Esther
The Monday Morning Marketing Podcast is brought to you by Esther of IPA Grand bringing premier online promotion to your business.
Esther
And Melanie of Stump Social Media Training, who empowers business owners to manage social media and marketing for themselves. And welcome back to another episode of the Monday Morning Marketing Podcast. Today we're talking about the most underrated marketing skill. What do you think it is?
Melanie
Most underrated marketing skill, I think is probably planning ahead.
Esther
That is one most people just fly by the seat of their pants and just go with whatever they feel like doing in the moment or whatever is happening in the world. Which isn't always bad. Have to say. Because a few things scheduled out for the next week and some major event happens like we've seen recently. The last couple of years have taught us that we have to be more flexible as well. Then if you have everything scheduled out, then you might have to go and do some readjustment. But yes, definitely planning and knowing who your audience is in that sense and what you want to tell them, then that's definitely not something that a lot of people do. What else would you say?
Melanie
What about you? What do you think is the most underrated marketing skill?
Esther
I think listening. Social listening. Okay, so we've got social media and it's more me than social, and it's definitely not a lot of listening going on. So, you know, there's so many different platforms that people are now able to have. It's not just the ones that we started off with 15 years ago or even earlier than that, if you can remember that far back. We can. But when people go on, and especially if they're talking about a company, they might not be talking to the company itself. They might be explaining something that they would like to see that company do if the company doesn't listen or have something that's tracking these things, like, you can set up Google Alerts. That if people are talking about your business.
Melanie
Yes, what I did long before I had any other platform, google Alerts is by far the easiest way, but you have to set up an alert for each thing you want to listen to.
Esther
Yes, it is very easy to listen, but not a lot of people are doing it. What else?
Melanie
I don't think people appreciate fully just how good email marketing is. In fact, I know for a fact that they don't, because when I speak to new clients that I manage, you know, doing mentoring or one to one training, I wanted to talk to you about social media. And I thought it's an element, it's a platform of online marketing. And I know there was this for Roar about GDPR a few years back and how much damage it did to people's email lists, but it's still a significant tool and it's just not used enough.
Esther
Yeah, and I would add on to that it's not used well by the majority of people who are using it.
Melanie
Yeah.
Esther
So you can go back, guys, and listen, we have an episode with Robin Kennedy who are email marketing experts, and I highly recommend going back and listening to that episode. They were amazing because they know their stuff and do reach out to them if you have any issues with what to write, how to write. It like I get an email every day from them and I open it every day because it's funny and it's always educational, entertaining, you know, the perfect way to send an email. So go and learn from them and get your emails right, and then people will want to open your emails. Another thing I would say would be, and I mentioned at the start, adaptability, being able to shift, I'm not going to say the Pivot word, but being able to honestly, but being able to move with the times. Right? So like I said, there's loads and loads of platforms now that before weren't there? And people are shifting from one platform to another. They're leaving the main platforms. The majority of ones are leaving from Facebook, Instagram, etc. And going on to the newer ones, like Tik Tok. So are you there?
Esther
Are you following your audience? Do you know where they are now? Are they still where you find them? Do you need to adapt and change to market to them in the new platform or in a different way?
Melanie
Yeah, it's worth doing a SWAT every now and then just to see if you're following your audience, keeping up with opportunities, you're understanding what your weaknesses are, and keep an eye on your threats as well. But there's one other thing that I'd like to mention, horribly underrated and horribly underused, google Business Profile.
Esther
So I'm going to put in your effort. Loved Google business profilence. Profile formerly known as Google my business. Yes, go on.
Melanie
It's free. It's easy to use, it's a bit of a beast, actually, when you get into it. There's so much versatility. You can use videos, you can use photos, you can use gifs, you can share stories, blogs, messaging throughout, just not enough people use it.
Esther
Yeah. And leading on to that, maps. Google Maps.
Melanie
Google Maps.
Esther
So that people can find you, especially if you're a physical business and know you're opening ours.
Melanie
And it goes on your website, doesn't it?
Esther
It does. So all these things and they're free. Okay, so free relatively, because you do have to spend time doing them and setting them up. Once you have Maps set up details, then you could basically leave it until the bankality is coming up and you can usually let them know, log in and say, I will be closed over Christmas with a few months in advance, so you don't even have to leave it until the last minute. So, yeah, definitely things to be thinking about there, guys. Then I would say that another one is empathy. So you're listening to your clients, you're listening to what's going on in the world around you, but are you reacting to it in an empathetic way? Okay. Doesn't mean that you have to stay at your point on everything that's going on in the world. There are too many things going on and you don't want to get political either, really, unless that's what your profile is all about. But if you can't empathise with your clients or your audience, then you're missing out on that. Just bear it in mind.
Melanie
I think storytelling is horribly underutilised as well. I think most people spend a huge amount of their time just banging on about their product or their service. And okay, maybe they do remember to tell the story about their product or their service, but I think there's so much more that they can talk about without being too personal. If your audience is parents, then talk about the stuff that's affecting parents around that time. So it could be special days of the year, like Valentine's or Halloween or Mother's Day or anything like that. And storytelling doesn't have to be, you know, you saying where you were in a holiday and what you had for dinner. And it doesn't have to be like that at all. But it's being more conversant with your customer.
Esther
Yeah, definitely. And again, Robert Kennedy are really good at that. They are, because they just tick something that happened in everyday life, it could be making up a cup of tea, and they turn it around as to how that leads into them helping people with their email marketing. So you could take something as banal. Banal. Whatever way you pronounce it, banal and run with it. I mean, yeah, kids are sick today, so just thought it'd drop you an email or who else has been in this boat? When XYZ happens, you start a conversation, which is what a lot of social media is missing and a lot of marketing is missing.
Melanie
Bravo.
Esther
Right? Because if you don't have the conversation and it's a one way conversation, then there's going to be no interaction, no engagement, no seals, which is what we need at the end of the marketing. Marketing isn't sales and sales isn't marketing. But you can't have one without the other. Okay? So when you get your messaging right and your storytelling right, and you're listening and you're adapting and you're going with where your audience is, which is where your SWAT mouth comes in, you will see a massive improvement in your marketing.
Melanie
And I know I can't believe I'm saying this, but I still feel it is a very underrated thing to do. And this will make you laugh. Video. I just don't think enough people are using video. Have you been on TikTok recently?
Esther
Everybody's using video, but they're not, because.
Melanie
Not everybody's on TikTok. Everybody thinks everybody's on TikTok, but they're not. They're really not. And it's still a much younger audience. All these creators are on TikTok. Most of them don't spend their time creating content for any other platform. So I think we should try and get a bit more creative doing videos on different platforms.
Esther
Yeah, it's funny you say that, because I was actually watching a TikTok the other day from Andy from ContentCal, and he had done a test over three different platforms instagram, Reels, LinkedIn and TikTok. And he put the video up on all three and measured the engagement and measured the reach on all of them. It's very interesting. I won't tell you the answers. I will link it to the bottom so that you can go and take a look at it yourself, but it might surprise you. So what you have to do, guys, is put some of these we're not saying that you have to go and do every single one of these marketing skills. Most of them, most of you probably already have, okay? They're listening to us. They're obviously listening, right? So go and find the one that you're weakest on and focus on that for the next month and let us know how it has improved your marketing and how it has improved your engagement and your reach. Okay? That's what we want to know. We want you to put this into action. We want you to adapt and improve your marketing skills. And that's why you're here.
Esther
That's why you're listening to us today. So, any final words, melanie no. And on that note, we'll see you next week. Bye. Bye.
Melanie
Putting me on the spot?
Esther
I mean, you can even have said byebye.
Melanie
Well, that wasn't a final word.
Esther
That was a goodbye. More than no touche.