Aaron -
Very little of my business is in the UK and the fact that my marketing methods appear "cheap, aggressive and annoying" to you, or others in the UK, does not appear to impact my business elsewhere.
You obviously do not know where I'm coming from in regards to promoting the profession of graphic design. I'm constantly speaking and writing against the "anyone with a copy of photoshop can be a designer" mentality, template factories, logo mills, underpriced design, bidding sites like elance, etc. As a designer, and business owner, I'm battling those specific issues on a daily basis - just like any other designer. Despise me if you wish - but you don't know me or how I actually operate my business.
In regards to marketing, each designer needs to experiment and determine what works best for them personally. There is not specific method. In fact, in my original post in this thread I was simply tossing a variety of methods out there for consideration - and commenting on what does/does not work for me personally. The methods I use for myself are those that have been most effective over time, while also being the most cost-effective for my business - and they still work for me today. That, in no way, means that they will work for everyone. For example, if I was more comfortable making use of "cold call" methods it might be more successful for me. As it is, I personally detest that method (especially having been on the receiving end of the tactic as an AD and CD) and have the option of not using it.
- Jeff