More Than A Few Words

To do marketing well is always a challenge. To do it in a heavily regulated industry can seem impossible at times. But with a little creativity and a lot of hard work, you can overcome regulatory hurdles to create innovative marketing that gets results. We’ll be joined by Muhammad Yasin, social media strategist for HCCMIS, a travel health insurance company. Learn how you can make regulations work in your favor.

It is Valenties Day, and so we are sharing a special episode of our regular podcast with guests Hazel Walker and Frank De Raffele, Jr.  They are the co-authors of the book:  Business Networking and Sex, The book and our conversation will be about SEX. (Well really gender differences.)   We will talk about issues that are controversial, and possibly push some buttons. It was a very  lively conversation

These days, everyone is talking about social media, and almost everyone is an expert.   Well today on More Than a Few Words we will talk with someone I really think is an expert.   Our guest is Erik Deckers  one of the authors of No Bullshit Social Media: The All-Business, No-Hype Guide to Social Media Marketing (Pearson, 2011). We talked about social media users who are serious about using this tool as part of their business marketing strategy.

In this episode of  our marketing podcast, we will be talking about graphic design To every parent, their baby is a beautiful and special angel. Many businesses feel the same way about their logos, websites and other graphic designs. How do you tactfully tell a client their design is ugly, and help guide them to a better aesthetic?

Just because you are a cook, does not mean you should be a chef in a restaurant. The same is true for your business. 

As some of you may know, we’ve been having a bit of an identity crisis here at Roundpeg. For years, Lorraine used the @roundpeg Twitter account as both her personal account as well as the company account. But as the company grew and evolved, that situation became more and more difficult for Lorraine and the rest of the Roundpeg team. A few months ago, Lorraine finally made a clean break and divided her persona into two distinct parts: @roundpegand @lorraineball.

Starting a business is filled with challenges. Even once you have your business up and running, the challenges don’t stop. For example, finding a way to get out of your business when you are ready to retire. There are several choices: selling the business, transferring it to employee or children, or simply shutting it down. Listen as we talk with business transition expert Chris McEvoy about things you can do now to smooth they way for your exit down the road.

Startup Weekend is a global movement which brings together aspiring entrepreneurs to share ideas, form teams and most importantly, launch startups. Imagine taking an idea and turning it into a viable company within 54 hours. It can happen! Tune in to this weeks program as we talk with local organizers Jim Bartek and Denver Hutt. And if you are ready to sign up, join us this weekend at http://www.startup.weekend.org

In his presentation at Techpoint's Innovation Summit,  Michael Stelzner talked about the different types of content you needed to create for your blog.  After the program, I caught up with him for a brief interview.

Searching for a new employee can be tricky. It’s time consuming and expensive, so it’s important to create the right job descriptions. Recruiting is a necessary evil so listen up as we chat with experts Jennifer Lewellen, Business Development and Human Resources Consultant at Safari Solutions.

Everyone is busy, especially small business owners. It's just the nature of the beast. But it doesn't mean that you can't effectively manage your time in a way that gets things done. In fact, Robby Slaughter and Michael Reynolds are going to join the the Roundpeg crew and share their productivity suggestions. Both are experts in using time effectively.

Balancing multiple social media accounts can be difficult. But balancing different personalities on those accounts is even harder.  How can you manage it? Join us as we chat with Kyle Lacy, the author of  Branding Yourself about building a social media brand. Also joining us in the house will be Leilan McNally , or the Big Kahuna as he’s often referred to, about his experiences managing multiple brands. We will be talking about the good, the bad and the ugly of managing multiple brands.   Lorraine will weigh in as well, because she just made the jump from Roundpeg’s Twitter account to a personal one.

Developing an environmental strategy is good citizenship, but as you discussed with  our guest Jennifer Riley Simone, it can be good marketing as well. The conversation drifted from how companies incorporate green into their marketing, to how green causes can take advantage of new technology.

While good marketing rules apply in all industries, there are nuances. Some tactics simply work better in some industries.  Join us this week as we look at marketing and social media tactics being used to deliver messages to modern homeowners. Our guest is Branden Fitzgerald, owner of Gicko Roofing.

All sorts of companies and associations need marketing support, not just consumer products.  So how do you approach marketing for community events and social causes.  Join us as we chat with Steven Shattuck, the communications director Irvington Halloween Festival, about their marketing activities.

While the rules for stellar marketing apply to all industries, there are nuances. And some tactics simply work better in certain industries. Join Roundpeg today as we look at marketing and social media tactics in the  fitness industry.  Even if you missed the live conversation, you can listen to the perspectives of two fitness marketing experts Drew Larison and Marcia About our guests:  People say business isn’t personal. Drew Larison says those people are wrong. Business should be the most personal thing in the world, and with today’s technology there is no reason not to treat it that way. Drew is Internet Marketing Manager at Kokomo Auto World and co-founder of Kokomo Social Media. Follow him @MrDrewLarison   Marcia Erne is an ACE Certified personal trainer and group fitness instructor. She is co-owner of KnowSweat Workouts, a fitness development company. Along with participating in and teaching Tae-Robics, a high energy kickboxing workout, Marcia and her partners conduct KickStart, a weight loss motivation

When people think of marketing, they typically think about creative ads to sell toothpaste or diapers, compelling campaigns to encourage donations to the humane society, or drive traffic to popular restaurants. But high profile, interesting consumers products are not the only products which require marketing. Join us on as we talk to Erin Couch and Arin Anderson of the National Retail Hardware Association as we talk about the challenges of marketing in such a specific niche.