Marketers Take Flight

Today we may have something controversial to discuss.  What is the difference between business development, sales, and marketing?  Are you one of the many people in your firm that has marketing in your title but perhaps the bulk of your daily tasks isn’t actually marketing?  Tim Asimos is here to discuss with me the evolution of the AEC industry and the sales and marketing titles, job descriptions, and workloads.  And perhaps the industry is getting it wrong.

 We discuss the differences between the titles and where they should be. He also explains why a mislabeled marketing coordinator title could be affecting the recruitment and retention of ideal candidates. Tim will tell us who has a handle on these roles and how firms can realign to attract the best marketing professional.  

Here are some highlights:

• Where does the AEC industry get it wrong between business development and marketing? 7:27
• What’s the difference between business development/sales and marketing? 10:00
• Where do shortlist presentations, capture planning, and proposals fall within business development and marketing? 13:21
• Generic marketing roles – How do they affect recruitment? 17:14
• Who does marketing better? 22:37
• How has the industry changed in the last 2 years? 24:14
• What should we call the AEC marketing coordinator? 27:05

Learn more about Tim Asimos and how he works with AEC firms over on the show notes page - https://www.marketerstakeflight.com/55.

Want more AEC marketing goodness?

• New to proposals? Download my FREE “RFPs for Beginners – The Ultimate Proposal Management Checklist.”
• Stop planning, start creating with my FREE “Ultimate AEC Content Marketing Starter Kit.”
• Follow Lindsay on LinkedIn and Instagram.
• Collaborate with other AEC Marketers in our Facebook Group.
• Purchase bite-sized, on-demand templates and training at the Marketers Place.
• Enroll in online training: The Proposal Pro or Content Marketing Clarity.

Deciding whether an AEC firm should pursue a project or not, can turn into heated debates and result in hurt feelings. Some AEC firms have a pretty stringent go/no go process, that quite frankly can be manipulated. Other firms have some sort of evaluation. Many don’t have any go/no go consideration at all. They just go after all RFPs. 

That’s probably why you want to listen to this episode. Maybe your firm doesn’t have a go/no-go decision-making process but wants to start one. OR you do have one, sort of, but everyone just ignores it. Either way, you want to help your firm make better decisions when it comes to what projects to pursue so you will have time to properly position, time to create beautiful and compelling proposals, and frankly, just have a life outside of work. 

Even if you’re not the person making the ultimate decision, I want you to know that you can lead and facilitate this go/no go decision-making process for your firm.

In this episode, I share why I think it’s so hard for AEC Firms to make these decisions or stick to a process, what the REAL purpose of a go/no go decision should be, and walk you through an example of go/no go evaluation process you can implement at your firm. Stay to the end to learn how to get example go/no go evaluation questions.

Here are a few episode highlights:

• Why it’s so hard to make timely go/no go decisions
• Purpose of a meaningful go/no go decision
• Reasons to do evaluate every project to pursue
• Best practices for a go/no go evaluation process
• Coming to a consensus that minimizes frustration and hurt feelings
• Decision-making criteria
• Sample go/no-go decision-making questions

And if you need even more inspiration to help you develop your go/no go decision-making, I have put together a list of 32 questions. I have personally used most of these in the past. Others I have gathered through research and collected from other marketers. Get your copy over on the show notes page at marketerstakeflight.com/54. Feel free to use and adapt for your firm as needed.

In the end, I think everyone wants what is best for the firm and its success. Making better go/no go decisions, especially those that are a result of a consensus, allows you and your firm more time to focus on proposals that have the greatest chance of winning and more time to produce higher quality proposals. 

Want more AEC marketing goodness?

• New to proposals? Download my FREE “RFPs for Beginners – The Ultimate Proposal Management Checklist.”
• Stop planning, start creating with my FREE “Ultimate AEC Content Marketing Starter Kit.”
• Follow Lindsay on LinkedIn and Instagram.
• Collaborate with other AEC Marketers in our Facebook Group.
• Purchase bite-sized, on-demand templates and training at the Marketers Place.
• Enroll in online training: The Proposal Pro or Content Marketing Clarity.

Have you thought about creating your own personal brand? How about creating your own elevator pitch to help open the conversation? We have all been on those Zoom calls, waiting for the meeting to get started and making small talk. This is the perfect time to introduce yourself and make an impression. In today’s episode, I’m talking to Maisha Hagan who gives us a few pointers about turning that small talk into a little question with a big answer.

You may feel uncomfortable talking about yourself at meetings, conferences, or on Zoom calls but there is no better person to advocate for you and your skills. Maisha has some tips on how to achieve that self-advocacy whether you are an introvert or extrovert. You may want to listen in before you step on that plane for the next conference.

Here are some highlights:

• Maisha’s career path. 1:34
• Why are we so afraid to advocate and promote for ourselves? 3:44
• Advocating for ourselves as women. 6:31
• Create your personal elevator pitch. 8:07
• How can we use the leadership skills we developed at our firms, to help our own personal careers? 11:14
• What are some methods of self-promotion we can begin using today that help us reach our next career goal? 19:45
• #1 piece of advice for marketers new to the industry. 24:12

Links Mentioned in this Episode:

• Read more about Maisha on the show notes page - https://www.marketerstakeflight.com/53
• Purchase your Pocket Coach - https://www.bosslady.coach/store/p8/Pocket-coach-card-deck.html
• Connect on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/maishahagan/
• Schedule a Discovery Call - https://www.bosslady.coach/

Want more AEC marketing goodness?

• New to proposals? Download my FREE “RFPs for Beginners – The Ultimate Proposal Management Checklist.”
• Stop planning, start creating with my FREE “Ultimate AEC Content Marketing Starter Kit.”
• Follow Lindsay on LinkedIn and Instagram.
• Collaborate with other AEC Marketers in our Facebook Group.
• Purchase bite-sized, on-demand templates and training at the Marketers Place.
• Enroll in online training: The Proposal Pro or Content Marketing Clarity.

One of the common questions I get from AEC marketing professionals is how to find RFPs (or potential projects) before the RFP is advertised. We hear repeatedly that we must do our capture planning and firm positioning before the project is advertised. What is not discussed enough is how to find out about the projects before they get advertised. 

And, since I have recently presented on this topic twice to different organizations, I thought it would resonate with you, my podcast listeners. 

So, in this podcast episode, I share a high-level introduction to market research for AEC firms. I cover how to develop a market research strategy, what type of intelligence to gather when conducting your research, who to talk to, what to ask, and places to look for project information. I share my follow-the-money (and demand) strategy, along with a real-life example from my previous firm. And, stay with me until the end of the episode to get a research template freebie.

Here are some episode highlights:

• How to develop your strategy including your markets and clients
• What is intelligence gathering
• Who to gather intelligence from
•  How to use RFP subscription services like IMS or Onvia as part of your market research
• How to follow the money (and demand)
• Market research tools
•  Intelligence gathering freebie

Don’t forget to turn that insight into action. Comment over on the show notes page at marketerstakeflight.com/52 if you found out about a project other than one of the ways I listed above. I would love to hear other ideas. And you would be helping others by sharing your knowledge.

Don’t forget to hit that subscribe button so you don’t miss the next episode. And, if you liked what you heard today, please share it with your marketing friends. I am a firm believer that as our individual skills improve, the entire AEC industry grows.  

Want more AEC marketing goodness?

• New to proposals? Download my FREE “RFPs for Beginners – The Ultimate Proposal Management Checklist.”
• Stop planning, start creating with my FREE “Ultimate AEC Content Marketing Starter Kit.”
• Follow Lindsay on LinkedIn and Instagram.
• Collaborate with other AEC Marketers in our Facebook Group.
• Purchase bite-sized, on-demand templates and training at the Marketers Place.
• Enroll in online training: The Proposal Pro or Content Marketing Clarity.

Have you been working harder, or pusher harder to achieve your goals? And is that taking a toll on your energy, relationships, and maybe even your health? 

Do you think that the only way to get it all done is to put in more hours, or work after the kids go to bed? Or, if only that project manager would meet his proposal deadlines, your work would be better?

I talk to marketers nearly every day and what I hear is that their biggest struggles are too many proposal deadlines, not enough resources, and the technical staff being too busy to get their proposal materials to them.

And, while these things are actually happening, the way you process and talk to yourself about these things are really poisoning your productivity. Dear, I say they are excuses? And, they are the same excuses I have been hearing for 15+ years, even before COVID. And they are based on five areas or five basic excuses. Learn what these five lies are in this episode. 

Want more AEC marketing goodness?

• New to proposals? Download my FREE “RFPs for Beginners – The Ultimate Proposal Management Checklist.”
• Stop planning, start creating with my FREE “Ultimate AEC Content Marketing Starter Kit.”
• Follow Lindsay on LinkedIn and Instagram.
• Collaborate with other AEC Marketers in our Facebook Group.
• Purchase bite-sized, on-demand templates and training at the Marketers Place.
• Enroll in online training: The Proposal Pro or Content Marketing Clarity.

Did you know that a quarter of people abandon their New Year’s resolutions after just one week? And after one month it increases again to 36%. So, by the time you are listening to this podcast over 1/3 of us have already abandoned our new year’s resolutions. 

So why do we keep setting New Year’s Resolutions? And, what can we do instead?

In this episode, I share another system to achieve your goals – the SMARTER goal framework. 

The SMARTER goal framework is built on a simple premise: how goals are written matters. To be most effective, every goal must meet seven criteria.

The SMART framework originally developed by GE in the 1980s has been transformed into the SMARTER system by Michael Hyatt. I’ll walk you through this framework, share examples, and provide you with a template to get started. 

If you’re creating new goals or already have some in mind – using the SMARTER system to write them down is the first step to achieving them! I am cheering for you to achieve your goals and I know that writing them down using the SMARTER system will give you a great head start. 

For more information about the SMARTER system and SMARTER System Goal Template head over to the show notes page – marketerstakeflight.com/50. 

Want more AEC marketing goodness?

• New to proposals? Download my FREE “RFPs for Beginners – The Ultimate Proposal Management Checklist.”
• Stop planning, start creating with my FREE “Ultimate AEC Content Marketing Starter Kit.”
• Follow Lindsay on LinkedIn and Instagram.
• Collaborate with other AEC Marketers in our Facebook Group.
• Purchase bite-sized, on-demand templates and training at the Marketers Place.
• Enroll in online training: The Proposal Pro or Content Marketing Clarity.

Are you working harder than ever before, but feel like you’re not making progress?

Do you start each day stressed and end the day stressed and exhausted?

Worried about forgetting about an assignment or dropping a task?

As marketing professionals, and many of us as working moms, we have a lot on our minds all the time. And, these past two years haven’t helped anyone relieve this burden, in fact, it’s made it the worst any of us has experienced. 

What if there was a way, a system per se, that provides one central tracking location for everything – work projects to personal events. A way to make measurable progress toward the goals that matter to you, instead of what’s put on your desk? If you could shift from trying to get everything done to get the right things done?

That’s impossible, right?

Wrong. It’s not impossible. It’s not easy, but it’s possible. I know because I have been using a system like this for years.  

Listen to this episode to learn about my struggles before I found the Full Focus System and how it's helped me since. 

Resources mentioned in the episode:

• Full Focus Planner
• Marketers Take Flight Facebook Group
• The Proposal Pro Course
• Organize Each Day to be Home by 5 pm and Still Meet Your Deadlines
• 5-Day Productivity Challenge

Want more AEC marketing goodness?

• New to proposals? Download my FREE “RFPs for Beginners – The Ultimate Proposal Management Checklist.”
• Stop planning, start creating with my FREE “Ultimate AEC Content Marketing Starter Kit.”
• Follow Lindsay on LinkedIn and Instagram.
• Collaborate with other AEC Marketers in our Facebook Group.
• Purchase bite-sized, on-demand templates and training at the Marketers Place.
• Enroll in online training: The Proposal Pro or Content Marketing Clarity.

Are you feeling 22? (Signing in my best Taylor Swift voice). 

If not, maybe you haven’t officially said goodbye to 2021. Or maybe haven’t come out yet of the holiday busyness or jumped right into work deadlines. Wouldn’t you like to clear your head? Allow yourself to begin the new year with a fresh slate? Do you want to set yourself up for a powerful, productive, and “ready to tackle anything that 2022 can throw at you” mindset?

If you answered yes to any of the above, then this is the episode for you. I’ve got a quick exercise that you can do by yourself. What I am talking about is just three simple questions to review what you did or accomplished, take note of what you learned, and let go of all the crap that is holding you back. 

So, grab a piece of paper, and let’s go!

Want more AEC marketing goodness?

• New to proposals? Download my FREE “RFPs for Beginners – The Ultimate Proposal Management Checklist.”
• Stop planning, start creating with my FREE “Ultimate AEC Content Marketing Starter Kit.”
• Follow Lindsay on LinkedIn and Instagram.
• Collaborate with other AEC Marketers in our Facebook Group.
• Purchase bite-sized, on-demand templates and training at the Marketers Place.
• Enroll in online training: The Proposal Pro or Content Marketing Clarity.

I wanted to pop in with this bonus episode to formally say goodbye and good riddance to 2021. Part of this is to look back on one of the most challenging years of my life to reflect. And to tell you how that year has shaped me and this podcast moving into 2022. And I’m not claiming 2022 as “my year” or the year to be all years, I am just hoping it isn’t the emotional rollercoaster 2021 was. 

I also know I am not alone when I say that last year was a mess. We all have challenges, struggles, good times, and bad times. I hope that by sharing some of my life events and experiences with you, you’ll realize you’re not alone. I’m not alone. And even though we aren’t going through the exact same experiences at the same time, we can find comfort in knowing others have their own crap going on. 

Let’s start with summarizing my 2021 in one phrase: Emotional Roller Coaster. 

When I decided to create this episode, I started thinking about everything that I’ve been through in 2021. It wasn’t all bad. In fact, there were some really great things that happened. What kept popping in my head as I was reflected, was a roller coaster – with its slow-building hills, and fast drops and twists and turns. That image or feeling of being on a roller coaster is the perfect way for me to describe my life last year. 

Can you relate?

I’ll give a quick recap of these highs and lows not to bore you with my personal life, but so you can understand some of the changes I’m making with my company Marketers Take Flight, and this podcast. 

Want more AEC marketing goodness?

• New to proposals? Download my FREE “RFPs for Beginners – The Ultimate Proposal Management Checklist.”
• Stop planning, start creating with my FREE “Ultimate AEC Content Marketing Starter Kit.”
• Follow Lindsay on LinkedIn and Instagram.
• Collaborate with other AEC Marketers in our Facebook Group.
• Purchase bite-sized, on-demand templates and training at the Marketers Place.
• Enroll in online training: The Proposal Pro or Content Marketing Clarity.

Well, 2021 is nearly over (or might even be over by the time you listen to this episode). I don’t know about you, but for me I am really looking forward to saying goodbye to 2021. For me personally, it was a very hard year. I’ll go into more detail of those events and stories in a future episode as they are going to shape the future of this podcast. I am very excited about that!

Now, I wouldn’t be a good podcast host if I didn’t end the year with a “Best of” or a “Most popular episode” replay! So here it goes. The most popular podcast episode of 2021 was…….

…Client Research: Proposal Pet Peeves and Common Winning Elements. 

In this episode, I talk with Sreoshy Banerjea about her research. Her research looks at what the client is looking for within your firm, your proposals, and more. From the basic factors like spelling errors to more sophisticated considerations such as diversity in age. We will discuss the biggest pet peeve of the client, as well as what makes a winning proposal. 

So, this isn’t a surprise that this was the most listened to episode of 2021! It’s not just about proposals, but what our clients think of our proposals. 

I also want to let you know that I’ll be taking a little bit of a break from the podcast. I find that when I take a few months off, that gives me time talk with listeners like you about what’s challenging you, meet interesting guests, and outline/plan the next season. 

Over the next few episodes, I will be releasing replays of some of the other most popular episodes. I know some of you have just discovered this podcast so it will help get you caught up. For those that have been here for a while, just think of the replay episodes as a refresh. And I think we can all use a refresh to start a new year. 

I want to thank all of you for allowing me to be part of your day and for supporting me! I want to wish all of you, your family, your friends, and your colleagues a safe and happy New Year!

Visit the show notes webpage to learn more about Sreoshy and get the links to the resources mentioned in the show.

Want more AEC marketing goodness?

• New to proposals? Download my FREE “RFPs for Beginners – The Ultimate Proposal Management Checklist.”
• Stop planning, start creating with my FREE “Ultimate AEC Content Marketing Starter Kit.”
• Follow Lindsay on LinkedIn and Instagram.
• Collaborate with other AEC Marketers in our Facebook Group.
• Purchase bite-sized, on-demand templates and training at the Marketers Place.
• Enroll in online training: The Proposal Pro or Content Marketing Clarity.