The Magic 3%

When I was in the music industry, I learned that record companies make almost all their money from 3% of their artists. Once this fact was discovered, it created an evolution of practice in which the record companies would sign restrictive contracts with many different artists, including those who sounded similar to their A listers, in order to keep them out of the distribution loop. *ALL* of the promotional money would then go into those 3% of artists who they were SURE were going to bring home the bacon.

It's a repulsive model, and once we understood what was happening, my friends and I backed away from the industry completely, deciding to go it on our own.

In the vast majority of the business world, it's a similar game. Whether you have a brick and mortar storefront or an online business, your goal is to get as many people in front of your offer as possible, knowing that a tiny fraction of those people will actually be attracted enough to what you have to sell, to a) spend time learning about it, and b) spend their hard earned money on it. 

The way that this has traditionally been accomplished is through Marketing. Whether it's social media or print, telemarketing or word of mouth, Marketing has been the vehicle for promoting businesses, products and services. The very concept of marketing was devised during the rise of the Consumer Economy in Post WWII America, and to a great extent it grew from the work of Edward Bernays, the nephew of Sigmund Freud, who developed the philosophy in which selling became a process of appealing to the 7 Deadly Sins - wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony. Whether its cigarettes or alcohol, washing machines or cars, marketing firms have perfected the art of appealing to the basest emotions of humanity.

"If you don't buy our product, you won't be as desirable as your neighbor."

Unfortunately it works. And the longer it's in play, the more sordid are the ads we see on TV, as well as all types of programming. Most media has become a form of propaganda, promoting the Lowest Common Denominator (LCD) - the least of all possibilities.

IDEABASH.org presents a progressive concept in marketing, in which we turn the Bernaysian philosophy on its head. We are not interested in selling products for the sake of money; instead we're asking people to support and uplift other entrepreneurs into success. And, by paying-it-forward to just five other entrepreneurs, you will then be supported by *thousands* of others in a resilient  fractal-viral system that empowers people to find and live their passion, creating products and services that add value to the world.

Instead of appealing to the least of our capabilities, IDEABASH inspires people to discover their inner genius, and become empowered entrepreneurs.

Among those thousands of people who support you by purchasing your product or service, you will find that 3% (or more!) of people who have been looking for what you have to offer, and they will be YOUR A-listers, thrilled to have found you, and willing to spread the word about the magnificence you have created.

IDEABASH is an empowerment loop. It is layers and layers of possibilities. If you're looking for a way to build your business without debt, come visit and see how we can work together to create a beautiful future.

Meg Montgomery is the founder of the IDEABASH Entrepreneur Ecosystem, a global community of entrepreneurs supporting each other into success.