Marketing For Introverts

I'm talking in this new series about visibility – what it is, why it's important and how to do it in a way that feels comfortable and even fun.

In this episode I focus in on an issue I've been discussing with clients recently – testimonials. I cover:

• Why service business owners really need testimonials
• How to get over the icky feeling!
• How to ask for them
• How to use them

It's a quick listen, I hope you find it useful.

Book recommendation

You can go to the Marketing for Introverts Bookshop to see the full list of books recommended on the podcast

Need some marketing planning help? Go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/services/

And just for fun – what's your marketing personality? Find out on my website https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk

I'm talking in this new series about visibility – what it is, why it's important and how to do it in a way that feels comfortable and even fun.

In this episode I talked to Rachel Extance, a former journalist turned copywriter and content marketing strategist. We talked about why creating your own regular content as a business owner is a great strategy for visibility, particularly if you are in a highly competitive industry. She suggested the best way to get started and gave some great advice about regular blogging. She also revealed herself as a fan of Schitts Creek and Miss Marple – and why it helps to share that content even if it's nothing to do with your business!

Book recommendation

Rachel recommended Fix this Next by Mike Michalowicz and you can buy it here

Resources

You can find Rachel on her website https://extance.co.uk/

You can go to the Marketing for Introverts Bookshop to see the full list of books recommended on the podcast

Need some marketing planning help? Go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/services/

And just for fun – what's your marketing personality? Find out on my website https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk

I'm talking in this new series about visibility – what it is, why it's important and how to do it in a way that feels comfortable and even fun.

In this episode I talk about why service business owners really need to get visible, and why we really don't want to. And I give you my top tips if you are starting on this journey, from getting great photography, to finding the format and the platform that is best for you.

Resources

I mentioned a few previous episodes of the podcast, here are the links if you've missed those

Fifi Mason on personal branding: https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/personal-branding-introverts/

Ginny Carter on writing a book: https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/do-you-want-to-write-a-book-with-ginny-carter/

Joanna Rawbone on what is introversion anyway: https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/what-is-introversion/

Emily Moya on brand photography: https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/putting-your-face-on-your-business-with-emily-moya/

You can go to the Marketing for Introverts Bookshop to see the full list of books recommended on the podcast

Need some marketing planning help this year? Go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/services/

And just for fun – what's your marketing personality? Find out on my website https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk

What are the benefits of outsourcing? There are so many!

You claim back some of the hours in the week

You get the brain space to think about something else

You bring another person's expertise into your business

There's no ongoing commitment so you can flex the marketing support to suit your growing business.

Convinced?! I take you through some of the things to think about when outsourcing, from what exactly do you need help with, to how much help do you need, and what professionals might be just right for you.

I also offer my top tip if you are finding it hard to let go of anything at all!

And finally, how to brief your freelance help for maximum success, from passwords and contracts to GDPR and Google Drive.

If you need help with your marketing, you can get in touch at www.bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/services/

Books

I reviewed Ditching Imposter Syndrome by Clare Josa

You can go to the Marketing for Introverts Bookshop to see the full list of books recommended in this series

Resources

Information Commissioner's Office advice on sharing your data with a third person https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/sme-web-hub/frequently-asked-questions/data-storage-sharing-and-security/#weneed

For all the back episodes of the podcast go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/category/podcast/

For more books that I recommend go to the Marketing for Introverts bookshop (This page includes affiliate links)

And just for fun – what's your marketing personality? Find out on my website https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk

Rob is an experienced creative director who set up his own agency, Tin Robot, in 2019. Firstly we talked about the changing world of work and the benefits for clients and teams when flexibility is built into the ways of working.

Rob and I have both had a lot of conversations with clients about the difference between a brand and a logo over the last 20 years! So it was fun to unpack what is really meant by "brand". Rob outlined a comprehensive 4 step process:

1. detailed research on the market place and your place in it, your products and your audience
2. defining your brand core including why you exist, your vision, how are you going to change the world, your values and promises
3. the visual elements that make up the brand identity including logo, fonts, typography, photography style and tone of voice
4. building your brand as it evolves and consistently asking if it resonates with your audience

I asked Rob about when businesses need to rebrand, and he talked about the need to adapt to changing markets, to retell the story of the business or when your existing brand really isn't hitting the spot.

If you have ever uttered the words "I don't need a brand, I've got a logo!" – this episode is for you.

Books

Rob recommended two books:

Purple Cow by Seth Godin and

Users not Customers by Aaron Shapiro

You can go to the Marketing for Introverts Bookshop to see the full list of books recommended in this series

Resources

Find Rob on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/roblodge/

Or go to his website http://www.tinrobot.agency/

Need some marketing planning help this year? Go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/services/

For all the back episodes of the podcast go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/category/podcast/

For more books that I recommend go to the Marketing for Introverts bookshop (This page includes affiliate links)

And just for fun – what's your marketing personality? Find out on my website https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk

Before I invited her on the podcast, Natalie hadn't really considered that she was an introvert. However our conversation helped her realise that her preferred solo work style and her love of noise cancelling headphones indicate her introvert tendencies!

Natalie outlined the benefits of email marketing, from its ease in getting started, to the impressive return on investment and the range of free tools that help you send professional email marketing campaigns.

We talked about good ways to build a mailing list, from pop ups and QR codes to adding new clients and inviting personal connections. We also talked about the value exchange, offering valuable information such as a digital download in return for asking for an email address.

Finally we covered the essentials of GDPR and where to go if you need more advice.

Books

Natalie recommended two books:

GDPR for Dummies by Suzanne Dibble

Eat that Frog Get More of the Important Things Done Today by Brian Tracy

You can go to the Marketing for Introverts Bookshop to see the full list of books recommended in this series

Resources

Check out the Information Commissioner's Website https://ico.org.uk/

Find Natalie online LinkedIn or @email.natalie on Instagram

Or go to her website https://totalemailmarketing.co.uk/

Need some marketing planning help this year? Go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/services/

For all the back episodes of the podcast go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/category/podcast/

For more books that I recommend go to the Marketing for Introverts bookshop (This page includes affiliate links)

And just for fun – what's your marketing personality? Find out on my website https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk

"One thing is certain in business: you will make mistakes. When you are pushing the boundaries, mistakes are inevitable - how you react is important."

You learn far more from mistakes than successes – that can be quite a tough lesson to learn if you have built your career on doing things well, getting things right. Making a mistake in business can feel like a big personal failure and I think if you are a service business owner that brings a real worry about how other people are going to react and is it going to have impact on your business.

So this week I wanted to uncover a few marketing mistakes, from a cringe moment of my own to the biggest marketing fiasco in history. Hopefully these will make you feel a little bit better about any mistakes of your own! I round up four mistakes that many clients fall into:

1 - forgetting your current clients

2 - making it too complicated

3 - chasing the bright and shiny things (there are so many!)

4 - being inconsistent in your marketing

I'll explain why these are common and what you can do to stop yourself falling into the same traps.

Books

In this episode I reviewed They Ask You Answer by Marcus Sheridan (a must read for anyone working in marketing, but also a super useful resource for many small business owners)

You can go to the Marketing for Introverts Bookshop to see the full list of books recommended in this series

Resources

Need some marketing planning help this year? Go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/services/

For all the back episodes of the podcast go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/category/podcast/

For more books that I recommend go to the Marketing for Introverts bookshop (This page includes affiliate links)

And just for fun – what's your marketing personality? Find out on my website https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk

A book can be a hugely powerful marketing tool. Writing a book can give you authority and credibility in your industry. It also raises your profile and increases your reach. So how do you go about writing your own book?

Ginny Carter is a successful ghost writer and the award winning author of the book "Your Business Your Book". This helpfully takes small business owners through the process of planning, writing and promoting a book which will have a major impact on the success of your business.

We spoke about why a book is a great marketing tool for your business and how to turn your expertise into something that your ideal audience wants to read. Ginny had some great advice if you find the idea of putting your ideas out into the world somewhat daunting. We also talked a lot about finding the time to write – and surprisingly it's not about clearing your diary!

And finally, once you've written your book, Ginny has some helpful advice for promoting it. Do the things that make you comfortable, because the marketing that works is the marketing you do.

Books

You can read Ginny's book Your Business Your Book, I highly recommended it.

Ginny recommended Made to Stick: Why some ideas take hold and others come unstuck by Chip and Dan Heath and Story or Die: How to Use Brain Science to Engage, Persuade, and Change Minds in Business and in Life by Lisa Cron

You can go to the Marketing for Introverts Bookshop to see the full list of books recommended in this series

Resources

You can find Ginny at https://marketingtwentyone.co.uk/ or on Twitter @_GinnyCarter

Need some marketing planning help this year? Go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/services/

For all the back episodes of the podcast go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/category/podcast/

For more books that I recommend go to the Marketing for Introverts bookshop (This page includes affiliate links)

And just for fun – what's your marketing personality? Find out on my website https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk

Introducing Online Business Manager and introvert Nina Gordon. Nina's superpower is making businesses run smoothly behind the scenes so her clients can focus on what they do best. She shared some tips to help busy service business owners streamline their marketing tasks. We also talked about how to make administrative tasks simpler to help create time for marketing. Nina has some great recommendations for online tools to make your business run more smoothly.

She's also a huge fan of blocking time in your diary, and taking the time to get things set up correctly – you know it will save you time in the long run!

Nina recommended Chillpreneur by Denise Duffield Thomas, you can go to the Marketing for Introverts Bookshop to see the full list

You can find Nina on Instagram on @NinaJGordon and @SystemstoGrow

Links

Need some marketing planning help this year? Go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/services/

For all the back episodes of the podcast go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/category/podcast/

For more books that I recommend go to the Marketing for Introverts reading list (bookshop.org)

And just for fun – what's your marketing personality? Find out on my website https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk

I'm back in 2022 continuing the mission to help introverted service business owners successfully market their business!

I know you are busy, so this episode covers a super quick way to write a marketing plan that will help you this year - and my top tips to help you actually get some marketing stuff done. Grab a sheet of paper and a pen and prepare to plan!

I've also introduced a new book recommendation slot, so hear my thoughts on the classic introvert book Quiet, The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain

Links

Need some marketing planning help this year? Go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/services/

For all the back episodes of the podcast go to https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk/category/podcast/

For more books that I recommend go to the Marketing for Introverts reading list (bookshop.org)

And just for fun – what's your marketing personality? Find out on my website https://bondfieldmarketing.co.uk