Marketing School - Digital Marketing and Online Marketing Tips

In episode #554, Eric and Neil share some of their daily habits that they believe contribute to their success. Tune in to hear some great tips for being productive!  Time-Stamped Show Notes:   [00:27] Today’s Topic: Daily Habits Shared by the World's Most Successful Marketers [00:36] You have to continuously learn, because things are always changing. [00:42] Eric is always checking Feedly to keep abreast of issues and changes in marketing. [01:30] Neil, one of the world’s most successful marketers, likes to make to-do lists and break things down into daily tasks. [01:42] He finds he learns the most from events and meetups. [02:15] Eric learned some vital techniques from the book The One Thing. [02:20] He uses Evernote to organize his to-do lists. He puts one thing at the top as the one major thing he absolutely must get done that day. [02:57] The tool that Neil looks at every day: Google Analytics. [03:20] He uses GA because it helps him see issues before they are even publicly announced. [03:43] He also uses Gmail and Skype daily, Ahrefs and SEMrush several times per week. [04:00] Daily tools that Eric uses: Pocket, Slack, Asana. [05:10] Neil likes Trello, as it allows him to see all his agency’s projects at once. [05:45] Daily meditation, journaling, and exercise are other great daily tools. [06:11] Neil’s daily habits are: waking up at 5am, working out for 30 minutes or so, eating breakfast, meetings throughout the day. [06:57] The more you can optimize your life, the better. [07:29] Neil also tries to take a walk every single day to clear his mind. [08:24] If you don’t want to spend money on expensive exercise classes, you can buy a walking/standing desk. [08:36] That’s it for today! [08:38] Go to Singlegrain.com/Giveway for a special edition of Crazy Egg, the heat mapping tool. Leave some feedback: What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please leave a short review. Connect with us: NeilPatel.com Quick Sprout Growth Everywhere Single Grain Twitter @neilpatel Twitter @ericosiu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In episode #553, Eric and Neil reveal some important things that big agencies won’t tell you. Tune in to hear what you should know before signing on to work with a major marketing agency. Time-Stamped Show Notes: [00:27] Today’s Topic: What Most Marketing Agencies Won't Tell You [00:37] There are good and bad clients. [00:45] They measure this using the labor efficiency ratio. [01:04] When the whales are profitable, you are going to spend more time on that client. [01:24] Most agencies are pitching a dream, but they aren’t always able to deliver. [02:10] When you go to Chipotle or Taco Bell, you’re expecting the same thing every time. [02:20] When you have an agency with hundreds of clients, you are looking to deliver the same experience every time, to everyone. [02:32] Eric recommends that you actually have an in-house marketing person to have a laser focus on your goals. [03:12] Maybe start with an agency, then hire someone full-time, then consider using an agency again. [03:32] When you are starting out, you say “yes” to everything simply because you need to earn revenue. [03:40] When you’re established, you can be a lot more selective. [03:53] Eric feels the quality of his work suffered when he was doing every aspect of marketing and was trying to deliver on things that weren’t his or his agency’s strengths. [04:34] The quality of paid ads and SEO is better now, because he isn’t spread so thin. [04:56] People on Eric’s team want to add services, but he’s trying to temper that. [05:22] When working with an agency, you have to ask them what their strengths are. [06:04] You only want to work with people on things that they are good at. [06:22] Full-service agencies are big, brand names, with great revenue, but the quality suffered because they couldn’t possibly specialize in anything. [07:00] That’s it for Today! [07:04] Go to Singlegrain.com/Giveway for a special edition of Crazy Egg, the heat mapping tool. [07:09] Tweet at Eric @Ericosiu and let him know if you want them to curate their podcast content. Leave some feedback: What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please leave a short review. Connect with us: NeilPatel.com Quick Sprout Growth Everywhere Single Grain Twitter @neilpatel Twitter @ericosiu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In episode #552, Eric and Neil explain how you can get the best marketing tactics from other marketers. Tune in to hear how you can learn the latest techniques and get ahead.  Time-Stamped Show Notes: [00:27] Today’s Topic: How You Can Get the World's Top Marketers to Share Their Secrets with You [00:36] Once people start to share a tactic, it starts to get over-used. [01:00] So how do you learn about great tactics without becoming one of many using the same technique? [01:24] Neil thinks marketers like to party, spend money, and talk themselves up. [02:25] The creator of Growthhackers.com created the site because he wanted to have a community to share tips. [02:52] Marketers are going to try to outdo each other; by putting together a panel or roundtable, you will learn great techniques because they will all spill the beans just to impress each other. [03:36] You also want to share your tactics with others in order to get information back. [03:55] Neil likes to share tactics that work, but are kind of on their way out. [04:37] Sharing techniques that are new and on their way up, it will get spread around and overused. [05:07] The key is to be really careful who you share things with. [06:10] If you want marketers to share their secrets with you, your best bet is to go to conferences. [06:24] Conferences are where everyone wants to show off. [06:35] That’s it for today! [06:37] Go to Singlegrain.com/Giveway for a special edition of Crazy Egg, the heat mapping tool. [06:42] Tweet at Eric @Ericosiu and let him know if you want them to curate/bundle their podcast content. Leave some feedback: What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please leave a short review. Connect with us: NeilPatel.com Quick Sprout Growth Everywhere Single Grain Twitter @neilpatel Twitter @ericosiu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In episode #551, Eric and Neil lay out what makes a 7-figure business, 8-figure business, and 9-figure business. Tune in to hear great tips about how to gradually scale up your company. Time-Stamped Show Notes:   [00:27] Today’s Topic: The Difference Between 7-, 8- and 9-Figure Businesses [00:46] 7-figure businesses want a return on investment. [01:00] You want a 5:1 return, on average. [01:15] 8-figure businesses want to break even on their ad spend. [01:53] 9-figure businesses are willing to lose money at first. [02:13] They know the worth of a return customer down the road. [02:30] To compete, you need to outspend and have a funnel that converts very well. [03:00] “He who spends the most to acquire a customer, wins.” [03:58] Russell Brunson may lose money on the initial sale, because of his skill at setting up funnels he will recoup that money in the end. [04:30] It's hard to build a big business, unless you are willing to lose money up front. [04:45] You have to have the stomach for losing money. [05:00] The Microsofts and the HubSpots probably lost money their entire first year in business. [05:25] To build a successful 7-figure business, you have to hit product market fit. [05:41] 8-figure businesses capitalize on past successes and drop what isn't working. [06:15] 95% of the time, it's a process problem. 5% of the time it's a people problem. [06:54] When you're looking to go from 7, 8 or 9 figures, you need to look to your teams to start scaling up. [07:30] You have to know what you want and go for it! [07:34] That's all for today! [07:36] Go to Singlegrain.com/Giveway for a special edition of Crazy Egg, the heat mapping tool. Leave some feedback: What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please leave a short review. Connect with us: NeilPatel.com Quick Sprout Growth Everywhere Single Grain Twitter @neilpatel Twitter @ericosiu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In episode #550, Eric and Neil briefly lay out seven important stats you need to track. Tune in to hear what you should absolutely be checking in on every week. Time-Stamped Show Notes: [00:27] Today’s Topic: The Marketers Checklist_7 Stats You Need to Check Every Single Week [00:38] #1: Check week over week search engine traffic. [00:59] Make sure you haven’t been affected by a Google update or penalty. 5 or 6% is a big change. [01:42] #2: Check cost per acquisition. [02:20] Look at gross profit LTB and fully loaded cap. [03:00] If you are not improving your LTB, you can’t compete. [03:25] #4: Check critical conversion rates [03:45] It can make a massive impact on your business. [03:56] #5: Check international traffic and conversion numbers. [04:15] When it’s big enough, consider translating to increase conversions. [04:50] If you don’t check, you won’t know where to expand! [05:00] #6: Track organic keywords. [05:05] Use Ahrefs or SEMrush to track. [05:30] You need to know which keywords will have big business implications. [05:52] #7: Use Google Search Console to check your impression count. [06:18] Your impression count may increase before your click count. [06:35] Try clickflow.io which will help you track this. [06:41] That’s it for today! [06:43] Go to Singlegrain.com/Giveway for a special edition of Crazy Egg, the heat mapping tool. Leave some feedback: What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please leave a short review. Connect with us: NeilPatel.com Quick Sprout Growth Everywhere Single Grain Twitter @neilpatel Twitter @ericosiu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In episode #549 (a special episode for you!), Eric and Neil re-visit a live Marketing School show they did. Tune in to hear their number 1 SEO tip – as well as how they make their personal lives work in terms of being an entrepreneur.  Time-Stamped Show Notes: [00:27] Today’s Topic: Marketing School Live: The #1 SEO Tip to Skyrocket Your Brand [00:32] Today is a re-broadcast of a previous live episode. [01:05] Content marketing has led both Eric and Neil to all their other marketing techniques. [01:30] Use content as the framework for building a strong link profile. [01:52] Quicksprout was getting 850,000 hits per month. [02:12] Now, NeilPatel.com is getting the same amount of hits using content marketing. [02:38] In Brazil, they are getting fewer visitors than their competitors because they are newer to that market. [03:00] Use Google Analytics to determine which one of your pages is the most successful. [04:12] Neil’s girlfriend doesn’t like him working all the time, but they try to work around it. [05:25] Busy entrepreneurs should probably date other busy entrepreneurs. [05:30] That’s it for today! [05:32] Go to Singlegrain.com/Giveway for a special edition of Crazy Egg, the heat mapping tool. Leave some feedback: What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please leave a short review. Connect with us: NeilPatel.com Quick Sprout Growth Everywhere Single Grain Twitter @neilpatel Twitter @ericosiu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In episode #548, Eric and Neil discuss what Bitcoin has taught them about marketing. Tune in to hear how you can leverage trends for success. Time-Stamped Show Notes: [00:27] Today’s Topic: What Bitcoin Can Teach You about Marketing [00:45] Everyone is talking about bitcoin. [01:10] Bitcoin is an explosive trend right now. [01:44] If you can leverage a sexy topic and sell products around it, you can make a TON of money. [02:50] 3D printing stock exploded because it was trending for a time. [03:18] Ride the wave! Always take advantage of any product or technique’s popularity. [03:33] 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing is a great resource for understanding how to ride the wave. [04:15] Keep in mind, once everyone has caught onto the popular, buzzworthy, trend, it won’t last. What goes up, must come down. [04:55] Time it right and always be early to the trend. [05:40] Be patient and shoot for long-term goals. [06:15] If you believe in something, stay the course until you achieve success. [06:38] Bitcoin is only ten years old. It may take another ten years to see greater success. [07:04] If you are not a long-term believer in what you are doing, don’t waste your time on it. [07:16] That’s all for today! [07:18] Go to Singlegrain.com/Giveway for a special edition of Crazy Egg, the heat mapping tool. Leave some feedback: What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please leave a short review. Connect with us: NeilPatel.com Quick Sprout Growth Everywhere Single Grain Twitter @neilpatel Twitter @ericosiu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In episode #547, Eric and Neil explain the best way to set and achieve your goals. Tune in to hear the easiest way to make sure your company succeeds.  Time-Stamped Show Notes: [00:27] Today’s Topic: How to Achieve Your Goals in 2018 [00:35] Eric recommends having a structure where you are operating off the Scaling Up Methodology or the Traction method. [01:20] Work backwards from your goal to determine the steps to success. [02:00] The main reason people don’t achieve their goals, is because they set their bar too high or their goal is too big. [02:30] Break your goal into smaller goals with small steps (“bite-sized, daily tasks”). [03:22] The ONE Thing is a great resource to help you set your goals. [04:26] IBM salespeople would crush quotas because their goals were set really low. [04:57] Neil finds that when he achieves small tasks, he can see how it will or won’t help him achieve his ultimate goal. [05:20] Better to waste a few hours than a whole month. [05:36] 15Five is a great tool that Eric’s team likes to use. It helps you understand how you are doing in terms of achieving your goal or goals. [06:41] Audit yourself every quarter! [07:22] To hit goals and succeed, you need to work with your team and be aligned with each other’s goals. [08:54] That’s it for today! [08:56] Go to Singlegrain.com/Giveway for a special edition of Crazy Egg, the heat mapping tool. Leave some feedback: What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please leave a short review. Connect with us: NeilPatel.com Quick Sprout Growth Everywhere Single Grain Twitter @neilpatel Twitter @ericosiu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In episode #546, Eric and Neil talk about what shady marketers do and how you can succeed in spite of them. Tune in to hear how Eric and Neil earn good will with their marketing techniques.  Time-Stamped Show Notes:   [00:27] Today’s Topic: How You Can Compete with the Shady Marketers Without Breaking the Rules [01:05] Shady is: bending the rules, using unethical techniques, or avenues that aren’t on the up and up. [01:32] Facebook has always been big on skin care advertisers. Unfortunately, they offer free trials that aren’t actually free. [02:00] Blackhat SEO’ers would create link wheels, where they would take a web 2.0 properties and link them to each other. [02:34] Instead of making spammy articles, what if you linked all your guest posts together? [02:51] Thinking long term is key to your success, even when learning from shady techniques. [03:36] Yes, the shady marketers may be beating you right now, but they won’t be around forever. [03:53] Affiliate marketers will burn your brand if they have to, but that won’t work for them in the long term. [04:32] Neil does more of everything that will pan out in the long term and ignores the bad marketing techniques. He likes to create more good will around his brand. [05:18] The Skyscraper Technique is more or less what Neil is doing. [06:00] Don’t worry about what your competition is doing if they are shady! [06:25] That’s it for today! [06:27] Go to Singlegrain.com/Giveway for a special edition of Crazy Egg, the heat mapping tool. Leave some feedback: What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please leave a short review. Connect with us: NeilPatel.com Quick Sprout Growth Everywhere Single Grain Twitter @neilpatel Twitter @ericosiu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In episode #545, Eric and Neil discuss how to access influential people in your space. Tune in to hear some tips on reaching out to people, getting their attention, and building a relationship. Time-Stamped Show Notes: [00:27] Today’s Topic: How to Get Access to Influential People [00:35] First and foremost, start a podcast! [00:50] Have a unique spin on what you’re doing. [01:32] When Eric started, he would spend six hours per week on the podcast only to get 9-30 downloads per day. [02:07] However, it helped Eric to build his network. [02:26] Interviewing people will make it a little harder to build a business relationship after the fact. [03:14] If you don’t get respect, you can’t call on people for favors. [03:30] Offer your services to people to gain respect. [04:28] People often offer to work for free just to make a connection. [05:28] Figure out a person’s interests to work a better angle to establish a relationship. [06:22] A YouTube marketer offered Neil a way to gain more viewers. [07:22] Now, the marketer is a friend and network connection of Neil’s. [07:50] It’s easy to find a person’s email (try Hunter.io). [08:02] Take a risk and email people offering them something you think they would need. [08:43] That’s all for today! [08:45] Go to Singlegrain.com/Giveway for a special edition of Crazy Egg, the heat mapping tool. Leave some feedback: What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below. Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please leave a short review. Connect with us: NeilPatel.com Quick Sprout Growth Everywhere Single Grain Twitter @neilpatel Twitter @ericosiu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.