Strategic Counsel by ForthRight Business

In this digital world, the customer experience is essentially flat - almost creating a commoditized effect. Here, the brand can lose control of their relationship with the customer as it fights to create a Brand-Love connection in a world that is somewhat one-dimensional. In this Quick Hit, you’ll hear us dive in with another marketing expert, Brian Bolten. Check out the full episode here: https:/...

It can be a really tough - but beautiful - thing to get your team to work together towards a common goal. It’s essential for the success of your company, but there are so many distractions that can take away from good work. How do you remove those barriers? In this episode, you’ll learn how to focus your team, manage egos, and nominate the right people. You’ll also find out how to make sure everyo...

“Leading from afar” has become a hot topic due to remote working environments. But even before our current situation mandated it, we’ve found the very best types of leaders have the ability to do so from afar. This Quick Hit brings you two ways to sharpen your Vigilant Leadership: Allow the space for your entire team to grow and Develop the ability to let things go. Make sure you listen to the ful...

Have you ever considered adding a podcast to your business or brand? It’s a form of content that’s booming, with loads of potential and low barriers to entry. But if you start a podcast, you want to do it right - otherwise, you might be setting your team up for disappointment or burnout. To properly podcast, you need to find your valuable POV, keep the focus on top-of-the-funnel awareness, and be...

There’s a mantra in the marketing and branding world that “Content is king.” From digital to written to programmatic to OTT (over-the-top), we’re now surrounded by content. The reason it’s king? It’s the ultimate differentiator for a business and a brand. In addition to driving awareness by increasing touchpoints with your consumers, content that’s consistently branded across platforms can disprop...

Brainstorming and strategy sessions can work wonders for your organization - if you do them right, that is. Collaborative work sessions can be a huge help and create that insight your business needs right now. But, it gets tricky really quickly when you have so many voices in the same room. So how do you nail your next collaborative session? In this episode, you’ll learn why you should always have...

A career coach can be one your most valuable assets. For this Quick Hit, we give you a few real-world examples to help you navigate the path to a career coach. Catch the full episode here to hear us examine the 4 key roles your business coach should play and set up criteria for choosing and evaluating coaches: https://www.forthright-people.com/podcast/episode/2db45b80/4-roles-your-business-coach-s...

Are you using text message marketing for your business? It’s a communication channel that traditionally has been kept to personal chatting between friends and family. But there’s a whole world of possibilities when you think about text messaging from a business sense. Text messaging is the #1 preferred communication channel, doesn’t require immediate responses, allows for proactive but non-invasiv...

You have the tools in place to go out on your own. Now, we’ll give you the operational and promotional aspects to think about and put into action. From creating your logo to creating engagement, here’s the rundown of what to focus on when becoming a freelancer. Check out the full episode here: https://www.forthright-people.com/podcast/episode/3def08d5/becoming-a-freelancer-part-2

Let’s face it - you deserve a pat on the back. Many pats. But giving yourself credit and praise is often awkward and uncomfortable. How do you self-promote without putting people off? We’re here to help you shout your wins from the rooftops! In this episode, you’ll learn how to flatter others as you promote yourself, emphasize the effort behind the accomplishments, and volunteer to teach others an...

Whether you’re ready to take the plunge and gear up your side hustle or are taking the leap and leaving your corporate job, we give you the first 5 steps to take some of the guesswork out of this uncertain territory. Make sure to catch the complete list in the full episode here: https://www.forthright-people.com/podcast/episode/1fe508d5/becoming-a-freelancer-part-1

Marketing, marketing, marketing. It’s everywhere you look, and we all know it’s important to growing your business. But who should actually do the marketing? Should you do it yourself or hire a marketing team? We believe a marketing team can be a phenomenal addition to your team - they’ll ensure you’re staying up to date with the ever-changing marketing world, they see the world differently than t...

Defining the role of email marketing - which usually plays one of three roles - is key to your success. How do you give your customers and clients value and keep them coming back for more? This Quick Hit brings you a glimpse of our episode featuring Kelsey Johnson from AWeber on how to effectively leverage email marketing. Listen to the full episode here: https://www.forthright-people.com/podcast/...

Happiness at work - is it really possible? You bet! And it can improve lots of other areas of your life, as well. The hard part is making the changes needed to find that happiness. In this episode, you’ll learn the top ways to be happier at work, based on our collective perspective and different experiences across the industry. Hear how to surround yourself with the right people, make it about mor...

If you think you can just write your blog and not do anything else to gain traction and attention, you have come to the right place! There are tried-and-true actions to take to give you and your blog credibility and grow your followers. Listen to this Quick Hit for a brief overview of what you need to be doing before listening to the full episode here: https://www.forthright-people.com/podcast/epi...

You’re listening to this, so you’re familiar with audio marketing. But really - another marketing channel?! It better be worth it. Audio marketing can open so many doors for you and your business when done right. There are just some key decisions to make: public or private podcasting? Audio or video? What should you talk about? We have you covered, as this week we welcome guest Nora Sudduth - Co-F...

Many have taken to social channels to compensate for other channels that may have been cut off to COVID. Add this to the folks who were already there and now we have mass chaos. Unfortunately, most businesses have been sucked into the chaos versus rising above it and being heard. The secret to successful social channels? A brand-led social strategy. In this quick hit, we give you the 4 elements of...

This week our focus is on the importance of building your marketing team and continuing to evaluate the team structure that will set your business up for success. When hiring new team members, yes it is important to consider their skills and what they can bring to the table individually, but don’t forget how crucial it is that they fit in with the team as a whole. We welcome Tim Parkin, President...

Coming from opposite sides of the proverbial marketing tracks, we share a common truth: the best marketing work comes from the most functional teams. Not the teams who like each other the most, which is a common misconception. In this quick hit, we share one of our ‘In the Trenches’ topics: what to do if you are a leader who tends to fear conflict? For more insights, catch the full episode here: h...

If you’ve listened to us for any amount of time, you know how much we believe in building a strong brand and cultivating it from the ground up to carry your business to the heights you aim for. There are many reasons the big brands we know and have grown to love have become the success stories they are. In this episode we welcome Steve Robinson, former CMO of Chick-Fil-A, who shares his wisdom on...

You know we think personal brand is paramount to building your business in a big way. We break down the basics of personal brand, what exactly it means, and why it is so important to begin working on yours if you haven’t already. Make sure you listen to the full episode here: https://bit.ly/3Hi4r2b.

Navigating the PR world can be a challenge especially when your results fall short of your expectations. The kind of PR we are referring to here is ‘earned media’, something that gets you coverage without having to pay for it. With so many channels out there from TV to social media influencers, we highlight 4 myths we have seen in our many years in the business. Don’t forget to listen to complimen...

In this quick hit, you’ll hear from Steve Leder, Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Badge Design who joins us in discussing the important topic of creative strategy. We often talk about the importance of a brief because it gets everyone on the same page. In terms of design, it is imperative that the brief translates into a creative strategy that the entire team can get on board with from the ge...

In this episode we welcome guest Mike DaRe, Managing Director of Smarts Agency, who like us, knows the difference between telling a story and telling a compelling story that gets attention, which is the story your audience longs to hear! We often talk about making an emotional connection with your audience across all of your marketing channels, and this topic is no different. Consumers can see str...

The ways you have generated leads in the past are likely suffering or at the very least, have drastically changed due to the pandemic. Especially if you relied on big events, foot-traffic or live patronage. Yes, we are returning to life as we once knew it, but certain types of events and exposure have changed maybe forever. This means you need to pivot. In this quick hit episode, we give you 4 lea...