The Marketing Mentor Podcast

Week 47 found Colleen continuing her two-week tour of the Pacific Northwest, combining (marketing) work with pleasure in a way that had her questioning what's really work, and what's really marketing.

46 weeks into this venture, Colleen can say with surety that the best kind of marketing doesn't feel like marketing at all. Listen in.

A busy week of no real marketing-marketing turned out to be the perfect opportunity for Colleen to review the role that her marketing machine had on bringing the events that made the week so busy to fruition. Listen here.

Here is an interview that Ilise did with Kim Duke, the Sales Diva, for Prosperity Cafe. It's all about finding prospects. Listen in...

This week, the issue of "regular" marketing is suddenly reframed for Colleen: not only is it a marathon, not a sprint (and cumulative, in a most excellent way), it allows for all kinds of adaptive implementation. Listen in to find out why...

Welcome to Week 43. This week, Colleen has realized that marketing is becoming as much a part of her routine as brushing her teeth. Listen in...

Ever feel like you wish you could turn back time and "unpublish" something really stupid that you did? This week was like that for Colleen. Check out all the gory details on How She Screwed Up (so hopefully, you don't have to).

Colleen is continuing to streamline at a steady pace since her freakout of a few weeks back. She's moving toward her stated goals of clearing backlog and implementing systems that support her work. Listen in for more...

With just 12 weeks left in the year, Colleen is taking a look backward at what's been not-so-hot and what's been fun, valuable and energizing. And she's come up with a list of tactics. Check them out.

Colleen attended two events this week that have already changed her life—marketing and otherwise—significantly. Listen in to find out more.

This was one of those weeks where Colleen had to push a little extra hard because so many opportunities came up. Listen in...

Welcome to Week 38! Did you know that NOW is the perfect time for marketing? Listen in to find out why...

One great thing about practicing your marketing everyday (other than, we hope, getting better at it) is that after a while, you have lessons thrown at you so many times, they become useful practice in your everyday, working life. Take shutting up, for example. This week, Colleen looks into the benefits of the fine art of shutting up. Listen in...

It's not everyday that you get interviewed...by yourself. But to commemorate having 2/3rds of a Marketing Mentor calendar under her belt, that's just what Colleen did. Listen to her burning questions (to herself) on how the calendar has worked and what her plans are for moving forward.

Ready to learn the right way to prep for a conference? Colleen shares the mistakes she's made prepping (or not) for conferences and gigs in the past -- and demonstrates how to improve.

What do you do if you're not good at asking for stuff? You look at why. You look at when you have asked, and when you haven't, and what's different. You look at what it could do for your business or you or even the world if your "ask" got an answer. Basically, you look. That's what Colleen did this week, and here's what she found...

Have you found a schedule that works for you? This week, Colleen looks into the topic of scheduling and how finding one that's right for you is so important for your marketing efforts.

This week, Ilise is busy getting ready for the Creative Freelancer Conference in San Diego (it starts in 9 days but it's not too late to register). Here is a short (12 minute) excerpt from the session she gave at the HOW Conference in June. In this one, Ilise covers the 10+ skills and personality traits she thinks you need if you are going to run a successful business, whether you're a freelancer or a small business owner.

This past week, Colleen sent out her 28th email newsletter. She says things are starting to happen as she tightens her focus and feels it makes for enough of a milestone to reflect on where she's been and what I might need to do in the coming months. Listen in...

Colleen says that getting your marketing machine up and running is a big endeavor that takes time, patience and a big appetite, much like eating the proverbial elephant. This week, Colleen reflects on some of the help she's enlisted in the eating of her elephant, both the paid and the free (well, paid in time) kinds.

This week, Ilise tells how she met her July goals, and shares some useful resources to help you meet yours too.

This week, Colleen takes to the road! She learns how she's grown, and also where there's still room to do so. She calls the week of traveling "wildly illuminating." Listen to find out why...

This week's sound advice is the first 10 minutes of the workshop Ilise gave for creative freelancers at the recent HOW Conference in Austin. It starts with her perspective on what's happening now in the economy (and why it's the best time for freelancers to build a business), followed by the myths and realities of being a successful freelancer, including why getting word of mouth isn't such a good thing... Listen in!

Colleen makes personal marketing history this week! She calls week 29 the week when everything finally came together. She's really beginning to notice that doing her marketing consistently could make a real difference both in how she felt and how things actually worked. Listen for more...

Type-A personality? This week Colleen offers a new perspective on business, and demonstrates how she's growing and changing.

Welcome to week 27! This week, Ilise talks to Jonathan Cleveland of Cleveland Design. He recently got a project from a travel company with no travel experience by submitting a few designs! But is it spec work? Listen in for Ilise's interview with Jonathan.

At the halfway point in the year, Colleen takes a moment to reflect. She shares what she's learned about marketing by doing it every day for the past 6 months. Listen in...

Today is the first day of 3rd quarter. We are half way through the year, the perfect time to look back and look forward to realistically assess what we've done and what we need to be improve. Listen in for Ilise's second quarter results.

This week was all about support for Colleen, both learning the difference it made for her personally, and realizing what a difference it would make if she applied some of the lessons to her own business and her marketing in particular. Listen in!

When Ilise was in Boston last week, she had dinner with longtime client Jonathan Cleveland. He told her a great story about how he got a project for a travel company without any history of travel related work. Check it out here!

Watch out for Colleen, she's really building stamina now. In addition to its cumulative positive effect on your business and cashflow, this week, Colleen benefits from the stamina of doing her marketing chores regularly.

How can you really set yourself apart from the competition? In this week's sound advice tip, Ilise will share what is making people stand out and getting them jobs.

Ilise has been on a cold calling roll this week. Listen in to hear her strategy.

Now that we're about halfway through the year, Colleen takes a look at the question of how to measure all this marketing and networking. How is it converting into dollars? How do you decide how much time to put in, and when (and how) do you decide whether it's working or not? Let's take a look...

This week, Colleen shares her renewed appreciation of the Grow Your Business Marketing Plan & Calendar, and the art of planning in general. Here's why...

Everyone's asking: what markets are growing (or declining the least)? An article in the New York Times gives some insight to one market that might still be going strong, and could be relevant for your business. Check it out.

As Colleen got back in the saddle, she had a great, productive, FUN week of work and marketing. To discover the "why" behind it, she takes some time to reflect. Listen in!

Hope you had a good Memorial Day weekend-- and now it's back to work! Listen in to get some inspriration from Ilise.

Blind spots and struggles. We all have them. And this week, Colleen realizes that by sharing openly with people, you can get some great help seeing where your own blind spots are, and advice on how to get out of them.

Welcome to Week 20! How is the marketing plan + calendar working for you? This week, Start Up Plan users should be cold calling, and Veterans should be crafting a newsletter (in addition to their continued calling). Listen in for more...

Still recovering, Colleen talks about what she did accomplish this week (which would seem to be an impressive work load to anybody else!). She also talks about why she's grateful for her marketing machine. Do you have a marketing machine that has carried you through less productive times?

Even when she's sick in bed, Colleen still manages to see the bright side, providing 3 great tips to help anyone's self employment journey. Check them out.

Welcome to May! How was April for you... did you reach your April goal? This month, it's time for Veterans to work on their "un-newsletter" and Start Up's to begin their research calling. Listen in for details.

In this week's episode, Colleen discusses the cold, harsh realities of what happens when things go haywire. The truth is, we learn some of our best marketing and planning lessons when the road gets rocky. With her humor always in tact, she refers to the Odd Couple episode where Felix shows the group what happens when you A-S-S-U-M-E... Tune in to find out what Colleen learned this week...

In the third audio cupcake, Ilise and Colleen talk about the realistic and unrealisitc expectations that go along with cold calling... none of which actually happen. Listen in to find out if prospects ever really hang up on you.

A jam packed week of travel had Colleen thinking a lot about her marketing. Reinspired, she asks the question: Can marketing be a tool for changing the world?

Getting publicity can help you gain exposure to your prospects and it's a great way to enhance your other marketing efforts. Ilise gives some tips on getting publicity for your business in today's tip.

Today, Ilise and Coleen talk about a common roadblock to cold calling. The discuss the question: Do you need to have something ready to send before you start cold calling? Listen in to this short tip to find out.

Things went slightly awry for Colleen this week because of life's surprises, (but she still managed to attend two formal events, a breakfast meeting, and business related socializing.) She's paid attention to this week's lessons to move onward and upward.

Today's cold calling tidbit answers the question: Should you leave a voice mail message? Listen in to find out...