More than a Few Words

After 13 years of podcasting, I have found tools I rely on. My two favorites are Podmatch   - It is kind of like a dating application. Instead of finding dates I use it to book podcast interviews on high profile shows and interesting guests . And now, they have rolled out a new feature that allows me to get paid to host guests on my show. Learn more at : https://www.joinpodmatch.com/mtfw For recor...

Jennifer  Denney is obsessed with measurement and marketing data.  She believes you can't improve what you don't measure. But there are a lot of challenges for marketers right now, as they try to measure the effectiveness of a particular type of marketing, Recent changes from Apple have cut off all apps from being able to know what happens after you click on a ad and leave their site. And there is...

Have you ever done something for the first time, without prior knowledge and been able to achieve success? If so, you’re truly unique. Most humans find themselves meeting new challenges with a series of frustrations and failures. Imagine an infant as they decide to walk for the first time, they stand up then they stagger and inevitably they fall. To become consistent walkers they repeat the stand-...

If your blog titles don't grab reader's attention, they're not going to read your blog posts.  While it might seem that people want to see something positive in these challenging times, surprisingly negative titles work better. Look at the newsfeed on Twitter or Facebook or LinkedIn. Posts with negative titles stand out and are more likely to be read, create engagement and be shared. So, I want yo...

Would you like to be a guest on a podcast?  If so, you want to pay attention to what Kelly Mosser has to say about pitches. The biggest mistake most potential guest make is the emphasis of the pitch. The message boils down to "I want airtime on your show. Here's why I deserve it. Here's why you should give it to me." This one-sided approach misses the key detail that podcasts are a business collab...

According to Stacey Hall when we create marketing content it should not be about our products and services.  So stop talking about your products and focus on how you solve problems. She has a simple three step process to help you do just that. 1) Start with a question that is relevant to your customer and their problem 2) Explain what causes the problem 3) Provide the solution to your problem.  Gr...

Social media is all about ego. No matter how many followers and fans you have, it’s always fun to see a new follower, a retweet, or reply, like, love or share. All of those things signal to us that we’ve been accepted and esteemed by the community. And that feeling of acceptance is really one of the most basic human needs. When you are using social media for business. Your objective is to make oth...

Many potential customers read your bio to figure out who you are, and what it is going to be like to work with  you.  Danielle Hughes believes you need to give them a sense of who you are as a person instead of a litany of tasks and accomplishments.  That task list  doesn't help them start the conversation with you or get to know you in any way. When somebody reads your bio and then meets you or t...

During the pandemic many people started businesses and even more are sitting in a corporate role right now thinking you're going to start a business and leave the 9 to 5 behind. That's all great, but when the elation of the start up phase is over, you need to be able to sustain that new business through the long run. Anna Lundberg suggests you need to start with your "why".  If you are not clear a...

If you’ve been using social media for any length of time, you’ve probably seen your share of memes. What makes memes popular is the way they give people a common topic or trend to make jokes about. This creates a community as the meme is expanded and shared.  People love memes, but what about brands? Are they invited to the party? That is a question every social media manager grapples with at some...

I'm an extrovert. I love people.  I love being around people and talking to people.  But there are a whole bunch of people, introverts, who really don't enjoy interacting they way I do.  Here's the trick,  you've got to be able to reach both of those audiences. And if you're an introvert you have to learn how to participate in the world. This week's guest Amanda Watts share some great tips on how...

I have a confession to make. I am a networking junkie. I love getting out in meeting people. Unlike people with other addictions, I'm not looking for a cure for my networking addiction, because I think it's healthy for my business. There are lots of business owners who don't necessarily love networking and many don't even know where to start.  That's why I've taught hundreds and hundreds of busine...

It is time for a  Content Based SEO approach. You probably don’t want to hear this. I’m going to do it SEO wrong. You’re spending all your time focused on what search engines want, worrying about stuffing your pages with keywords, inbound links, and outbound links. Search engines don’t buy from you, people do So I want you to think about SEO differently. Start focusing on content that answers ques...

Everyone knows testimonials are a powerful sales tool, so why don't more businesses have them?  According to guest, John Hubbard the biggest reason is they don't ask.  And even when they do, customers fail to follow through on the promise to write one.   If you want testimonials, you need to make it easy for customers to give them.  That's why he developed the testimonial interview.   LEARN MORE A...

As a business owner there were things I had to do that I absolutely loved and there were other things that really pushed me outside my comfort zone.  My business was successful because I developed skills in both those areas. And that's what I talked to Alex Brueckmann about in this episode. Alex explained: We often grow into our roles as business owners from a starting point of Knowledge. We've do...

 When you were little, your parents probably told you to use an inside voice because it wasn't polite to shout. We've all been there, in a crowded room and you want to get someone's attention. Sometimes you have to shout or raise your voice a little bit to get noticed. Well, the internet is a lot like a crowded room when you're competing with so many other messages. To get the attention of visitor...

There's a perception that authors are more credible experts than people who are not authors.  Kim Thompson Pinder thinks it is just a perception and not necessarily true. But why not go with the perception? There are however, lots of gurus out there teaching you to write a book and business will fall into your lap. It is not quite that easy, but a book can be an incredible marketing and credibilit...

I am an email marketing fan so I was excited to invite Kendra Corman to join me for a conversation on how to make email marketing effective.  She started by explaining why email is so important.  Sure it is great to build a community on social media, but what will you do if Facebook goes down or cuts off your profile. You are stuck.  But if you have email addresses, you  own those contacts and can...

I don't ask for help very often. Maybe it's my personality I like to present this very competent, successful exterior. But the truth is everybody needs help from time to time. So today I have a request. My podcast has hit a plateau and I need your help to reach a wider audience. Follow the link https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/more-than-a-few-words/id438174063?mt=2 . If you like what you hear...

Stop for a minute and think about your inbox I know as soon as I said that that was that little pain in your stomach because you know there’s a lot of clutter there.  But it doesn't have to be that way.   In this conversation, David David Forman of  Clarity Creative Group shares some simple tricks to tame the inbox beast. My favorite tips is the creative use of filters to screen irrelevant message...

Wouldn’t it be great if your marketing could get people to buy from you? Unfortunately, as my guest  Chris Hoyt  explains, that’s not how marketing works. What can marketing do? Marketing can help people know you exist.  It can communicate your value It can give people an incentive to try your services or your products And most of all it can help you listen to your customers.

Today, I want to talk about your attitude, and how it can drive action. Why this topic now? Let's face it, there are lots of things in the world which distract and impact us as individuals. And as business owners. There are things we can't control, but we can control how those things make us feel, and how we react in response. There is power in a positive attitude. Ask any doctor about a patient w...

Everyone who starts a business thinks it's going to grow and grow.  They assume the growth will be wonderful as it gets bigger and bigger and bigger. My guest, Andrej Persolja suggests that may not be the best course of action, because many new businesses are not ready to grow.  Growth comes with pains, and you have to have your infrastructure in place to withstand some of the pain.  You need to h...

If you are like most business owners you have developed a skill for making gut decisions. But my guest Dr. Gleb Tsipursky thinks that might just be the wrong way to approach your business decisions.   The author of multiple articles and several books on the subject, including his new one. Never Go With Your Gut, in which he presents a logical and easy to follow alternative. Listen to learn his fiv...

If you've just finished working on your business plan, you probably think okay I'm done. I can put it on the shelf and get on with the rest of my business. If that's what you're thinking, you've missed the entire point of the planning process.  A good business plan is never done. You're always adding to it, making changes, scribbling out information and writing stuff in the margins. Your plan shou...