More than marketing show

We love audio, and in today's episode we are going to run you through exactly why we think audio is the future of content marketing. Speaking of which, we have been running the Beyond Billables podcast for over a year now. Head on over to our website and have a listen to our conversations with lawyers and former lawyers who have achieved great stuff. You can also hear for yourself whether you also think audio is the future. It's personal Audio gives content marketing a personal touch By talking in your own voice to listeners, they are able to connect with you on a deeper level than reading a blog post. You can share your ideas, experiences, and give your audience an insight into your personal and/or business journey. People are more likely to use a product or contract someone who they feel as though they can connect with It's flexible Audio is awesome because it's flexible. People live busy lives now and recreational reading is steadily becoming a thing of the past. For example, think about how much people listen to podcasts when they are driving, walking, shopping etc. It gets cut through It's popular The fact that audio is personal and flexible makes it popular Looking at a computer screen has become exhausting for many users, and podcasts represent a refreshing alternative. It's memorable Rather than using your eyes, you use your ears; there are silences, pauses, and genuine human voices rather than words and images on a screen This makes for a more memorable experience It's like having a conversation with a friend, rather than being spoon-fed a whole heap of information from a computer screen.

Advertising in all it's forms is all about engaging with users who are actively searching, TODAY, for your service. This makes it incredibly valuable (and at times costly) but is only one part of your brand strategy. So, in today's episode we are discussing Facebook advertising, and how to use this ads to grow your contacts. Facebook ads to valuable lead generation Lead generation is a marketing process where you capture interest in your products and services It is a way to take a target audience from an introduction to your products and services, and guide them through your sales funnel The first step of lead generation is the initial attraction, something of which can be achieved by using Facebook ads Facebook lead generation ads are a way for you as an advertiser or business owner to collect information from your potential customers and “warm” them up Facebook has over 1.7 billion monthly active users (http://newsroom.fb.com/company-info/), which is a huge opportunity for you to share your business and services. Whatever business you are in, it is likely that all or at least a large portion of your audience is using the network. It takes experimentation over time and lots and lots of testing Facebook advertising (actually, advertising in general), is a constant experiment, and it take's a long time and a lot of different consistent testing to achieve your lead generation goals. How much is a new email address worth to you if they are a potential client? Remember that each email address of prospective clients is potentially worth thousands of dollars, and you only need a handful of clients to make a lot of money that you weren't making beforehand What is your strategy to nurture them and grow your list? think about hiring a marketer, staying consistent on social media, sending leads promotions etc. There are a variety of different ways to nurture your leads, but you have to think specifically about what you would want if you were in the shoes of the potential client What do you have to look out for low open rates high unsubscribe spikes in ad costs high cost to conversion

Growing a great Facebook Business page is a key ingredient of any sensible content marketing strategy. Facebook is the largest social media platform in the world. It has a very broad demography using it which means for broad based marketing and engagement it’s a great option. It means that you can do some targeted advertising and promotion on the platform that delivers real results paid and unpaid. The sophistication of the targeted advertising on Facebook is exceptional. The flexibility Facebook offers is amazing and the reality is everyone has eyes on Facebook even if it’s a personal presence. Many law firms and professional services businesses do a great job on Facebook. It's a very effective marketing tool if done right. Note the key point, "if done right". The reality is that of not done right it can work against you too. But for now we thought we would outline 6 steps to building an engaging and effective Facebook Business page.

Your content marketing strategy should always use mediums that can give you an edge over your competition. If you are using a medium or platform that your competition isn’t that means you have an edge. The other key part is to make quality content consistently but the other big factor to take into account is how you get more eyes on your content and grow your audience. One of the most effective content strategies to think about is audio and podcasting. Audio offer an amazing way to deliver highly personalised and quality content to your audience in a very efficient way. It can also be consumed passively which means your audience can be driving or commuting or even sitting at their desks at work and be consuming your audio content whilst doing something else. In today’s marketing landscape with so much content for people to consume you are in stiff competition for eyeballs. So why not try their ears and distract them even more! Seriously though engagement levels for audio and podcasts are out of sight so this is an area we think more professional services businesses should be operating in. So what are some of the ways you can use audio to drive your business development strategy moving forward and what are some of the advantages of audio compared to other ways of delivering content.

Content marketing especially in the legal industry can be difficult to get right and in traditional practice models it can take some trial and error to get it right. But remember the overall objective with content is to make it compelling and engaging so that your audience actually consumes it. For law firms in particular there are myriad considerations around messaging and voice and tone as well as ethical considerations about how you approach your marketing. The good news is there are more options for law firms now than ever in terms of approaches to content marketing but it still requires a good deal of work to deliver on the quality. As mentioned in previous posts we have written the other secret ingredient is consistency. So how do you create content that your clients will love?

Being a business or firm owner can be a hard slog. Most of us do a great job to keeping up appearances and from the outside things might look like smooth sailing but for those of us that have taken the leap into entrepreneurship understand all too well how difficult it can be. This week we wanted to write a few words about this journey and make the point that no matter how hard things get or how hard you are being on yourself, remember that you are doing great in the bigger picture. The reality is when you are in business, especially for solo practitioners or business owners the pressure can build up and the reality is the buck stops with you.  

Instagram is a visual delight and you can see just how much effort people put into creating amazing photos and graphics to capture the attention of their audience and stand out. But what is often overlooked on Instagram is how important your captions are. There are a number of reasons why it's important to get your captions right. Not least of which is that the Google machine keeps track of all of your content and this affects your Google rankings. On Instagram, while you lead with an image, the nuts and bolts of your message is in the caption and is what followers read and engage with. But beyond the SEO aspect, it also reflects on you and your business or brand how you communicate. Here are six tips for attention grabbing captions on Instagram.

Instagram is one of the most popular and engaging social media platforms and is increasingly being used by law firms, legal tech companies and businesses of all sizes. Being image focussed, Instagram offers you the chance to show an insight into your business that is hard to match against other platforms. We are huge fans of Instagram and it has done wonders for our business and Mike’s personal life! Engagement levels are fantastic but there are some pit falls worth noting. We've certainly had hits and misses ourselves so thought we would share them with you to save you the same pain we endured! So what are some of the key mistakes people make with their Instagram strategy and approach?

Today we are focussing on networking and our specific tips to help you break the ice at your next networking event. If you're sitting there thinking “mmm networking is really not my strong point”, head on over to our blog where we have written about How to Get Over Your Fear of Networking.  

Networking and making a concerted effort to connect and grow your professional network can all too often fall by the wayside especially as business and firm owners get busy. But the other big reason is many just don’t see the value of connection and the amazing short and long terms bottom line result it can lead to in your business. So we though we would put together a little outline of how to prepare, plan and execute a consistent strategy to cover off your networking efforts and make it as easy as possible.

There can be a tendency for lawyers and firms to think narrowly about the apps and platforms they use internally. Many focus on apps and software that has been designed for legal and that’s fine but in our experience the most innovative and forward thinking firms are bring in outside technology to use across a number of core business area. We have ourselves had extensive experience using various CRMs, project management, communication, cloud, scheduling and on-boarding apps and finding the right tools can make all the difference. This process will require trial and error and of course lots of testing which is why so many firms shy away from changing the outdated tool they use now. In this episode we cover off some of the essentials you should be using in your firm. 

Creating engaging content is key and if people are not commenting or liking the content you are pouting out there, then the reality is they probably don't like or are neutral about what they see and it might actually be doing your brand more harm than good. This means that the whole objective of building an engaged and following will be all the more difficult if not impossible. It’s pretty simple and if this is the situation you or your business finds itself in then you need to pay close attention and nurture a different approach. In one respect the overall bottom line returns for organic content can be hard to measure but the daily stats are very clear and if your content is not getting the engagement you need to step back and reassess your approach. Is it the content itself or how it’s delivered? Who was our target audience and what were the click rates? If there was commentary of feedback was it positive or negative? In this episode we break down the way you can improve the engagement of your content. 

On today's show we spent 10 minutes with founder of Wildbloom, host of her own podcast “Socialette”, and Beyond Billables alumnus the phenomenon Steph Taylor. Steph is a corporate square peg turned wellness entrepreneur, marketing nerd and digital nomad. Steph's company “Wildbloom” is a wellness marketing consultancy and she has grown it to empower honest brands. Not content with that Steph also has her own branded library of info products for business owners. In the episode we dove into her journey, her bigggest challenges and what she has learned along the way. Steph shared on freedom, creativity and the challenge of pivoting. “If you're not pivoting you're not keeping up so you're going to be left behind” Steph Taylor Steph was an integral part of our team and someone we admire greatly for taking on new challenges and knocking them right out of the park. Find out more about Steph and her work at https://stephtaylor.co/ Thanks for being on Steph!

You can't put one blog post out a month or one Instagram post a week and think you are going to get enough traction to grow an audience. This episode focusses on the importance of keeping a consistent content marketing plan. We discuss: * When we were running an inconsistent marketing plan; * What we found once we finally implemented a consistent marketing plan; * What consistency means to us; and * Why you can't be half pregnant (1 post per month is not enough) Want freebies? Check out our e-book on our top 7 marketing mistakes. Follow how we help small businesses build their brand. Want us to help your small business? Head to beyondbillables.com.

As a small business, standing out can be difficult. Some companies spend millions trying to stand out, however, we think it's a little more simple than that. In this episode we are running you through some practical ways of grabbing your clients attention. If you want to improve your content marketing and attract more business: Produce better client updates Create content that reflects your business brand Create content that clients can consume ie. podcasts   Love the details?  Client updates that don't suck Make things that clients want to read or listen to... so many boring legal updates written by lawyers for clients but acting like the client is a lawyer... or.. dumbing it down too much... the point is in improving the delivery and packaging Give insight into your process and story At the moment, you're just another law firm. Get your clients attention by standing out from the pack. Tell us mistakes you have made. Give us insights into things that have worked for you. Be a little more personal and less professional and you will be surprised by the attention and engagement you will receive. Clients also love brands which reflect who they are, feel like they are designed just for them and that are consistent. You must genuinely share your ideas, experiences, and give your readers an insight into your personal and/or business journey. Tell your prospective clients and audience about how your process works and how easy it is to deal with your firm compared to others. Make stuff they can actually consume People would much rather watch a video or listen to a podcast if it is easier to do! Especially if the information is relevant to their problem. Looking at a computer screen can become exhausting - and with a video or podcasts, rather than using your eyes, you use your ears; there are silences, pauses, and genuine human voices rather than words and images on a screen This makes for a more memorable experience Want us to help your small business? Head to beyondbillables.com and book in your free one on one consult with either of us.

The biggest obstacle most small business owners have is an inability to understand the ROI of investing in their brand and marketing. This episode, we will walk you through how each of your marketing efforts lead to increased ROI and how to think about ROI in the right context. What do you want to achieve, what do you expect to achieve, and what is the right way to go about that? ROI is not just cash, it might be brand, it might be credibility, it might be pride in your business. Thinking about what you want first, and then using the right tools to go after it is critical. If you want to improve your content marketing and attract more business, you need to focus on: Short term ROI - advertising; Medium term ROI - content such as podcasts, blogs and webinars; and Long term ROI - networking and relationship building. If you want to learn more about this, head on over to our blog where we have written about the ROI of legal marketing. If you run a firm and want to meet for a coffee just drop us a message at hello@beyondbillables.com we'd love to hear from you.

Many small business owners make one fundamental mistake with their social media marketing; they sell, sell, sell, all the time, and wonder why nobody buys. This episode is all about giving value first to create trust in your clients. If you want to improve your content marketing and attract more business: Stay true to your core brand value Give away you secret sauce. Ask. Don't sell or demand. Consider: Your on-boarding; Brand building; Referrals Client follow-up; Everywhere you can stand out. Want freebies? Check out our e-book on our top 7 marketing mistakes (and how to fix them!) https://www.beyondbillables.com/marketingmistakes

This show is all about the things we've done right, and how you can replicate them! It took some work coming up with 5 (it was far easier doing the first list!) but after all these years running businesses we have done plenty right as well. We wanted to share these as they are not all what you might expect! In no particular order: Started a podcast. Lesson - Helped us grow a national brand, make great connections and learn as we went! Always cash flow focused. Lesson - Being a cash based business and conscious of cash flow can eleviate a lot of the business stress in small business. We hired the best people. Lesson - Hiring great people brings skills you don't have. Don't just hire when you need it, always be on the lookout. Then, give them things to do that they love and are good at. We empower our people. Lesson - Our people give us the best ideas so why not embrace that? Getting your team confident in their ability to speak up and contribute takes work but is worth it. Putting your ego aside is critical to a good business. We always have ridiculously high standards. Lesson - We've attracted the best clients by always putting quality first. Expediency is the enemy of quality. Don't ever do something for a client you wouldn't be proud to have your name on.   Want freebies? Check out our e-book on our top 7 marketing mistakes at www.beyondbillables.com. 

We've done lot's wrong! It was hard to narrow it down, but we wanted to share our mistakes as great lessons for everyone when on their business journey.  Our recruitment business was too narrow and niche We didn't innovate by broadening our client base when we had the opporunity. Lesson - Take advantage of opportunity when it is there and don't get too comfortable. We didn't embrace content or new models quickly enough we were half pregnant with content and social media for 4 years. We did blogs, we had a newsletter, guides. Lesson - consistency and commitment is key to great results We didn't identify our key client early enough in Beyond Billables We tried to be too many things for too many people Lesson - you can't be all things for all people We didn't communicate well enough internally Communication is key to good teams and delivery for clients. We have to be constantly working on this. lesson - assumption is the mother of all .... We took it all too personally In business, half the battle is that we take our wins and losses very personally. When things don't work out, it can be crushing. Lesson - Taking things too personally is very stressful so you need to be conscious that it isn't about you. To download a heap of our free guides and check out our blog go to  www.beyondbillables.com