Bob Cargill’s Marketing Show

Authenticity on Social Media

Episode 136 - Authenticity on Social Media 

Authenticity on social media is so very important.

If brands want to be successful on LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter and the like, they need to show their human sides. They need to keep it real.

It's one thing to have great products and services to offer those on the receiving end of your marketing messages. It's another to have your audience trust you so much that they wouldn't think of buying from anyone else but you when it comes time to do business.

Make it easy on yourself on social media. Just be yourself.

P.S. Thanks to Pamela Bump for writing the ridiculously awesome post, "9 Social Media Trends Marketers Should Watch in 2021," on the HubSpot blog (https://www.startupjunkie.org/blog/2020/12/7/9-social-media-trends-marketers-should-watch-in-2021) that inspired this message of mine. 

 

Jump on the Social Media Bandwagon Before It's Too Late

Episode 135 - Jump on the Social Media Bandwagon Before It's Too Late

Don’t fall behind. Jump on the social media bandwagon. It’s already a popular and prevalent communication channel, but it “will be the primary communication channel by 2024” if you agree with a prediction Brooke B. Sellas recently made on her agency’s, B Squared Media, blog here… https://bsquared.media/social-media-primary-communication-channel-2024/ 

That’s a bold prediction, but I couldn’t agree more with what Brooke has to say about social media.

LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and the like are being used by more and more people from all walks of life for both personal and professional reasons.

If I were you, I would make sure I knew social media inside and out before it’s too late. #SocialMedia #Communication #Communications

Marketing, Social Media, Healthcare and Teaching with James Gardner

Episode 134 - Marketing, Social Media, Healthcare and Teaching with James Gardner

In this episode of my podcast, episode 134, I talk to fellow adjunct professor and marketing professional, James Gardner, for over an hour. 

While our conversation covered everything from marketing to social media, teaching to technology, healthcare and more, this is the quote of his I want to leave you with today because I think it is a such a great example of James' words of wisdom.

"I think the challenge for tomorrow's leaders is...keep the best of yesterday, but overlay it with the tools of tomorrow." ~ James A. Gardner

About James Gardner

James is a digital sales and marketing leader with 20 years of B2C and B2B experience. While his career’s roots are in consumer packaged goods and strategy consulting, James has held leadership roles with fast-moving tech startups, established Fortune 1000 leaders, and forward-leaning digital marketing agencies.

James started his career with Procter & Gamble before earning his MBA at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. Since then, he has served clients as a consultant with McKinsey & Company, led complex digital projects while agency-side, and built several high-performing marketing teams.

James also teaches digital media at Northeastern University, is a contributing editor for MedTech Boston, and actively mentors startups from MassChallenge and the Harvard Innovation Lab.

 

 

Put More Emphasis on the Social in Social Media

Episode 133 - Put More Emphasis on the Social in Social Media

Put more emphasis on the social in social media and you'll be more successful on social media. It's as simple as that. But you know and I know that being social takes time. Being social isn't easy to automate. Being social doesn't necessarily scale. Being social on social media, however, is a secret to success. Chime in personally from time to time, if not daily. Even if you're a big brand or a business, the more social you are on social media, the more likely you'll be to build a devoted, loyal audience that ultimately does business with you. #SocialMedia

Marketing is Every Employee's Job

Episode 132 - Marketing is Every Employee's Job 

I’ve always believed that every employee is a marketer to some extent, especially when it comes to using social media on behalf of his or her employer.

Employees need education and empowerment, of course, for which the company’s marketing team should be responsible.

But once they’re properly trained, they can help amplify their employer’s messaging, helping to get the word out to an exponentially larger audience.

This is collaboration. This is cooperation. This is a coordinated effort between every member of a team. This is any employee of any organization possibly making the difference between the success and failure of a campaign.

Does your organization have this every-employee-is-a-marketer mindset? Do you contribute to, support or lead your company’s marketing efforts?

P.S. Thanks to Norman Guadagno, CMO at Acoustic, by the way, for writing the article in ClickZ.com (which you can read here... https://www.clickz.com/marketing-is-every-employees-job-they-just-dont-always-know-it/265651/) that inspired this riff of mine.

PR and Corporate Communications with Maura FitzGerald

Episode 131 - PR and Corporate Communications with Maura FitzGerald

In this episode of Bob Cargill's Marketing Show, Episode 131, I talk to Maura FitzGerald, Co-Founder and Partner at V2 Communications, a Boston-based public relations and digital communications firm. During our conversation, we touch upon the challenges that businesses have faced during the pandemic, the importance of a solid internal communications program, hiring practices, employee empowerment and much more. 

About Maura FitzGerald

Maura is one of Boston’s most seasoned public relations veterans. With decades of experience and not one, but two, high-growth PR agencies under her belt, Maura was the 2019 recipient of Boston PR Club’s John J. Molloy Crystal Bell Lifetime Achievement Award.

Over her career, Maura successfully founded and grew one of the premier U.S. brands in strategic technology communications, FitzGerald Communications. Under Maura’s direction, the agency immediately became one of the fastest-growing technology public relations firms, rapidly transitioning from regional boutique to respected national brand in less than three years. After successfully building FitzGerald Communications to five offices and nearly 200 PR professionals, Maura sold FitzGerald Communications to Omnicom Corp. in 2002.

A serial entrepreneur, Maura could not sit back when she witnessed a market opportunity evolving. With new technology innovations flooding the market as a result of digitization, Maura was poised to address the sophisticated communications challenges of these emerging companies. Together with Jean Serra, an experienced technology communications strategist and senior executive from FitzGerald Communications, she launched Version 2.0 Communications, now V2 Communications, in late 2006.

After her experience running FitzGerald, Maura wanted to establish a firm that is boutique by design. Since its inception, Maura has grown V2’s client roster to include several unicorns, disruptors and pioneers in the mobility, green technology, enterprise software and even nonprofit spaces. Today, V2 is recognized as a “Best Place to Work” in Boston and beyond. 

Maura brings her unique blend of communications strategy and business management to counsel CEOs and senior marketing leaders from some of technology’s most innovative market pioneers, including Sony, Motorola, Digital Equipment Corp., Compaq, Sapient, Peregrine and Manugistics. Working with these industry giants from their early days, Maura has designed programs to establish industry awareness, bolster credibility and position these organizations for future successful liquidity events.

She continues to bring this expertise and experience to V2’s clients through her direct management and mentoring of the agency’s leading account teams. 

The Language of Global Marketing with Wendy Pease

Episode 130 - The Language of Global Marketing with Wendy Pease

In this episode of Bob Cargill's Marketing Show, episode 130, Wendy Pease and I talk about her new book, The Language of Global Marketing - Translate Your Domestic Strategies into International Sales and Profits. We talk about why companies would want to go global, how companies can go global, which companies have gone global successfully, which languages are most common around the world and much more. 

 

About Wendy Pease
Wendy Pease lived in a small agriculture town in Taiwan when she was 8-9 years old.  From that experience, she learned what it's like to be different and not know the language. For the last 15 years, she's owned Rapport International, a foreign language services company that specializes in multilingual marketing, and translation.  Her passion is connecting people across languages and cultures for a peaceful and prosperous world.  Prior to this role, she served in Senior roles in marketing and business development.  She has an MBA from Dartmouth College and graduated in three years from Penn State in Foreign Service.  For fun she likes to swim, spend time in the woods and connect with her teenage sons.

The Free Offer Works Wonders

Episode 129 - The Free Offer Works Wonders 

Giving something away for free is a great way to get people’s attention. It’s one way to introduce what you have to offer to a new audience. When I had my own small business in the ‘90s, I gave away 50 half-pound bags of ground gourmet coffee to a list of prime prospects as a way of drawing interest in my marketing services. I told those on the receiving end of my outreach that “some opportunities aren’t meant for the back burner,” and this was one of them. This was their opportunity to get my very best work, as I had every intention of perking up their results. This campaign was a success in more ways than one, earning me plenty of publicity and some new business as well. Whether it’s a free trial of your products and services or a complimentary gift of any sort whatsoever, putting something for nothing into your audience’s hands is a great way to win their favor.

Marketing Isn't Difficult

Episode 128 - Marketing Isn't Difficult 

Marketing isn’t difficult if those on the receiving end of your messages know that you care about them. If those messages are cold, impersonal, calculated and repetitive, they will see right through you and ultimately ignore you. If you’re listening to them, engaging with them and supporting them, they will gravitate towards your brand and everything you have to offer. People do business with people.

The Social in Social Media

Episode 127 - The Social in Social Media

Don’t automate everything you share on social media. Don’t be all business, either. Be all human. Share your feelings and opinions, not just news and information. Show what’s going on in your life and the lives of your colleagues, not just what you have to market and sell. Be there for your audience, those who are following you and supporting you. Give them as much attention as they give you, even more. Listen to them and engage with them. Praise them and thank them. Help them as much as possible. Don’t overlook the importance of the social in social media.