Brandstorm

On this episode, our guest has a few ideas to help you use video marketing to increase sales. Rick Cesari has been a pioneer in the Direct Response advertising industry since the early ‘90s and has used Brand Response strategies to help build many iconic brands from scratch, includingJuiceman, Sonicare, The George Foreman Grill, OxiClean, Clarisonic, Rug Doctor, Momentus Golfand many others. Rick has helped take companies like GoPro from a start-up to over a billion dollars in sales in just a few short years.

About Rick Cesari

Rick studied biology and was going to be a dentist, but he got tired of school. He moved to Florida, read lots of books about real estate, and went to a seminar to learn how to invest in distressed properties and make a profit. He made $12,000 in a few days. He was so excited about his investment, he went to the editors of Florida Trend, a business magazine, and told them about the seminar. The article about the speaker was instrumental in growing his seminar business, so Rick was asked to help with his marketing. It was the beginning of his highly successful marketing career.

Brand Response Strategies

Rick says the key to being good at direct response marketing is understanding what makes the consumer respond. He uses a formula from Dale Carnegie’s book, “How to Win Friends and Influence People.” Tell the audience what you are going to say, say it and then tell them what you said. Rick adds that making videos is a lot like making speeches. You must capture the audience’s attention at the start, or they will continue clicking through the channels.

Another formula that Rick uses is called AIDA. The acronym stands for

• A - capture the person’s Attention
• I - build Interest
• D - arouse Desire
• A - motivate the person to take Action

Infomercials often seem repetitive and they are. Using Dale Carnegie’s formula, you say what you are going to say, say it and tell the audience again what you said. They must also solve a problem. Rick says if you cast a wide net with video that visually demonstrates different ways to solve the problem with your product, you will hook the consumer who has that problem in. Your product should have a unique selling proposition and a history of past product sales before considering direct response marketing. You also need a call-to-action at the end so the consumer can respond.

Video Persuasion

All of these tips and much more are included in Rick’s new book, Video Persuasion,” which is being released on Amazon on Oct. 15, 2019. At the end of each chapter, Rick includes interviews with industry experts that include great insights about video and video marketing. Here are just a few:

• The messaging is more important than the technical look or quality of a video.
• Apps like Rev.com allow you to inexpensively transcribe interviews, which is very helpful in the editing process.
• Make video tutorials for every product or service you sell.
• Add infographics with pictures listing all the benefits of your product.
• Have good audio. You can buy a good mic for less than $100.
• Lighting is also important. It will take your video to the next step.
• Authenticity is more critical than slickly-produced videos on social platforms.

Rick also includes about 10 apps in his book that will save you money and help you with video production. Apps like Lumen 5 and Content Samurai are just a couple examples of Apps that can help you create video.

As a bonus, if you visit Rick’s website, you can download information about the three most engaging types of video content.

Speaking Engagements

Rick also makes appearances and has a range o topics from how to build a $100 million business using direct marketing to brand building. He should know. Four of his clients made billions in sales, including Sonicare, the George Foreman Grill, OxyClean and GoPro. During this podcast, he shared two great stories about George Foreman and GoPro.

Connect with Rick:

Website: www.rickcesari.com

YouTube: RickCesari.tv

Our guest says if you aren’t using testimonials, you’re missing out on a simple, but great tool for new business. Michael Gass is the founder of Fuel Lines Business Development, a firm which provides business development resources, training and consulting services to businesses like Platypus Advertising + Design. His blog, “Fuel Lines” has been rated among the top 100 marketing blogs in the world, according to Ad Age’s Power 150, and he is considered one of our country’s foremost authorities on social media.

Testimonials Should be a Priority

We may procrastinate or feel awkward about asking clients for testimonials, but according to Michael, a testimonial is as good as a referral for most prospects, and small-to-mid-sized companies depend on referrals. Michael is a business development consultant to advertising, digital and PR agencies. He says most agencies are missing the boat when they do not use testimonials, especially on their websites.

A website is an online brochure for your capabilities and services. Testimonials add credibility to what you do and validates your expertise. Testimonials are what clients are going to research and look for in advance of engaging with you.

You can also use testimonials as an endorsement on LinkedIn and on social media. Pictures and video work very well, as well as links back to your client. Michael says links are not only good for SEO, they make it that much easier for prospects to get references about you before they ask you for them.

If you are using celebrity endorsements, make sure the use of the celebrity is relevant to your brand and not just name-dropping.

Asking for Testimonials

Michael says timing is important when asking clients for testimonials. The best time is after you have completed a project and have seen positive results. You should also make the process easy for your client. If you are uncomfortable with writing a testimonial for the client to approve, ask them for a couple of sentences about you to make the reference more personal. You can edit those sentences, add a few thoughts and go back to the client for final approval.

The Battleground for New Business is Online

Michael got into social media before it was even called that. Web.O was a term that was batted around, and the geeks involved in social media were resistant to helping outsiders like Michael, who had an intuition about its future success. He tested everything, identified his target audience and started building a community around his audience. He created content of value to them and eventually became a thought leader in the marketing industry. Today, Michael has more than 100,000 Twitter followers, 40,000 subscribers to his newsletter and a tremendous amount of traffic that follows his niche blog, Fuel Lines.

As a consultant, Michael is using his experience to help agencies re-learn business development. The old way of prospecting was chasing new business. Today it is about being found. He advises agencies to identify a target audience, build a community and create a niche blog that will provide valuable content for their audience. In Michael’s 11 years as a consultant, he has never had to make a cold call. People come to him because prospects feel they know him from his blog, newsletter, website and social media posts. And, using testimonials has helped sell his services before prospects have even met him.

Connect with Michael

Phone: (205) 370-7750

Email: [email protected]

Blog: https://www.fuelingnewbusiness.com/

Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook: @michaelgass

Candy Adams, aka the Booth Mom, was on our show earlier this year to talk about best practices for putting on a profitable trade show. On this episode, she is back to talk about exhibit houses and what they need from you, the exhibitor, to create and build your display the way you want it and within budget.

About Candy Adams

Candy is an award-winning, freelance exhibit project manager and journalist. Earlier this year, she won an international Gold Tabbie for “Regular Column” from the Trade Association Business Publications International (TABPI) for her Exhibitor’s 101 column for Exhibitors Magazine. This brings her total number of awards to 19 various bronze, silver and gold writing awards in her 22 years of penning the column.

Candy was affectionately nicknamed the Booth Mom by a booth staffer in the early ‘90s for her nurturing personality and knowledge of the trade show industry. First and foremost, she thinks of herself as a mama bear, protecting her clients against unscrupulous individuals at trade shows who prey on rookies. Always looking for value for her clients, Candy never spends a penny where she doesn’t have to. When she began freelancing in 1996, she realized her nickname was actually her brand, so she officially registered her nickname as the Booth Mom.

Types of Exhibit Displays

There are varying types of displays from the simple Tier 4, which is basically table tops with table drapes and a monitor, to Tier 3, which include table tops and banner stand pullups and the larger Tier 1 and 2 displays, which feature Linears and Islands.

Pitching the Exhibit House

The very first thing an Exhibitor should decide is whether they will want to handle the program management themselves or outsource it to someone like Candy. From there, the Exhibitor should write out what it needs in a Request-for-Information, or RFI. The RFI is sent to a variety of exhibit houses to determine their capabilities and ability to fulfill the needs of the exhibitor. It will include questions about the Exhibitor’s show services, storage needs, technological knowledge, financial management, corporate philosophy, goals and values, creativity and experiential experiences, its network of support services, who they work with, etc. The responses help the Exhibitor to narrow the list down to three to four Exhibit Houses that they would like to have pitch the business.

It is an industry standard for exhibit houses to be asked to design on spec. This can cost them up to tens of thousands in design time, so it is important for the Exhibitor to have a clear vision of what it needs in a Request-for-Proposal. It should start with a marketing brief of how the trade show will fit into the company’s marketing mix and include the Exhibitor’s expectations when it comes to design, ROI (what they are spending to make a sale), what will be considered a success, marketing objectives, client relationships, experiences and memorability. Exhibitors should have a realistic budget as to what is needed to accomplish the project. Candy says most displays cost about $165/sq.-ft. Candy also recommends giving the Exhibit House 90% of what’s expected, and then hold back 10% for things they might want to add. Complex displays are often a mish-mash of what needs to be built, rented from the Exhibit House and rented by the show house. The information will allow the Exhibit House to determine if it wants to pitch the account.

Communication is Key

The people within Exhibit Houses have various core competencies. If you want to build a solid relationship with the Exhibit House, meet with the executive team to talk strategy, responsibilities and execution. Candy says no show goes perfectly, so always have a backup plan. If there is a fail on the part of any vendor, that vendor should get the bill, not the Exhibitor.

Final Thoughts

Candy’s big takeaway is do your homework when selecting an Exhibit House. Do the RFI to as many Exhibit Houses as you like, but don’t send the RFP to many. Keep it down to three or four. An Exhibit House is much more likely to pitch your business if it knows it has a 25 or 33% chance of winning it.

Connect with Candy

Email: [email protected]

Website: https://www.boothmom.com

Social Media: @TheBoothMom

You may already know that Chick-fil-A is the third largest fast-food restaurant chain in the U. S. and that it ranks #1 in customer satisfaction. But did you know this year, the fast-food restaurant chain entered the ranks of the country’s most respected and revered companies at #51, ahead of Amazon at #54? This according to the Reputation Institute, a reputation measurement and management services firm. Kyle Bartz is one of the newest owners of a local Chick fil-A in Pewaukee, Wis. He joins #Brandstorm to talk about this great brand story.

About Kyle Bartz

Kyle didn’t even know what a Chick-fil-A was when he walked into one of the restaurants on the East Coast 11 years ago. But, when the local owner told him to come work for her and he might have the opportunity to own his own restaurant in a few years, he was intrigued with the possibilities.

Kyle worked for two local owners before going to work for Corporate helping owners to open new restaurants. He spent nearly three years learning everything he could about the business and what you needed to know to be an owner and leader. He then became part of an extensive selection process to determine which restaurant location would be a good fit. That took another year and a half. In April 2019, Kyle opened a Chick-fil-A in Pewaukee, Wis.

About Chick-fil-A

Chick-fil-A’s founder was S. Truett Cathy. Cathy started the business in 1946, when he and his brother, Ben, opened an Atlanta diner known as The Dwarf Grill (later renamed The Dwarf House®). Through the years, that restaurant prospered and led Cathy to further the success of his business. In 1967, Cathy founded and opened the first Chick-fil-A restaurant in Atlanta's Greenbriar Shopping Center. Today, Chick-fil-A has the highest same-store sales and is the largest quick-service chicken restaurant chain in the United States based on annual system-wide sales.

A quick fun fact about Chick-fil-A is how it got its name. Cathy called the first part Chick, because chicken was the primary food on the menu. The second part, “fil,” is about the cut of meat used, the filet, and the “A” stands for Grade A quality meats and produce that always come from the very best sources.

Opening the Chick-fil-A Way

Kyle said every Chick-fil-A opening is different for every new restaurant. Openings are tailored to the local community and what resonates with them, but Corporate always provides a lot of support for the owner. In Kyle’s case, his “opening” started on a Monday night with a Premiere Night. More than 100 residents were selected from a Facebook promotion and invited to sample the food and get a preview of what’s to come. On Tuesday night, Kyle had a Dedication Dinner, which was a private, catered event for his team in Pewaukee. Wednesday was the “First 100 Camp Out.” The first 100 to camp out that night were given a year’s worth of Chick-fil-A, or one meal a week. On Thursday, Kyle officially opened the doors to his new restaurant.

Finding & Training Talent

When you have a great brand story like Chick-fil-A finding talent is a little easier than it is for other fast-food restaurants. Kyle says he received about 1200 applications in the first, four months. Retail is a people business, so Kyle was looking for friendly people who weren’t just looking for a job. He was interested in finding people looking for a pathway to success, maybe even future ownership, like him.

Originating in the southeast in the 1940s, Chick-fil-A is somewhat new to the Midwest, and Wisconsin, in particular. Most of Kyle’s employees didn’t know much about Chick-fil-A and for many, this was their first job.

Kyle believes with his team, it is more about setting an example than it is training. The company has a what is called “Two Mile Service.” The first mile is the guest’s expectation. The second mile is what Kyle and his team do to go above and beyond a guest’s expectations. If the guest’s expectation is faster service, how do they make it faster? If politeness is the expectation, Kyle’s team makes sure they are doing everything possible to please their guests, carrying meal orders to their cars, keeping tables clean and refreshing drinks, as examples.

Kyle also says he has two buckets of “care.” The first bucket is for his guests and the second is for his employees. He gives stuffed plush cows and coupons to his employees and asks them to hand them to people who look like they are having a bad day or to make a child smile. He leads by example with his team, because if Kyle doesn’t care for his employees, how can he expect them to care about the guests.

Long Drive-thru Lines

Anyone who has driven by a Chick-fil-A knows that there are often long lines in the drive-thru lanes. While you might say this is a good problem to have, Kyle is trying to combat this issue by taking orders while the customer is in line, so their food will be ready when they get to the window. Chick-fil-A now has a mobile app people can use to order food before they get to the restaurant. And coming soon, the app will include tableside ordering inside the restaurant.

Closed on Sundays

Chick-fil-A has received a lot of bad press recently over being closed on Sunday. Some believe it is because its management is part of the religious right and are trying to politicize the company’s policy. The truth is when Cathy opened their grill in the 1940s, he and his brother kept it open 24/7. Out of exhaustion, they decided to close the grill on Sundays, and that tradition has been a part of the company ever since.

Kyle likes to think it’s good for a person’s mental health to have one day of the week where not one employee must think about the restaurant. And for some reason, the chicken always tastes better after being closed on Sunday.

Connect with Chick-fil-A and Kyle

Facebook: @CFAPewaukee

Hiring: nowhiring.com/cfapewaukee

Stop by the restaurant anytime and ask for Kyle.

Today’s guests today have been podcasting with Platypus for nearly two years. Mary Motiff is the Director of Tourism for Bayfield County, which is located in Northern Wisconsin along the southern shore of Lake Superior, and Pam King is the executive director of the Grafton Area Chamber of Commerce, located just 20 miles north of Milwaukee. Both destination marketers have been using podcasting to share digital content about the goings-on in their communities.

About the Grafton Community

Grafton is the smallest county in Wisconsin, but Pam King says its location on the I-43 eastern corridor of the state makes it a convenient destination for people visiting Milwaukee or looking to stop somewhere while traveling to other parts of the state. It is located about halfway between Chicago and Green Bay, Wis.

Grafton is considered a retail hub for many. The first Costco and the first Meijer in Wisconsin are here, attracting residents and visitors on the weekends. The Inner Urban Trail, which is used for hiking, biking, and cross country skiing, traverses through the entire county and connects with Milwaukee and Sheboygan County trails.

Grafton is home to Blues Recording, where many Blues greats would come from Chicago to record their music in the 1920s. A lot of the architecture in the Village of Grafton reflects this history, including the Paramount Plaza, which is shaped like a grand piano and keys that are a walking “hall of fame” for Blues artists. The community is also part of the Mississippi Blues Trail. For these reasons and many more, Grafton’s podcast is called “Getaway to Grafton.”

About Bayfield County

Just the opposite of Grafton, Bayfield County is one of the largest counties in Wisconsin with about half of its land in public ownership. Its bounty of amazing natural resources include seven destinations listed as national designations. In fact, the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, which consists of 21 islands and the southern shore of Lake Superior, attracts visitor from around to world to see its sea caves that turn to ice in the winter. Located at the top of Wisconsin, Bayfield County has some difficulty getting large populations of visitors to come to the area, but once visitors are here, they come back repeatedly for tranquility and rejuvenation from the hectic pace of big city life. It is a great area to connect with nature Its podcast is appropriately named “Bayfield County Wild.”

The Benefits of Destination Podcasting

Both Pam and Mary agree that their foray into podcasting has been well-received and the envy of their industry peers. In both communities, educating people about podcasting is important, because unless you are a millennial, most people don’t understand what it is. Pam likes to describe podcasting as a talk or radio show when people ask about it. Mary says it also helps to have her guests share the content on their websites and social media outlets once it has been uploaded to platforms like Stitcher and Google Play. She really likes the fact that she can dive deep into topics with podcasting. You can never get the same amount of information in a print, radio or TV ad and the cost is far less.

The people who listen to each podcast are invested in the content. Not everyone is interested in every topic, but they are interested in knowing more about the areas. Both women are building libraries of information that can be used and re-used as long as it remains relevant. Mary has had her marketing intern go through all of the podcast’s show notes to find and list all of the various topics so visitors can just scan the website for the topic they want to learn more about.

Another point that Mary makes is that destination marketing helps economic development. Communicating quality of life in the detail that podcasting can do is huge.

Using Professional Services for Podcasting

Wi-Fi can be spotty in Bayfield County, so with the help of Platypus, Mary has invested in equipment that allows her to record her interviews separately yet at the same time with her co-host Nancy Christopher at Platypus. The equipment lets her record tracks without using Wi-Fi, go on remote interviews off-site, and send the files to Platypus to be edited.

Pam uses the Platypus Studio for her guests. The facilities are comfortable and state-of-the-art, which makes a great impression on the guests. The staff is friendly and helps put the guests at ease. Retakes are allowed if someone makes a mistake and editing takes care of all the “ums” and “you knows.”

Quality, time and technology are the primary reasons both Pam and Mary use Platypus. Neither of these women have time to record, edit, upload and distribute the podcast. They also don’t have time to learn the technology nor the skill to produce quality podcasts. Platypus also provides clients with analytic reports to track and measure how each podcast is doing.

Challenges with Podcasting

While the benefits of podcasting outweigh the challenges, both women have struggled with some issues.

Pam says she needs to think big about topics. As the smallest county in the state, there are a finite number of topics she can do that are podcast-worthy. She and Platypus are solving this problem by going to neighbors outside the county and owning what’s going around Grafton. Summerfest may be 20 miles away on Milwaukee’s lakefront, but Grafton fills up every hotel room during the 11-day festival. Harley-Davidson events always draw scores of visitors from everywhere. And the Milwaukee Bucks and Brewers are close enough attractions to talk about in Grafton.

Mary says coordinating and scheduling her guests is always a challenge and sometimes technology issues can be frustrating. Mary keeps a spreadsheet or content calendar for all of her shows to help keep her organized.

Connect with Mary and Pam

Mary Motiff

Go to the Bayfield County website at www.travelbayfieldcounty.com. Her contact information is available in the right-hand corner.

LinkedIn: @mary-d-motiff

Pam King

Email: [email protected]

Website: Grafton-wi.org

How can you get noticed when your brand is in a crowded space and you are just a small fish in a really big pond? Our guest today says you can play that to your advantage. Prentice Howe is the owner and CEO of Door Number 3, an Austin ad agency and author of the Empowered Challenger Playbook, a book that looks at how brands can change the game, steal market share and topple giants.

5 Brand Personality Traits

Most people are drawn to products that bring good things into the world through innovation or better business practices. Prentice says there are five personality traits that inspire the voice and tone of a brand.

• The Lightning Rod. These brands are super authentic and even polarizing to some consumers. Like a lightning rod, they are in tune with what’s going on in our culture.
• These are the brands that have the ability to look out over the horizon and bring to market what people need ahead of others.
• Fostering Rejection. Brands in this category aren’t out to please everyone. They have a specific, cult-like following around a singular passion that make the consumers ardent fans.
• Compulsive Servitude. These brands overdeliver. In fact, over-delivery is the very essence of the brand. Prentice says FedEx and Ritz Carlton are great examples of compulsive servitude. FedEx changed shipping overnight and Ritz Carlton knew what we wanted to have in our hotel rooms before we even asked for it.
• Constant Evolution. These brands are able to transcend product categories because they are trusted and respected by consumers. Prentice says Shinola is a great example of a brand in constant evolution. The company started in 2011 making beautiful watches. Today, they are a luxury goods company, making leather goods and bicycles.

Operating with a Challenger Spirit

Of course, not every brand can be an empowered challenger. You have to be honest about who you are. What do you offer that others don’t and can you deliver that experience? You also need a solid strategy with a road map of how to get there and how to zig when the competition zags.

The Empowered Challenger Playbook

Prentice believes anyone who is a founder or CEO, a chief marketing officer or just someone involved in marketing a brand would enjoy his book, The Empowered Challenger Playbook. He calls it a positioning book and includes interviews and case studies of companies that mirror the five personality traits discussed. The book is available on Amazon and at the Book People store in Austin, Texas.

Connect with Prentice How

Website: DN3Austin.com

LinkedIn: @PrenticeHowe

Instagram: @Prenticehowe

How can you get noticed when your brand is in a crowded space and you are just a small fish in a really big pond? Our guest today says you can play that to your advantage. Prentice Howe is the owner and CEO of Door Number 3, an Austin ad agency and author of the Empowered Challenger Playbook, a book that looks at how brands can change the game, steal market share and topple giants.

5 Brand Personality Traits

Most people are drawn to products that bring good things into the world through innovation or better business practices. Prentice says there are five personality traits that inspire the voice and tone of a brand.

• The Lightning Rod. These brands are super authentic and even polarizing to some consumers. Like a lightning rod, they are in tune with what’s going on in our culture.
• These are the brands that have the ability to look out over the horizon and bring to market what people need ahead of others.
• Fostering Rejection. Brands in this category aren’t out to please everyone. They have a specific, cult-like following around a singular passion that make the consumers ardent fans.
• Compulsive Servitude. These brands overdeliver. In fact, over-delivery is the very essence of the brand. Prentice says FedEx and Ritz Carlton are great examples of compulsive servitude. FedEx changed shipping overnight and Ritz Carlton knew what we wanted to have in our hotel rooms before we even asked for it.
• Constant Evolution. These brands are able to transcend product categories because they are trusted and respected by consumers. Prentice says Shinola is a great example of a brand in constant evolution. The company started in 2011 making beautiful watches. Today, they are a luxury goods company, making leather goods and bicycles.

Operating with a Challenger Spirit

Of course, not every brand can be an empowered challenger. You have to be honest about who you are. What do you offer that others don’t and can you deliver that experience? You also need a solid strategy with a road map of how to get there and how to zig when the competition zags.

The Empowered Challenger Playbook

Prentice believes anyone who is a founder or CEO, a chief marketing officer or just someone involved in marketing a brand would enjoy his book, The Empowered Challenger Playbook. He calls it a positioning book and includes interviews and case studies of companies that mirror the five personality traits discussed. The book is available on Amazon and at the Book People store in Austin, Texas.

Connect with Prentice How

Website: DN3Austin.com

LinkedIn: @PrenticeHowe

Instagram: @Prenticehowe

Being this first, the only, the most unique is obviously a great advantage for brands trying to get the attention of its customers. It’s also easier said than done. Michael Greenberg, is the CEO of Call For Content and author of the Authority Marketing Playbook. He says he uses strategies to develop unique, niche-specific, quality content that is engaging and delivers new customers.

Call for Content

Call for Content is a podcasting agency primarily focused on creating B2B content market for use in lead generation. Over the years, Michael says podcasting has proven to be the most effective tactic for lead gen, resulting in his company moving to podcast-based strategies for the company’s clients.

Developing Content

Michael believes it’s critical to develop a strategy that connects with the client’s customers from the start. He uses direct customer research that is both qualitative and quantitative and combines both to develop ideal customer personas. Call for Content will audit the client’s current materials and conduct one-on-one interviews with up to five of the client’s customers to find out what they want to know. The interviews are typically followed by a survey and additional talks with people who fit the client’s ideal customer personas but are not customers. This research typically costs $2,500 and takes about six weeks. For clients interested in making an investment in lead generation using content, keeping the price low initially is good because it gives the client time to get to know Call for Content before the content creation begins.

Too many companies make content for use in SEO or sharing it in newsletters, but what they should really be looking at is who they should be creating content with to bring in new customers. The content should help open the door to new relationships and partnerships that will attract new customers. As an example, Michael says you might consider positioning your podcast by interviewing ideal clients for your business or creating a series with tech leaders who serve the same industry.

Podcasting is an effective way to generate content even if it isn’t part of a podcast show. And if the client’s target demo includes millennials, Gen Zs, tech-savvy or highly educated individuals, there is a good chance there are not enough listeners for a podcast series to make sense. The audio content created from the podcast, however, can be used to create written content and be re-purposed for use in blogs, videos, newsletters, social media and other vehicles...all in the voice of the client’s authority figure – the person who speaks to your target audiences as an authority.

Authority Marketing

The size of a company plays a big role in determining who will be its authority figure. If the company is small, say 20 to 30 employees, the authority must be the owner or founder. Companies with 150 or more employers might be able to use division heads or a VP of sales and marketing. If the company has 1,000-plus employees, there may be an entire team working full-time on the podcast.

Michael has three labels for authority figures. Best-in-Class includes the person who has a proven track record in his or her field of interest. The Simplifier is the person who uses a podcast to make things simpler for everyone and the Innovator does things by going against the grain. This person has become successful using unconventional tactics.

Michael talks about authority marketing in two ways: specialization and relativity. The more you can niche-down or specialize in an industry, the easier it is to build authority. Michael points out that it is difficult to build authority if you are trying to be an expert in digital marketing. However, if you are trying to be an authority in lead generation using Facebook ads for dental practices in middle market cities, you can become an expert in just a few months.

Authority is also relative. The only people you need to be an authority for are the people who will actually buy your product or service.

Useful Tools in Creating Content

There are many, but Michael likes using Google Docs because it lets you collaborate with others in real time and get instant feedback. He also likes using Otter.ai for transcriptions. For about $70 - $80 per year, you can record phone calls and have conversations transcribed.

Connect with Michael

The best way to connect is to go the website, callforcontent.com, and look for the chat widget in the righthand corner. Select “office hours” and schedule a time to talk with Michael.

In a time when trade or business news publications are struggling to survive, one company is killing it. Industry Dive publishes business news and analysis for executives through dedicated sites andemail newsletters. What Industry Dive does may not sound sexy, but its revenue stream is turning heads. On this episode of Brandstorm, Industry Dive’s Robin Re, VP of Marketing, talks about Industry Dive’s successful business model.

Industry Dive’s Story

After years of working together in digital media, Industry Dive’s founders Sean Griffey, Ryan Willumson and Eli Dickinson began to notice a consistent trend. They saw that, while mobile devices were changing the way people worked and consumed information, traditional business media content models, user interfaces and marketing programs were slow to adapt.

In 2012, they launched Industry Dive to meet the needs of busy industry executives: providing insights and analysis to help them do their jobs. Its first five publications included Construction Dive, Education Dive, Marketing Dive, Utility Dive and Waste Dive.

Five years ago, today’s guest, Robin Re, joined the company to contribute to its growth. Today, there are 16 publications with another two planned to launch this year, its reach has expanded to eight million professionals and its revenues have grown to more than $20 million.

Competitive Differentiators

As Industry Dive’s name implies, the journalists dive deep into the business news headlines to not only report the story, but to provide insight and analysis of what the information means to its readers. Its editorial is 100 percent independent with a staff of 66 full-time journalists.

Robin cites competition, change and capital as its formula for deciding which vertical markets to enter. The industry must already be covered by a niche media group, be subject to continual change because of technology and regulations, and have a large, capital spend.

Revenue Generation

Industry Dive’s newsletters are free to its readers and 100 percent ad-supported. Banner ads are less than 10 percent of its revenues. They don’t use programmatic ads, but sell directly to its advertisers using lead generation campaigns and direct response vehicles that include email platforms and high-end content like playbooks and webinars. Its sales force are more like consultants who sell “sponsorships” based on the goals of its advertising partners and craft campaigns that speak to its valuable niche audiences. Results are also evaluated primarily on the number of leads or downloads generated and not impressions.

The company expects to reach $29 million in revenues in 2019 and will employ about 150 by the end of the year.

Connect with Industry Dive:

The best way to communicate with Robin is to subscribe to one of its publications at: https://www.industrydive.com/industries/ She responds to everyone who writes to the publication.

Robin's LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/robinselvy/

IndustryDive's LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/company/industry-dive

IndustryDive's Twitter:https://twitter.com/industrydive

Robin's Twitter:https://twitter.com/robinselvy

IndustryDive's Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IndustryDive/

Our guest today is a healthcare evangelist and international healthcare industry expert. Tanya Abreu pioneered the planning of the first network of freestanding breast health centers in the greater Pittsburgh area and the establishment of more than 75 model women’s health education and primary care clinics around the world. As a healthcare marketing innovator, Tanya is also a successful speaker, author and workshop leader.

Tanya’s Background

Tanya began her career in education as a business communications professor in the Graduate School of Industrial Management at Carnegie Mellon University. She went to Russia to teach American English at Moscow State University. While there, Tanya got excited about being able to change a healthcare system with terrifying technology into something more humane. She came back to the U.S. to partner with Magee-Womens Hospital in Pittsburgh, where she took part in the transformation of women’s health through branding and outreach.

The CEO at Magee, Irma Goertzen, believed women feared coming to the hospital in the inner city for a breast image knowing there was a possibility that she might have cancer. Goertzen believed the hospital’s responsibility was to care for women. She spent millions setting up freestanding breast care clinics within the communities where the women lived. The clinics eventually expanded to provide pelvic health and heart disease prevention.

When Tanya left Magee, she started her own company called Spirit of Women. In this role, Tanya worked with C-suite executives to help them reevaluate how they presented healthcare to women. She is now involved in the Lipstick Alliance movement and is the national director of the Women’s Choice Award.

Creating Successful Healthcare Brands for Women

According to Tanya, there are distinct differences between men and women when it comes to healthcare. Men are more action-driven. They want to know what they have and what to do. Women often shun wellness care because it takes them away from their families’ needs. It’s not that women fear the disease, they just don’t want to have it now because they must stop what they are doing.

Women make more than 85 percent of all healthcare decisions for their family. Tanya says for hospitals and health groups to grow its brand with women, they need to capture the “heart” share of women before the money.

The biggest mistakes that healthcare providers make is trying to fix women. Women don’t want to be fixed. They want to be listened to and encouraged. They want to know about the experiences and quality of life other women have had. Taking a grassroots approach to healthcare marketing is paramount. Patient testimonials, community events and social media are more important to women than advertisements and billboards. It’s all about patient and community experience communications.

With 30 years in this industry, Tanya has always believed hospitals that support and encourage women are the ones that will have their loyalty and generate revenue. After her own experience with cancer, she realized there was more. She realized that much of what she had been doing was lip service to women wanted to hear. She didn’t want to be controlled, she wanted to be encouraged. She wanted hope, not more medication.

The Lipstick Alliance

These days, Tanya is working with hospitals to form the Lipstick Alliance. Statistics show that 83 percent of women put on lipstick daily to make them feel good. The Lipstick Alliance is about wellness every day for women.

Tanya wants it to be a movement that gets women thinking about doing something healthy every time they put on lipstick, lip gloss or chapstick. She hopes that one day the lipstick icon will be as recognizable as the red dress is for heart health and the pink ribbon is for breast cancer awareness. The Lipstick Alliance is about wellness every day for women. The national program is market exclusive, so there can only be one hospital per market in the U.S. Hospitals don’t have to apply, but they must be focused on wellness. They must also agree to use the organization’s 1-4-12 strategy which includes templates, education materials, content and a national awards program for organizations that build relationships with women that result in increased revenues.

Tanya says they are reducing the fee for the first 20 hospitals and that the program is typically less than $3,000/month.

The Patient Experience

Two things are pivotal in healthcare branding for women. She must feel she is being listened to and heard, and not just filling out a bunch of paperwork. She also needs to feel more encouraged when she leaves the hospital or clinic than when she came in. And the experience must be positive.

As an example, Tanya says heart disease is the number one killer of women, yet one in five women in their 50s have had a baseline heart evaluation. Why? She says it is because women fear the results. Healthcare groups and hospitals need to find ways to educate and motivate women in a fun way. Among her many ideas, Tanya says to invite women to a heart day event at a hospital where women can get a free echo-cardiogram. If the hospital is part of the Lipstick Alliance, they can hand out free lipstick when they are done.

Wellness Care is in Vogue

Hospitals can’t continue to be acute-care facilities. Tanya says they need to start focusing on wellness, incentivizing doctors and providing telemedicine, but only if it is part of a total wellness experience. People have a tendency not to tell everything to a healthcare provider online. Without complete records of the patient, diagnosis can be risky and often incorrect.

Women’s Choice Awards

Tanya’s newest role is as the national director of the Women’s Choice Awards. The award is third-party verified and 100 percent objective about a company or hospital’s quality measures in patient care and service lines. The seal says the organization has been approved by women and has the objective standards of quality and healthcare capabilities for patient satisfaction.

Connect with Tanya

Phone: 561-358-5230

Email: [email protected]

LinkendIn: @tanyaabreu

Facebook: Lipstick Alliance

Website: www.womenschoiceaward.com