Marketing Meetup Podcast

If Aliens landed on planet earth and walked into a marketing conference, they would be forgiven for thinking that the only companies who engaged in marketing activity was Apple, Patagonia, Nike, and the overlord of our profession was Ryan Reynolds. Now - I’m not saying the world wouldn’t be a better place with Ryan Reynolds in charge - he is a handsome and talented man. And undeniably these companies smash it in their own ways. But it’s a misnomer to believe that we should all be following their example. Imagine two friends, Mary and Timmy, standing next to each other by the waterside.  As the sun sets, Timmy starts throwing pebbles into the lake - seeing the ripples spread slowly and calmly across the surface of the water.  Mary isn’t like that though - Mary summons her inner hulk and grabs a boulder, catapulting it into the water nearby. The ensuing waves engulf Timmy’s efforts making him sad inside. Paul Dyson’s now famous study into the factors that impact ad effectiveness place ‘brand size’ squarely at the top (i.e. if you’re famous - you’re going to land with more impact). According to YouGov 99% of the UK’s businesses are SMEs. While imprecise as a measure, broadly this speaks to the idea that most of us are playing with pebbles - not boulders. Put another way - being a world famous movie actor is not hugely replicable. Acacdotally this rings true: most marketers I chat to at The Marketing Meetup are sat alone, or in a small team on an industrial estate outside Newmarket (other market towns are available) with single glazing and a boss who sees marketing as either the selling department or crayon department. A far stride from the steel and glass of the Nike’s of the world. So - what is at our disposal?  Well for the most part while the temptation is to want to chat about sophisticated mass marketing and the long and the short of it, just getting the fundamentals of marketing right puts us at an advantage over most of our competitors in an industry where most of us (including me at the beginning of my career) spent time pinging between tactics.  In essence, what most marketers lack is a proper strategy. But for those with minimal resources - how do we create something that allows us to create a realistic strategy that is actionable and likely to be actually used and not sit in a document? Well, hopefully, this helps…

Thomas Peham is the VP of marketing at Storyblok - a rapidly growing CMS who is on a fascinating marketing journey.

Jordan Schwarzenberger is co-founder of Unboxed, Arcade Media and manager of  @Sidemen  In today's Q&A he talks about how to build effective collaborations. In this podcast, Jordan Schwarzenberger, manager of The Sidemen, shares how to build incredible collaborations. Jordan has worked with some of the biggest names in the music industry, and he shares advice on how to build relationships with others in the industry. If you're looking to build relationships with others in the industry, be sure to watch this video! Jordan shares some tips on how to build collaborations that will result in success. Whether you're a creator or a marketer, this video will help you find the connections you need to make your dreams a reality!

Amy Elliott is Head of Copy at Lightbulb Media – an agency based in Manchester who provide digital marketing support without the BS. Amy took to the TMM stage to share an energetic, fun-filled session where she covered the value of individuality in writing, and how to escape the trap of using other people’s templates. It was a mini copywriting masterclass, full of anecdotes, applicable frameworks, and of course, really good words.

Recently I was approached by a micro business about how they could market themselves. They had little budget to pay for professionals - and it quickly became apparent they were in danger of pinging from one tactic to another. I see the same thing play out in marketing teams across the land - particularly for those in small or solo marketing teams (I was in that camp for a long time!) So while I wanted to bang on about 'salience', 'the long and the short of it' and much more - that wasn't their requirement. So it got me thinking about the minimum marketing strategy I think people create to give purpose and consistency to their work. And on Friday at 09.30, I'll share how to build it. We'll be ignoring a lot of nuances, but a little strategy is better than no strategy at all. 

Marketing is inherently neither good nor bad, but as the general public often remind us, we should always question its purpose and how we use it.

Today's TMM webinar doesn't start from a place of 'look at AI'.It starts from a place of 'this stuff is big and interesting, now - how can we as marketing humans actually use it to improve our lives?', exploring:🚀 The basics of AI and how it can benefit your marketing efforts🚀 Real-world examples of AI in action in marketing🚀 Practical tips for implementing AI in your marketing strategy🚀 Future trends and opportunities in AI for marketing

Stop guessing what content and sales messages you think will work to convert customers into sales and instead discover the never-before-discussed-secret to KNOWING exactly what will work to convert customers with laser like precision, so that you can build funnels, content and automations to drive more sales than you could ever imagine. Andrew and Pete have been dubbed, 'The best content marketing speakers on the planet' and ensure a fast pace engaging talk to change your thinking around marketing and sales forever. ****************** Take the time to check out our partners, all of whom we work with because we think they're useful companies for lovely marketers. Impression - Impression are digital growth specialists, defining and delivering integrated digital strategies that transform market players into market leaders. Cambridge Marketing College - The best place to get your marketing qualifications and apprenticeships. Brand Recruitment - An amazing marketing recruitment company based in Cambridge, UK and wonderful supporters of the meetup. Redgate Software - Now hiring marketers! Storyblok - the only CMS you'll ever need. The headless content management system that empowers 100,000+ developers and content teams to create better content experiences across any digital channel.

The man who built a $22 million business, sold it, then gave the money to a foundation: Reflections of a remarkable human - Derek Sivers

On Tuesday morning, Eman Ismail took to the virtual stage for the last of the season 9 webinars. Eman is a freelance pro, the founder of Eman Copy Co, host of the Mistakes That Made Me podcast, and most recently, the cover star of Freelance Magazine.  The setup for Eman’s session was a guide for how to successfully smash the freelance life.What followed was an hour of practical advice, thoughtfulness, and so much positivity. Eman embodies what we value most at TMM. Eman’s working story is impressive to say the least. Back in 2018, after a stint in-house at a charity, Eman set up shop as a pen-for-hire - a copywriting freelancer. With a 2-year old son in tow, the first few years were not easy. Eman explains how they cycled through feast and famine mode, figuring out how to make it work. Then, Covid hit, and Eman’s childcare setup went out the window. Now, in 2023, she’s a mama of 2 with a 6 figure copywriting business who enjoyed 7-8 months of self-funded maternity leave and all of the freedom and flexibility to work in a way that works for her family. How did she do it? Watch the video playback here or read on for Eman’s 6 tips to go from surviving to thriving as a freelancer.