Make Marketing Suck Less for Expertise-Driven Solo Businesses

Your client has a lot of options when it comes to solving their problem.  There's so much competition and competition for their time, energy, and financial resources.  >>>How do you make sure that your business is the one they choose?  >>>How do you show you're different from the web celebs with charismatic marketing?  You do it by differentiating your business.  So what is diffe...

“How does having a 3 Word Rebellion make marketing suck less?”  That's a question I got from a listener and it's a super smart question.  To truly make marketing suck less: you have to know that the work you put in will actually pay off that it will make marketing easier and more effective to bring in your right-fit clients. Today, I’m taking you behind the scenes of my own business and showing yo...

“Hey! Look at me!” “Hey! Buy my program…Read my blog…Listen to my podcast!” “Smash that subscribe button!”  “Hey, I've got the only foolproof way to solve your problem!” Let's face it. It's noisy out in the marketplace. On social media, it seems like everyone is hawking their wares, talking about how much money they make and how they can teach you to do it too.  It's enough to make you want to giv...

Do you ever find yourself reading an Instagram post or listening to a podcast, and you're absolutely horrified by the advice being given?  You shake your head and you think, “That's not how any of this works!”  I know I've been there, and the reason is because experts can spot BS a mile away. I believe that's one of the reasons why marketing is so hard for you.  The pseudo experts out there who ar...

Why is it so hard to claim your expertise? To own what makes you truly exceptional at your work. To own the capacity and the ability you uniquely have to guide your clients to results.  Then why is it so hard to promote that?  To tell people about it?  And I get that marketing sucks, but it is truly time to expert up and claim your expertise for yourself.  We live in a world that currently doesn’t...

If everyone is saying the same thing to market their business, how do you— as an expert—stand out?  How can you say something different that catches the attention of your right-fit clients so they pay attention to you and hire you and not your competition?  Today we're doing something a little bit different.  We’re diving into Marketing Message Makeovers so you can stop using overused marketing cl...

Confession. I'm a bit of a control freak.  Control is something we are socialized to do. We are told that we are the masters of our destiny!  the captains of our ship! and we can pull ourselves up by our bootstraps! And in reality - in a business - there are so many things that are out of our control, like whether: A prospective client says yes You  land a podcast interview or a TEDx talk, People...

You are the business owner who gets results for your clients.  You're masterful at what you do and yet so many times you are passed over and overlooked for someone with half the expertise and experience.  What is the deal with that?  I wish we lived in a world where the people who are best at what they do are the ones who are consistently known and hired instead of the charismatic few who did it f...

Do you feel like an overlooked expert? Have you ever thought, “I am great at what I do!  So, why don't more people know about me?”  I'll be honest. I have asked myself this question and I've become a little obsessed with figuring out the answer to it.  In my business, I am so lucky that I get to work with amazing, talented people who are experts in their field. Years of experience, finely honed sk...

Can we talk about how batshit bananas the current economic climate is?  Online business is undergoing a major correction right now.  Sales cycles take longer.  Trust is at an all time low.  And all of those business owners who were touting their “Big Teams!” and “7 Figure Success!” are now talking about descaling and degrowth.  The bottom line is people aren't buying like they used to. I felt it,...

“I don't know if I'm expert enough.” “Oh, really?”  As soon as I hear this phrase, I always ask, “So tell me about your experience.”  And then I am regaled by a list of certifications, education, experience on the job, transferable skills, developing their own frameworks and working with clients and getting results. Yes, you're definitely expert enough, but I understand why people feel like they a...

Have you ever thought that one of the reasons that you're hesitant to market and put your expertise out there is because of the way we're taught to market in the online space.  Because what we're taught is not for you, especially if you are an expertise-based business that's been doing it for a while.  What works for the masses doesn't work for you.  On this podcast, we're diving into 3 big messag...

Wouldn’t it be lovely if people recognized your expertise and hired you on the spot? Unfortunately, good work doesn’t speak for itself, and getting great results for your clients is not enough. Rebel Truth: Good work is never enough. You’ve got to advocate for your work. You’ve got to speak up and be seen for that good work.  You’ve got to showcase why you’re the expert who can get the job done. Y...

“I wish I didn't have to market. Why can't people just see I'm an expert and hire me on the spot?”  I can't tell you how many times I've heard this very thing and I get why. Experts think because we are damn good at what we do, that people should just recognize that and give us their money.  I wish it was that way but it’s not. I also understand how much it hurts to watch someone who has half the...

This is gonna get awkward.  There's always a time in marketing when you reach this awkward transition point.  Where you go from empathizing, providing value, and giving your potential clients an “ah-ha” that makes them think to asking them to work with you.  And let's face it. It's a tricky, weird transition to navigate in your marketing.  So, how do you transition from marketing into asking for t...

This anniversary really snuck up on me. I realized the other morning that it has been five years since I first published the 3 Word Rebellion . Then when I sat down and added up the numbers, I realized that I had now sold over 5,000 copies of the book, which blew me away.  I can't even begin to describe that to you.  Today, I want to take you behind the scenes and tell you the completely unglamoro...

Your marketing message is a bit like a puzzle.  There are multiple pieces that come together in a unique way that form a compelling and persuasive story about why your right-fit clients would choose to work with you.  But too many times, business owners are missing a piece of the puzzle and, no, their cat didn't steal it.  Once you've helped your client diagnose their problem and dispel any miscon...

No one understands your work quite like you do.  What you consider common knowledge, your potential clients don't even know about - it is not on their radar.  And this is part of the curse of expertise.  What we think as experts is universally understood - it's not.  And what your potential clients don't understand, keep them from taking the next step from working with you.  In this episode, we ta...

Do you hate the idea of pressing on people's pain points?   Agitating the pain so that the only solution to make it stop is by giving you money?  I do too. It's gross. It's icky, and, unfortunately, it works.  But there's another way to talk about your clients' struggles and challenges without feeling like a big old sleazeball.  It's key to creating your minimum viable marketing message and ensuri...

A special invite to the Make Marketing Suck Less Virtual Event ?  Social media feels like a 20-lb weight choking all the joy out of my business. All the "shoulds." All the rules. All the head trash around having the "perfect" hook." Maybe you feel it, too? Here's the deal: you don't have to RELY on social media for audience growth. You've got a ton of options. Finding what works for you is freeing...

Who are you talking to?  And I don't mean just your right-fit client. You probably know that you're talking to moms, other business owners, or women in tech looking to make a career change.  But who are you talking to in relationship with your business?  Have they been following you for ages, or did they just stumble on your website yesterday?  Because knowing that matters.  Let's talk about why u...

The foundation for all your messaging is something that is so often overlooked and skipped by many solo business owners.  This is an essential piece of messaging for ensuring that you're able to capture the attention of the people you want to serve. It helps you grow your audience.  This piece of messaging also makes sure that what you're saying resonates, that it makes sense and that it is persua...

Happy 2024, Expert!   I'm noticing something that I never thought I would see in online business.   Messaging is finally having its moment.  While I'm thrilled that messaging is getting the attention it deserves, there is a catch, my friend.  Most of the business coaches and marketers who are talking about it are oversimplifying what messaging is and leading business owners astray about its true s...

We made it.   This has been quite a year.  It's been unlike any year that I have seen in business before. As we wrap up 2023, I wanted to take a moment to celebrate and also take you behind the scenes of my business for an honest look at what 2023 was really like, what I'm proud of, what didn't go well at all and my secret excitement and hope for 2024. In this episode we'll discuss: My top three h...

There's a famous episode of South Park where gnomes are stealing the kids' underpants. The kids go on a quest to find out why the gnomes are stealing underpants. The reason? It's capitalism.  You see, the gnomes have a plan: Step 1, Steal underpants Step 2, I don't know??? Step 3, Profit! The way marketing is taught often uses the exact same strategy as the underpants gnomes, and it could be the r...