In December, Schein’s The Hype Handbook was ranked as the No. 1 new release in the marketing books category on Amazon, from pre-orders alone.
Photos courtesy of Michael F. Schein
Beacon-based media master Michael F. Schein, founder and president of MicroFame Media, shares tips and tricks for creatives and entrepreneurs.
Beacon resident Michael F. Schein, is an expert in creating hype. The founder and president of MicroFame Media — which specializes in making idea-based companies famous in their fields — Schein has a client list that includes heavy hitters like eBay and LinkedIn and has shared his secrets in Fortune and Huffington Post, and with audiences at speaking gigs worldwide.
And now he’s sharing them in a new book, The Hype Handbook: 12 Indispensable Success Secrets From the World’s Greatest Propagandists, Self-Promoters, Cult Leaders, Mischief Makers, and Boundary Breakers, published by McGraw Hill.
Says Schein, “I wrote this book to put these strategies in the hands of people making good art, working on good projects, and trying to bring attention to important causes and to teach them how to apply them ethically.”
Here Schein shares 5 tips with “the incredibly talented Hudson Valley residents who are making cool new things and putting them out into the world.”
1) Generate Mystique: When we’re trying to bring attention to our projects, we often make the mistake of giving away too much too soon. We slap our web address, hashtag, or Instagram handle on everything with the idea that people should always be able to find us. Learn to hold back a little. Drop hints as to what’s to come without revealing the whole story. In the pre-Internet era, the most effective hype artists had a knack for making it feel as if they came out of nowhere. There was a time when KISS never appeared in public without their makeup. Timing is everything.
2) Become a Master String-Puller: Pinpoint individuals who have the most influence over the audiences you want to reach, and get them to advocate on your behalf. Use social media to connect with power players in your field on non-work matters. Do you like the same music, sports teams, obscure hobbies? Prominent people — the kind of who can accelerate your career—are human too. They will find your approach refreshing.
3) Master the Art of Staging: Rock concerts, church revivals, and political rallies are so effective because they hijack our senses with setting, sound, and choreography. Take advantage of this dynamic on a smaller scale. For instance, begin thinking of your Zoom window as a set and everything around and behind you as a scene. What are you trying to say about yourself, your message, and your beliefs? Select your props, lighting, and costume to convey your message.
4) Use Verbal Hooks: Our brains are attracted to rhyme, alliteration, and repetition because it once made it easier for us to learn language. Boil down your central idea into a pithy, memorable phrase and repeat it in as many forms and through as many media as you can gain access to.
5) Deploy the “Tom Sawyer Effect”: Do you remember reading in English class how Tom Sawyer got a bunch of kids to do a tiresome chore for him by convincing them that they were enjoying it? If you can get people to see working hard on behalf of your cause or product as something fulfilling, fun, or meaningful, they will not only spread the word, but feel closer to you as a result.
