
Ask HN: For those who run their own business, how did you learn marketing? - ahmedbaracat
I am really struggling to learn to market and to find product&#x2F;market fit. Would love to hear about how you learnt that invaluable skill...
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alexmingoia
Reading Seth Godin not only changed my life but taught me what great marketing
is. Once you know what great marketing is choosing your tactics is easy.

His blog is invaluable ([https://seths.blog](https://seths.blog)). Read his
“Top 100” and then go buy his latest book “This is Marketing.”

Marketing in a nutshell: Grow an audience by earning their trust through
consistently providing value and fulfilling your promises. Choose the medium
that best resonates with your audience. And start with the minimum viable
audience.

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ahmedbaracat
Thank you so much for the suggestions. Going through them right now!

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bgroat
On Monday I'm launching a giveaway campaign of my 20 favourite marketing books
on FB.

If you want I can just DM you the list.

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ahmedbaracat
Yes, that would be great. How would you DM me? Twitter?

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alexhuyen
One of the best resources I found was the Small Business Administration (SBA).
I learned a lot from just reading through all their online resources
([https://www.sba.gov/business-guide](https://www.sba.gov/business-guide)).
I'm pretty sure a similar organization exists wherever you are, just search
for 'small business administration' \+ your location.

I think if you want more hands-on learning, you should schedule an appointment
with an experienced business advisor. The small business org will do their
best to find a relevant expert to advise you. I did one of these and I got
matched with an Entrepreneurship lecturer from USC where I was able to pick up
a ton of insight on marketing and running/starting up a business in general. I
feel that this was valuable information that would've taken a lot longer to
find or learn if it was on my own. I highly recommend this and the best thing
is it was completely free. Make sure to take lots of notes and ask questions
specific to your situation. You can schedule follow-up appointments as you
reach milestones in your marketing plan as well. There are also some marketing
workshops but some of those have fees so watch out for that. I was surprised
but there is no "catch", it's just a taxpayer supported organization for
supporting small businesses.

tldr; [https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/plan-your-
business/market...](https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/plan-your-
business/market-research-competitive-analysis)

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ahmedbaracat
That's very insightful. I currently live in London, so I will try to find the
closest alternative. Thank you so much :)

