This week we sharpen the saw with a few golden nuggets from EAT Creative Studio’s Renata Amaral’s interview. We also focus on why it’s so important to take your vacation.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Why you can’t create a real brand until you know who you are
- Your logo is not your brand
- Why your logo may need to change as your company DNA changes
- Why you need to examine your brand every year or two
- Bringing your brand to life with art
- Taking a break with vacation
- Why I took many months off a few years ago
- Book recommendation: “Leadership and the Art of Conversation: Conversation as a Management Tool” by Kim H. Krisco
Resources:
- Website: www.weareeat.com
- Book: “Leadership and the Art of Conversation: Conversation as a Management Tool” by Kim H. Krisco
To say Renata is passionate about branding and design would be an understatement. Anyone who is in the room while she talks about one of her many projects, or shows off a new design hot off the press will instantly feel it’s something more. And be careful, her excitement is contagious too. It’s palpable. It’s love, a real love for turning complex ideas into tangible and beautiful things. A deep admiration of the power to reveal elevated principles through smart design.
Since 2003, Renata Amaral has specialized in brand development and design, getting her start with some of the best agencies in Brazil such as FLAG and Ogilvy where she cut her teeth working in client services leading a team of creatives to deliver quality work to some of the world’s biggest brands. It was here where her love affair with branding started as she began to intensely study design and develop her own unique creative process.
A bit disillusioned by the status quo of the U.S. job marketplace in 2009 (as were most folks that year), she felt there must be a better way to both live and work, and wondered if the two really had to be at odds. The elusive work life balance always seemed to be a trade off where neither side wins. As most good books find their way to you at ju st the right time, Funky Business found its way to Renata that year and it inspired her to create a new kind of business, one that served the needs of its clients of course, but one that also inspired its employees, a place where people could do interesting work and still be authentic to who they are and what makes them truly happy.
These ideas prompted her to follow her entrepreneurial instincts and start her own business, EAT Creative Studio. EAT is a creative agency that helps companies tell their brand story through design, technology and experiential art. Through a thoughtful brand analysis process, they help companies unleash the strongest brand possible. Not forgetting about the ethos of happy and inspired employees, EAT has a unique organizational structure with no central office, which allows employees to live anywhere they want, where they feel the most engaged and inspired. Despite their distance, the team works closely together and get plenty of face to face time over Google Hangouts (and every other emerging platform of the month.) It’s this model precisely that has helped EAT retain top creative talent and produce the best work for their clients as their team pulls in inspiration from the global zeitgeist, living in diverse places such as Paris, Berlin, and Brazil. From their humble beginnings, with a little sweat and a lot of heart, EAT now works with some of today’s most exciting start ups and globally well known brands that are shaping the future of industries such as entertainment, gaming, music, fashion, and tech.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- What branding means to Renata
- Why not caring is the biggest mistake you can make while branding
- The process that EAT takes their clients through to starting the branding process where they get to know their clients’ audience
- How EAT is able to focus on the right thing where there are so many different options out there
- Mistakes that Renata has learned from and lived through
- How Renata and the team at EAT stays on top of the changes in all of the different industries that they serve
- How Renata’s emotional intelligence helps her deal with clients that want things that she has to say no to
- How Renata knows when it’s time for a rebrand
Ways to contact Renata:
- Website: www.weareeat.com
This week we sharpen the saw with a few golden nuggets from Elevator Speech’s Dave Yewman’s interview. We also focus on ways to get your stories out of your head every week.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Getting right to the point when you’re speaking
- Why you need one hour of preparation for every minute that you present
- “Be Bold. Be Brief. Be gone.”
- Working on your storytelling
- Taking 20 minutes at the end of the week to write down what you’d like to remember
- Why you should hand write it instead of typing it
- “Weekend Language: Presenting with More Stories and Less PowerPoint” by Dave Yewman and Andy Craig
Resources:
- Website: elevatorspeech.com
- Twitter: @ohgettothepoint
- Book: “Weekend Language: Presenting with More Stories and Less PowerPoint” by Dave Yewman and Andy Craig
- UMMO App
- Presentation Zen
A friend of Dave’s 11-year-old son Aaron asked, “What does your Dad do?” Aaron thought for a minute, then said, “He teaches people how not to say ‘um.’” That’s a pretty good elevator speech for a presentation coach. Dave likes to think there’s a bit more to presentation coaching than that — but it’s a great place to start. In the past 10+ years Dave’s coached CEOs, professional athletes, tech startup founders, engineers, creative designers and pretty much everyone in between.
Dave Yewman is a strategic communications expert with more than 15 years of experience. A former newspaper reporter and columnist, he speaks regularly to groups about how to use clear, concise, compelling language as a strategic weapon when dealing with reporters, employees, sales prospects, shareholders, and consumers.
Dave lives near Portland, Oregon.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Why it’s so important to frame your message to get to the point
- Crafting a speech that keeps people engaged
- Why you need at least one hour of prep for every minute of your speech
- Why your speech is never about you
- What to do when you’ve lost an audience in a presentation
- How to adapt your speech on the fly
- What makes for a truly memorable speech that people can repeat
- The importance of a big finish in a speech
- The “three second rule” for PowerPoint slides
- Why — if you had to limited resources — Dave believes in doing one thing well rather than two things halfway
- Why you need to record yourself giving your presentations
- Getting feedback on your speeches (and not from people who want promotions!)
- UMMO (the app that counts nonwords)
Ways to contact Dave:
- Website: elevatorspeech.com
- Twitter: @ohgettothepoint
Resources:
This week we sharpen the saw with a few golden nuggets from UpLift’s CMO Phil Carpenter’s interview. We also focus on ways to get rest this weekend so that you’re refreshed and ready for the next week.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Niching down to finding your perfect customer and growing from there
- Getting rest this weekend
- Why you need to spend time with no distractions
- The benefits of quiet space — this means no looking at your phone!
- Scheduling rest on your calendar
- Book recommendation: “Adulting: How to Become a Grown-up in 468 Easy(ish) Steps”
Resources:
Phil Carpenter, Chief Marketing Officer at UpLift, is responsible for all facets of UpLift’s marketing. Before joining UpLift, Phil served as senior partner and chair, western region for Allison+Partners, an integrated communications agency. Previously, he was Vice President of Marketing for Simply Hired and Vice President of Corporate Marketing for SideStep. Phil holds a B.A. from Stanford in English and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School. He is also on the board of The Marine Mammal Center.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Why marketing segmentation is so important
- How Phil hones in on his market and then tests it
- How Phil picks and chooses what marketing channels to use
- Why you need to get clear on your definition of who you want to reach and you want to influence them
- Why you need to allocate your resources based on what your objectives
- Why you need to offer truly valuable content
- Inspiring action, exploration, and engagement
- Helping your sales people successful
- Why you need to get public relations right
- The value of being present at industry events
- Driving incremental success
Ways to contact Phil:
- Website: www.uplift.com
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/philcarpenter
- www.tmmc.org
This week we sharpen the saw with a few golden nuggets from KQED’s VP of Marketing and Brand Michael Lupetin’s interview. We also focus on why it’s so important to stay hydrated and some strategies for getting enough water in all throughout the day.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Putting your audience first
- Learning from other companies
- Going for the big splash
- Why it’s so important to drink water
- Why you should begin your day with 16 oz of water
- Recommendations for the kind of water bottle to get and use regularly
- Why you need to be going to the bathroom every 60-90 minutes
- Don’t reach for sugar to battle your 2 PM lack of energy -- reach for water
- Why you should read "Whatever You Are, Be a Good One" by Lisa Congdon
Resources:
- Website: www.kqed.org
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/michaellupetin
- Twitter: @kqed
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/KQED/
- Book: "Whatever You Are, Be a Good One" by Lisa Congdon
Michael Lupetin is the Vice President of Marketing and Brand for KQED and the most listened and watched public media station in the county in developing consistent and engaging marketing, communications, and fundraising initiatives. Overseeing membership and pledge activities, he is charged with finding new and innovative ways to broaden KQED’s audience reach while building deeper engagement with our members. Lupetin also brings a clear focus to the organization’s marketing and communications efforts, including advertising, audience insights, social media, public relations, community engagement, government relations, design and creative services.
Before joining KQED, Lupetin served as Vice President of Group Programming for Moxie Interactive, where he developed digital media strategies for a wide range of clients including BBC America, Bravo, Cartoon Network, CNN, Turner Broadcasting, and 20th Century Fox. Prior to Moxie, Lupetin worked on the launch of Apple iTunes; the strategic marketing plan for Blue from American Express; and the rebranding of Showtime Networks.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- What makes KQED Public Media different from other public media and commercial stations
- Why KQED puts the needs of their audience first -- and what makes that so rare
- What goes into the customer donations pledge drives - and why they’re so effective
- How KQED stays ahead in the fast-changing media marketplace
- Why Michael wants to see age demographics go away
- Why doing making a big splash on one campaign is better than spreading money thin across two or more campaigns
- Why wishing you could do more isn’t exclusive to small companies -- and what Michael wishes he could do that he doesn’t have the time for
- Learning by watching what companies that do completely different things do
Resources:
- Website: www.kqed.org
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/michaellupetin
- Twitter: @kqed
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/KQED/
This week we sharpen the saw with a few golden nuggets from Greg Chiemingo’s interview. We also focus on keeping track of the things that count and meeting up with the people that matter.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- The big lessons we learned on Monday from Greg Chiemingo
- Focusing on testing
- Spend the time to really evaluate the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns - most people don’t wait long enough to get traction
- Networking: Why you need to make a list of the people you want to see
- Sharpen the Saw Action: Talk to three people and set up a time to meet them
Resources:
- Website: www.evernote.com
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/gchiemingo
- Twitter: @gchiemingo
Greg Chiemingo is the Senior Director of Communications at Evernote. A senior communications professional with more than 20 years of experience planning and executing dozens of product and service launches, Greg has worked both in-house and on agency teams for leading global brands and companies. He is a C-level counselor and team leader who blends strategic and creative efforts to deliver innovative and cost-effective results. He has had multiple engagements as spokesperson with hundreds of on and off air interviews and presentations in the US, Europe and Asia. His clients and employers have included Microsoft Surface, Microsoft Windows, RealNetworks, Sega, Edelman, WE and more. And he likes horse racing.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Greg’s recent career move to Evernote
- Reaching audiences with the right number of messages
- Identifying your customers and communicating your value to them so they can hear and act on them
- How Evernote stands out in the crowded productivity app environment
- Engaging with customers who leave and so you can get them to come back
- Making inferences on intent based on where customers come from online
- Why you need to be comfortable making decisions when you don’t know what the outcome will be
- Taking enough time to figure out if something is working – don’t axe too fast
- Why you will miss most people with your messages and what to do about it
- Working with multiple channels to reach people
Ways to contact Greg:
- Website: www.evernote.com
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/gchiemingo
- Twitter: @gchiemingo
This week we sharpen the saw with a few golden nuggets from Janet Ball’s interview, and focus on how service to others is so rewarding and helpful for ourselves. And a cool new app that Lee uses to help her focus and tune out distractions.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Why you shouldn’t assume you’re right
- Why you need to listen to your customers
- The importance of not mistaking intuition for marketing
- Helping ourselves by helping others
- Ideas for getting out and serving this weekend
- Focus At Will — app and service to help you tune out distractions and get work done better and faster
Resources:
Janet Ball is a strategic growth director at PayPal. In this role she manages a portfolio of large enterprise clients which represents more than $600 million in sales. Janet is a Silicon Valley veteran who survived the dot com bust and went on to leadership and strategic consulting roles with many early-stage internet companies prior to joining PayPal 7 years ago. She discovered her passion for the customer and honed her strategic marketing skills early in her career while working for world-class ad agencies in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Janet earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Marketing from the University of Kentucky and is an avid fan of the Kentucky Wildcats. She also has taken several leadership classes in pursuit of a Certificate of Business Excellence at the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley. Janet lives in San Mateo, CA where she is mom to two boys and two golden retrievers.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Marketing mistakes to avoid in both startups and established companies
- Looking at data for organic growth opportunities
- How Janet found a market that turned into $6 million in revenue in 2015
- Knowing customers inside and out — and actually listening to them
- Reaching customers when they’re most perceptive to your message
- Why you have to be a great negotiator
- What does success look like for your company?
- Avoiding analysis paralysis
Ways to contact Janet:
- Website: www.paypal.com
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/janetball
Lee Caraher, the founder and CEO of Double Forte PR & Digital Marketing, is an acclaimed communication strategist known for her practical solutions to big problems. She started Double Forte Public Relations and Digital Marketing in 2002 to work with great people doing great work for great clients. Lee and her companies have worked with some of America’s top consumer and technology brands. She holds a bachelor’s degree in medieval history, which she finds useful every day. Active in the community, she lives with her husband and two sons in the San Francisco Bay Area.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Why you need to pitch the information your audience wants to know first — no matter who the audience is
- Tips for getting physical this weekend — even if you don’t normally get much exercise
- The many benefits of going for a walk
- Nilofer Merchant’s walk and talk strategy
Resources:
Rebekah Wu founded Right-Hand Partners based on her own experiences as an entrepreneur seeking start-up capital. During those years, she attended and presented at venture conferences, built out a team, developed the products, and hired consultants and professional service providers. Even after spending thousands of dollars and hours, she was often unsatisfied with the results for her money and time. She found very few providers that produced deliverables that proved they could see through the eyes of the entrepreneur.
Therefore, Rebekah decided to be THE “solution” for entrepreneurs… someone that could be counted upon as a “right-hand partner”: to often make the first move on behalf of her clients, to facilitate critical introductions, and to catalyze business transactions that will catapult them to the next level. Right-Hand Partners has done just that, working selectively with cutting-edge startup companies and leading venture capital and angel groups throughout the SF Bay Area. Since founding RHP in 2001, Rebekah has coached 50+ companies that raised over $250M of venture capital. 25 of those companies have been acquired totaling ~$1B. She has produced over 150 events bringing together active VCs and quality entrepreneurs. Because of Rebekah’s vast network of venture capitalists, strategic investors and serial entrepreneurs, she has expanded their services to include executive recruiting for emerging technology companies.
Rebekah was not only an experienced Founder and CEO of a software startup, but she was previously the E-Commerce Strategy Mgr. at a Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company, and a Regional Mgr. of Internet Solutions at AT&T. Rebekah’s passion is singing sacred medieval and early music and is currently a soprano in the Cathedral Schola and Chalice Consort.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Why Rebekah started Right-Hand Partners and what it is that they do
- The number one mistake early-stage startups make
- How Rebekah helps startups identify the right investors
- The four priorities of venture capitalists
- What to do when making the pitch
- Mistakes people make in due diligence
- What you need to know about having a board advisors
- Rebekah’s view of the women in Silicon Valley topic
- Rebekah’s one piece of advice for startups ready for funding
Ways to contact Rebekah:
- Website: www.rhpartners.com
- Email: rwu@rhpartners.com
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/wurebekah
- Twitter: @puretonesoprano
Lee Caraher, the founder and CEO of Double Forte PR & Digital Marketing, is an acclaimed communication strategist known for her practical solutions to big problems. She started Double Forte Public Relations and Digital Marketing in 2002 to work with great people doing great work for great clients. Lee and her companies have worked with some of America’s top consumer and technology brands. She holds a bachelor’s degree in medieval history, which she finds useful every day. Active in the community, she lives with her husband and two sons in the San Francisco Bay Area.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Making a difference through small steps
- What to do this weekend to give yourself some calm
- Some of the meditation apps that I love
- Another book recommendation
Resources:
Andrea Meyer has worked on both the agency and client side of PR with internal communications and marketing in the mix. Most recently, she was the PR Lead for the IL/WI Region of Verizon Wireless. She was part of the team which opened Verizon’s largest store in the U.S. in November 2014 for which she received the 2014 Midwest Area PR Award. In the area of Corporate Social Responsibility, Andrea worked in conjunction with the HopeLine (domestic violence) program and the Verizon Foundation (STEM & healthcare) which resulted in more than $1M in grants being distributed from 2011 through 2015 in the Region.
Before Verizon, Andrea has had the privilege to work on a host of stellar brands including Cartier, Lucasfilm (THX sound division), Montblanc, Sony (the North American launch of the PlayStation), Toyota and Weber.
Andrea graduated from Stanford University with a B.A. in Sociology.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- What is corporate social responsibility and why does it matter?
- Why your first audience is your employees and the importance of engaging with them
- Why over delivering on one thing is better than under delivering on two things
- Examples of businesses that do prioritization well
- The biggest mistakes people make with CSR programs
- How to measure success in CSR programs
- Why millennials require CSR programs
- What you can do right now to get started on CSR if you aren’t already
Ways to contact Andrea:
- Twitter: @andreamv
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/andreavassallomeyer
Resources:
- Comcast Cares Day
- Clorox – supports disaster relief (in conjunction with American Red Cross)
- Cracker Barrel Operation Rocker
- Verizon Hope Line
Tips:
Company mission:
- If one exists, does it provide a natural fit for community outreach?
- Is there a central theme to align with publicly? (economic empowerment, education, etc.)
- If one does not exist, then create it.
Start small:
- Take a survey of employees to determine areas of interest (animals, children, education, environment, etc.)
- Identify local non-profits that have established programs for volunteers.
- Schedule monthly activities with first-come, first-served involvement.
- Identify team leaders for each event.
Lee Caraher, the founder and CEO of Double Forte PR & Digital Marketing, is an acclaimed communication strategist known for her practical solutions to big problems. She started Double Forte Public Relations and Digital Marketing in 2002 to work with great people doing great work for great clients. Lee and her companies have worked with some of America’s top consumer and technology brands. She holds a bachelor’s degree in medieval history, which she finds useful every day. Active in the community, she lives with her husband and two sons in the San Francisco Bay Area.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Building out a full content library
- Things to do to sharpen your mental acuity this weekend
- Why you should do puzzles
- Why reading classic literature is something you should do
- A couple of book recommendations
Resources:
Adam Stein has more than 25 years of marketing and public affairs leadership at enterprise software, semiconductor, networking, security and marketing service firms. He has helped four different early-stage innovators grow to either IPO or achieve a highly-profitable acquisition exit. His most recent role as VP Mobile Product Marketing at SAP helped the company build a cohesive mobile portfolio approach with the SAP HANA Cloud to boost mindshare for its 300,000 customers, 1,000s of partners and Global 2000 prospects. Adam began his marketing career in Boston (working alongside Double Forte founder Lee Caraher) leading marketing services agencies and holds a Master’s degree in Marketing from Emerson College and a Bachelor’s degree in Science from the University of Colorado in Boulder.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- Why businesses must start by focusing on what their customers’ problems are
- How to hone in on an audience once you know what the problem is that you’re solving
- Testing through Product Messaging Documents
- Why your product/service doesn’t need to be perfect the first time
- Strategies Adam uses to reach his audience
- Information channels Adam recommends for people in the B2B space
- What Adam learned when putting an old product in new box failed badly
- Need more money? Find more money!
- What Adam measures in a campaign to make sure he’s on track to deliver ROI
- What people can do today to improve their website programs
- How to blend the old and the new with online marketing
Ways to contact Adam:
- Website: www.apsmarketing.net
- Twitter: @apstein2
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/apsmarketing
Adam’s upcoming events:
- Primary Intelligence Outcomes 2016 Customer Conference (October 12)
- ET Exchange Summit on Mobile and Digital Transformation (October 23)