We are living through the democratization of entrepreneurship. With free-to-inexpensive tools like Flip Cams, Viddler, YouTube, WordPress, Tumblr, Posterous, Foursquare, Twitter, and Facebook (whew!), both existing and budding entrepreneurs have an unprecedented opportunity to make a name for themselves, get attention for their company, and ultimately sell more stuff. But note this: the steps to take that will get you from relative unknown to seller of lots of stuff are many.

You cannot simply shout about your product from your marketing bullhorn. Your goal should be to let people get to know you, and the way to do that is to become a trusted resource. Who do people turn to when they want to know about [insert name of what you sell]?  If they turn to you for such help, they are way more likely to turn to you when it’s time to buy.

I’ve been friends with David Siteman Garland for a bit over a year now – light years in terms of social media! I’ve been attending his RISE lunches here in St. Louis for almost that long, and I’ve been a presenter at two of them. I’ve learned so much from his blog/TV show The Rise To The Top, including how to become a trusted resource. Honestly, this blog and my willingness to do speaking engagements were borne of advice David gave me. Most importantly, I’ve been inspired by him to break out of my comfort zone and try things (like video).

So it was with great pleasure that I received a very special package in the mail last week – David’s first book Smarter, Faster, Cheaper – Non-Boring Fluff Free Strategies For Marketing And Promoting Your Business (Amazon affiliate link). I was actually proud of David when I first ripped open the envelope – what a great feeling to beholding the debut book of a good friend. As I state in the video, David is probably the most famous person that I actually know, and selfishly, that’s pretty cool. I fully expect David to go Hollywood after this book blows up. But, until he starts driving Bentleys around and acting weird (his quote, not mine!), I’ll continue to consider him a friend. 🙂

At 230 pages, the book is no lightweight. It contains 16 chapters of very compelling content. David uses real-life examples throughout the book to make the case that online content will generate the inbound leads your company needs to bring in new business (as opposed to cold-calling). He pulls examples from first-hand experience, as he’s interviewed hundreds of the brightest entrepreneurs and thought leaders in the world.

With a tinge of bias but a ton of truth, I can highly recommend this book. Real life examples, behind-the-scenes info on how David does what he does (he’s not secretive about what camera he uses, how he hosts video, etc), and a personal writing style that engages you make this a fantastic must-read. David, thank you for getting me an advance copy of Smarter, Faster, Cheaper. You have a great deal to be proud of, as this book is quite an accomplishment. I’m glad to know you as a friend.

Incidentally, in keeping with the spirit of Smarter, Faster, Cheaper, here’s a picture of the ultrasophisticated Flip camera mount that I used to record the video you see above.

That’s a roll of paper towels on top of two Frigidaire water filter boxes. 🙂 David has taught me well!