Actionable Marketing Podcast

Old school press releases never get much hype. Usually, they are not interesting to write or read. Smart marketers and PR professionals know that well-written press releases are crucial to land press coverage and influencer relationships that build brand awareness and establish companies as the authority in their niche.

Today's guest is Mickie Kennedy from eReleases, a press release distribution company. Mickie discusses how to get press releases right to get coverage from even the biggest media outlets.

Some of the highlights of the show include:

• Why have press releases as part of a successful marketing strategy? Leverage
• Strategic/Smart: Craft your news/announcements to do well with press releases
• Same Message: Safe press releases or contrarian quotes are reasons for failure
• Justify Expense: Press releases take time and money to reach their full potential
• People respond to surveys/polls; include odd questions to be picked up by press
• Newsworthy Criteria: When's the right time to write and send a press release?
• Industry Coverage: Local media is most accessible and easiest media to get
• Improve Odds: Share press release with many people for implied endorsements
• Positive impact? Press releases are worst marketing tool to measure ROI metrics

Links:

• Mickie Kennedy on LinkedIn
• eReleases
• Free Master Class: How to Build a PR Campaign Designed to Get Massive Media Coverage
• Shark Tank Show
• SurveyMonkey
• Google Forms
• Ben Sailer on LinkedIn
• CoSchedule

Quotes from Mickie Kennedy:

"That leverage, you just can't capture elsewhere in marketing. That's the fun thing that you sit back and watch. When it works, it works well."

"If you can be strategic with what you're announcing and sort of craft your own news, you can really get out there and do really well with press releases."

"I love working with startups. About a third of the people that go on Shark Tank use eReleases to announce their segment coming up when it airs."

"Press releases are the worst marketing tool because it's hard as heck to measure the ROI."

Brands are churning out more content now than ever before. Even though companies are paying more money to create more content to compete in a more crowded space, sometimes content falls flat and does not perform. The content doesn't build business or drive results, rankings, or traffic. Is it time to prioritize quality over quantity?

Today's guest is Gaetano DiNardi from Nextiva, a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) software company. Gaetano talks about what can go wrong from publishing too much content without a strategy. He discusses how to balance content quality with content quantity based on personal and professional experience.

Some of the highlights of the show include:

• Marketing Mistakes: Brands can't buy ads to become a famous brand
• Common Content Problems:
  • Companies don't think about distribution
  • Lacks subject matter expertise and authoritativeness
• Compounding Effects: Time, money, and effort spent on quantity over quality
• Content Cleanup: Audit current content to create new optimized, quality content
• Content Considerations:
  • Is the content good or not?
  • Does the content produce leads and signups?
  • Does the content educate and inform audiences?
  • Is content measured to evaluate effectiveness and engagement?
• Content Creation Process and Less is More Strategy:
  • Search Google for every topic before producing content
  • Compare rankings to create better quality, higher relevance, more value
  • Develop cornerstone pillars of content and associated pages to get results

Links:

• Gaetano DiNardi on LinkedIn
• Nextiva
• Monday.com
• Backlinko
• Rand Fishkin
• Salesforce
• HubSpot
• Ahrefs
• Gong
• NerdWallet
• Single Grain
• Leveling Up by Eric Siu
• Marketing Examples
• Saltbae
• Dave Ramsey
• John Barrows
• Peter Schiff
• Ben Sailer on LinkedIn
• CoSchedule

Quotes from Gaetano DiNardi:

"Companies don't think about distribution. They just produce."

"Most content actually lacks expertise, authoritativeness, and it doesn't always seem like it's coming from a subject matter expert because oftentimes, it's not."

"All this quantity, you have to keep maintaining it, and you have to keep it up to date."

"These are assets that never die. They live forever if they are good quality."

The marketing industry is full of talented people who come from all kinds of educational and professional backgrounds. If you want to get into the industry, but you don't have a directly relevant college degree or previous work experience, how do you break into marketing to succeed?

Today's guest is Melissa Berrios from Melissa Berrios Consulting and Virtualmente Libre, where she helps consult six- and seven-figure entrepreneurs on how to grow their brands and audiences. Before being a marketing consultant, Melissa spent 13 years as a project engineer.

Some of the highlights of the show include:

• Unplanned Accident: How Melissa pivoted from engineering to marketing
• Corporate Roles: Engineers who climb the corporate ladder lose creativity
• Creative Outlets: Melissa got bit by the online world bug and started blogging
• Content Creation: How to run, manage, market, and promote blogs
• Decision Time: Severe depression forced Melissa to take time off and not return
• What can I do? Continue to blog and help clients grow blogs, brands, businesses
• Education: Melissa taught and coached herself marketing to coach clients
• Mindset and Skillset: Engineers are problem-solvers and figure things out
• Customer Service Skills: Marketers need to understand people, as well
• Feel like an imposter? If you are passionate about something, start to pivot

Links:

• Melissa Berrios Consulting
• Melissa Berrios on LinkedIn
• Unstoppable by Kelly Roach
• Ben Sailer on LinkedIn
• CoSchedule

Quotes from Melissa Berrios:

"I've always been a very creative person growing up and even when I was in engineering school, I was involved in a lot of the arts."

"Working in engineering is something, it could be really a creative job, which it's fine. But as you climb the corporate ladder and you climb into more of a management role, more of a corporate role, you lose that creativity aspect of engineering."

"I was creating a lot of content, so content creation was very strong. I became very strong at it just because blogging required me to edit video, create graphics, and do all that stuff. I became really passionate about it."

"If you really want to pivot and do something that you are really passionate about, you need to start."

Traditional public relations (PR) is still one of the most powerful and cost-effective tactics that brands use to get attention and build a business. It may not be the latest and greatest shiny object to chase after, but it is a proven and time-tested option.

Today's guest is Megan Bennett, CEO of Light Years Ahead. She focuses on managing clients and exceeding their expectations. Megan has helped all kinds of clients get press coverage and measure effectiveness connected to sales and revenue.

Some of the highlights of the show include:

• Why do PR and media relations still matter? Best bang for marketing buck
• Why should you invest in such tactics? Puts product, brand, message into media
• Challenges: Self-promoting companies and cutting through competition clutter
• Affiliate Program: Incentivize the media to cover your brand, make a commission
• How do you find writers/editors who care? Stay in touch and stay current
• PR Promise: Megan can't guarantee ROI, but can guarantee brand awareness
• Case Study: How KC Cattle Company's Wigya hot dog broke the Internet
• Don't have money to hire PR agency? Know your audience, subscribe to service
• Next Thing To Do: Write a really good email pitch with compelling subject line
• Maturing Media Relations: Reach Out and don't take 'no' for an answer
• Scrubbing Lists: Target right reporters/editors by beat, geography - Google them
• Be persistent, not annoying or repeatedly pester people who aren't a good target
• Keep pushing and sending pitches for more coverage from relevant targets
• How to write a pitch: Identify story and angle, then tailor it to your media contact
• PR Pressure: If hiring an agency, consider chemistry and feeling comfortable

Links:

• Megan Bennett on LinkedIn
• Light Years Ahead
• KC Cattle Company
• Wagyu Bacon Cheeseburger Bratwursts Have Arrived, and They're a Revelation
• Muck Rack
• Meltwater
• Cision
• Ben Sailer on LinkedIn
• CoSchedule

Quotes from Megan Bennett:

"Once you get one good media hit, it helps to build brand awareness, so that consumers know about you."

"You have to find a way to make your brand stand out from the rest when you're telling a story to the media."

"Keep shopping around until you find people that you feel are really going to be passionate about your brand and want to help grow with you, not just take your money."

"Find ways to spread the word because that's what's going to give your brand the credibility to move forward is the public relations and the media reviews."

How can marketers leverage social media to influence search engine optimization (SEO) and boost their content? Social media does and does not influence organic search performance for content.

Today's guest is Dmitry Dragilev is a public relations (PR) and SEO expert from Criminally Prolific. Dmitry talks about what he knows based on what Google does, what works in the industry, and what works for himself and his clients. He describes how to leverage social media to drive short- and long-term SEO gains and amplify your content through channels.

Some of the highlights of the show include:

• Remember: Social signals are not used by Google for ranking purposes
• Why? Too much volume/information to go through; Google can't index everything
• What ranks? Getting your brand reputation and recognition on social media
• Google indexes social media content when assets are used to share information
• Simple Idea: Get people to share content w/ other people to find and link to it
• No Shortcuts: Google always keeps quality content at the top of search results
• Relationship Building: Help people bring value to people, then they will help you
• Two Things: To rank on Google, your need epic content with links and traffic

Links:

• Dmitry Dragilev on LinkedIn
• Dmitry Dragilev on Twitter
• Criminally Prolific
• PR That Converts Course
• StoreYa
• Best Alternative to WordStream
• Nextiva - Most Reliable VoIP Provider?
• Matt Cutts
• Matthew Woodward - Unhealthiest Foods
• Inspiyr
• How Many Users Does Clubhouse Have? 40+ Clubhouse Stats
• HubSpot
• Andrew Warner
• Nigel Stevens
• Google Page Insights
• Ahrefs
• How To Drive 10x More Traffic With This SEO Technique From Brian Dean Of Backlinko [AMP082]
• Ben Sailer on LinkedIn
• CoSchedule

Quotes from Dmitry Dragilev:

"Social signals are not used by Google for ranking purposes. I think that's really important to remember. If you are trying to think about that or trying to rank that Google will not use those social signals to rank you."

"Your brand reputation, your brand recognition, and getting that out there via social media do indirectly impact your rankings."

"Those assets, which are going to be linked to from many different pages, many different sites, and used in all these different posts, that's where I think the gold mine really lies with sharing information on social that people can use in all sorts of different avenues."

"The name of the game should be spending time and money to create quality, engaging content. I think that is worth every penny. Whether it works well on social media or organically, it should probably be both."

Are you frustrated being on an in-house marketing team working with external agencies? And vice versa? Client and agency relationships can turn sour for several different reasons, such as unreasonable expectations, misaligned objectives, overselling capabilities, or poor communication of needs.

Today's guest is Tyler Elliston, founder of Right Side Up. Tyler talks about how his company is structured to set up client relationships for mutual success using basic philosophical and strategic approaches. Actual measures and practical guidance can prevent and avoid problems from starting in the first place.

Some of the highlights of the show include:

• Right Side Up: What goes wrong and what should be done
• Both Sides: Tyler was a marketer and one of those difficult clients to work with
• Differentiators: Pricing, in-house staffing support, and indexing individual talent
• Wrong Workarounds: Use agencies as transactional vendors, hire/fire managers
• Control and Commitment: Lack of ownership mentality and product/market fit
• Radical Transparency: Figuring out frustration and honest about what's needed
• Challenges: Starting business and building systems without sacrificing quality
• Solution: Hire great people to help solve problems and scale business
• Structure: If not aligned with client's desires/interests, it's not the individual's fault
• Customer Satisfaction: Apply client mindset and treat business as if it's your own
• Difficult to deal with?
  • Apply high standards
  • Set clear expectations
  • Deliver on and strive to exceed them
  • Treat people like people

Links:

• Tyler Elliston on LinkedIn
• Right Side Up
• Ben Sailer on LinkedIn
• CoSchedule

Quotes from Tyler Elliston:

"Ultimately, our goal is to help them build a best-in-class organization that consists of full-time people, agencies (not us - Right Side Up), whatever sort of makes sense for their business. So, we try to take a more kind of holistic approach to their success."

"We really index on individual talent. We really believe that great marketing comes from great marketers."

"I felt like I had relatively little control over the talent I was working with."

"In a lot of cases, the problem is not the person. A lot of times, the problem is the structure that the person is in."

Diversity, equity, and inclusion, or the 'DEI' initiatives, have received increased attention for a wide variety of reasons. How and why should marketing leaders and teams implement effective DEI programs and strategies? The consequences for not understanding what DEI means does matter.

Today's guest is Jimi Vaughn, a DEI consultant and expert. He talks about making a case for DEI by aiming for both the head and the heart of organizations' decision makers and internal stakeholders.

Some of the highlights of the show include:

• DEI: Diversity is state of things; Equity is fair treatment; Inclusion is belonging
• DEI Strategy: Communication and connecting with audience about business
• Bottom Line: Understand the $3.9-trillion buying power of minority groups
• Dismissing DEI: Incorrect belief of discrimination, exclusion is hatred, intention
• Default Assumption: Everyone's norm is the same or close enough to yours
• Reality: We're more alike than different, but we still have significant differences
• Decisions: Embrace, celebrate, recognize, understand, and realize impact
• Cultural Values: Who and how we value different people in different stages of life
• Resistant to change? Start the conversation to build a fact-based case
• Starting Steps for DEI Strategy:
  • Look internally at team to determine if and why perspectives are missing
  • Listen and engage by cultivating collaborative environment to contribute
  • Tie actions back to purpose and know the why to make better choices
  • Establish key performance indicators, benchmarks to measure success
• Cancel Culture:
  • Hold people accountable
  • Audience demands better
  • Recognize buying power
  • Key analytics tell a story
  • Utilize feedback and evidence

Links:

• Jimi Vaughn on Instagram
• Ben Sailer on LinkedIn
• CoSchedule

Quotes from Jimi Vaughn:

"When I talk about diversity, I'm really referencing the traits and characteristics that makes us all unique."

"Equity is really about fair treatment, where equality is about the same treatment. Sometimes, equality isn't necessarily fair."

"I do believe that there's an ethical responsibility for organizations and marketers and basically any business to be thinking about these types of things."

"It would be foolish to not understand the buying power of minority groups."

How can smaller companies compete against bigger businesses? Agile marketing is a methodology that helps companies work more efficiently and effectively to produce better outcomes.

Today's guest is Andrea Fryrear from AgileSherpas, an agile marketing consultancy. Andrea talks about how companies can leverage limited resources the right way by having a plan and path to follow and drive outsized outcomes.

Some of the highlights of the show include:

• What is agile marketing? Focus on ideal customers to get value to them faster
• Key Benefits: Customer centricity and niche down for market share
• Starting Point: Get back to basics to identify and prioritize high-value work
• Dynamic Visibility: Take time to figure out and manage what's important or not
• Disciplined Process: Set work-in-progress limits to avoid shiny object syndrome
• Generate Results: Get more done by doing less to accomplish goals
• Baseline: Implement agile to measure process improvements, marketing metrics
• Potential Problems: Lack of understanding, misconceptions of agility + marketing

Links:

• Andrea Fryrear on LinkedIn
• AgileSherpas
• 4th Annual State of Agile Marketing Report
• Spotify
• American Psychological Association
• Ben Sailer on LinkedIn
• CoSchedule

Quotes from Andrea Fryrear:

"If it's not getting you anywhere, then that speed is just waste. It's wasted energy."

"Agile does all of its optimization and its speed and its waste reduction to deliver value to a customer faster."

"What do we need in order to effectively identify the high-value work and prioritize the high-value work? We need to know everything that's out there. Everything we are doing compared with everything we could be doing."

"Agile is meant to apply holistically across all the work that a team does."

Are you a hiring manager responsible for building a marketing team? An internship program should not be an afterthought. Take the time to select candidates and support interns effectively to be productive team members and get a good start on their career.

Today's guest is Owen Piehl, CoSchedule intern, who shares insights about how to get an internship for a specific role with limited experience. Owen talks about what college students and hiring managers need to know to make marketing internships successful.

Some of the highlights of the show include:

• Why CoSchedule? Company's marketing mission, culture, values, and content
• Company Research: Is it what you want to do? Submit application, interview prep
• Skills: Highlight strengths, not weaknesses to workaround lack of experience
• Other Opportunities: Networking led to Congress and newspaper connections
• High Standards: Learn to accept edits and feedback; don't take it personally
• Fear of Failure: Believe in abilities/skills and go for things to make them happen
• Right Decision: Do what's right, build trust, allow room to make mistakes, grow
• Onboarding: Broad overview to gain understanding of role and responsibilities

Links:

• Owen Piehl on LinkedIn
• Ben Sailer on LinkedIn
• CoSchedule

Quotes:

"I started out as the social media intern. That's what I got hired on as with little social media experience, I might add, and then now I've made the transfer over to the content editor intern." Owen Piehl

"I was looking for something where I could get into marketing a little bit, learn a little more about just how marketing teams work. As I was researching, I saw a few openings for CoSchedule, and I did some research on the company." Owen Piehl

"(Owen) You chose to focus on how your skills fit the role, rather than how your experience fit the description." Ben Sailer

"Ask yourself what skills you have right now that might transfer. Combine that with a dedication to never stop learning, and you just might surprise yourself with what you can achieve." Ben Sailer

"One thing I really appreciate about CoSchedule is it's very results oriented." Owen Piehl

Data and thought leadership are two things that work better together, especially in public relations and content marketing.

Today's guest is Amy Littleton, Executive Vice President of Public Relations and Content at KemperLesnik. Amy talks about how to make thought leadership more accurate and authoritative to land massive PR wins. She knows what it takes to use data-backed insights to tell stories that earn media attention.

Some of the highlights of the show include:

• Thought Leadership: Common reasons it fails and doesn't produce results
• Good and Bad News: Search for and find information that is right, not wrong
• Authenticity and Credibility: Marketing agenda vs. thoughtful data-driven advisory
• Proof Points: Always better to have examples and information you need to know
• Research Resources: Surveys are simple to complex and everything in between
• Content Length: Consumed on multiple channels, equipment, and platforms
• Curiosity: Gives info to get customers to care, explore new things, drive results
• Inputs In/Out: Fill your brain to produce better ideas and make better decisions

Links:

• Amy Littleton on LinkedIn
• KemperLesnik
• LinkedIn Polls
• SurveyMonkey
• Omnibus Survey
• The Harris Poll
• Ben Sailer on LinkedIn
• CoSchedule

Quotes from Amy Littleton:

"Even the way that we search for news and information in our personal lives, in business, you're looking for news and information, and you can get that from multiple sources."

"The first thing you would do is lose trust with your audience if you put out crappy content. You're not going to get people to want to come back to you for information if the information you put out is really a marketing piece disguised as thought leadership."

"Data can come from anywhere. I think your own curated data, third-party data, information that you've found that is already publicly available, and any combination of that, can help you to inform a thought leadership piece."

"It's about credibility. You want your piece to have credibility."