Drop The Mic with Jason Hunt

In episode 200 of the Merged Marketing Podcast, Jason and Dave discuss the importance of diversification in marketing strategies. They highlight the ever-changing landscape of digital marketing and the need for businesses to stand out and separate themselves from the competition. They emphasize the value of testing different platforms, creative elements, and messaging to find what works best for each business. They also stress the importance of tracking metrics and using data to make informed decisions. The hosts share their own experiences and insights gained from running their agency and working with clients.

Chapters:

The Noisy Marketing Landscape (01:05)

Reflecting on 200 Episodes (01:23)

Unique Takeaways from Each Episode (02:09)

Diversification in Marketing (03:15)

Merging Companies for a Comprehensive Approach (07:14)

Adapting Marketing Strategies (09:12)

Identifying the Right Marketing Platform (10:57)

Testing and Analyzing Campaigns (13:26)

Understanding Audience Behavior with Meta Data (17:03)

Feeding the Funnel for Successful Marketing (18:25)

Balancing Different Marketing Strategies (19:54)

Creative Elements in Marketing (22:17)

The Advantage of Still Image Ads (25:58)

The Importance of Testing in Marketing Campaigns (29:00)

The Importance of Diversification in Marketing Strategy: Insights from Episode 200 of the Merged Marketing Podcast

In Episode 200 of the Merged Marketing Podcast, we delve into the ever-evolving landscape of digital marketing and the importance of diversification in marketing strategy. As the marketing industry becomes increasingly noisy and competitive, it is crucial for businesses to find ways to stand out and separate themselves from the competition. This episode not only reflects on the journey of the Merged Marketing Podcast but also provides valuable insights into the current state of digital marketing and how businesses can diversify their marketing strategies to achieve success.

The Changing Landscape of Marketing

Over the past decade, the marketing industry has undergone significant changes. The rise of digital advertising and the proliferation of social media platforms have transformed the way businesses reach and engage with their target audience. As a result, marketers and business owners have had to adapt and evolve their strategies to keep up with the ever-changing landscape.

Dave highlights the importance of recognizing that there is no one-size-fits-all solution in marketing. In the early days, many marketers and business owners would focus on one specific marketing tactic or platform, believing it to be the golden ticket to success. However, as the industry has evolved, it has become clear that a diversified approach is necessary to effectively reach and engage with consumers.

The Value of Testing and Data

One of the key takeaways from the Merged Marketing Podcast is the importance of testing and data-driven decision-making. Jason emphasizes the need for businesses to constantly test different marketing strategies and tactics to determine what works best for their specific audience and industry. By conducting thorough testing, businesses can gather valuable data and insights that inform their marketing campaigns.

The Power of Diversification

The core message of this episode is the importance of diversification in marketing strategy. Jason and Dave stress the need for businesses to explore and leverage multiple marketing channels.

Dive into this enlightening episode of the Merged Marketing Podcast as we sit down with Keenya Kelly, the renowned Vertical Video Strategist who transformed her business using the power of TikTok. Keenya shares her insider secrets on leveraging TikTok for unparalleled business growth, lead generation, and brand visibility.

From understanding TikTok's unique algorithm to crafting content that resonates with your target audience, Keenya breaks down the strategies that led to her own digital success. Whether you're TikTok-curious or looking to elevate your existing presence, this episode is packed with actionable insights that can revolutionize your business approach.

Discover why TikTok is more than just dance challenges and how it can be a game-changer for your brand. If you're aiming to stay ahead in the digital landscape, this conversation with Keenya Kelly is a must-listen. Tune in and get ready to transform your business with the TikTok magic!

In the episode "198 - Mastering B2B PR: Insights and Strategies with Michelle Garrett", listeners are set to embark on an insightful journey exploring the nuances of B2B PR with expert Michelle Garrett. Michelle's move from the bustling Bay Area to Columbus, Ohio, hints at a rich backstory that listeners would be eager to uncover. As Michelle prepares to delve into her history and what propelled her into the PR domain, listeners can anticipate gaining a deeper understanding of the PR landscape, peppered with personal experiences and valuable strategies. This episode seems poised to offer a blend of personal narratives and expert insights, making it a potentially enriching listen for individuals keen on mastering B2B PR strategies.

Have you taken advantage of the revolutionary iOS 14 Playbook to drive explosive growth for your business? In today’s digital world, the role of emerging technologies in the digital marketing landscape cannot be overstated. In episode 197 today, we are privileged to host Kyle Hoffman to successfully discuss navigating the post-iOS 14 world. 

Kyle’s marketing career background: He has been in the marketing space for quite some time now, having started at a performance agency before transitioning to paid media and as a fractional CMO for a number of brands. As a fractional CMO, he helped companies make sound marketing decisions and drive strategy. He ensures strategy alignment with the company’s vision through the cooperation of the marketing and sales departments.

How he helped Wello Sock Brand to succeed: In October 2021, they launched Wello officially as a product-based brand after splitting from the mother company. Wello seized the opportunity of the existing gap in the compression socks market. Previously, customers were medically prescribed to wear compression socks neither found them fun, comfortable, or colorful. Consequently, Kyle came in to build the brand from the ground up and achieve function growth. With over 100,000 customers at present, Kyle projects that Wello is on track to sell over 1 million pairs of socks in 2023.

Marketing changes in the post-iOS 14 playbook: Our guest expert today reckons that the marketing landscape experienced major shifts following the launch of iOS 14. He says that iOS 14 placed the burden on the creative, shifting from technical media buying to technical, creative development. As such, companies had to be highly purposeful and creative with development and testing the creative. He explains the testing method for a campaign to figure out what is working. Kyle says they tag a given element of creativity, especially mashed-up user-generated content, with the label. They integrate various modular assets that form a rich database that is tested to determine what is working and what areas need improvement. He attributes 80% of their content to style user-generated content because of the large network of content creators. 

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In episode 196 today, we discuss harnessing user-generated content's power to grow your brand. Our subject matter expert today is Ashley Wright, from London, UK. 

Ashley’s marketing career background: He has been in marketing for the last 18 years. He gained vast digital marketing experience by dealing with big brands like Adidas, Reebok, and American Airlines. This helped his entrepreneurial spirit and thus, he launched his own marketing agency. 

What he did for the big brands: Over a period of six years, Ashley harnessed the power of user-generated content to grow such big brands as Adidas, Reebok, and American Airlines. Working at Adidas, Ashley specialized in digital marketing for European markets, especially the UK. He dealt with large-budget paid socials and brand awareness, often spending between 8-10 million euros a month for marketing efforts. He also handled product launches and pushed the product to grow their sales.

Trends in paid ad space today: Our subject matter expert reckons that the growth in technology has brought about a big shift in the way of doing things. He argues that the advent of artificial intelligence has grown the capacity of individuals and businesses to harness the power of user-generated content for growth of their brands. Going forward, Ashley says that the digital marketing space will become increasingly competitive. The number of marketers on social paid platforms responsible for many user-generated content that compete for user attention. 

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Are you doing the proper video marketing on the right social media site? In episode 195 today, we talk about an area we have delved a little into, video. In specific, we discuss mastering the art of social first video marketing. Our subject matter expert today is Adam Chandler. He is the Founder of Reel Film, a film and animation production company helping businesses turn strategies and results.

Adam's journey into video marketing: He started as a freelance filmmaker in different TV shows in the UK and short videos for charity and local schools. He loves that filmmaking allows him to be creative and help businesses with their video marketing needs. Today, he has a global reach as he deals with both local and international businesses. (It is always good to love what you do and make money doing it).

How he helps businesses through video marketing: Adam explains that through video marketing, he strives to help businesses to scale. As such, he first seeks to understand why a business needs video marketing, whether for sales improvement, brand awareness, etc. Upon understanding the goal of video marketing, he would help a business grow by developing highly creative content with a purpose and impact. He handles end-to-end production from pre-production to post–production and social media marketing.

What is social first video: Adam describes the social first video as video content developed specifically for social media. When creating video marketing content, there is a particular focus on the target audience on the specific social media channel. Social first videos are typically shorter, often less than a minute. Also, social first videos are vertical, unlike the horizontal 16:9 TV commercials. Our subject matter expert today reveals remarkable differences among social media sites. For instance, LinkedIn accommodates relatively longer social-first videos (e.g. 2 minutes) while Instagram demands very short videos.

Recommendations for making video content per social media channel: Today's subject matter expert unpacks the specifics of developing social-first video marketing according to the target site. Overall, he argues that the content has to be human because you are advertising to people regardless of the social channel of choice. He describes LinkedIn as typically B2B, with more professional content that is less user-generated. The content would have the most impact if it carried a clear call to action. The audience on LinkedIn, according to Adam, is highly active, attentive, in work mode, and thus open to a bit longer engaging content.

Role of metrics in determining the success of social first video marketing: Adam says the number of people engaging with the content is a key metric for measuring success. In particular, he pays greater attention to the average viewing length and the specific drop-off points.

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Are you in the league of those who believe performance marketing is the answer for scaling Performance? In today's episode, we demystify this notion by breaking down why you can't scale profitability using performance marketing alone. Our subject matter expert today is Faissel Sadiki.

Faissel's career journey into marketing: He started off in the fine arts industry by working as an artist. He later ventured into branding, landing an intern position with a UK branding agency. He would then move back to his native country Canada to start his own business. He believes that Canada presents a unique environment for business in the sense that branding and advertising are done in-house at the same agency. As a result, there is no separate discipline for brand strategy, and brand identity has not yet developed into stand-alone specializations, unlike in the UK or US.

Convergence of branding and advertising: Our subject matter expert argues that branding and advertising defer because of the skill sets required. Typically, the scope of branding is relatively broader, which translates that brand strategists often think long-term, unlike the short-term perspective of advertising. For instance, branding would target performance marketing over 5 years to help scale profitability in the long term. However, he decries the limitation of branding strategists to condense a message into a compelling ad with a clear proposition that would stimulate a call to action. On the other hand, advertising strategists have a superior capability of devising an effective message to stimulate the desired customer behavior change. Generally, Faissel explains that the skill sets of the two disciplines are different and only sometimes converge. He recommends that organizations encourage cooperation between branding and advertising departments to scale growth through performance marketing.

Limitations of performance marketing in sustainable growth: Faissel explains that funneling all your marketing budgets at the point of purchase limits profitability. He argues that performance marketing serves smaller companies with a small marketing budget. Given that performance marketing relies on an auction-based bidding model that leverages keywords, the company's message only enjoys the visibility of the target audience intending to purchase. These only account for a small percentage of the potential clientele while missing out on the bulk of customers who are outside the category. Also, it is expensive to compete at the point of purchase because it requires a number of tries to make a hit. Furthermore, our subject matter expert frowns at the tendency of performance marketing to utilize only a single message or lead magnet that does not often appeal to the greater pool of customers that are outside the category.

Performance according to industry or product/service: Faissel agrees that the effectiveness of performance marketing depends on the type of industry or product/service. In the insurance industry, for instance, a customer does not spend time evaluating the brands but rather go for strong trusted brands. (Brand marketing serves effective heuristics that help the consumer to make really quick decisions).

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In today's fast-paced and interconnected world, digital marketing has become the cornerstone of success for businesses operating in e-commerce. With the ever-expanding reach of the internet and the growing reliance on online shopping, mastering the art of digital marketing is essential for e-commerce ventures to stay competitive and reach their target audience effectively.

In episode 193, we link with Matas Kemzura in Lithuania to discuss digital marketing in e-commerce. Matas Kemzura is Sugatan's Chief Growth Officer. He has single-handedly spent over $75k in daily ad spend as an Ad Buyer whose efforts have been synonymous with Sugatan's $175MM EBITDA positive revenue generation for eCommerce stores. Matas has risen over the ranks in the e-commerce space, starting as a junior staff to Director of acquisition and Head of growth to Chief Growth Officer at his company.

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Is your B2B social media sexy? In other words, do your customers find your B2B social media content appealing and compelling? Accordingly, we are discussing why your B2B social media doesn't have to suck. Our subject matter expert today is Anthony Leung.

Anthony's career background in B2B marketing: He moved from his home country Canada to the UK, where he started digital marketing in SEO copywriting and social media. While he initially handled B2C marketing, he transitioned to B2B brands. Anthony says he prefers the B2B medium because it lets you connect directly with your customers. He is drawn to content that focuses on the customer's needs besides having entertainment value. Interestingly, Anthony argues that the way of doing B2B social media is not moving forward. The status quo of most B2B content on social media is that it receives likes from family and friends as opposed to potential customers or affiliates. (I love B2B because it is an honest and genuine medium; things that are overproduced are not celebrated as genuine).

How B2B can leverage social media to grow their business: Our subject matter expert says that B2B marketers should strive to create content for the customers instead of themselves. He decries that most B2B are fixated on growing the number of likes on their social media posts. Instead, Anthony argues that generating organic likes from the audience, prospects, or industry members is valuable. In this regard, B2B benefits by creating content that spells out customer problems and their product or service's desired solution.

Opportunities on social media for B2B businesses: Anthony advises that B2B should re-contextualize its typical long-form content to suit short-form content for social media. While bulky content works well on websites, podcasts, and webinars, the same content will not gain traction on social media networks such as Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. As such, our subject matter expert recommends that the marketing people of a B2B should be flexible and re-contextualize the message into shorter, exciting versions so that it gains traction with the audience on social media.

Best channels for B2B social media marketing: Anthony expresses strong confidence in LinkedIn as the best platform for B2B social media marketing that doesn't have to suck. He says LinkedIn offers great flexibility for creativity and greater organic reach with the audience. In addition, a B2B can gain visibility with an audience outside its network, unlike most other social media platforms. On its part, Facebook and Instagram are great channels for generating interest so they can follow you on LinkedIn and email. (LinkedIn is the last great social media platform because it does not corner you into a single form of creativity).

Leveraging LinkedIn for B2B social media marketing: Our subject matter expert today underscores the importance of consistency in producing and posting content on social media. In this regard, a B2B should create one great piece of content and assume they have arrived. Consistency on the feed helps to create trust and brand affinity. He argues that a B2B social media doesn't have to sack due to fixation on one way of creating content. By figuring out the best content and the most appropriate social media platform for it, a B2B can capture the audience's attention within the first two seconds.

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(01:06) Introduction of today's topic and guest expert

(01:36) Anthony's career background in B2B marketing

(04:04) How B2B can leverage social media to grow their business

(06:05) Opportunities on social media for B2B businesses

(07:28) Best channels for B2B social media marketing

(11:19) Leveraging LinkedIn for B2B social media marketing

(19:22) Anthony's contact information: LinkedIn

In episode 191, we discuss How to Foster a Mutually Supportive Relationship Between Marketing and Sales. Our subject matter expert today is Sean Campbell, CEO of Cascade Insight focuses on B2B Market Research. He has mentored companies in running successful and profitable professional services firms. He trains sales teams, turns doers into sellers to achieve exceptional performance, and balances marketing and sales efforts, so they're mutually supportive.

Common challenges for marketing and sales working in silos: Often, marketing preoccupies itself with the data while distancing itself from the customer. On the flip side, sales obsess with customers while ignoring the data. It is important to cultivate an organizational culture in which sales and marketing teams cooperate and educate themselves about the processes and systems of each other. Leadership should map out how to foster a mutually supportive relationship between marketing and sales in the organization, with the common goal of the sales and marketing teams to win over customers. ("Sales like to talk; marketing likes to write").

Role of communication between sales and marketing: There is a greater understanding of the ideal customer profile when there is positive communication between marketing and sales departments. In this regard, salespeople must be involved in marketing brainstorming over research, data set, or testing. Equally, the sales department should invite marketing people when discussing go-to-market strategies.

Alignment of metrics between marketing and sales: Sean argues that most organizations today confuse their marketing and sales teams with many metrics assigned for measurement. Typically, the starting point of marketing meetings is lead totals, while sales set off with revenue numbers. In general, our subject matter expert argues that there should be a limited number of metrics that each department is tasked with. This, therefore, makes the Alignment of metrics quite critical. (Marketing exists to create customers).

Effect of in-person versus virtual communication: Sean says there should not be major differences between face-to-face and virtual/online communication between sales and marketing. He argues that leveraging creativity effectively fosters the mutually supportive relationship between marketing and sales. Sean notes that some individuals prefer in-person communication and thus fail to take advantage of the possibilities of virtual communication. Sean observes that his capacity to close deals with potential customers in the virtual space has increased dramatically since the pandemic. He advises salespeople to use AI tools like ChatGPT to write content and emails.

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(02:37) Common challenges for marketing and sales working in silos

(09:09) Role of communication between sales and marketing

(14:17) Alignment of metrics between marketing and sales

(16:46) Effect of in-person versus virtual communication