This advice is incredibly obvious, but not easy to hear. One of the primary marketing faults I see in creative communities is that people use all of their resources to push what they produce regardless of the quality of the product. Every actor has been in a bad show. Every artist goes through a period without inspiration. Not all art is created equal. However, some people invite everyone they know to see, read or listen to everything they do.

If people see you produce bad work they are less likely to want to see what you do next. It’s exactly the same process that people use when they judge a company’s products. If you buy a watch that breaks right after you buy it, you are less likely to be willing to buy that brand again. Get bad food from a restaurant and you won’t go back for a while. It’s just basic human nature.

This is particularly important with first impressions. If you read a novel from a writer than you love, you will probably still read their next one. However, if the first book you read by someone is terrible, it’s incredibly unlikely that you’ll ever attempt another novel by that writer.

Since word of mouth is your best advertisement, it’s to your benefit that as few people as possible see the bad stuff. Find honest feedback that you trust and if that feedback tells you you’re involved with a stinker, don’t push it. Make sure people look forward to what you do next.

Even big Hollywood stars don’t follow this rule. Of course, they’re contractually obligated to advertise everything they do no matter how bad. You probably aren’t.

You have limited resources to market your creativity, make sure you use those resources on the good stuff.