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A Virtual Look at Florida Supercon (360 VR video)

I spent last weekend promoting my book at the totally awesome Florida Supercon, put on by my friends Sandy Martin and Mike Broder – “Con” men (and women) extraordinaire! While I was hawking my book in my booth, another friend, Praveen Yalamanchi, stopped by with his 360 Degree VR camera and caught me in the middle of a pitch. You can use your mouse or keyboard to watch me in action and get a short inside 360 view of Supercon! Follow my voice to find me at the beginning and be sure to explore the full 360 view to see some cool costumes on folks filling the aisles. You’ll also get a peek at Coffee Shop of Horrors, who were in the booth across from me, keeping all the cool kids caffeinated! (Check out this very short film I made of a “Cosplay Connection” I witnessed on the coffee line across from my…)

 

 

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Get Ready for a Super Time at Florida Supercon!

 

It’s Supercon time! On July 12-15, 2018 Supercon returns to the Broward County Convention Center, which is literally in my backyard, just a few minutes from my home. So how could I not take advantage of this great opportunity to promote my book to avid pop-culture fans!

I’ll be selling and signing books at Booth 735 all four days of the show. Also, on Saturday, July 14th at 1:00 pm I’ll be giving a presentation in Room 304 sharing some of the business and marketing lessons I learned working for Troma that have helped guide my career from B-movies to the C-suite!

During Jeff Sass’ 7-year tenure in Tromaville he worked on classics including TROMA’S WAR, TOXIC AVENGER II & III, CLASS OF NUKE’EM HIGH II & III, he co-wrote SGT. KABUKIMAN, NYPD and he was instrumental in the creation and launch of THE TOXIC CRUSADERS cartoon series and merchandise. In this entertaining and educational talk, Jeff shares the lessons he learned making Troma movies that have helped him throughout his career as a tech entrepreneur and CMO – lessons that you too can apply to your career. Fun Fact: When Jeff left Troma in 1994, they hired James Gunn to replace him…

(By, the way, I offer a customized version of this presentation as a free webinar for businesses that purchase 12 or more copies of the book  – contact me for more information).

If you are in South Florida and love movies, comics, cosplay and pop-culture you should definitely make your way to Supercon. It is an awesome event, with costumes, celebrities, tons of great products and merchandise, and great content sessions every day. Organizers Mike Broder and Sandy Martin and their team run an amazing show!

And if you do attend, please be sure to stop by Booth 735 and say hello!

 

 

Chapter 9: Old Yeller (and be your Brand)

Greetings from Tromaville! Here is Chapter 9 from my book, Everything I Know about Business and Marketing, I Learned from THE TOXIC AVENGER. This chapter still resonates strongly with me to this day. It’s all about the importance of consistency when building a brand. What do you think?

If you haven’t done so already, you can read the Foreword by Troma co-founder, Lloyd Kaufman, and the Introduction to the book as well as Chapter 12345 and 67 and 8. You can also see me read a few chapters live, along with Lloyd and Toxie, at Florida Supercon as well as a few chapters I read on Facebook Live. Stay tuned for additional chapters to be published here. If you like what you read and can’t wait for more, please don’t be shy. You can buy the book now on Amazon (and also please don’t be shy about sharing, and reviewing the book when you do read it.) Both Toxie and I greatly appreciate your support! – Jeff Sass

 

Chapter 9: Old Yeller (and be your Brand)

The most valuable trait to understand and recognize in someone or something is consistency. We, humans, are hardwired for pattern recognition. We are built to spot things that are consistent, for a pattern is simply something that appears or occurs consistently. We can deal with patterns. We can deal with consistency. When I first arrived in Tromaville, I quickly learned that Lloyd and Michael were yellers and screamers. Especially during film production.

Author’s note: We realize that the previous chapter espoused the importance of using “we” instead of “I,” and yet here we are using “I” throughout this book. We are distraught over this blatant contradiction and recognize that we may lose some credibility and perhaps even some of your trust. We feel truly awful about this and hope we have not let you down. However, in the context of a somewhat autobiographical tale (after all, the subtitle of this Tromatic tome is “one man’s journey to Hell’s Kitchen and back”), the author felt we could take creative license—and risk it being revoked—and share the stories and lessons herein from the author’s unique, first-person perspective. We hope you will forgive us. And now we return you to chapter 9, already in progress.

When the pressure was on, the yelling and screaming was also on. And on at a very loud volume. Before joining the Troma Team, I don’t think I really understood what it meant to be yelled at. Sure, as a child I had done stupid stuff to the point of provoking one or both of my parents to raise their voice at me. But never in business had I been the object of such verbal aggression. At first, it was shocking and upsetting to me, and since it was such a foreign experience, I took it personally and assumed that I was being yelled at for something I had done.

But soon the patterns revealed themselves, and as a genetically sound human, I came to recognize that the yelling had absolutely nothing to do with me. It was simply the way the mad moguls operated. They were screamers. They were yellers. And they screamed and yelled consistently, at anyone and everyone. They screamed and yelled at each other. Hell, they set up an office environment where they faced each other all day, probably (consciously or not) to facilitate easy yelling.

And once my pattern recognition light bulb went off, the yelling no longer bothered me. Consistency is easy to deal with because your expectations are set and accurate. If someone always yells, you always know what to expect. If someone is consistently an asshole, you know what to expect. You understand their pattern and can deal with them accordingly and with less stress. It is the inconsistent people who challenge us. The person who rarely yells and then suddenly, unexpectedly screams, will truly throw us off. The person modeled on Jekyll and Hyde, who is sometimes your best friend and sometimes a maniacal asshat, and you never know which to expect, that is the most difficult person to deal with. They are unpredictable. They don’t fit a pattern.

So, the yellers were easy.

And to their credit, by the time I left Tromaville they had calmed down quite a bit, and the old yelling, with true vim and vigor, was seldom experienced.

So, what does all this talk of yelling have to do with branding? Consistency. It is all about consistency. An effective brand must always stand for the same thing. An effective brand must be consistent. What your brand is consistent about perhaps matters far less than the fact that you are consistent in presenting the brand values. Know your brand. Decide what it stands for, good or bad, and get behind it consistently. The more consistent your brand message is, the more lasting it will be. Look at the great brands. If you ask ten people what those brands stand for, you will get ten very similar answers. They all have the same expectations of the brand.

At Troma, the brand image was one that resonated deeply with our fans. We were a team, The Troma Team, and if you were a fan, you were a part of that team. You were welcome in Tromaville. We took our business seriously, but we didn’t take ourselves too seriously. If they had not already been violently ripped from our throats, our collective Troma tongues were held firmly in cheek.

Understanding and appreciating the Troma brand was critical to my success in Tromaville.

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That’s Chapter 9  –  Another one of my favorite lessons in the book: the power of Consistency, learned from a couple of real screamers! Stay tuned for “Chapter 10: Find Something to Believe In” in which I reveal my true feelings about the films I had a hand in making during my tenure in Tromaville…

 

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Don’t Be An April Fool! Get the Kindle Version of my Book for FREE!

This is NOT a joke! Get the Kindle Version of Everything I Know about Business and Marketing, I Learned from THE TOXIC AVENGER for FREE! Today only, in honor of April Fool’s Day!

CLICK TO GET THE KINDLE BOOK FOR FREE!

 

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Jeffrey Sass on The Small Business Puzzle Podcast

A few months ago I had the pleasure of recording an episode of The Small Business Puzzle Podcast with hosts Michael and Teresa Blaes. The episode was just released this week, so please listen here or at the link below.

As their show focuses on supporting the interests and challenges of small businesses, we talk about my book, as well as the domain name industry and the opportunities with new domain extensions such as .CLUB. We also talk a bit about mobile marketing, and we discuss a bit about the process of writing a book. I also share a story from my days working with William Shatner on his Tekwar computer game. It was a good conversation and I hope you’ll enjoy listening to it.

CLICK TO LISTEN TO THE SMALL BUSINESS PUZZLE PODCAST

 

 

 

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Looking for a Podcast Guest? Book Me and Others Thanks to PodcastGuests.com

I’ve been an avid fan of podcasting since the very early days of the format (2005). In fact, back in October of 2005, I made my first “guest” appearance on a podcast when I appeared as the subject of the “interview with a listener” on Episode 100 of the Podcast 411 show, hosted by Rob Walch. Interestingly enough, in that 2005 interview I talked about my experiences at Troma, and mention a bunch of things that I have now written about in Everything I Know about Business and Marketing, I Learned from THE TOXIC AVENGER. I also talk with Rob about many of the early podcasts I was listening to at the time, a number of which are still around today. Since then I’ve become friends with many of the podcasters I listened to, such as the talented author Scott Sigler, and I’ve had the chance to produce and host podcasts myself. I co-hosted the Cast of Dads podcast with some fellow “dad bloggers.” When I worked with Gapingvoid I launched and produced the Gape Into The Void podcast, with guests including Tim Ferris, Gary Vaynerchuk, and Seth Godin. I also turned one of my original screenplays, WUNDERKIND! into a podcast.

As such a fan of podcasting, it should be no surprise that appearing on podcasts has been an important part of my marketing efforts for my book. With that in mind, I was very happy when friend and domain industry blogger Andrew Allemann launched his service, PodcastGuests.com. Whether you are a podcaster looking for guests, or an author or expert looking for opportunities to be a guest on a podcast, this is a great service. The main component of PodcastGuests.com is a newsletter that features a guest expert, as well as a selection of podcasts seeking guests. If you think you’re a good candidate for one of the featured shows, you fill out a simple form that goes right to the podcaster. Signing up for the newsletter is free. If you want to be the featured expert guest in the newsletter, there is a fee, but you are also guaranteed to get a certain number of podcast appearances. A great deal, if you ask me.

There is also an online directory of expert guests at www.PodcastGuests.com with two levels of service. The directory is a great resource for podcast hosts looking for guests. Here’s a link to my profile in the PodcastGuests.com directory.

So, if you’re a podcaster looking for a great resource to find qualified guests, or if you are an author, or expert looking to gain exposure by appearing as a guest on a relevant podcast, PodcastGuests.com is a service you should definitely have on your radar.

And, of course, if you are a podcaster looking for a great guest to talk about movies, marketing, pop-culture, entrepreneurship, branding, and a fun new book, feel free to contact me! Here are just a few of my recent podcast appearances talking about Everything I Know about Business and Marketing, I Learned from THE TOXIC AVENGER.

Marketing Smarts by Marketing Profs

DomainNameWire Podcast

Six Pixels of Separation w/Mitch Joel

See, Here’s the Thing Podcast

Enjoy!

 

 

 

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Black Friday/Cyber Monday Sale: Kindle Version On Sale Now for $0.99!

‘Tis the season… of the sale, and my book, Everything I Know about Business and Marketing, I Learned from THE TOXIC AVENGER is no exception! Now through November 30th, you can get the Kindle Version of the book for only $0.99! Yep, that’s less than one buck… less than the cost of a few sips of that FrappaZappaTiniLatteLeche you’re drinking… and far more fulfilling! The Kindle version normally sells for $4.99 so you’re getting a whopping 80% off a book that is guaranteed to make you smile and get inspired by business and marketing tips you can actually use! Watch the short video below for some highlights of the 5-star reviews on Amazon! And don’t be shy… spend a buck and buy the book! Thanks!!!

 

 

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Signed Books and Bulk Orders Now Available!

It is easy for me to sign books for folks at live events such as Florida SuperCon, but a number of people have asked me how they can also get a signed copy of my book. Since I can’t offer signed copies at Amazon or Barnes & Noble, I’ve set up a simple STORE at this website where you can easily order a Signed copy of my book.

Taking a cue from Seth Godin and other authors, I am also offering two discounted bundles – a 5-Pack of books for $40 (shipping included) and a 10-Pack of books for $70 (shipping included). Author and podcaster Tim Ferriss often will ask his guests “what book have you given most often as a gift to others.” I’ve also often kept multiple copies of a business book I really liked in my office, to randomly give as a gift to co-workers or folks I had meetings with. Books make great gifts and having 5 or 1o copies on hand is a great way to share some entertainment, inspiration, and motivation with family members, friends, and co-workers who you think will enjoy and benefit from reading Everything I Know about Business and Marketing, I Learned from THE TOXIC AVENGER. The bundles are also convenient for book clubs, business, marketing and entrepreneurship groups, and other communities.

So, if you’re looking for a signed copy of my book or a discounted price for multiple copies, please visit the new store.

Of course, you can also find the book at the popular retailers below.