Sales and selling never stops. What you are doing today impacts future sales the next quarter and beyond. Recently, we have heard of companies and non-profits pulling back on their marketing based on success to date, cash flow, lack of resources and/or business leader fatigue, among other things.

We know it is the end of another very long year, and you may be tired and lacking in energy and resources. But going dark isn’t the answer. There are ways to continue marketing efforts with less cash, less effort or less time. Build momentum and keep it going.

Be smart about what you’re doing today – impact future sales tomorrow.

Get the most out of your marketing efforts in a consistent, strategic way.

For instance, if your busy season is Q1, use Q4 to set your strategies, and get your ideas and materials ready so all you must do is hit “go” when you’re at the peak of utilizing your manpower in other areas throughout Q1. Have your plan for next quarter all ready to work for you.

As an example, we have already approved plans and strategies, are securing paid media schedules, and developing creative assets for Girl Scouts Texas Oklahoma Plains’ (GSTOP) Q1 initiatives. Doing this now means they can simply hit send when they are at their busiest time in January – gearing up for Girl Scout Cookie Sales time!

Here are six other ways to market now and help yourself later:

1. Run a brand campaign. You can keep it simple or gear up for a big push. Just make sure you do something to get and keep your name out there. Always remember that new clients or customers take time to make a decision and do research before buying.
2. Make a list so you can check it twice. First, create a list of prospective audiences to whom you can market. Then, build on this base list. This can include:
   a. Past customers / clients
   b. Prospects or past website visitors
3. Check Google trends. Find out what main keywords may be trending that relate to your business. Spend now to get noticed and included in these trends.
4. Develop or redesign your website. Do not wait for Q1 to jump back on this task. Get it done now so it is ready to launch in Q1. 4th Quarter is the perfect time to refresh and update the content on your website.
5. Send those emails. E-mail marketing is cheap and easy but halting your monthly communication will affect results when you start back up. Don’t lose momentum. Don’t rest and count on past success to continue. If you’re not consistent, your sales won’t be, either.
6. Stay active on social media. Your audience is listening, even if passively. Be consistent and engaged. Build your audience now, so they’re with you when all your big news hits next year.

So, when is a “safe’ time to put the brakes on marketing your brand? Around a quarter to … never.

Building and maintaining a successful brand requires continuity. Consistent marketing creates and sustains trust with your audience. Don’t stop marketing your brand when cash and/or resources are low. Don’t stop marketing your brand based upon success to date.

Your brand doesn’t wait while you’re tired. Your brand deserves continuous marketing effort, in some way, to make an impact both now and in your future sales. Don’t ever stop.

Stop and start marketing is not an option for successful brands.

Get out there and keep rocking your brand. Call us to help. The Porch is always ready to roll.

We are in Q4 of 2021. Whaaattttt? Don’t panic-spend the rest of your marketing budget! Maximize your your remaining 2021 marketing budget through the end of the year by thinking smart and acting smarter. This isn’t our first rodeo, so we see this every year. And we get it: marketing is one of the first line items asked to be cut for next year. How do you combat that mindset? Spend wisely with what’s left in your remaining 2021 marketing budget because budgets are being scrutinized before being renewed. So if you’ve spent your marketing budget wisely this year – showing brand impact and growth – you’ll have a better case to make for 2022’s marketing budget numbers. How can you maximize your remaining 2021 marketing budget and get more done? First, start with the help of your marketing partner.

Where can business leaders find real value in the fourth quarter 2021?

Marketing partners. Small or large, your team can help you plan and carry out the most efficient and effective way to get the most bang for your buck when it comes to Q4 spending. Partners can help you in these 7 ways to maximize your remaining 2021 marketing budget:

First Maximize Your Remaining 2021 Marketing Budget by Using it to Set Up Your 2022 Plans and Budgets

• Forge marketing budgets and marketing plans for 2022. As objective professionals with your business’s success in mind, marketing partners will research, employ best practices and take great care in detailing your path to success. Not just for Q4 2021, but next year as well. Marketing partners tend to think both short-term gains AND long-term momentum, which ultimately means growth and sustainability for your business.

Then build a winning team

• Next, build a marketing team that is set up to succeed. From your marketing plan for next year, and your budget, identify the gaps you have needed to execute your plan. Provide resources for finding the talent and tools to fill those gaps. Whether you’ll need new team members, new tech or new skills, make sure you’ll have it covered ahead of time. Being reactive about getting things done at the last minute because of poor planning benefits no one.

Seize Opportunities for Brand Impact

• Then, capitalize on existing opportunities to shine. Q4 is full of events, inherently built into the holiday calendar. And fall is often trade-show season. And, your marketing calendar can include multiple opportunities for touch-points with your audience around the holiday season
  • Sponsor events at trade shows for exposure to a broader audience
  • Community events around the holidays are great local, grassroots places to connect with your audience
  • Partnering with a charity is a tangible way for your business to give back to the community
• Also, give direction but stay out of the weeds when it comes to social media. Maximize your time, by providing social marketing content in the form of access to your asset library (photos, graphics, brand guidelines), as well as any messaging documents, previous collateral and press releases. Your team can build successful, impactful social media and “speak as the brand”. If you are wordsmithing copy and micromanaging design from your team, you’re wasting resources, not maximizing them. One big time suck that every business owner and leader needs to take off their list – editing social media content before it is posted. As a business leader, is this the best way to spend your valuable time? Ask your marketing partner to handle this for you.

Adopt a Continuous Improvement Mindset

• Most importantly, fine tune your website. Q4 is the perfect time to assess the strength of your website. Ask your marketing partner to help you:
  • Assess your digital situation. Prune your content, evaluate and fix underperforming pages and links
  • Fine tune your SEO (search engine optimization) so that your content answers the questions that people are asking. Draw customers to you with smart, precise content
  • Update the look and feel of your website to reflect modern times and modern UX behavior (user experience). Your site should be responsive (able to change to fit desktop, mobile, ipad, etc) and use common structures to guide site visitors along their customer journeys.
  • Start content marketing. This means setting up a blog on your site, if you haven’t already. and get your marketing partner to ghost-write weekly content – which can then also be promoted on your social media channels. Content marketing, as this is called, is one of the most important ways to keep your site fresh and “indexing” higher on Google. The more you establish your voice of authority in your business space, the more your site is recognized by Google and recommended to others for that knowledge.
• Don’t forget to reward your loyal clients/customers. It’s not always about finding new customers. In Q4, make it about retaining your strong client base for 2022. Remind them why they’re with you.
  • Identify your top email subscribers, top social media followers, etc. and create a marketing campaign that is created for and target to them on the channels where they interact with you.
  • Create direct mail holiday messaging and snail mail a heartfelt message and perhaps a reward (like a gift, discount, or plus-up) just for being loyal members, subscribers, clients.

Maximize Your Remaining 2021 Marketing Budget When it Counts – The Holidays

• What is your holiday plan? Counsel with your marketing partner and then execute on holiday season activity via direct mail, email marketing, text campaigns and social media. Create a sale, a promotion, or an experiential event for your customers and invite them to experience your brand during the holidays. Introduce a simple as a holiday discount, or hold a fun a pop-up brand experience as part of a neighborhood or even city-wide event. Your marketing partner can help you discern what opportunities are best-suited for your company.

Maximize your remaining 2021 marketing budget to win, yes even in Q4

Smart marketing leaders can continue business growth during this time by working with smart marketing partners to maximize remaining 2021 marketing budgets. How do they do it? They don’t waste valuable resources – the most valuable being THEIR TIME. Spend your valuable time wisely on the big things that will grow your business for next year – and your marketing partners can handle the details for you. As we like to say “spend time ON your business not IN your business” to maximize your impact as a leader.

Your Brand in 2021: Front Porch Marketing has seen an interesting client trend this past year, especially in the second half. Many entrepreneurial brand companies have decided that 2020 – and indeed 2021 – is a good time to double down their brand. They want to really dig in, define their brand and differentiate themselves from their competition. Even big corporate companies, like Burger King, have rebranded, seeking to better define their mission and vision going forward.

If you step back and take a look at your brand with the fresh eyes of 2021, does it look like the company you envisioned when you started? Likely, your brand has evolved and so have you. Does your current branding reflect where you want to be in 5 years with your company or even where you are now, or is it trapped in the past? Maybe it’s time to graduate your branding.

Your Brand in 2021: Envision, Evolve, Emerge

Are you adequately featuring your new products or services? Are you communicating your most compelling benefit? Does your brand look legit, grown-up, like a serious brand that does serious business? Don’t get the veto vote from a customer or a partner business because your brand is not getting taken seriously. You know you can do the job…make sure your branding speaks that truth this year.

Branding – and the digital marketing that embodies branding – has become more important than ever. Your customers and clients are getting bombarded with texts and emails from business service providers to retailers. Ask yourself “why should they read mine?”

What do you stand for?

Do you know what your company’s biggest benefit to your customer is? Do you know how each of your products or services add value to their lives, make their lives easier or answer their questions? Does the tone of voice you use resonate with your customer, and instill loyalty to your brand?

If you don’t know the answers to some of these questions, 2021 might be the year you think about doubling down on your brand. What DO you stand for? What is your mission? As part of your Marketing for 2021, branding can help you answer all of these questions and more, leaving you with a clear map of where to take your business next and how to get there. Branding gives you the platform and parameters to deliver tangible solutions to your customer. We’ve seen the excitement and commitment of more than half a dozen of our own clients rebranding for the future, in just the past six months.

Don’t just work IN your business, work ON your business.

Branding is not just about looks though, it is also about strategy and tactics. What are you going to say, and where are you going to say it are key. You need to be cohesive and coherent in your messaging, as well as look professional. Small businesses often fall down thinking they can “do it themselves” with marketing but without a marketing background – from logo design to social media to PR. Often, they are holding themselves back because they are too busy working IN their business and to work ON their business.

So double down on your brand this year – strengthen your commitment to your particular strategy or course of action. Become more tenacious and resolute in your bringing your brand vision into 2021 and beyond.

Reflecting on the past year, we are so grateful for courageous, fearless business leaders. We continue to be inspired by those who bravely carried on in 2020. Grit and gumption.

Cheers to those leaders who showed up. Those who made the most out homeschool, while working or not, closures, pivots, business opportunities and personal and professional loss.

Earlier in the year, I watched no TV. I read only the daily work related briefs and blogs.

However, in the later part of the year, I read a good chunk of mindless trash. This is how I escape. Reading fiction, mostly murder mysteries and romance novels.

The two personal and professional development books I did read were life changing for me. Leaders must read. One was this. The other was Brene Brown’s Braving the Wilderness. I read it twice in the past two months.

Leaders will brave the new year.

How?

Do you. Brown talks about praying and cussing. Those who know me will not be surprised I love this. She talks about not being moved. Doing work in an honest way that is true to yourself. Leaders, time to truly support each other. I let others “do you.” And, I do me. Belong to yourself. ” … brave the wilderness of uncertainty, vulnerability and criticism.”

Speak truth to bullshit. Do not shut down. In other words, that is the easy road. Leaders do not avoid communication. Learn more about others. Even if we still disagree, at least we engaged in meaningful conversation. We have a deepened mutual understanding. However, at all costs, be civil.

Strong back. Soft front. The latter is most challenging for me. No more armored front. I will stay open. Leaders are comfortable with vulnerability. “A soft and open front is not being weak; it’s being brave, it’s being the wilderness.” Eeeek … here goes. I can do it.

Be fearless. I am a Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program alum. The experience was life changing. My co-hort continues to inspire me. My growth group was named, “The Fearless Five.” Coincidence? “Fear is how we got here.” Fear and blame. Own your pain. Do not inflict pain on others. Be fucking fearless.

Read the book. It is worth your time.

And, in conclusion, I am driven to make this my best year, for me and my family, business, team, clients, community, country and world.

Continuing on in our Rocker Spotlight series is Front Porch Lil’ Rock Maria Gregorio, who will share her insights on her own career and her experience on the Porch.

What is the biggest misconception about marketing today?

People want quality marketing for very little money. Cheap and great quality don’t really go together.

What advice would you give to someone struggling with creating a brand identity? 

Sit down, talk with customers, friends and colleagues. Have lots of post-its and pens around. Branding can be a tedious process but worth it in the end when you know who you are as a company and what you stand for.

One of the biggest lessons you’ve learned throughout your career?

Keep learning and growing. If it looks like you can’t grow or learn in your position, its time to look elsewhere.

What does good marketing look like?

Responsive, meets the customer where they are, makes you smile.

If you could be anywhere in the world right now where would it be?

My parents’ house in the Philippines.

If you could go to dinner with one person living or dead who would it be?

My grandpa (deceased).

If you could describe yourself in three words what would they be?

As the Front Porch Lil’ Rock nickname hints, I am short, funny, and quirky.

What is your favorite thing about FPM?

No commute! Seriously though, that we get to do interesting, creative work for great clients.

Tell me about a major milestone in your life?

When my husband visited me in college, Memorial Day Weekend 2001. We have been together ever since.

In what ways does the team at FPM have aligned values?

I think we’re all straight shooters who want to do great work and do right by people.

Your goals for FPM?

Grow the business and continue helping small businesses achieve their dreams.

How would you describe the culture at FPM?

We are a fun group who work very hard and genuinely like being around each other. That’s not something you see every day in other workplaces.

How does FPM differentiate itself from other marketing companies?

I think that judging from our quirky titles and the name of our company, people can tell that we like to do things a little differently. It does sound a little “folk-sy” but we just want to do great work for companies we believe in.   

Fun fact?

I have never lived in one place for more than four years. (military brat/railroader wife) And I used to do acting competitions in high school. I liked playing the villain 😈

As the leader of your brand, it is up to you to determine the vision for your business, you are also the business leader. You are mission-control to successfully making that vision materialize. Be responsible for recognizing – and deciding how best to overcome – the barriers to your brand’s success.

One of the most powerful (and responsible) things you can do as a business leader is to get out of your own way.

The business leader and/or business owner holds a tremendous amount of power. You can be your brand’s greatest asset and its biggest backer. Critical to your mission, however, is not to become a barrier yourself.

During a conversation with a business owner and CEO of a $50M+ company, the CEO relayed that his largest client could not implement the programs offered to them because the necessary departments were not communicating with each other.

To overcome this hurdle, the CEO stepped in to facilitate meetings and interactions between his client’s departments. However, he was not getting paid for that time and taking on that role took him away from his own responsibilities.

When asked to provide my advice to this dilemma, my answer was simple: Don’t attend the meetings. If he did not attend the meetings, others would be forced to take on rightful ownership of their responsibilities, freeing the CEO to focus on his own responsibilities.

Here are four things to consider as a business leader in order to get (or stay!) out of your own way:

1. Build boundaries and bridges. Don’t put yourself in situations to be the point person when it is not your role. If you consistently play a role not meant for you lines become blurry and you increase your risk of burnout. You also risk not having the time and/or resources you need to be successful. Build a good team – in-house and/or through outsourcing. Then take a step back and let them fulfill their own roles.
2. Do it, delegate it or delete it. Does your to-do list continue to have the same thing on it week after week? Yes? Figure out why. If it is something that requires YOUR attention, do it. If it needs to get done but someone can or should complete it, delegate it. Maybe circumstances make completing a task unrealistic, undesirable or unnecessary – then, delete it. Procrastination is a barrier to productivity and to creativity.
3. Find your joy. Focus on the good contributions. Perhaps you work with a client who is abrasive. Understanding that he or she has a difficult job can help you avoid taking things personally. Look at the good things you are doing in your own role and the positive things the company is doing. If you focus only on the negative or get upset over the same things on a weekly basis, you prevent yourself from seeing the positives of your own – and others’ – contributions.
4. Celebrate success and forget failure. Failure is a necessary part of the process. Expect it. Embrace it. Learn from it. As a leader, failure should be empowering. Don’t let it get you down. Stop and acknowledge when you overcome it.
   

If you can get out of your own way, you may be your brand’s greatest asset. We have built a strong team and could be a powerful ally. Give us a call.

Marketing misconceptions happen. We are so grateful that our clients partner with us so we may help them know what is reality in the marketing world to make a difference in their businesses’ topline.

We work with amazing CEOs and business leaders. They are forward-thinking, move at light speed and want to make s*^! happen for their businesses. There are moments though that make us cringe and then we have to either just bust out loud or ask them to stand up and dance it out before we bring them back to reality.

4 Marketing Misconceptions by CEOs & Business Leaders

1. Your one person Marketing Manager or Marketing Director can do it all. When you are able to start building a marketing team, that rocks. But, please be real. Your marketing person should be responsible for setting a strategy and plan, but, ODL, they need help to execute it all.
2. A marketing calendar is a plan. Nopey. No. You can do a lot of things but if they are not on strategy, not focused on the goals, not delivering your targeted messages, you are wasting your time and resources. Go deep or go home. Fewer deeper is especially important for small businesses and startups.
3. Media relations alone will not deliver the results you need. There are many tools in the marketing toolbox. Media relations is an effective one, but it cannot stand alone. Editorial is fab but one well placed story isn’t going to drive the topline.
4. You are a Creative Director. CEOs and business leaders are brilliant people. They are driven, they are talented, they are creative. But there is more that goes into a logo, an ad, etc., then just your thoughts of beautiful images on a page. Know your brand architecture, define your brand standards, refer back to your marketing plan, and, for the love of Pete, fill out a creative brief and let the creatives do what they do.

Marketing misconceptions happen. The best business leaders share their thoughts and adapt to constructive criticism.

Be open to dispelling marketing misconceptions. That’s when the business magic will happen. That’s music to our ears.

I love it when people ask me about our brand and how the name came to be. We enjoyed our branding process immensely; and we as a team love it when start-ups come to us with their business concept and ask us to help them name, brand and market it.

Just yesterday we were presenting logo options to a client who commented that they were impressed by our process for naming, preparing a creative brief and then developing logo concepts. The leadership team had no idea how much time, energy and thought went into the process and were curious whether we thought other start-ups went through a similar process.

Unfortunately, the answer is no.

But they should! Naming your brand is an important process and must be tackled in a diligent, thoughtful way. Choosing a strong name requires that it:

1. Stands out from the competition (unless it’s more important to fit in)
2. Communicates the business you’re in
3. Reinforces your brand promise
4. Communicates your company’s distinguishing characteristics
5. Has long term viability
6. Is easy to read
7. Is easy to pronounce
8. Is simple to spell
9. Is short and concise
10. Is memorable

Do the work on the front end to analyze your brand, your business, your competitors and your promise to ensure that your identity represents all that you want and need. You will save time, money and energy down the road if you start off right!