Renoun Creative

The call is coming from inside the house! On the latest episode of the #BlowingUpBrands pod, exene talks with our own Nicole Cooke, Brand Manager extraordinaire, about: 💣 the questions to ask when deciding how to approach improving a company’s marketing, 💣 the ins and outs of modernizing marketing for older, sales-team-driven businesses, 💣 the myth of the importance of using every platform and channel, and muchhh more! Check out the full episode at https://lnkd.in/geh4AfUW

As Steven Pressfield famously wrote to his author audience, “Nobody wants to read your sh*t”. And, more relevant for our purposes, nobody wants to buy your sh*t. But they do want to solve some problem they have, alleviate some pain, feel better about something, save time or money on something they have to do regardless, improve on their current performance, look good to the people around them, be respected, etc. And sure, maybe you can help them with that. But before they buy in, they have to believe that. And before they believe you, they have to find you compelling enough to listen to much at all. And to find you compelling, they have to notice you and what makes you different – what makes you worth giving a chance. So, if you’re in a competitive space, you absolutely need to stand out as a brand. And if you tell the truth about it, odds are you’re in a competitive space. So while the idea of differentiating yourself is not new – we’re all tired of hearing marketers talk about “breaking through the noise” (as that cliche has been trotted out for a solid 25 years now at least) – it has not gotten any easier, as the world is even noisier, and most spaces even more competitive. Given all that, we’re gonna look at a 3-pronged approach to setting yourself apart: positioning, persona, and point of view. These elements may certainly have some overlap, but I think looking at them distinctly and then combining them in a way that you’re in position to execute on well gives you the biggest advantage. While you may be a little stronger in one of these areas than the others, if you can find or create some uniqueness in each one, that combination will be hard to ignore. https://lnkd.in/gkdt6GGv

"(Renoun Creative) helped us completely rebrand, with a new name, a brand-new website, and simultaneous shift to a new sales/marketing CRM (Hubspot). They also fully supported us launching a new podcast. The communication, project management, and creative/design work has been fantastic throughout the last 2 years and a lot of what you see online is credit to RC and all the team! Thank you everyone at RC." Plan First Wealth is a wealth management firm serving British expats living in the US. Despite being in a niche of a very old-school, buttoned-up industry, the team there are very forward-thinking around their marketing and brand, and it's been a pleasure working with them to create a new brand, an expanded online presence, an online community, and yes a whooole bunch of content of all kinds. https://lnkd.in/gSeUY3Jg

What can marketers and businesses do within the land of content to put themselves in a better position to be found? If you missed this podcast, you should watch it. 💥 exene paloma asks Rand Fishkin, Co-Founder of SparkToro and former Co-Founder of Moz, that very question and his answers and insight might surprise you.

What we're listening to this week 🎶

Staying on top of changes in technology feels like another job. Some days you know exactly what you’re doing, and the next you open up Facebook, and half the pages you used to use no longer exist. Sound about right? We get your pain. Most agencies do. Thankfully we have Emily Geiger. She is a machine when it comes to Meta, Google, and pretty much everything in the Digital Marketing World. If you’re currently ready to chuck your computer into your wall from frustration with all the changes and updates, why don’t you tune into Emily’s Marketing Tech Monthly first? She put together a great blog in October and has another coming out in a few short weeks. You rock, Emily. Just a reminder if you didn’t know already.

In the inaugural episode of the Blowing Up Brands podcast, exene paloma of Renoun Creative chats with Brooklin Nash 💡Co-founder of Beam Content 💡 about ↓ 💥 why folks are so hesitant to use personal stories and relatable content on platforms like LinkedIn (and what they're missing out on), 💥 the real value of well-executed hi-quality branded content in a truly modern marketing mix, 💥 how to get started when setting out to create founder-led expertise-driven content (even if that's not your main driver right away), 💥 and a lotttt more.

Sales Tax Solutions & Consulting firm has helped their clients save and recover millions of sales tax-related dollars. Working with every industry under the sun, their owner Dave Gross sought to create an affordable, expert sales tax specialty firm that every business could benefit from. And with 25 years of experience, he’s done just that. Having designed his last site in 2015, it was now time for a modernized refresh. This time around we updated the color palette to be brighter and more saturated, as well as add bold new graphic and illustrations. We loved the challenge and excitement from the client to take a risk and try something new. Additional functionality was added to simplify the customers’ experience, with easily accessible portals to pay bills, upload forms and documents, and a resource page with downloadable tax forms. The design upgrade was a great success, but the improved function of the website is what really shines for Sales Tax Solutions.

Is SEO dead?? In this episode of the Blowing Up Brands podcast, exene asks Rand Fishkin, Co-Founder of SparkToro and former Co-Founder of Moz, that very question, and his answer might surprise you. They discuss: 💥 the role that SEO plays in the customer journey today (vs 20 or even 5 years ago),  💥 how to find out where your customers are online, given the changes in digital and search behaviors,  💥 crafting a content strategy that’s primarily geared toward your customer‘s needs and your business goals, not keywords, 💥 and a lot more! Check out the full convo via the link in the comments.

ALERT: Are you aware of the most recent scam message many have been receiving via Facebook Messenger? This message attempts to threaten you that your Facebook Page will be disabled if immediate action isn’t taken. First, a few facts: 1. I.N.C International Concepts is not a real or legitimate organization.  2. Facebook (Meta) has an actual security team that would never contact you via Facebook Messenger in regard to issues with your content. 3. The link provided in this message is not legitimate. This scam uses this link to acquire sensitive information. 4. There is no law that states a Facebook Post would or could infringe on someone’s intellectual property rights. As serious as this sounds, it’s not a thing. 5. Facebook will not permanently disable your account with less than a 24-hour notice. This is fear-mongering that scares people into clicking the link. Additionally, within Facebook Messenger, you have the option to block this specific account. They are calling themselves Meta Business Support. Again, this is not Facebook actually contacting you, it’s a fake profile. Also, if Facebook was actually trying to contact you, you wouldn’t be able to block them… This shows this is a fake account that is posing as Facebook itself! If you receive a message like this, do not click the link. Simply block the account and report it to Facebook as a scam.