Maribel Lopez is the founder and principal analyst at Lopez Research, a market research and strategy consulting firm specializing in technology. Before founding Lopez Research, Maribel began her career working in finance at Motorola and eventually moving into marketing. She joins ConnectThe2 to discuss the intricacies of marketing, the pros and pitfalls of startups, and the wonders of technology. If you like what you’re reading, be sure to listen to the entire episode linked at the bottom of this page.

Starting an analyst firm…

Maribel did not intend to start her own analyst firm. At first she looked into joining pre-existing startups. However, she did not feel like was a good fit for them. Her clients requested that she go into strategy and research work and Lopez Research was born. Thanks to Maribel’s career with Motorola, she had access to technology education and developed a passion for technology and the growing world of artificial intelligence. Lopez Research provides analysis on a wide range of technology topics for both startups and global firms.

Marketing is a lot harder than people realize…

People often assume marketing is simple. They mistakenly believe that if they write a press release, they will gain tons of business overnight. Marketing is a lot more nuanced than that, because it requires precision to target the right audience through the noise.

Success is gained by using marketing to stand out in your specific category, not by trying to create a whole new category. Startups often have a lot of enthusiasm and great ideas, but don’t have the experience and technical expertise required to really take that idea all the way. There is a difference between being enamored with technology and actually analyzing it and understanding the necessary steps to reach success.

More than analysis…

In addition to researching the latest innovations in technology and artificial intelligence, Maribel hosts three podcasts. Since moving to Charleston during the pandemic, Maribel has found many opportunities to network with people in technology and similar industries. After the interview, we played two games with Maribel to get to know her better. We played the techie edition This or That, where we learned that Maribel cannot choose between Samsung and Apple, and then we played Never Have I Ever.

Hear more...

If you've enjoyed these takeaways be sure to listen to our full interview linked below. Also, be sure to listen to, rate and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, iHeartRadio or Soundcloud.

Quotes

• “Once I learned more about the power of technology, so to speak, I was really intrigued and hooked.” (3:07-3:13)

• “When I think of running a business, it's a combination of anxiety and power to choose what you would like to do. And both of those are wonderful, but they're both difficult.” (5:38-5:51)

• “I think every individual, regardless if they are business owners or not, should have a personal board of advisors that they can go to and ask questions of and somebody that will help them walk through some of the challenges they might have. And it's important to have that be somebody that is outside of your home, outside of your workplace that can provide perspective.” (7:37-7:58)

Links

https://www.lopezresearch.com/

Learn more about Connect2 Communications:

Website: https://www.connect2comm.com/

Podcast home page: https://www.connect2comm.com/podcast

Twitter handle: @Connect2_Comm

Instagram handle: @connect2_comm

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/connect2-communications

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/connect2comm/

How does a business’ website tell a story? On today’s episode of Storyology, hosts Richard Williams and Taylor O’Brien are joined by special guest Lars Dabney, Founder and Anti-CEO of Lightning Fruit, a web design company. Lars joins ConnectThe2 to talk about how to create an impactful website and get the most out of your digital presence. If you like what you are reading, be sure to listen to the entire episode linked at the bottom of this page.

What’s In A Name…

Lars tells us two stories about how Lightning Fruit got its name. The first story is a fantastical tale of a retired pirate hunter in Madagascar who has a lemon tree growing on the roof of his house. The second story, the actual truth behind the name, involves positive word associations about the ‘fruit’ of their labor.

The Narrative Structure…

Crafting a website is a lot like crafting a story. There must be clear goals and a chronological structure that leads site visitors to the answers they are looking for. Each web page contributes to another part of the story. Any ads and follow-up emails should reflect back on the same narrative to maintain consistency.

A Living Organism…

Once the website is up and running, it’s not just over and done with. To truly maximize the impact of your investment into your company’s digital presence, your website needs to grow and change alongside your business. It requires constant effort to track the flow of traffic and continually tweak the design to ensure it’s working as efficiently as possible for your users.

Hear more…

If you've enjoyed these takeaways, be sure to listen to the full Storyology episode linked below. Also, be sure to listen to, rate, and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, iHeartRadio, or Soundcloud.

Quotes

• “The name Lightning Fruit. There is a story version of why Lightning Fruit is called Lightning Fruit and it’s fairly elaborate. It involves a grandfather of mine who was a pirate hunter who retired to Madagascar and a lemon tree that grew on the roof of his house. That story is not true. But I get asked a lot about why Lightning Fruit is called Lightning Fruit and the real answer is boring. So, I often make something up like that just to entertain people.” (7:44-8:17)

• “When we start to think about the objectives for the site, we always want to start with the objectives for the organization. What is your mission? As a business, as a nonprofit, as a social entrepreneurship, whatever it might be, the objectives are always going to vary. ” (13:19-14:03)

• “Consistency is critical. Without it, you’re going to have a fraction of the impact or the success that you would otherwise have.” (16:47-16:56)

• “We want to be able to show the numbers going up in the data and that only happens if you’re constantly working on the messaging and constantly working on the process. In that sense, it’s getting clients to understand that a website is a living organism. It is a living part of your marketing ecosystem and requires constant effort if you really want it to be effective. If you’re going to invest in your digital presence and make it work, we need to be analyzing all the traffic that’s coming in from LinkedIn and from social, and from emails, from external publicity work and looking at where that traffic is landing, looking at what’s happening to it, tweaking the user flows. It’s that constant sharpening of the site that you’re just continuously refining it and refining it and looking at all the different inputs and adjusting it so that it’s making the most of all of them.” (23:03-24:34)

Links

https://lightningfruit.com/

Learn more about Connect2 Communications:

Website: https://www.connect2comm.com/

Podcast home page: https://www.connect2comm.com/podcast

Twitter handle: @Connect2_Comm

Instagram handle: @connect2_comm

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/connect2-communications

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/connect2comm/

Welcome to Taylor O’Brien, the newest co-host of ConnectThe2 Podcast! Taylor started out as the Manager of Media Relations and Social Media with Connect2 Communications and looks forward to bringing her expertise and experience to our podcast! She joins ConnectThe2 to introduce herself and talk about what got her interested in joining the podcast team.

Quotes

• “It’s really interesting using social media to reach different target audiences. I think it depends on what your message is, where you want to reach somebody, and what your outcome and your goals are at the end of it. I would say social media is something to consider if you’re not on it already, but also a part of your communications strategy.” (03:00-03:23)

• “I think social media…is interesting because when we’re talking to reporters and thinking about news and things that are coming out, social media has turned into the news source for some of the younger generations. It’s easy, they can click on it, they can see a headline. Sometimes they go off on that headline without clicking on a story, so I think how things are framed in a social media setting for a reporter specifically, how you label an article, how you draw that attention to say, ‘Hey there’s more to the story, and you should read it’ is going to be interesting. It’s definitely been a challenge for media I’ve worked for in the past to take this new setting of social media…and how do you convey the same information in what used to be 140 characters on Twitter? With the podcast…I want to make sure we’re sharing this to a group of followers or people who might be interested, but how do I use the right hashtags to say, ‘Hey, here’s why you should actually click and listen to this entire podcast’…How do I know that you’re actually going to find value in what we’re talking about? I need to convey that when we post that to social.” (4:42-6:15)

• “I think about a company and let's look at the key stakeholders at any organization. Because it’s not just your customers. It could be your employees, your community that you’re in, your surrounding area, investors, clients. There’s a whole list of your key stakeholders. So when it comes to Storyology, you’re absolutely right in saying that there is more to the story than what I sell or what I do. There are so many opportunities that can go missed because sometimes you’re looking at it from the side of marketing or PR. Integrating those two is also very important, because there are so many sides to each company and business that should be showcased. It just depends on ‘is it the right time?’ which is what storyology is about. Is it the time and place to tell this story and what makes it important? What makes it valuable?” (10:08-11:06)

Learn more about Connect2 Communications:

Website: https://www.connect2comm.com/

Podcast home page: https://www.connect2comm.com/podcast

Twitter handle: @Connect2_Comm

Instagram handle: @connect2_comm

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/connect2-communications

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/connect2comm/

Lisa Rhodes is the Former VP of Sales and Marketing for Verne Global and has known host Rich Williams for 22 years! On today’s ConnectThe2 Storyology episode, Rich and Lisa discuss Mind the Gap, a program they collaborated on to try and change the conversation about risk as companies decide where to place new high compute applications in a data center. The two talk in detail about the complexities of setting up a data center from scratch, gaps between power consumption and data storage, and the continued impact of their report on green energy efforts.

Quotes

• “A story is full of chapters and each chapter builds on the previous one. So many companies write a chapter, but they don’t write a story.” (05:54-06:05)

• “We need a report that talks about power resourcing, the reliability of power grids in the U.S. and in Europe and what are any latency, resiliency issues around the current power grids because those lead to the risk factors that our customers would take interest in.” (13:41-14:06)

• “The early adopters were Bitcoin miners to come to Iceland, because they were having power issues. They were having issues finding data centers that could do dense enough racks for the miners that they wanted to put in those racks, because they were using the highest grade CPUs and they were going all over the globe looking for resilient, low cost and green power frankly.” (14:43-15:16)

• “It was like we took the top off a question everybody didn’t know they needed to ask themselves but once they asked themselves it they realized, ‘This is exactly what I’ve been trying to figure out.’” (22:04-22:13)

• “I’m proud to say that you and I created the long lasting message that is still being carried forward.” (28:01-28:07)

Links

https://www.dropbox.com/s/glaulkxbk4g695e/C2C%20Case%20Study_Mind%20The%20Gap.pdf?dl=0

Learn more about Connect2 Communications:

Website: https://www.connect2comm.com/

Podcast home page: https://www.connect2comm.com/podcast

Twitter handle: @Connect2_Comm

Instagram handle: @connect2_comm

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/connect2-communications

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Connect2-Communications

Teresa Mastrangelo is the founder and principal analyst for Broadband Trends, an independent market analysis firm specializing in telecommunications. Teresa has 31 years of experience and is one of the leading analysts in her field on Broadband infrastructure and services. She joins ConnectThe2 to discuss what she looks for in a pitch meeting, what she wishes PR firms would do differently, and what she likes best about working as an independent analyst rather than for a large firm.

Quotes

• “The main thing that I’m looking for in a briefing is why should I care? What am I talking to you about? What is it that you’re offering that nobody else is doing? What’s the wow factor? If you have a new product, what’s different about it? What problems is it going to solve? … For me to care lets me explain this to everybody else and promote it. I’m looking for that opening to something unique and different that I believe is going to solve a problem and is something that the industry needs.” (06:04-06:55)

• “There’s always that company that’s ahead of its time, and it sounds really great, but nothing really happens with them.” (30:04-30:09)

• "[My proudest moment was] without a doubt it was being on NPR’s All Things Considered, when I got to go to a studio and be interviewed about the emerging voiceover IP market. It was quite exciting because I had people I had not heard from in years – coworkers, friends from high school – who said, ‘Hey I heard you on my commute home on All Things Considered.’ So, that was really cool to have people who honestly didn’t know anything about what I do for my career hearing me on the show. That was one of my highlights for sure.” (33:36-34:20)

Links

https://www.broadbandtrends.com/blog-1

Learn more about Connect2 Communications:

Website: https://www.connect2comm.com/

Podcast home page: https://www.connect2comm.com/podcast

Twitter handle: @Connect2_Comm

Instagram handle: @connect2_comm

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/connect2-communications

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Connect2-Communications

Gary Bolton is the President and CEO of Fiber Broadband Association, an organization that prides itself on being the largest trade association in the Americas dedicated to all-fiber-optic broadband. Gary and co-host Rich have been on and off colleagues at various companies. On today’s episode, these two men recount the cash cow product that led them to create a completely new market category.

Quotes

• “We’ve got to create a market category. If we can create this market category, we can define and own that space, and then everybody else in the industry will be basically competing on our terms.” (08:01-08:13)

• “So now, this category is being tracked, based on our definition, our terms. We've basically created the haul of all the roles in the playing fields.” (11:26-11:38)

• “You get the analyst, you start to introduce this term. So, now when they're interviewing service providers, you're interviewing other competitors in the vendor market. But what it did is it allowed us to change the narrative with our sales team. So, rather than coming in and saying 802.3AH, they can come in and talk about Mid-Band Ethernet.” (13:10-13:32)

• “I think by saying it was the new cash cow, it really provided an opening, so we had some sex appeal.” (21:10-21:16)

Links

Hatteras Network Cash Cow: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvXDFEKVdD8

Learn more about Connect2 Communications:

Website: https://www.connect2comm.com/

Podcast home page: https://www.connect2comm.com/podcast

Twitter handle: @Connect2_Comm

Instagram handle: @connect2_comm

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/connect2-communications

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Connect2-Communications

Kaite Smith is an Account Executive at Connect2 Communications, with a focus in Analyst Relations (AR). The first Connect2 colleague featured as a guest on our Storyology series, Katie shares her insights on what an analyst relations program can do for your business. Katie owns and operates the Analyst Relations program at Connect2, and she specializes in working to build relationships with industry analysts, track their reports, and better understand her clients’ goals.

Quotes

• “I would say overall analyst relations is acting as a link, a key link between the industry analysts and your client.” (03:04-03:13)

• “Analysts really have a pulse on everything happening in the market. Having a supporting quote or even an analyst for others in the community to tap as they're reading your service or product release, having a highly engaged person with the market that sees value in what you're doing, tells your audience that your product or service is important. And it really helps you stand out in what today is such a noisy marketplace.” (05:48-06:14)

• “And while an analyst is not alluding to any confidential material ever, in any way, they know what the common trends are in the market, that maybe as a vendor with your head down and doing what your company is doing day to day, or working on the next product release that you may not think of. So, having that outside voice really acting as a partner to you is another key value to having a relationship with the analysts and nurturing those.” (07:24-07:53)

• “Without recognition from analysts, firms, customers or prospects, you're risking to them your ability to be viewed as a serious player. So overall, visibility is so essential. If your client isn't focused on building analyst relationships, or having an AR program as a part of its PR stack, they're not only missing the opportunity to engage with analysts and be included in the reports, but missing the whole opportunity to have their opinions on the market.” (08:28-09:02)

Learn more about Connect2 Communications:

Website: https://www.connect2comm.com/

Podcast home page: https://www.connect2comm.com/podcast

Twitter handle: @Connect2_Comm

Instagram handle: @connect2_comm

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/connect2-communications

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Connect2-Communications

So, what are the most important elements of an effective PR plan? Hosts Millie and Rich would argue that intent ranks high on that list. On today’s episode of Storyology, Millie and Rich describe the core factors that go into any successful PR campaign. Spoiler alert: most of them involve intent!

Intent is Crucial...

Rich explains that intent starts with identifying the “why.” In order to define the “why,” you must be able to ask the right questions to your clients. To curate the best questions, understanding the goal of the piece is imperative. Rich tells listeners that they must determine who it is that they ultimately WANT to influence.

The Importance of Intentional Questions...

Throughout the Storyology series, Millie and Rich have highlighted the importance of questions. In this Storyology segment, they point to the connections between intent and questions. Millie offers some helpful tips for getting intentional answers from your clients, masterfully shaping the client's story with questions, and approaching a story from multiple angles to glean new insights.

Not All Press Is Good Press…

Rich is a staunch believer that not all press is good press. At most companies, the spokespeople have several other larger responsibilities. So, if they’re taking time away from their main role to write an article or communicate something with the press, was it worth it? Did this communication tangibly work towards company goals? If not, then a company may want to reconsider its PR approach.

Hear more…

If you've enjoyed these takeaways, be sure to listen to the full Storyology episode linked below. Also, be sure to listen to, rate and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, iHeartRadio or Soundcloud.

Quotes

• “A lot of companies and people think of PR as a means to put information out there. And they believe that the market will just understand. But PR doesn't operate in a vacuum. It's a partnership.” (00:17-00:25 | Millie)

• “It's really understanding what the goal is not just of the piece of writing, but how that piece fits within the overall story that the company is trying to tell. Because everything they do from a product to a partnership, customer to new hire, to new program, all should be a part of a bigger story that is bigger than what they're doing in the moment.” (03:56-04:16 | Rich)

•“You just have to understand what are the assets you have to bring and then how you use those to help the market understand the impact you're having.” (05:15-05:26 | Rich)

•“​​It doesn't happen without work. It doesn't happen without communicating the right things at the right time.” (14:50-14:58 | Rich)

Learn more about Connect2 Communications:

Website: https://www.connect2comm.com/

Podcast home page: https://www.connect2comm.com/podcast

Twitter handle: @Connect2_Comm

Instagram handle: @connect2_comm

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/connect2-communications

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Connect2-Communications

Do you ever wonder how to keep reporters interested and engaged during a briefing? On today’s episode of ConnectThe2, co-hosts Millie and Rich speak with editors, analysts, and journalists about the importance of capturing and holding a reporters’ attention during an interview.

Connect2’s approach…

At Connect2 Communications, Millie and Rich encourage their clients to be the best storytellers they can be and to put these storytelling skills to use when interviewing with reporters. Throughout the years, Millie and Rich have asked their fair share of reporters, “What makes an interview stand out to you?” and on today’s episode, they reveal their favorite answers. Stick around for an inside scoop on how to pique a reporter's interest.

Clint Boulton’s take on the importance of narrative...

Clint Boulton, Senior Writer at CIO.com, explains how a narrative can make or break an interview. If the interviewee (i.e. CIO, CTO, etc.) tells a compelling narrative in an interview or briefing, it will immediately capture an editor's attention.

Tara Seals dives into her biggest pet peeves…

Tara Seals, Editor at Threatpost, describes her annoyance with vendor specific messaging. Tara uses the example of tech companies that are often so “hellbent” on selling their product, they completely ignore the actual story that reporters and editors are interested in writing.

Eric Savitz speaks on compelling stories...

Eric Savitz, Editor for Barrons, illustrates what a compelling story can do to spark a reporter's interest. Eric explains how most interviews are repetitive and lack a key message. He reveals that the best way to leave an impression in an interview is to add an engaging storytelling element.

Julie Kunstler raves about two-way conversations…

Julie Kunstler, Analyst with Omdia, reveals her main frustration with briefings: ignoring the analyst. Julie explains how important it is to converse with the analyst you are briefing. Both parties can benefit from getting a well-rounded view of the issue or story at hand.

Dean Takahashi shares a memorable interview…

Dean Takahashi, journalist for Venturebeat, shares a memorable interview with his old professor about the ethics of video games. Dean explains that an interview where there is back and forth between both parties keeps the journalist interested and creates a story the writer is excited to tell.

Quotes

• “Part of marketing and publicizing your company's products and ultimately receiving earned media coverage, involves conducting interviews or briefings with reporters.” (0:18-0:28 | Millie)

• “And this goes all the way back to anthropology. We, as humans, relate to stories more than anything else in terms of a communication perspective.” (02:29-02:40 | Clint Boulton)

• “My biggest pet peeve is when people insist on being vendor-specific when you are actually trying to talk to them about general trends and you just want general insight to things.” (04:18-04:27 | Tara Seals)

• “You are just looking for some element to latch on to that gets through the clutter.” (07:12-07:17 | Eric Savitz)

• “Rather than focusing on the technology, I try to understand how they are defining the problem.” (08:50-08:55 | Julie Kunstler)

• “The reason why I wish they would ask me what I think or how I look at it is I think they could get more out of the briefing and the conversation. It becomes more interactive, which leads to deeper involvement.” (09:52- 10:07 | Julie Kunstler)

Learn more about Connect2 Communications:

Website: https://www.connect2comm.com/

Podcast home page: https://www.connect2comm.com/podcast

Twitter handle: @Connect2_Comm

Instagram handle: @connect2_comm

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/connect2-communications

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Connect2-Communications

Introducing Storyology...

Storyology is a new series on the ConnectThe2 Podcast! On this series, co-hosts Millie and Rich talk about their process at Connect2 Communications and how they shape stories at the right place and time to appeal to storytellers. The storytellers in question are reporters and the companies themselves. Co-host Rich explains that, “A lot of times, PR people consider themselves storytellers. The storytellers really are the companies or the reporters because ultimately the reporter has the pen and ink, or keyboard and URL.”

The importance of a Storyology mindset...

Co-hosts Rich and Mille fully believe “that the right story can move markets and ultimately change everything for a company.” In each episode of this series, they will do a deep dive on a company that was positively affected by Storyology and explore how this process changed the market around them.

Quotes

• “Storyology is the art and science of mixing a complete story.” (00:53-00:57)

• “It's really about listening to the market and understanding what's happening.” (02:20-02:24)

• “A martini is great with a steak dinner on a cold night or a hot toddy by the fire, but you wouldn’t serve that at the beach. The beach is for daiquiris and margaritas. Well you mix different things based on what you are serving and when.” (02:50-03:04)

Learn more about Connect2 Communications:

Website: https://www.connect2comm.com/

Podcast home page: https://www.connect2comm.com/podcast

Twitter handle: @Connect2_Comm

Instagram handle: @connect2_comm

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/connect2-communications

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Connect2-Communications