The era of lifetime employment is over.

There are a few government/corporate holdouts that might fool you into thinking your job is secure, or might even offer some sort of a pension if their around long enough to pay it out. The question is can you rely on it? At Speaking of Wealth we wouldn’t take that bet. It’s obvious to us that the era of self employment is upon us. Everywhere you look people are turning certain knowledge into comfortable lifestyles. While the internet marketing industry is huge (marketers marketing to marketers), it’s only the tip of the iceberg.

Ordinary people, unemployed professionals, housewives, and college students are figuring out how to turn what they know into cash flow. A few recent examples we’ve come across:

1.Hardcore college football fan starts a website where he picks games that becomes massively popular.

2.Business man who raises tropical fish as a hobby begins a newsletter and soon is selling books on the topic to his rabid followers.

3.Fitness instructor blogs about weight loss and earns thousands monthly.

The lesson here is that what you know is worth something. Don’t be too quick to dismiss your knowledge as inconsequential and worthless. Niche markets are huge. Yes, there may only be a handful of people who collect antique John Deere toy tractors in your hometown, but what about in your state, country, or in the whole world? Think about it like this and the niche suddenly becomes huge and the internet allows you to seek them out and market to them.

It’s a brave, exciting new world.

The new publishing for profit model can hinge on something as plain and boring as an email list. In the days of yore before recorded history (prior to 2000) direct marketers/publishers knew that the power of the almighty dollar resided in the list. Back then a list was something you paid a list broker for or, as time went on, cultivated your own snail mail contacts. Today the mailing list has been transformed into an email list but the age old tried and proven techniques remain.

Your best prospective customer is one who has already purchased something from you. Despite the Internet, Facebook, and Twitter, people are still people and the motivations that have always inspired them to buy remain the same and high on the list is trust. If they trust you, you’re golden. The only thing that has changed about the publishing for profit model is the delivery method.

To sell books today, first concentrate on developing your email list. Think of it like this. You have 10,000 loyal subscribers to your newsletter developed over the course of a few years. They have explicitly given you permission to contact them by email. They like what you do and think you hung the moon. Is there a better audience to appeal to when it comes time to sell your next book? We think not. Send a special mailing to the list advertising when and where your newest is available. A certain percentage will buy on the strength of one announcement, which just might be enough to vault you to the top of your category at Amazon for a day.

Careers can be made by hitting the top of Amazon. Building a responsive email list is powerful stuff in the new world of publishing for profit. And the ivory-towered NYC publishing moguls? You don’t need them a bit.

Selling your brand to consumers is not a bad idea, it’s actually wise if you want to be known for who you are and remain at the top in your industry. By selling your brand we’re not advising you to list it on the market or put a price tag on yourself, but sell who you are and what you represent to your target audience. The connection you will make with consumers will be far more than if you sat still and held back on information or value others might see in your brand. So begin today and sell your brand, but don’t sell out using our four ideas to maintain that reputation and hold true to your company and self-beliefs.

Several successful entrepreneurs underestimate this technique, but selling is what will get your brand out there and recognized. Let’s straighten things out by first explaining the difference between selling your brand and selling out. Selling your brand means to strategically market your talent and showcase who you are and what you stand for as a company or organization. Selling out means you are trading your true self and beliefs, like your mission statement, for a gain (money, reputation).

By not selling your brand you are closing off several consumers that know nothing about you, leaving word-of-mouth as your lead advertisement. With that rate, hopefully your brand will be heard on local radio stations by the year 2034. Avoid waiting another twenty years for your brand to be known, instead use the following marketing tips to sell your brand today.

Keep in mind your personal mission statement. As long as you stick to these words, your name and brand will stay true and you won’t sell out.

We have provided four ways to ensure that sell out will not happen.

1. Every week keep a report of what you do.

Write down everything good the company has accomplished or achieved throughout the week. Even the smallest actions can go the furthest when it comes to connecting with consumers. Include the picture of you and your staff visiting a pumpkin patch or share a positive experience you encountered with a customer this week. Those connections are what consumers can relate with and draw them in to become a dedicated and life-long customer.

2. Go into the public eye.

Get your brand out there, inform the world who you are and what you stand for by sharing information on social media platforms (like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Tumblr, etc.). Be one of the top in your industry by again, connecting with your audience. Build your profile to highlight your success and ongoing developments to consumers, listeners and fans.

3. Get involved with your community.

Join organizations around your community. Go to the committee meetings, public hearings, become a member on the non-profit board or visit your local Chamber of Commerce. See how you can speak at these clubs and events around the community so your name, and business, is familiar and well-known to the locals.

4. Take necessary risks.

If you want to on top, then you’ll have to take the necessary risks others are too afraid to make. According to Inc., “Those who do stupid things without first getting permission can get fired. However, people who achieve brilliant things without getting permission get praised.” That doesn’t mean you have all rights to go out and do what you want, but rather to go out and be loud, stand tall and sell your dream, not beliefs.

The next time you’re contemplating an advertisement or marking plan, remember these four tips to sell your brand, but don’t sell out or you could jeopardize all you worked hard for and dreamed to achieve.