unbillable hours - a podcast about better professional services marketing

Whenever there are alignment issues between marketing and "the business" in a consultancy, marketing should work to fix them. But how? Ash and Flo discuss their views (and potential solutions) in this "workshopping" episode: Voices, production, etc. by Ash and Flo. Creative and design advice by  @calmar.creativ Into, outro voiceover by  @iamthedakota Music also by  @iamthedakota Pls. find the show...

Imagine all your firm’s subject matter experts were, like, really visible and influential online. What would that do for your clients and your firm? Oh, and, more importantly: How could you make this vision a reality? Flo asks Liz Harr from Hinge, who just co-published a book about these very questions. Episode guest:  Elizabeth Harr , partner,  Hinge .  Voices, production, etc. by Flo (Ash wasn’t...

Still not happy with your consultancy's marketing performance? Then follow Ash and Flo along the causal chain of issues causing your pain - in this full-fledged "causal chain analysis" where, when, and how professional services marketing breaks down. Voices, production, etc., by Ash and Flo Creative and design advice by @calmar.creativ Into, outro voiceover by @iamthedakota Music also by @iamtheda...

We're revisiting all things KPI, targets, and measurement in this one... and Flo and Ash share their method and model for building a dashboard that will enable you to predict and report on business outcomes. Oh, and a note: DO make sure to grab the shownotes on unbillable-hrs.com ... they come with a fully editable PowerPoint including the model Ash and Flo discuss here, plus a collection of Bench...

Flo recently hopped onto Alastair McDermott's "Recognized Authority" podcast to discuss some fresh ideas for consultancy content creation - here's the replay for you: Check out the Recognized Authority Podcast here! Voices, production, etc., by  Alastair McDermott Creative and design advice by @calmar.creativ Into, outro voiceover by @iamthedakota Music also by @iamthedakota Pls. find the shownote...

As we're entering planning season, a lot of us are under pressure to "do more with less" next fiscal... so how do we do it? (HOW?!?). Ash and Flo share some insights around where you might, in fact, find some budget you could save in your current budgets ... without hurting your results, of course. Plus, they share a framework for how to find specific darlings to kill... ("imagine a spreadsheet,"...

You'll be planning events for your consultancy, no? Then you might as well go ahead and listen to this episode, where Ash and Flo get some tips for how to run them well in '23 by consultancy event expert Lynda Field (she's awesome!). Episode guest: Lynda Field , founder, Lynda Field Productions .  Voices, production, etc. by Ash and Flo. Creative and design advice by @calmar.creativ Into, outro vo...

Ding-ding-ding... it's that time of the year! We've officially left Q2 behind and, with it, the first half of 2023. And... uh... where are we now? And where are things headed? Ash and Flo discuss 7 observations they've made in the first half of this year in a run down of the - now official - ubhrs "state of consultancy marketing, year '23 edition." There are even a few tips re. how to cope in here...

"Specificity" is crucial in all things consultancy marketing: Ideal client profiles, firm positioning, service design, messaging ... etc. So, how can marketers get as specific as they should be? Ash and Flo discuss a framework they've found in the wild and which you might find helpful: Voices, production, etc. by Ash and Flo. Creative and design advice by @calmar.creativ Into, outro voiceover by @...

If you haven't been living under a rock (or stuck at your desk for this one big proposal), you have heard about "ABM." But what, exactly, is it - and how could you make it work for your consultancy? We asked someone who knows: Fullfunnel.io's Stapho Thienpont. Episode guest: Stapho Thienpont , Fullfunel.io . Voices, production, etc. by Ash and Flo. Creative and design advice by @calmar.creativ Int...

We sure do talk a lot about "systems" and "processes" on this podcast. But today, we'll kick it up to the next level - and discuss "operational excellence" in marketing with expert guest Joseph Paris. Listen to his tips for how to leverage OpEx principles and practices in your day-to-day! Episode guest: Joseph Paris , author, consultant, and chairman, Xonitek group.  Voices, production, etc. by As...

How can consultancy marketers make firm-wide change? We asked someone who should know because “making change” is part of their marketing executive day job: Marc Appel, head of content and editorial strategy at Accenture. Episode guest: Marc Appel, head of content and editorial strategy,  Accenture . Voices, production, etc., by Ash and Flo. Creative and design advice by  @calmar.creativ Into, outr...

Ever heard of a "diagnostic funnel?" It's like one of the old buzzfeed.com quizzes, but better - and for consultancy marketing. Ash and Flo explain how you might use these, and give examples (pls. see our shownotes for links!). Voices, production, etc. by Ash and Flo Creative and design advice by  @calmar.creativ Into, outro voiceover by  @iamthedakota Music also by  @iamthedakota Pls. find the sh...

And here it is (finally, sigh!): In this episode, Ash and Flo present their model for what, exactly, "strategic" consultancy marketing is and how it works within a firm. It's a bit of a tying together of lots of loose ends from previous episode into something coherent - and we sure hope it'll be helpful to you and your work. Voices, production, etc. by Ash and Flo. Creative and design advice by  @...

"Ok, what are we doing for Father's Day tomorrow," asks the managing partner for the first time ever as he steps into the marketing office... the evening before. Ever had something like that happen to you? Then listen to our tips for preventing it from happening ever again here: Voices, production, etc. by Ash and Flo Creative and design advice by  @calmar.creativ Into, outro voiceover by  @iamthe...

Is your marketing function providing in-house trainings to consulting colleagues? If not... you might want to consider changing that. Listen to Ash's and Flo's reasons for why marketers should train consultants and their tips for how and in what. They even share some tips for how to get your "training service" started! Voices, production, etc. by Ash and Flo. Creative and design advice by  @calmar...

It's still an under-utilized source of differentiation, marketing success, and firm growth: Proper market segmentation. We mean the kind where you DON'T just go after entire industries but create much more helpful sub-segments to increase your marketing's effectiveness. And in this minisode, we explain how you can get to them by viewing your market through four simple "lenses." Voices, production,...

We speak about "stakeholder engagement" a lot on this podcast. And in this episode, Ash and Flo bring it home - to "corporate comms." Listen to hear their views and tips around working with the function to improve your marketing results! Voices, production, etc. by Ash and Flo. Creative and design advice by  @calmar.creativ Into, outro voiceover by  @iamthedakota Music also by  @iamthedakota Pls....

Next up: How to map your consultancy's content to the service buying journey of your ideal clients, and improve the effectiveness of your inbound efforts (like, literally, that's what's in this week's minisode: We discuss the why, how, and what to watch out for when mapping your content to your clients' service buying journey... let's go!): Voices, production, etc. by Ash and Flo Creative and desi...

In this episode, Ash and Flo chat about the difficulties of getting your organic social media posts to work these days... and then share a framework that helps you write effective posts. Plus, we also talk about how AI-generated content can help optimize your posts... Voices, production, etc. by Ash and Flo Creative and design advice by  @calmar.creativ Into, outro voiceover by  @iamthedakota Musi...

Need new insights, content ideas - or even content pieces? Don't go off and reinvent the wheel... use the assets your firm already has instead! In this "solo episode", a lone Flo shares our seven tips for "where to find" ideas, expertise, and collateral you can repurpose while Ash is out "doing Ash stuff" somewhere in Europe. Enjoy! Voices, production, etc. by Flo (Ash is out today!) Creative and...

We're not saying this is always the case... BUT: Sometimes, when consultancy marketing efforts seem to "not do much," it's not marketing's (or: marketers') fault - but the consequence of misconceptions. Here's more: Voices, production, etc. by Ash and Flo. Creative and design advice by  @calmar.creativ Into, outro voiceover by  @iamthedakota Music also by  @iamthedakota

"How can I convince a consultancy exec who 'doesn't believe in marketing' to invest in marketing?" is a question both Ash and Flo are hearing more often these days - and so we decided to answer it, comprehensively, in a single episode. Enjoy! Voices, production, etc. by Ash and Flo. Creative and design advice by  @calmar.creativ Into, outro voiceover by  @iamthedakota Music also by  @iamthedakota...

So, how will generative AI change professional services marketing? We’ve promised to revisit this very question for a while now – and, in this episode, do it with the help of Hinge Marketing’s Karl Feldman and Austin McNair, who have a strong point of view on the matter. Episode guests:  Karl Feldman, senior partner , and  Austin McNair , senior marketing manager,  Hinge Marketing . Voices, produc...

Since we, uh... lost our original episode for today (which was all about "misconceptions"), Flo had to go back into the dusty archives and uncover this classic, which is about the capabilities and mechanisms your firm should have within its marketing function. Enjoy! Voices, production, etc. by Ash and Flo. Creative and design advice by  @calmar.creativ Into, outro voiceover by  @iamthedakota Musi...