When generating leads and sales for the business has fallen on your shoulders, will you be able to pull off marketing when it’s not in your wheelhouse? In this post, we’re talking about the marketing skills you need and how you can DIY them since you’ve ended up as the CMO when you want to be the CEO.
TIME-STAMPED SHOW NOTES:
[01:22] Do small business owners need marketing skills?
[04:13] What’s the role of marketing in small business?
[05:44] What does marketing encompass?
[07:56] #1 Copywriting skills
[09:28] How to DIY your copywriting skills
[11:02] #2 Planning skills
[12:17] Tips for improving your planning skills
[13:30 #3 Visual design skills
[14:24] How to DIY your visuals
[16:06] #4 Technical skills
[16:42] Tech tools to fudge your marketing skills
[18:53] #5 Listening skills
[19:53] How to be a good listener
[22:16] DIY marketing and your mindset
[24:49] Bloopers
RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
- Copywriting Secrets by Jim Edwards
- Mass Persuasion Method by Bushra Azhar
- Copyhackers.com
- Snappa
- DesignBold
- Easil
- Canva
- Crello
- Wave.video
- Biteable
- SquareSpace
- Wix
- LeadPages
- ClickFunnels
- ActiveCampaign
- ConvertKit
- MailerLite
- ManyChat
- MobileMonkey
Do Small Business Owners Need Marketing Skills?
[Meghan] I always enjoy our podcast recordings, but marketing topics are my favorite to discuss. Marketing is such an essential part of a successful business, but it’s something that so many small businesses struggle with. That’s why I like talking about it. It feels like I can help in this area.
[Theresa] I agree. I see my clients and colleagues struggling with marketing all the time. Most of them are not marketers. But they’re forced into a marketing role because they’re in charge and they don’t want to spend the money on a team.
Sometimes small business owners understand so little about marketing that they don’t even know that they should be investing in a marketing consultant or a team member.
[Meghan] Yeah, small businesses run lean. They’re pretty frugal with their money too. You’re right. Solo entrepreneurs or even teams of less than 10 people typically don’t have a marketer on staff. Inevitably some people end up taking on multiple roles because the jobs need done–whether or not there’s a dedicated person to do the jobs. Right?
[Theresa] Yep! In fact, according to Salesforce, 66% of SMB owners are personally responsible for three or more of these areas of their business: operations, finance, sales, marketing, human resources, customer service, product development, or IT.
I know I’ve done just about all of those jobs at one point or another in my businesses.
66% of SMB owners are personally responsible for three or more areas of their business!
[Meghan] See? There you go! Way more than half of small business owners themselves are working three of four jobs in their business. Yipes! Of course, it’s not a surprise that marketing was on that list.
Here’s the problem. When you’re wearing multiple hats in a business, what happens is that you end up taking on responsibilities and tasks that aren’t in your zone of genius. So, if marketing tasks are your job but you aren’t a marketing expert or experienced at marketing, how’s that going to work out for you?
[Theresa] Definitely not as good as it needs to! I mean, think about what marketing does for your business. Think about its role in the success of a business.
What’s the Role of Marketing in Small Business?
[Meghan] You bring up a good point. What is marketing’s role? That’s where the problem starts since a lot of people don’t really understand marketing’s contributions to the bigger picture. Marketing is often undervalued and viewed as a “nice to have” rather than as an essential part of a successful business.
In fact, in my experience, marketing departments are commonly the first place businesses cut when they need to restructure or save money. So then—without marketing—who’s bringing in the leads? Who’s generating leads and sales to keep revenue coming in? It’s obvious that marketing’s role isn’t understood.
[Theresa] There was a time when marketing was thought of as generating brand awareness and customer acquisition. But nowadays, marketing encompasses so much more. Modern marketing drives growth. It’s not just about visibility and awareness. Marketers have ROI on their radar, and they are more involved in product innovation.
Modern marketing drives growth. It’s not just about visibility and awareness. Marketers have ROI on their radar, and they are more involved in product innovation.Click To Tweet[Meghan] Marketing is more than just generating leads and sales, although that is a big part of what it accomplishes in a nutshell. I agree that marketing these days is much broader. It really does encompass much more than it used to.
What Does Marketing Encompass?
[Meghan] In my mind, there are four areas of marketing:
- Create
- Capture
- Convince
- Convert
Create is when marketers help to develop an offer that people want—not what the business thinks people want. This is strategy. Marketers should understand the market and that insight is valuable for creating the right products and services.
Capture is when marketers get the attention of the target market. Because if your prospects don’t know you exist, then you don’t have a business.
The Convince phase is where marketers educate prospects on problems and solutions while building authority and influence for the business. This phase moves prospects to buy, which is the fourth phase, Convert. Convert means turning the prospect into a customer.
Marketing does include generating targeted, relevant leads that turn into sales. But marketers should have a lot more involvement in product creation and return on investment, which makes them much-needed in business and not a “nice to have.”
Having said all that, I still understand why business owners take on marketing. They may perceive marketing as something that it’s not. I think a lot of people think marketing is just promoting. Plus, business owners are swamped and frugal, so it’s just easier for them to try to do it themselves. So, if you’re a business owner who has taken on a marketing role, we want to prepare you for it.
[Theresa] Right. We know business owners are going to take on the responsibility of marketing. We see it happen all of the time. So, the questions we are going to answer are:
- What are the non-negotiable marketing skills that you need to compete?
- How can you fudge these skills if you don’t have them?
The Most Valuable Marketing Skills You Need and How to Fake Them
1) Copywriting Skills
[Meghan] Number one on my list is copywriting. The most important marketing skill is being able to write in a way that attracts and converts. Being skilled at all types of writing will serve you well in the digital space. But, I’m most focused on copywriting.
Copywriting requires understanding how to use psychology and proven formulas to sell more. It takes expertise, talent, and practice to use your words to take people from browsing to buying. If your copy and content doesn’t resonate with your target market, you won’t be able to sell online.
My client work is strategy and writing. Content creation is a big part of what I do for clients. Actually, writing has been an enormous part of my marketing career since day 1. I even have a Master’s degree in writing. So this isn’t a skill that you can take a Udemy course in and be great at it. Writing takes practice. Copywriting takes even more practice and a different skillset.
How to DIY Your Copywriting Skills
[Meghan] Copywriting is an art and a science. There is a ton of information available. But I like two books for a quick understanding of copywriting. And I think these two books can improve your copywriting. They’ll change how you think about how you write and what you write. These are not your typical copywriting books that everyone suggests.
- Copywriting Secrets by Jim Edwards
- Mass Persuasion Method by Bushra Azhar
You can also search online for copywriting formulas and templates from Copyhackers.
And, check out these copywriting tips from us!
2) Planning Skills
[Theresa] When it comes to marketing, having good planning skills is particularly helpful. You want to have an overall marketing plan for your business, not just for launching products and services. Without one your effort to grow your influence, authority and revenue will prove futile.
Your plan is your roadmap for getting from point A to point B. It’s the most direct path. It helps you stay on track. When you don’t map out the journey, you end up taking lots of wrong turns and detours which equates to misspent money, lost sales, frustration and stress.
Start with a clear goal or metric. Then choose strategies and tactics that will help you achieve your objective. When you take the time to plan, you can execute with confidence knowing why you’re taking action and how it helps grow your business.
Having a clear plan makes implementing so much easier. Instead of guess work, your plan gives you a focus. Not only do you know what you’re doing and why, but you can keep the shiny objects at bay.
Tips for Improving Your Planning Skills
Creating a good plan starts with thinking. Period. Allow yourself time to think about what you want to accomplish, who you want to attract and how you want to grow. When you know those things, then brainstorm the how.
Also, schedule time in your week for marketing. Have specific times set aside to both work on and implement your marketing plan. This allows you to keep your marketing hat on which creates a flow.
Once you’ve scheduled that time to implement your marketing plan, focus. Only work on tasks that center around your marketing efforts.
3) Visual Design Skills
[Meghan] Another marketing skill you need is to be able to design visuals, like graphics and videos. Visuals are a part of everything digital marketers create. Website, blog posts, social media posts, ad campaigns, eBooks, sales pages, online courses, and so much more.
Visuals attract more people to your online content. They are also more effective at quickly communicating messages and concepts. Nowadays, you can’t market online without being able to create graphics.
How to DIY Your Visuals
Luckily, today’s tools make graphic design and video creation so much easier. Choose a tool with awesome templates and use them. Templates are a huge time saver and so helpful for many of your marketing tasks!
Which tool you use is often based on your level of expertise, how you process information, and your budget. But these tools are easy to learn, have great templates, and offer lots of visual formats:
- Snappa
- DesignBold
- Easil
- Canva
- Crello
- Wave.video
- Biteable
[Theresa] Visuals are key to marketing. It’s gotten much harder to compete online, and visuals are one way to get more attention on your content.
4) Technical Skills
Talking about creating visuals makes me think about the importance of technical skills. Marketers really need some tech skills these days. We’re lucky because we have access to apps and tools that make the tech stuff easier. Even with help from tools, though, the truth is that you need some tech chops because marketing is getting more technical by the day.
If you can’t do the technical aspect of marketing, you’ll miss out on sales opportunities and automation that are a benefit of the online marketplace. You’ll also fall behind the curve with consumers who are used to more modern technology. Eventually, being outdated will hurt your bottom line.
Tech Tools to Fudge Your Marketing Skills
So what do you do to manage the technical aspects of marketing? Like with visual design, it’s all about apps and tools that make tech much easier.
Look, I get it, if you’re not interested in tech and it doesn’t come naturally to you, it can be painful. But, your choices are to either hire someone to help or it’s on you. And when it’s on you, the key is to invest in apps that offer templates or as done-for-you solutions as you can get.
You can either hire help or do it yourself.
There are so many options out there to “fake your way” through the tech. If you’re not sure where to start, don’t panic! We’ve got you covered with some tools to consider.
Website Builders
- SquareSpace
- Wix
- Your Internet Service Provider’s website builders (like GoDaddy)
Landing Page/Sales Funnel Design
- LeadPages
- ClickFunnels
Email Automation
- ActiveCampaign
- ConvertKit
- MailerLite
Chatbots Creation
- ManyChat
- MobileMonkey
[Meghan] I agree. Maybe you weren’t prepared for becoming an entrepreneur, but it requires wearing multiple hats and getting good at other roles. If you’re not going to hire someone to help with your marketing, then you’ll need to roll up your sleeves and get into some of the tech work.
Isn’t it funny how marketing is getting more reliant upon tech but that we still need really old school tactics like copywriting as well? Earlier I mentioned how marketing is so broad these days, and that means you need more well-rounded skills. There’s a lot of creativity and technical savvy required.
5) Listening Skills
[Meghan] Great marketers are great listeners. They understand it’s not about them. It’s about their customer. It’s natural to want to share. But your job when your marketing hat is on is to listen.
“We have two ears and one mouth so that we listen twice as much as we speak.” – Epictetus
Being a good listener sharpens your marketing messages and improves your offers because you’ve zeroed in on what matters to your customers.
Listening takes the guesswork out of marketing. When you get really good at asking the right questions and listening to the answers, your customers will tell you what they want so that you can go create it and sell it with their own words.
I consider being a good researcher in this category because research is a part of listening.
Great marketers are great listeners. They understand it’s not about them but about their customers.Click To TweetHow to Be a Good Listener
I have three rules I try to follow. When I don’t follow these rules, I always regret it!
- Shut your mouth and let people talk!
- Repeat what people say to you back to them to find out if you heard them correctly and to help you remember what you learned.
- Ask the right questions.
This is how I convert more people into clients.
So, Theresa, I think one of your greatest skills is listening. I imagine listening is imperative in your coaching business. Do you think listening helps you with your marketing messages and sales calls?
[Theresa] Thanks, Meghan. Being a good listener absolutely helps! Listening is how I find out what my prospects really need. If I’m doing all of the talking, I can’t possibly discover that.
Listening is a key skill to develop for marketing and sales. It takes some practice, but over time you’ll get better. You’ll discover that it’s easier to convert your leads, too.
Improve Your Marketing Skills and Your Mindset
[Meghan] You know, I hate to see business owners DIY-ing so often. But much of the time, it’s a necessity to a large degree. However, doing everything yourself can hurt your business. When you’re not an expert in any of the areas we discussed today, you sacrifice sales. You also sacrifice your time.
So, the attitude of “I can do it all” will hold you back in the long run. I’m feeling like there’s a mindset shift needed or a perspective check necessary. Am I right, Theresa? What’s your advice?
[Theresa] I don’t know if the attitude is “I can do it all,” but rather “I have to do it all.” If you’re feeling that way, I’d like to say—knock it off! There isn’t a single person on this planet who can do or know everything. And no one expects YOU to.
There’s nothing wrong with asking for help. I invite you to stop being frivolous with your time and energy and instead invest in yourself and your business by starting with a small outsource.
Stop being frivolous with your time and energy and instead invest in yourself.
Spending money to make money is a necessary part of doing business. It makes sense to invest in your own marketing because you can make that back.
That’s all I’ve got for today, but I’d like you to think about what marketing skill you’d like to outsource. Then, let us know.
[Meghan] You always have such great advice to get us business owners out of our heads, thank you!
