It’s not your SEO campaign. It’s not e-mail. It’s not even your offline print ads.

It’s Marketing Your Self

That’s right. In this age where manufactured goods, technology, computing power, and even information are becoming commodities, there are fewer and fewer things to set your company or product or service apart.

People Aren’t Commodities

Have you ever been making a phone call for technical support and gotten “assistance” that was lousy, useless, and a waste of time? And then called back 5 minutes later to speak with a different staff member and gotten much better help and results?

People are the Difference

Since people aren’t commodities, and since it’s so hard to differentiate physical items or information, the most important marketing you do is marketing yourself.

Position yourself as the go-to employee or supplier. Be confident in your communication. Keep your knowledge up to date. Dress for success (See Seth Godin’s blog for a great discussion of uniforms). And be honest with yourself and others.

Marketing yourself as an honest, knowledgeable, friendly professional who can get the job done will take you further in the long run than anything else you can do.