, 2024
SIGN UP HERE:
“I LOVED Marketing for Weirdos. It helped remove the ickiness that I have always felt around marketing and broke down so much confusion that I had. The course was enlightening and easy to understand, and I feel much more confident.” -Karen Grant, Feminist Embodiment Coach
Fellow weirdos, we went into business to do our work, not to talk about it.
At this point, you’re damn good at the work itself. The clients you’ve got are delighted, but there just aren’t enough of them. You know marketing is probably the answer, yet you didn’t go into business because you want to spend your time marketing! It can be the least fun, most terrifying part of the job.
You might avoid marketing because:
There are so many tips and strategies out there on the wide wild interwebs. Who can figure out where to start?
You’ve tried a million different strategies and thrown pounds of metaphorical spaghetti at the wall and yet nothing’s worked.
It feels just plain vulnerable to shout with a bullhorn about how great you are. No thanks!
Even if you’ve found something that works, traditional sales and marketing tactics can be coercive, manipulative and extractive. Many of them are rooted in oppressive ideology, and you know you don’t want to replicate that.
The world is constantly on fire, literally and metaphorically, and how on earth does running a small business fit in?
It’s no wonder that we shy away from this aspect of being in business. You’re not alone in that, and it’s not a personal failure. But it’s a fact of being in business:
You can’t just DO your work.
You also have to talk about it.
This is why I created Marketing for Weirdos. Marketing for Weirdos is an online course designed to help you get crystal clear on your marketing strategy and overcome the blocks that are keeping you from talking about your business. This course will help you to:
Craft a straightforward blueprint of exactly WHAT topics you should be posting about for your specific business.
Figure out WHY you need to post what you do, so every post feels intentional rather than arbitrary.
Build out a plan for marketing throughout next year and beyond, so you’re no longer simply winging it.
Consider moving beyond social media, so you can diversify your marketing plan and minimize your reliance on the Zuckerverse.
Learn an anticapitalist approach to marketing that doesn’t require you to ignore the problems of the world.
Gain a deeper understanding of what’s broken about traditional marketing strategies and what to do instead.
There are no quick fixes or one-size-fits-all solutions, and that’s not what I’m selling, but if consistently, effectively marketing has evaded you, I truly believe this course will help. The marketing system I’ve created takes your whole self into account: your availability, your aversions, and your aptitudes. It eschews coercive marketing advice and offers alternatives that feel ethical, relational and generative. My hope is that you’ll leave this course with a plan to make social media and content creation systematized, easy and (dare I say) FUN!
“If you want to share your talents and skills with the wider world in an ethical and engaging way, Marketing for Weirdos can help you do exactly that. Bear models a way to do business that is consent- and justice-oriented while also sustainable and fun. I could not recommend this class more.” -Kate Paxton, Midwife
What it is and how it works
Each week there is one 90-minute class where we dive deep into the WHAT, WHY, and HOW of marketing so you can finally get clear and get moving on marketing your work.
This is the fourth year running Marketing For Weirdos, and this year the curriculum got a major overhaul! The technical pieces are more robust, with more examples and case studies. And we’ll spend lots more time on the emotional pieces of how to be a human being running a business in an era of ongoing societal struggle.
Week 1: WHAT? Clarify the core topics and central messages for your marketing. Never again wonder “What should I post about today?”
Week 2: WHY? Understand the customer journey, the marketer journey, and how that relates to your core topics and central messages. This is the key to every post feeling purposeful. No more “posting just to post.”
Week 3: HOW? Determine your strongest marketing channels. Make a marketing plan for each season that is not about random content, but instead is hyper-focused on getting your right-fit people to buy what you’re selling, without pressure or persuasion. Figure out exactly how big your audience needs to be to meet your business goals, so you’re not endlessly pursuing growth for its own sake.
Week 4: HEART! Deal with the emotional parts of doing marketing, like not getting your attachment needs met through your marketing, what to do when no one likes your stuff, living with the ever-changing algorithm, and how to approach marketing when the world is on fire.
OFFICE HOURS: The backbone of the course is, obviously, the content of the marketing classes. But we don’t stop with just learning. You can absorb all the theory in the world but if you don’t put it into practice, it’s not doing you any good. So in addition to class time, we do our best to support you in implementing what you’re learning through office hours.
Office Hours is an upbeat and engaging 90-minute call (optional but super valuable) where we get down to business for troubleshooting and Q+A. This is a space to get my brain on your marketing queries and specific business problems. Dancing will inevitably happen!
RECORDINGS: Yes! The Monday classes will be recorded and sent out the same day if you can’t be there live. Tuesday Office Hours sessions are recorded and annotated so you can find the info you need again later.
WORKBOOK: Each module comes with a digital workbook with exercises, visual aids, and space for implementing the lessons from each class.
GUEST SPEAKER CALLS: We’ll have two guest speaker calls during the course to teach us even more: Becca Rich on Following Through Gently, and Amelia Hruby about Marketing without Social Media. More details soon!
ONGOING SUPPORT: Office Hours calls will be held monthly January, February and March so if you’re learning asynchronously or need more time to get through the course materials, you can still ask questions and get the support you need. It’s part of my anticapitalist commitment to care about you actually finishing the course, and this longer term support is part of that. I don’t just want to take your money and have this class gather dust in your email!
OPTIONAL 1:1 COACHING: There are a few spots for folks who want more in depth support as you work through the course. Add 2 hour-long coaching calls where we can audit your existing marketing, plan content for the year ahead, and answer your toughest marketing questions together. (Fine print: 2 sessions, 1 hour each, expire March 2025, $570, you’ll see the option to add to cart at checkout)
“Bear has the incredible ability to take things that seem mysterious, complicated, or confusing, and break it down to feel simple and doable. They’re also a wiz at showing how it's possible to sell things without engaging in manipulative business tactics. They've forever changed the way I think about marketing!”
-Stephanie Boucher, Herbal Business Coach
Who I am
My name is Bear Hebert (they/them) and I’ve been self-employed since 2010—full time since 2014. My teenage self would be so bewildered as to how an artistic weirdo like me ended up with a career teaching marketing (of all things!!), but here we are.
I never went into business to make a kerzillion dollars. Self-employment was my path out from under the thumb of capitalist wage labor. For me, it’s worked really well! And over the past six years as a business coach, I’ve seen how it can work for others too.
You should know: My work happens in an anti-oppressions framework. I’m always looking at the intersections of power and privilege in the world and in myself; this course will ask you to do the same (with so much love.) After more than a decade in business, I love helping my fellow weirdos figure out how to market their work so we can all get clients, get paid and get free. Read more about me here.
Who it’s for
Small business owners, entrepreneurs, artists, and creatives trying to promote their work to the world so they can get paid
People who are over traditional marketing advice that insists you must coerce your customers in order to make a profit
Folks who want to move beyond social media as their only marketing channel
Anyone else interested in radical ways to do business
The easiest fit for this class is service-based tiny businesses who are overtly politicized and values-forward.
Who it might help a lot but not every single thing may be entirely applicable and you might have to do some interpreting / sifting / wiggling to find what’s relevant for you
People who aren’t sure if social media is the right thing for you or are thinking about leaving it but still love writing, podcasting, blogging, and other forms of content creation
Product-based businesses who want to keep your marketing entirely product-focused
Folks who don’t want to infuse a lot about the ethics of the company into your marketing
Artists who are not selling tangible objects but are still trying to have an online presence
Who it’s probably not for
Businesses who don’t care about anticapitalism and just want to make as much money as possible at all costs (This class will likely get on your nerves because it focuses a lot on how to take a social justice oriented approach to business.)
Folks who know that content marketing is not and will never be part of your marketing plan (Nope, this class won’t help you very much because it is about using content to do marketing.)
Weirdos who are clear about your values for justice and liberation and already know how to implement them in your marketing AND you’re clear about your marketing strategy from a business-success perspective too, and know how to implement that easily, and all of those things are already working great for you (This class will probably not be able to offer you much that you don’t already know, but also if this is you, HI HELLO DO YOU WANT TO BE FRIENDS!? Email me. Not kidding.)
“Marketing for Weirdos really highlighted some of the ways I (as someone with racial and economic privilege) was unknowingly contributing to harmful business practices in my marketing. Not only is my marketing more ethical and inclusive now, but it is also more engaging and easier to write!” -Kay Oak, Guinea Pig Business-Owner (ko GuineaBox LLC)
When we meet
November 25 - December 17, 2024
Mondays and Tuesdays from 1:00pm-2:30pm Eastern time
Click here for a time zone converter
Course Module 1
Monday November 25: Class #1
Tuesday November 26: Office Hours
Wednesday November 27: BONUS Follow Through Gently Guest Speaker Becca Rich (1-2:30pm ET)
Course Module 2
Monday December 2: Class #2
Tuesday December 2: Office Hours
Tuesday December 2: BONUS Office Hours (9 - 10:30pm ET)
Wednesday December 3: BONUS Marketing OFF Social Media Guest Speaker Amelia Hruby (1-2:30pm ET)
Course Module 3
Monday December 9: Class #3
Tuesday December 10: Office Hours
Tuesday December 10: BONUS Office Hours (9 - 10:30pm ET)
Wednesday December 11: BONUS SEO 101 Guest Speaker Seren Nurgun (1-2:30pm ET)
Course Module 4
Monday December 16: Class #4
Tuesday December 16: Office Hours plus closing celebration!
Accessibility: This course requires internet access. All classes are in English. Zoom captioning/transcription is automatically available for each class. Recordings are available to support asynchronous learning. If you have additional access needs, please be in touch: bear@bearcoaches.com
“I loved this course. I have taken many courses on marketing and social media, but Marketing for Weirdos gave me permission to sell in a non-manipulative way. It helped me finally find a groove in using Instagram for my business. And learning in community with people who also have shared politics was a huge relief!” -HanaKyle, Movement Maven
What it costs
$570 USD
Shame-free, no-interest payment plans are readily available for everyone! It’s great for my business to have some people pay for the course more slowly over time.
At check out, you can select a payment plan for 3-months ($190 x 3 months) or 6-months ($95 x 6 months). These will automatically charge your card each month.
Need a solidarity rate? Click here!
Fine print: No refunds, cancellations or exchanges for any reason. Payment plans are contractually binding for the full amount of the course.
“Marketing for Weirdos is the place to be! Bear is a skilled facilitator with a mind-expanding practice, shedding light on how to build your own wonderfully weird anti-capitalist business.” -Lara Buelow, Life Designer & Small Business Development Coach
What’s next
If you’re ready to:
Learn a robust yet easy to implement system for creating content for all your marketing platforms….
Unpack traditional marketing tropes and leave them behind….
Go beyond content marketing to create a diversified marketing strategy that leaves you less reliant on the constant churn of social media...
Make friends with other radical business folks...
Build a stronger anticapitalist analysis for marketing without the ick…
Feel crystal clear about how to talk about your work consistently and easily...
register NOw!
“This course was so helpful! Practical, soulful, with lots of space and permission to make my own sense from the materials and implement the practices into my business in the ways I need. Bear is a wonderful teacher with a much-needed perspective, and I loved every aspect of this experience. I've been in business for 8 years and have worked with Bear one-on-one, and I still got so much out of this class. I definitely recommend it!”
-Megan Leatherman, Vocational Coach
“Bear has a way of making the complicated really simple and straightforward. I highly recommend this course!!”
-Jen Ata, psychic liberation healer
“Marketing For Weirdos far exceeded my expectations. I still can't say that I'm excited about social media but I came away with a clear plan for what my marketing will look like, and I do feel much more confident about bringing my full self to marketing. Bear teaches with such confidence and dignity in their knowledge and anti-capitalist beliefs.”
-Ada Johnson, birth, trauma and transition worker