Podcasts about sales lion

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Best podcasts about sales lion

Latest podcast episodes about sales lion

The Big Success Podcast
Exploring the Impact of AI on Marketing W/ Marcus Sheridan

The Big Success Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 23, 2023 42:04


In this episode of the Big Success Podcast, Marcus shares his perspective on success and how he has applied it to his business. He emphasizes the importance of saying"yes" when you want to say "yes" and "no" when you want to say "no", without hesitation.The conversation also touches on web marketing strategies and how they can be applied to build a successful business. Overall, the episode offers insights and inspiration for anyone looking to achieve success in both their personal and professional lives.About Marcus SheridanMarcus Sheridan, a sought-after global keynote speaker, captivates with his transformative business approach. Dubbed a "Web Marketing Guru" by The New York Times and a must-see by Forbes, Marcus excels at simplifying complexity and deep audience engagement.Author of "They Ask, You Answer," a content marketing guidebook, Marcus motivates with practical tools. Praised as a top marketing read by Mashable and a vital resource by Forbes, his philosophy has touched millions, earning media coverage in The New York Times and Inc.From entrepreneur to founding The Sales Lion consultancy, Marcus guides using his principles. The 2018 merger with IMPACT solidified its digital sales and marketing prowess. Through Marcus Sheridan International, Inc., he delivers 70 global keynotes yearly on sales, marketing, leadership, and communication.Please click here to learn more about Marcus Sheridan.About Brad SugarsInternationally known as one of the most influential entrepreneurs, Brad Sugars is a bestselling author, keynote speaker, and the #1 business coach in the world. Over the course of his 30-year career as an entrepreneur, Brad has become the CEO of 9+ companies and is the owner of the multimillion-dollar franchise ActionCOACH®. As a husband and father of five, Brad is equally as passionate about his family as he is about business. That's why, Brad is a strong advocate for building a business that works without you – so you can spend more time doing what really matters to you. Over the years of starting, scaling and selling many businesses, Brad has earned his fair share of scars. Being an entrepreneur is not an easy road. But if you can learn from those who have gone before you, it becomes a lot easier than going at it alone.Please click here to learn more about Brad Sugars: https://bradsugars.com/Learn the Fundamentals of Success for free:The Big Success Starter: https://results.bradsugars.com/thebigsuccess-starter

Business Innovators Radio
Ep. #25 – Marcus Sheridan – The Big Success Podcast with Brad Sugars

Business Innovators Radio

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 23, 2023 42:05


Marcus Sheridan is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker known for his unique ability to excite, engage and motivate live audiences with his simple, yet powerful transformational business approach. Marcus has been dubbed a “Web Marketing Guru” by the New York Times and in 2017 Forbes names Marcus one of 20 “Speakers You Don't Want to Miss.” Not one to be limited to the stage, Marcus is most often found walking through the crowd, calling audience members by name, and bringing them into his presentation.As author of the content marketing guidebook, “They Ask, you Answer,” Marcus has not only inspired thousands to achieve their potential but has given them the tools they need to get there. Mashable rated his book the “#1 Marketing Book” to read in 2017. Forbes listed it as one of “11 Marketing Books Every CMO Should Read.” Marcus has been featured in the New York Times, Inc., The Globe and Mail, Content Marketing Institute, Social Media Examiner, and more. He has inspired thousands of audiences and helped millions of people from all over the world to achieve their own success with his “They Ask, You Answer” philosophy.Marcus' experience as an entrepreneur and business owner who had successfully saved his company led him to opportunities to share his story and help others. What started as speaking from the stage quickly turned into a Sales and Marketing consulting agency, The Sales Lion. Using his marketing principles, Marcus and his team led clients step-by-step through the process of growing and even transforming their companies. In early 2018, The Sales Lion merged with IMPACT, establishing one of the most successful digital sales and marketing agencies in the country. Within his speaking company, Marcus Sheridan International, Inc., Marcus gives 70 global keynotes annually where he inspires audiences in the areas of sales, marketing, leadership, and communication.While Marcus is passionate about his roles as co-owner of IMPACT, River Pools and Spas, and full-time professional speaker, he admittedly loves his role as husband and father even more. When not on the road, Marcus is with his high-school sweetheart and wife, Nikki, and their four children. A boating and fishing enthusiast, Marcus also takes advantage of any opportunity to have a fishing rod in hand!Please click here to learn more about Marcus Sheridan.About Brad Sugars Internationally known as one of the most influential entrepreneurs, Brad Sugars is a bestselling author, keynote speaker, and the #1 business coach in the world. Over the course of his 30-year career as an entrepreneur, Brad has become the CEO of 9+ companies and is the owner of the multimillion-dollar franchise ActionCOACH®. As a husband and father of five, Brad is equally as passionate about his family as he is about business. That's why, Brad is a strong advocate for building a business that works without you – so you can spend more time doing what really matters to you. Over the years of starting, scaling and selling many businesses, Brad has earned his fair share of scars. Being an entrepreneur is not an easy road. But if you can learn from those who have gone before you, it becomes a lot easier than going at it alone. That's why Brad has created 90 Days To Revolutionize Your Life – It's 30 minutes a day for 90 days, teaching you his 30 years experience on investing, business and life.Please click here to learn more about Brad Sugars.Learn the Fundamentals of Success for free: The Big Success Starter: https://results.bradsugars.com/thebigsuccess-starter Join Brad's programs here: 30X Life: https://results.bradsugars.com/30xlifechallenge 30X Business: https://results.bradsugars.com/30xbusinesschallenge 30X Wealth: https://results.bradsugars.com/30xwealthchallenge 90X – Revolutionize Your Life: https://30xbusiness.com/90daystorevolutionize Brad Sugars' Entrepreneur University: https://results.bradsugars.com/entrepreneuruniversity For more information, visit Brad Sugars' website: www.bradsugars.comFollow Brad on Social Media:YouTube: @bradleysugars Instagram: @bradleysugars Facebook: Bradley J SugarsLinkedIn: Brad SugarsTikTok: @bradleysugarsTwitter: BradSugars The Big Success Podcast https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/the-big-success-podcast/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/ep-25-marcus-sheridan-the-big-success-podcast-with-brad-sugars

Agency Life
The Merger that Accelerated their Agency's Growth w/ Bob Ruffolo

Agency Life

Play Episode Listen Later May 25, 2023 45:24


How does a simple merger result in a highly successful business that houses both agency and consulting practices under one roof, creating what very well may be the business model of the future?Bob Ruffolo, founder and CEO of IMPACT, joins the podcast to discuss his merger with The Sales Lion, and how that led to growth that surpassed their HubSpot peers and made their consulting services a primary source of company revenue. He discusses how they've structured their business to host several independent teams under one roof, as well as how you can build consulting practices into your own business to increase profit and improve retention.Connect w/ Bob: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bobruffolo/Want to get more content to support your agency life? Subscribe to the Agency Life newsletter, check out past episodes, and find more content at teamwork.com/agencylife. This podcast is brought to you by Teamwork and produced in collaboration with Circle Audio.

The My Wife Quit Her Job Podcast With Steve Chou
437: 5 Brain Dead Strategies To Boost Your Content Marketing Sales With Marcus Sheridan

The My Wife Quit Her Job Podcast With Steve Chou

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 26, 2022 48:14


Today I'm thrilled to have Marcus Sheridan on the show. Marcus runs the Sales Lion where he consults and teaches companies how to do inbound content marketing. He's known as one of the premier thought leaders in the digital sales and marketing space. I've been following Marcus for years so it's cool that we got to connect at Social Media Marketing World for a few minutes and that's how he ended up here on the podcast. Enjoy the episode! What You’ll Learn Why inbound marketing is the key to growing any business What content works well and how to get […] The post 437: 5 Brain Dead Strategies To Boost Your Content Marketing Sales With Marcus Sheridan appeared first on MyWifeQuitHerJob.com.

This Is Concrete
The Curse of Knowledge

This Is Concrete

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 11, 2021 23:07


Marcus Sheridan is a highly sought-after global speaker and consultant in the digital sales and marketing industries. Offering his services through Marcus Sheridan International, he has been named a “Web Marketing Guru” by The New York Times and was listed in Forbes as one of 20 “Speakers You Don't Want to Miss.” In addition to his work as a keynote speaker, Marcus is also the Author of the books They Ask, You Answer and The Visual Sale. Marcus is the Founder and former President of The Sales Lion, a marketing and sales consulting firm, and the Owner and Partner of both River Pools and IMPACT. While he is passionate about these roles, Marcus loves his role as a father and husband even more. He enjoys spending time with his wife and their four children, boating, and fishing. In this episode… How can you become a trusted business that consumers always turn to? What can you do to draw in the right customers and stand out from your competitors? Marcus Sheridan says that you need to show more, tell more, and sell differently. If customers are turning towards other businesses as a cheaper option, show them why your business is better. Whether that's through videos, articles, or any other creative medium, you have to effectively communicate your company's value in order to attract the right people. In this episode of This is Concrete, Chad Gill is joined by global keynote speaker and author, Marcus Sheridan, to talk about becoming a trusted business within your industry. Marcus details the importance of answering consumer questions, the steps to get you and your customer on the same page, and why you should be open and honest about all aspects of your company. Stay tuned!

Christoph Trappe: Business Storytelling Podcast
346: How to make sales easier with video

Christoph Trappe: Business Storytelling Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 18, 2021 33:36


Marcus Sheridan, aka The Sales Lion, joins Christoph on this live recording of the Business Storytelling Podcast to discuss the concept of the visual sale. Find Marcus' book on the topic here: https://amzn.to/3oq7N9H Connect with Christoph on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ctrappe --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/ctrappe/message

Subcontractor Revolution
How To Boost Your Closing Rate From 25% To 80% With Assignment Selling

Subcontractor Revolution

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 3, 2020 60:43


Marcus Sheridan is the founder and president of one of the country’s most successful digital sales and marketing agencies, The Sales Lion, which just merged with IMPACT in 2018. A keynote speaker who delivers talks and inspirational speeches worldwide, Marcus was named one of 20 “Speakers You Don’t Want to Miss” by Forbes in 2017. He is also the author of the hit book “They Ask, You Answer,” Mashable’s “#1 Marketing Book” to read in 2017, and one of Forbes’ “11 Marketing Books Every CMO Should Read.” In this episode, we talked about content marketing, SEO, marketing strategy...

The Home Service Expert Podcast
How To Boost Your Closing Rate From 25% To 80% With Assignment Selling

The Home Service Expert Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 3, 2020 60:43


Marcus Sheridan is the founder and president of one of the country’s most successful digital sales and marketing agencies, The Sales Lion, which just merged with IMPACT in 2018. A keynote speaker who delivers talks and inspirational speeches worldwide, Marcus was named one of 20 “Speakers You Don’t Want to Miss” by Forbes in 2017. He is also the author of the hit book “They Ask, You Answer,” Mashable’s “#1 Marketing Book” to read in 2017, and one of Forbes’ “11 Marketing Books Every CMO Should Read.” In this episode, we talked about content marketing, SEO, marketing strategy...

Six Pixels of Separation Podcast - By Mitch Joel
SPOS #695 - Marcus Sheridan On Great Sales And Better Marketing

Six Pixels of Separation Podcast - By Mitch Joel

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 3, 2019 54:00


Welcome to episode #695 of Six Pixels of Separation. Here it is: Six Pixels of Separation - Episode #695 - Host: Mitch Joel. Long before Marcus Sheridan became one of the most sought-after speakers and trainers in the world, he was just some dude I saw speak on a small stage in front of an unsuspecting audience. Sometimes, you just know it when you see it. That day, I saw it. The "it factor" in Marcus. Speaking, teaching and training audiences to think differently (and better) about their sales and marketing in one of the most captivating ways. Since then, I have watched Marcus' massive ascent. From just another pool salesperson, into what he is now. He is the author of the bestselling book, They Ask, You Answer. As I alluded to, Marcus’ story didn’t begin on the stage. It started with a business created and run out of the back of a beat-up pickup truck. Marcus’ experience of saving his swimming pool company, River Pools and Spas, from the economic collapse of 2008 has been featured in multiple books, publications and university case studies from around the world. From its humble beginnings as a three-person company to one of the largest manufacturers and installers in the country, River Pools and Spas has the most visited pool website in the world. From there, he built his sales and marketing consultancy, The Sales Lion, and in early 2018 that company merged with Impact, where they are now building a leading sales and marketing agency. With that, he recently updated and revised his book, They Ask, You Answer. Enjoy the conversation... Running time: 54:00. Hello from beautiful Montreal. Subscribe over at iTunes. Please visit and leave comments on the blog - Six Pixels of Separation. Feel free to connect to me directly on Facebook here: Mitch Joel on Facebook. or you can connect on LinkedIn. ...or on Twitter. Here is my conversation with Marcus Sheridan. They Ask, You Answer. Impact. River Pools and Spas. Follow Marcus on Twitter. This week's music: David Usher 'St. Lawrence River'.

The My Wife Quit Her Job Podcast With Steve Chou
243: Marcus Sheridan On How To Get Results With Your Blog

The My Wife Quit Her Job Podcast With Steve Chou

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 7, 2019 53:12


Today I’m thrilled to have Marcus Sheridan on the show. Marcus runs the Sales Lion where he consults and teaches companies how to do inbound content marketing. Today, he’s known as one of the premier thought leaders in the digital sales and marketing space. I’ve been following Marcus for years so it’s cool that we got to connect at Social Media Marketing World for a few minutes and that’s how he ended up here on the podcast. Enjoy the episode! What You’ll Learn Why inbound marketing is the key to growing any business What content works well and how to […] The post 243: Marcus Sheridan On How To Get Results With Your Blog appeared first on MyWifeQuitHerJob.com.

Inbound Success Podcast
Ep. 72: What It Will Take to Succeed With Inbound Marketing In 2019 Ft. Marcus Sheridan

Inbound Success Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 7, 2019 55:51


What is (and is not) working with inbound marketing in 2019? This week on The Inbound Success Podcast, world-renowned author and keynote speaker Marcus Sheridan shares is kicking off our first episode of 2019 with his perspective on what it will take to succeed with inbound marketing in the year to come. This week's episode of The Inbound Success Podcast is brought to you by our sponsor, IMPACT Live,  the most immersive and high energy learning experience for marketers and business leaders. IMPACT Live takes place August 6-7, 2019 in Hartford Connecticut and Inbound Success Podcast listeners can save 10% off the price of tickets with the code "SUCCESS".  Click here to learn more or purchase tickets for IMPACT Live Some highlights from my discussion with Marcus include: While most marketers are talking about "authenticity" as though it is a new trend, Marcus says that to do inbound marketing well, you've always had to be authentic. The reason that most marketers haven't been able to capture the feeling of authenticity tends to be the lack of buy-in amongst company leadership. In 2019, we as marketers can't just answer our audience's questions in writing - we're going to have to show them (through video) and tell them (through audio). Companies that produce their own written, video and audio content in-house will do far better in terms of ROI in 2019 than those who choose to outsource it. The most successful companies are the ones that build a culture of inbound that supports in-house content creation. In 2019, sales teams need to be embedded with marketing teams so that the content they create truly addresses the needs of prospects and can serve as a sales aid. Alignment between sales, marketing, and leadership, and the buy-in for inbound marketing that results, is for the most part just as much a problem today as it was 10 years ago. Marketers need to stop speaking like marketers and start speaking the language of sales and leadership. One way that marketers can get more buy-in from sales or senior leadership is to use their conference and training budgets to send people in those positions to marketing conferences such as INBOUND. The concepts behind They Ask, You Answer are just as relevant today as they were when Marcus first came up with it because great, educational content will always be a valuable sales tool and an effective way to help your leads prequalify themselves. Self-selection and self-configuration tools will yield tremendous results for companies in 2019. HubSpot's website grader is a great example of a self-selection tool. The best way to position your company as a leader in the year ahead is to always be asking yourself "what can we do to reduce the friction in the buying experience?" Companies that produce two to three textual or video pieces of content a week should to start to see hockey stick growth after the first year.  Resources from this episode: Save 10% off the price of tickets to IMPACT Live with promo code "SUCCESS" Email Marcus Sheridan at Marcus@MarcusSheridan.com or MSheridan@ImpactBND.com Marcus Sheridan on Facebook Marcus Sheridan on Twitter Listen to the podcast to get Marcus's playbook for success with inbound marketing in 2019. Transcript Kathleen Booth (Host):Welcome back to the Inbound Success Podcast. I'm your host, Kathleen Booth. Today I am especially excited to announce that my guest is the one and only Marcus Sheridan. Welcome, Marcus. Marcus Sheridan (Guest): Yay. Happy to be here, Kathleen. It's going to be a great conversation, I'm sure. Marcus and Kathleen recording this episode Kathleen: I am so excited. This is the first episode of the Inbound Success Podcast for 2019. Marcus: It's a good start. Let's start this party right. Kathleen: It can't get better than that, right? I wanted to start, really, with something big. That's why I asked you here. About Marcus Sheridan Kathleen: For those listening, if you've been living under a rock for the last 10 years and you don't know who Marcus Sheridan is, he is a partner at IMPACT, which is the agency I'm with. He's also the author of They Ask You Answer. He is an internationally acclaimed keynote speaker on topics relating to marketing and communication. He is the principal and the founder at Marcus Sheridan International. That is a very brief bio. Marcus, for anybody out there who might not know who you are or those who may not know what you're doing now, could you just take a minute or two and catch everyone up? Marcus: I'll try to do the really fast 101. The one that you didn't mention was I'm still a pool guy, too. I started out of college a swimming pool company called River Pools. Things were going okay up until the market collapse in 2008, 2009. That was when we were getting ready to lose everything and ended up embracing what we call today They Ask You Answer. To make a long story short, it became the most trafficked swimming pool website in the world. That company really took off. It's extremely strong today. I wrote about what I was doing at River Pools, and as I wrote about that, that opened up other opportunities to speak and to do consulting. Started an agency. It was called The Sales Lion, but we merged at the beginning of 2018 with IMPACT. That's why I'm one of the partners there. Today, I also have Marcus Sheridan International, which to your point, that's really my speaking company, Kathleen. It's a bureau, as well. In other words, companies contact us that are having events and they're looking for particular speaker capabilities, subject matter, whatever. We're really well connected, so we recommend those. We essentially broker that. It's a lot of fun. I like to dabble with that, which I'm passionate about. They're very diverse, too, which is interesting. A pool company, an agency, a bureau, B2Bs, B2Cs in there. It's a great sandbox to experiment with and to say, "Hey, this is what's working here. This is what's working there. This is what's not working." Kathleen: That's what I think is so interesting about you is that you have, to me, a really different perspective on marketing and what works with marketing. I would refer to it as a human-centered perspective. I've known you for a while. I've followed you for longer than I've known you personally. I always appreciated that you're not necessarily a marketing guy. I mean, people think of you as a marketing guy, but you're more like a guy who's trying really hard to deeply understand people and what will work when you want to communicate with or connect with people. To me, that's the theme that underlies everything you do, but I think that's also the theme that needs to underlie marketing. Marcus: I'm glad you've noticed that, because I think that's a really big deal. I think one of the reasons why I've been really successful speaking about marketing is because I don't speak like a marketer. One of the biggest issues that our space has is silos that exist between sales and marketing and marketing and leadership. One of the big reasons for that is most marketers fail to instill the vision of what they're trying to do and achieve with everybody else on staff. That's because they talk about it in a way that is marketing-centric. Me, I've always spoken the language of, foremost, the business owner that was very concerned with sales and revenue. That happens to include marketing but not the other way around. That's, I think, why They Ask You Answer resonated so well with business owners and CEOs, salespeople. That's always my hope, Kathleen, is that I can be human-centric in the way that I talk about the thing. The moment you stop that, you start to lose certain portions of your audience. Here's silly examples. I was a pool guy and a business owner for 10 years. I didn't know what the words B2B or B2C meant until I started going to conferences. I was a business owner. I wasn't dumb, but I had no idea what they meant. I didn't know what top, middle, bottom of the funnel necessarily meant. ToFu, MoFu, BoFu -this junk. I hope that I never suffer so much from the curse of knowledge that I can't communicate with your average Joe or Jane business owner, CEO, whoever that is. Kathleen: Amen. Marketers are terrible violators of the jargon and acronyms and technical word rule. We should be great communicators. I mean, that's kind of what we're taught to do if you're a trained marketer. I've always heard people say that marketers, when they put on their marketing hat, they forget everything they know about being a human being. Marcus: Fundamentally, we're outrageously assumptive. We assume that people understand us, our products, our services, our lingo. You see this a lot with just content marketing in general. I'm constantly reading stuff, I'm like, "They actually think I know what they're talking about right now, and I don't." One of the industries that I think is the worst at this that I've messed around a little bit with is the big data industry. You find somebody out there that can define big data in a way that the common man or woman understands it, they're going to be rich. Let me tell you, these big data companies, they can't articulate what they do. They can't articulate the problem they solve. Because of that, if you ask somebody, "What is all this big data stuff about?" they say, "I don't really know." Unless they're in the field, they don't actually know. Kathleen: I would tend to agree. I mean, it's interesting. As somebody who's been in agencies for a long time, you work with people in lots of different industries. I have found that it's the more technically complex industries that have a harder time communicating, 'cause they fall back on industry jargon. I worked with a lot of cybersecurity companies, and they couldn't get out of their own way talking about what they did. Marcus: That's correct. Kathleen: That's often why they need to bring in outsiders to help them with their messaging. It's easier to come in as somebody who knows nothing and be like, "Talk to me about what you do. If you can make me understand it as your marketer or as your consultant, then I can make anybody else understand it." Marcus: Our good friend Ian Altman talks about this. You always start not with what you do but the problems you solve. If especially every B2B company replaced solutions in their navigation bar in their website and replaced that with problems you solve, you would see there would be this drastic, dramatic difference in how often those particular pages were frequented. I mean, fundamentally, what the buyer needs to do, the prospect, they need to be able to nod their head and they say, "Okay, now I get it. Ah, that's me. That's exactly what I'm experiencing. That's what I'm going through right now." Unless it's stated that way, it's not good. Kathleen: Now, you've been preaching about problems they solve for a long time. I'm not sure that'll ever change, 'cause that, again, speaks to the fundamental human need and the way we connect and communicate and comprehend. What Is (And Is Not) Working With Inbound Marketing in 2019 Kathleen: I want to take a step back. The big reason I wanted to talk to you for my first episode of 2019 was that, since I've been involved in inbound marketing, even since I've been doing this podcast ... by the time this goes live, I'll have done probably 75 episodes. Even in just that short amount of time, so much has changed in the world of inbound marketing. The podcast is about inbound. Most of my listeners listen because they're interested in inbound marketing. When I first created this podcast, it was really to scratch an itch that I had, which was you hear these stories of people who are getting amazing results and doing great things. I really wanted to be able to find out what exactly are they doing to get those results in a way that felt very actionable. Normally, when I interview people, we talk about what's a specific strategy or a specific tactic you're doing, or tell me about a campaign. We're not going to do that today. What I wanted to talk with you about is, looking back at the evolution of the field of inbound marketing, if we can even call it a field, when it first became a thing, there was very much a formulaic approach to it. HubSpot drove that. They invented the term. They came up with a methodology that was driven by their product, and all of that has evolved over time. In a lot of ways, it's still very driven by HubSpot's product and the need to promote the use of that. To step outside of that product-driven world, I'd love to ... this is going to be a big question that I'll throw out and then we can drill down. I'd love to find out from your standpoint with inbound marketing, with where we are today in the world we live in now, what is still working from that original philosophy or approach? What are the timeless elements? What's not working, and what do you think is going to be needed to really knock it out of the park? Let's just talk about 2019, 'cause I can't even forecast what's going to happen in 2020. Who knows? There could be robots that rule the world by that point. Marcus: You're exactly right. What is still working ... I think to answer that question, you have to look at principles. The beauty behind principles is they're timeless and they should, hypothetically, always be working. It's funny to me that all of the sudden you hear more and more people talking about trust, authenticity, and transparency. It's like, "Guys, this is not new." The idea authenticity's the big thing in 2019 ... seriously? If we've been doing this the right way, since even when HubSpot was started ... the whole premise behind They Ask You Answer is an obsession with the way buyers think and the willingness to address exactly what that thought is. Sometimes the thought is a question, and that question could be good, bad, or ugly. Usually, when we're willing to address the bad and the ugly, that's when people call us authentic. That should have been happening for a while now. Now, the reason why it didn't happen for many is because of the buy-in issues and the lack of implementation across the board, the vision, lack thereof, from leaders of organizations. One thing that is working just as well today as it was when I got on HubSpot in 2009 is the idea of truly obsessing over your customers' questions. I'm talking about the difficult ones. And the willingness to address them well. Now, how that's evolved, though, is the way that we address it. Maybe now we're saying we can't just write it. We've got to also show it through video and not just say it. We've got to eventually give them the ability to listen to it. We're talking about voice here, which I don't think is the major 2019 play. I think voice, although I'm working on it right now ... I just had a River Pools skill developed for Alexa that's very good. You're going to see it here soon, Kathleen. Kathleen: I can't wait to test it out. Marcus: It's really neat. It'll have a full fiberglass swimming pool conversation with you. I'm only doing that now not because I think I'm going to need it in 2019, but I think I'm going to need it in 2020. I think this authenticity thing ... it bugs me a bit, because that's been working for a long time now. What doesn't work in conjunction with content while we talk about that is we've known for a while that quality was important, but I think it's really starting ... how long have people been outsourcing content and getting results? Now you see fewer and fewer companies outsourcing content and getting results. Of course, the question is why? Because A) it's not authentic, B) it doesn't truly represent the soul of your business, C) it usually isn't qualitative enough to truly answer the question well, whatever it is, in an expert-like way where the reader, the viewer, the listener can say, "Okay, I get it. Now I understand." What we're seeing here, we've seen this at IMPACT tremendously, is that when companies take ownership of the thing, the skill -- in this case, that might be producing the textual content or producing the videos in-house , even though often times there's a bit of a learning curve, embrace the messy that comes with that at first -- they end up catapulting way beyond those that outsource those six videos a year to some video production company or outsource a blog post every week to a ghost writer. Which, come on. If the ghost writer's any good, they've got to interview all your SMEs, your subject matter experts, anyway. It's essentially like you're doing it in-house. You can't escape it anymore. You can't do this half-cocked, like, "Let's just dip our toes." Sometimes companies come to me, Kathleen, and say, "I just want to dip our toes in the water." I think you could probably do that a little bit before. You can't dip your toes in content and be really successful. You either play hard or you just don't play. Just do something different. You know what I'm saying? Kathleen: I couldn't agree more. Like I said, I've been in the agency world for a long time and have played around with different solutions to the content question. When I had my own agency, a lot of our clients didn't want to write their own content. In the beginning, we were trying to just purely outsource it. We would have an insurance agency that wanted us to do blogs and they'd say, "We need blogs on these ten topics." We'd find a writer and that writer would write them. They were fine, but to be perfectly honest, if a writer is writing a blog on 10 things you should know before you buy car insurance and they're not an insurance expert, what are they doing? They're going out and they're Googling. They're finding 10 other blogs with the answer, and they're basically just rewriting what's already in existence. It doesn't add any value. The only way you can add value is if you are delivering something unique, original, different. That can either be factual information. It can be a point of view. It can be an analysis, what have you. I completely agree. The only time we only had success with creating content for clients was exactly what you described. We had the amazing Liz Murphy, who is now with IMPACT today, who figured out this methodology of doing phone interviews with our client subject matter experts. 15 minutes per article. She would just extract all the knowledge out of their brain, turn it in into an article. She'd still have to send it back to them and they'd still have to be a part of the process. Would it be better if they wrote it themselves? Absolutely. At that time, that was the most we could get them to do. The difference in the results was dramatic between that and the alternative. Marcus: There's a definitive profile of the companies we've seen with world-class digital inbound marketing case studies versus the ones that have not. Almost every single time, it comes back to ownership. What can they do, what can they produce themselves? This is why at IMPACT we've been shifting the traditional way, which is do it for you, versus walk with you, grab your hand and walk down that trail together. I've seen time and time again, if a company hires a videographer, that's usually not enough, because that videographer, they might know video, but they don't yet know how to create sales, marketing, and customer experience videos. That's different. They don't know sales and marketing strategy. If they have somebody that teaches them that ... the good thing is it doesn't take a lifetime to learn that. Within a certain period of time, you can take that person that just knew how to do video and create documentaries or create films and truly turn them into someone that understands what the visual sale looks like. Now, the whole company can have a culture of video in-house. I think that idea of having a culture of inbound in-house, a culture of video in-house, a culture of content, of teachers in-house -- I think that this is a principle. I think that is not going to go away for a while. There's a very strong decade of this. I know AI's going to play with all this stuff, but AI, what they won't do, is they're not going to be able to replicate the videos that I'm doing right now. There's something about those that is extremely human that resonates with the marketplace. Instead of worrying about that, we've got to establish ourselves. Are we learning how to do these things in-house as organizations? Are we eliminating the silos? Does the sales team realize they're a part of marketing? I think, before, marketing could be on an island in 2009, Kathleen. I don't think marketing can be on an island today. I don't think they can have great success if they're not embedded with the sales team. If the sales team and the other subject matter experts aren't at least involved somewhat, some way, shape, or form in the content production process, I would argue that it's almost impossible for it to fly big at this point in time. Kathleen: It's really interesting that you just said that, 'cause when I was listening to you talk about having a culture of inbound, a culture of content, a culture of video, in my head I was picturing somebody listening to this podcast, and most of my listeners tend to be marketers, and picturing them having a panic attack. Many of the marketers I've spoken to I think would love to have more company-wide alignment or support around what they do, but I feel like a lot of them either don't know how to get it, are afraid to ask for it, or in some cases --and I have had clients tell me this --I have had clients say, "I don't want to open up that can of worms. I don't want to have the attention that that would bring." There's a real fear within marketers of that kind of change. How do you navigate that process? I mean, you've worked with a lot of companies on this- Marcus: The problem is marketers have to understand just a few realities. One of the biggest realities is that if you have a CFO, if you have somebody that's paying the bills, unless you can really start to prove that you're driving revenue for the company, you're always going to be underpaid, underappreciated, and not really listened to, which is frustrating, but it's true. What has not improved at nearly the rate that it should have is this alignment between sales, marketing, and leadership. That has not happened over the course of what is now for me about 10 years of being in this space. Buy-in for the most part is just as much a problem today as it was 10 years ago. Kathleen: Why do you think that is? Marcus: There's a multiplicity of reasons. Let me break them down, a few of them, for you. The first one was our original conversation on this call: marketers need to stop speaking like marketers and start speaking the language of sales and leadership. That's major. Number two. You go to an event like INBOUND or any of these other events, 90% of the room is still marketers. Then you have a handful of salespeople and leadership. More often than not what happens is they get fired up at INBOUND, they get a ton of ideas, they go back to the office on Monday, and everybody rains on their parade, because they weren't there. The reason why leadership so often pushes back, it's not because they're a stick in the mud. It's because they're ignorant of the thing. I don't say that in a bad way. It's just truth. Because they're ignorant of it, they say things like, "I don't have the time," or, "No, I just don't think that's in the budget right now." The reason why we say things like time and budget has nothing to do with time and almost never budget, but it's always because, "I don't value it like you do." Why don't they, Kathleen? Because they haven't been educated nearly well enough yet. It is still the fundamental problem in this entire inbound space. That's why marketers have to be obsessing over that. Sometimes I've had marketers tell me this before. I'm like, "When's the last time you went to leadership and said, 'You know what? You gave me a $2,500 education budget this year. I would like to give you, Mr. or Ms. CEO, my ticket to INBOUND. Would you be willing to go in my place? I will stay here and man the fort. Your vision for what I'm doing is more important than me going there and hearing about all of which I already know'?" We don't do that. We don't send the sales manager. We don't give up our budget, either, do we? We keep going to INBOUND. We keep going to Content Marketing World or maybe even IMPACT Live, which is really where you need to be going the most. This is what we're not doing. This is what we've got to change. Those are the two biggest reasons. Inbound Success Podcast listeners can save 10% off the price of tickets to IMPACT Live using the code "SUCCESS" Click here to learn more about IMPACT Live or purchase tickets now Kathleen: It's interesting. I don't often talk about IMPACT on the podcast on purpose. It's not about the company. It's about inbound marketing. I will interject and say that we have this conference in August and we just this year launched this package for teams because of this kind of thing. We really believe you should come with your group of people from your company and experience something together so that you leave and you're charged up and you're excited and you're all on the same page. Marcus: Do you know how many times I have talked to a salesperson at an event and they will say things like, "I finally get it. I finally understand"? It's so sad. Think about how many frustrated marketers are listening to this right now, Kathleen. I would say there's a third reason, too, of this buy-in issue. It goes back to education. As I've stated before at times in different places, the number one email that I've gotten over the course of these almost 10 years is ... it's not from business owners saying, "We need more traffic, leads, and sales." It's number two. The number one, "Marcus, I'm a marketer. I'm frustrated. I'm sick and tired of feeling like I'm alone, of having to scratch and claw for anything to get approved. I'm almost ready to leave my company." I've seen so many leave, Kathleen. Now, part of this, and this is the third part, is that when we start these digital campaigns, what does the start look like? In other words, let's say you've been doing inbound for a while and I went to your sales team right now and I said to them, "How come we're producing all this content?" More often than not, they wouldn't know. They wouldn't have an answer. That's the problem. That denotes that there is a serious issue. We got to fix that. I've taught so many workshops. The marketers are the ones that call me initially and I say, "Look. You don't need to be at the workshop. I don't care if you're there, 'cause you're already all in. Your sales team has to be there. If they're not there, I'm not going to show up, because everything starts and stops with them anyway." Kathleen: You're really good, I will say, at holding people's feet to the fire about that kind of thing. Marcus: Because I'm willing to go through the pain on the front end so that we can have the pleasure on the rear. The issue is we're too afraid, often times, to address this ugly reality on the front end. Then we wonder, "Why didn't the campaign work? Why did we get the pushback? Why so many obstacles? Why so much red tape?" I just had a company a few days ago call me. Hundreds of employees. They're a pharma company. They're like, "Marcus, regulation is making this impossible." I said, "Well, okay. Regulation is potentially a problem in healthcare. But the fact is, do you have somebody in leadership that is an advocate and that can go to that department and can talk with them about what is and is not kosher and can ensure that those that are dealing with the regs, that they catch the vision that is digital sales and marketing for your organization?" "No we don't have that person yet." Of course then you're getting pushback. All they're hearing is somebody in marketing tell them, "Hey, we need this approved." Leadership's not saying, "We need this approved." That's why it happens. We have to do the hard stuff on the front end to experience the pleasure later. Kathleen: One issue is absolutely buy-in and getting buy-in from the top to the bottom, from the left to the right, all through the organization. Let's say the organization has buy-in and they agree they want to move forward, they want to produce their content, they're going to embrace this approach. You wrote They Ask You Answer, which is very much a blueprint for how you should tackle content creation. Is it still applicable today? I mean, are we in a world where everybody's already doing They Ask You Answer, or is there still room? Marcus: Often times people say, "My industry, Marcus, is so saturated. How could we ever find success with so much saturation?" That's because, again, they're looking at it as a marketing play. Let's turn this around for a second, Kathleen. Let's say that you produced a video that's specific to addressing some of the major questions your sales team's getting all the time and dealing with all the time. Let's say that video never ever gets watched on YouTube, ever. At the same time, let's say that the sales team gets it and they immediately integrate it in the sales process. They use it to send to the client before they have the first sales call. Because the client often times does watch it, now they spend less time on the first sales time, because they're way more educated, they've heard the company doctrine on these major questions that are asked, and now the conversation is less teaching, more selling. The sales team loves it. Was it a successful video? Another scenario. Let's say that you have this whole plethora of questions, fears, worries, concerns, et cetera addressed on your website. Let's say none of these articles or videos have ever produced a single organic lead from search. But let's say, because of that, now when anybody comes to the site from pay per click, their user experience is so much better that your conversion rates go up there. Let's say now whenever anybody comes to your site from social, all of which that content you were using on social in the first place, when they come as a referral from social, now the user experience is so much better they say, "These guys are different. I trust them. I'm going to contact them." Or, let's say that it's a referral. Still to this day, even if it's a word of mouth referral, they're still going to vet you first on the site probably before they call. When they come to the site, are they going to feel different? Are they going to be satiated? You see, we overestimate the quality of the content in the messaging of our competitors. Everybody does this bad. There's still a bunch of blue oceans. Even if the textual content is saturated in your space --and I still believe that we should produce that, because it's rare that that's the case --the video content in most industries is still wide stinking open. There's the final element to this, Kathleen. Let's say your marketing team never benefits from it, your sales team never benefits from it from a straight sales standpoint. Is it worth it? There's this thing that happens when you produce content that nobody seems to talk about. You know this as a writer, as a content producer. You start to figure out what you're trying to say and you figure out what your opinion, what your doctrine, what your philosophy is on that subject. When you do this as a company, it forces you to take a stand. When you do this now, this will become the training manual for any new employee that ever comes on, any sales person that ever comes on and says, "How do we approach this question? How do we feel about this?" The answers are already there. That's why this is so relevant. I think that's going to maintain itself for quite a while, regardless of how much saturation is out there. Now, there is a level up, though, Kathleen. It used to be that we might just say, "What is the best swimming pool?" That might have been the question before, but now we're getting more specific, like, "What is the best type of swimming pool for me?" This is why one of the big focus areas that I think we should all have that is just rife with opportunity, I mean, just so heavy of opportunity right now in 2019 and beyond is the trend of self-selection and self-configuration. In other words, let's say you came to the River Pools website right now. Let's say you didn't have any idea what type of pool you want. "Do I want an in-ground pool? Do I want an above ground pool? If I do want an in-ground pool, should it be concrete, should it be vinyl-lined, or should it be fiberglass?" Is there an unbiased tool that you could walk through that would ask you a series of questions and be interactive that would essentially give you some type of output in the end that would say, "Okay, Kathleen. Based on what you just said, it sounds like a concrete pool or a fiberglass pool or an above ground pool is the right choice for you." These interactive styles of self-selection and self-configuration, they are so monumental. So few companies are doing them at all right now, Kathleen. This is the level up of what you and I might call traditional content marketing. Kathleen: It's interesting. I've had some experiences with those kinds of tools. Now as I tell this story, I'm totally going to out myself and my age range. My experience with self-configuration tools was when I first noticed I was getting some little gray hairs on my head. Marcus: That happens to all of us at that 40-ish age. Kathleen: I was like, "Okay, got to cover those up." I don't know. I'm not somebody who spends a lot of money on salons and things. Funny enough, I heard about this hair color company through the TechCrunch blog. This is how much of a geek I am. They were talking about how this company was really upending the model of hair color. It's called Madison Reed. I was like, "If TechCrunch thinks this company is cool, I'm going to check them out instead of going to CVS and trying to find a box of hair color on the shelf." I got to the website and it's exactly what you described. It was like, "What is your natural hair color?" I said brown. "Is it more reddish brown, blondish brown?" Blondish brown. "Has it been colored before? How much gray do you have? How long is it? How curly is it?" All these questions and then it basically said, "Here is the perfect color for you. By the way, if this doesn't look perfect, here are the next three if you want to see what those look like." I became a customer. Not only did I become a customer, but they're so smart, they have a subscription plan. Now it's on a "set it and forget it" thing where it comes to my house every few weeks. That's amazing. I don't even have to think about it any more, and they've got a customer for life. Marcus: You've got to send me that link, by the way. I want to see that. I'd like to do that myself. Kathleen: You've got some grays you want to cover? Marcus: I'm so fascinated with self-configuration right now. We've been working with it at River Pools. To give people an idea, we've got one at River Pools we're developing that is, what is the best shape and size for me for my swimming pool? The other one is, what is the best type of swimming pool for me? The best type of swimming pool for me is the most top of the funnel. What is the right shape and size for me is lower in the funnel. How much is my fiberglass swimming pool going to cost, that's even lower in the funnel. I'm trying to develop a perfect pricing tool. It's never been developed in our industry before. I want people to be able to get close numbers even before they talk to a sales person. Again, a lot of people think that's crazy. If you've read They Ask You Answer, you know how this works, you know how applicable it is, whether it's B2B or B2C. Those two examples we just used now were both B2C, but this is relevant in the B2B space as anything. Everybody should be thinking about self-configuration right now. I think that's a major that we all need to be upping our game with as we go forward. Kathleen: It'll be fun to see what you come up with there, 'cause there are a couple of examples that I can think of of companies that have done the pricing part really well with complex things. For example, there's window treatment companies where you put in the exact size of your window and the fabric you want and this and that. It's complex, but I'll tell you, I only order from companies like that, 'cause I don't want to go into the store. It works. Marcus: How would I set this up? If somebody contacts you right now, a legitimate prospect, what are all the questions that sales consultant is already asking? If you talk to a sales consultant about your hair, every single one of those that you mentioned, that's what they would have said. The beauty behind this, it's dramatically more efficient and it induces a friction-free buying experience. If our guide, as we go forward 2019 and beyond, is we say, "Is there anything I can do that lessens the friction?" There's a very good chance that that means your leader of your space, because antiquated, traditional thinking generally is very friction-based. It's the opposite of today's buyer. Most swimming pool companies would say, "We could never give pricing, period. We can't talk about pricing." Everybody knows for years I've been talking about pricing. I've been giving ranges of pricing. I've been talking about all the factors of pricing, but now I'm trying to give actual prices as close as possible. We've already got a little bit of this developed on the site. It's a lead generating machine already. I mean, it's really, really beautiful, this pricing tool that we have. Anybody can set this up, regardless of what you are. B2B, B2C, service product, big, small, local, national. This is the mindset that we have to have. Let's make it easier on the buyer. Let's see if we can mimic or replicate the in-real-life sales experience. Can we replicate that online through the digital experience? If you can do the self-configuration combined with beautiful video explanations of that thing ... one of the issues, Kathleen, is whenever you do these types of self-configuration tools, inevitably, again, because the curse of knowledge, the company will ask you a question that you don't know. For example, if I'm a pool guy and I say, "Do you think you want a heat pump or a gas heater with your swimming pool?" most people have no idea. You don't know that. Kathleen: No. I would have no idea. Marcus: If I can have an explanation, especially if it's a video explanation, now that you can just quickly click and say, "Here's where you would want to fall. Here's the pros and cons of each one. Hopefully that helps you decide which is the best for you." That allows you say, "Okay, perfect." If you're a consultant, this is the same thing. Every consultant in the B2B space asks a series of questions to their prospects. Can we handle that on the front end? One of the things that we're trying to develop at IMPACT right now that Bob and I are talking a lot about is we constantly assess these companies and we let them know where are they from a digital perspective, what's their impediments and all these things. Can we replicate that on the front end? The most forward-thinking on this was Dharmesh with Website Grader in 2007-8 time period. When he came out with that, that was so stupidly ahead of his time. It was genius. That was the catalyst for me. That was the great motivator for me. The first time I took that, which is essentially ... it was a self-assessment tool. That's all that was. I got a 37 out of 100, and I said, "Bull. That's not me. I'm not a 37 out of 100. I'm going to show you wrong, Website Grader." Then I went on this glorious journey. Of course- Kathleen: Boy, did you show it wrong. Marcus: It's what propelled me. It gave me that drive. I could keep going back and saying, "Okay, now it's at a 42. Now it's at a 49. Now it's at a 75." Kathleen: In my mind, when I hear you talking about all this, I feel like how I know this is possible is that if there was ever an industry that was unnecessarily overcomplicated in terms of the research and the purchasing process, it was cars. I've heard you talk a lot about CarMax. To me, there's even a leader further ahead of CarMax now, which is Carvana. You can buy your stinking car out of the vending machine with Carvana. They literally have car vending machines. Marcus: That's correct. Usually, the leader of the previous generation is slowest to adopt the next one. What happened was most of the successful used car dealers said things like, "There's no way we could ever offer a five-day money-back guarantee. There's no way that we could have this intensive inspection process, which would essentially eliminate the possibility of selling any lemons to the marketplace. There's no way we could do all these things to eliminate the fears of buying a used car." CarMax came in, turned the industry on its head, and did that. But CarMax is going to get replaced by the Carvanas, the TrueCars of the world, because they're making it even more friction free. If we're not looking to replace ourselves and our business model and the way that we do it, then there's a good chance we're off. When I started They Ask You Answer, Kathleen, I really thought it was a blogging strategy. This is why when you talk about something, you learn what you're trying to say. You just discover it over time. It's a fluid experience. They Ask You Answer became that, but it became an obsession with the way buyers think and the willingness to evolve with said buyer. If a company's embracing They Ask You Answer, they don't make statements like, "I don't watch videos, so why in the heck would we create them for our customers?" It's like, our opinions don't matter. They don't mean jack squat. The only thing that matters is, what does the marketplace want? They Ask You Answer is basically saying, "People would like to buy it like this. I know it's never been sold like that in our industry before. Let's just strip out all the rules, all the regs. Is it possible that it was sold that way?" That's when you have entire industries flipped on their head. We're seeing it over and over again. It's such a fun time to be alive if you're the type of person that likes to fill in outside of the circle, because that means you're willing to break the rules. You just don't have these confines, these parameters that everybody else has. You say, "Why not? I mean, of course we could do that." Kathleen: So many interesting things here. We've got self-configuration tools. We've got creating your own content. We've got taking They Ask You Answer approach. We've got using video to show and not just tell. For the companies that you have worked with on this and the companies that are doing it right ... I know that you work with a wide range of companies. They're not always the sexy disrupters of their industry like a Carvana. Some of them are a plumber- Marcus: I love unsexy, nerdy, just stuff that you would traditionally think, "They couldn't do this," and they end up killing it. What Does Inbound Success Look Like in 2019? Kathleen: That's what I was going to say. In today's world, when you say killing it ... if somebody's listening and they're thinking, "Alright. I could maybe try this approach," what kinds of results should they expect and what does killing it mean these days? Is it a nice 5% increase every month over time? Can you still hockey stick? What does success look like? Marcus: We see lots of hockey stick growth when it comes to traffic, leads and sales. When I really started teaching They Ask You Answer, I didn't necessarily know what were the major bullet points of success in all of these most successful organizations, 'cause I didn't have enough case studies yet. I had River. That's all I really had. Came to realize there is a few essentials that you got to do, that you've got to have. If you have these essentials, there's a good chance you're going to see that growth. First essential is you've got to have buy-in from top to bottom. It's just absolute. Number two, you have to look at this as a long-term play, which mean there's continual updates, education, and awareness about how the program's working, what's happening, everybody knows. Again, it's not a program; it's culture. Number three, that you have owners, specifically of textual content, of video content. Everything has an owner. Unless there's an owner that's not wearing a thousand other hats, generally it's not going to fly. Number four, that it's accepted that everybody has to participate. It's almost like part of the job description. They don't say, "Well, it would be nice." They just do it. It's just what they do. Again, not utopia always. It's just something that we do, we know it's part of the deal. You do certain things with your job you don't love, Kathleen, but you do it because it's just part of the deal. You don't miss it. You don't stop it. It's just who you are. Then the fifth one is they measure everything that they possibly can. That way, they're not having conversations like, "Did this really work?" They're saying, "We spent this much money on a content manager, on a videographer in-house, but we can definitively track that we have generated this much more traffic, this many more leads, and this much more revenue in this process." There's others we could add in there, one of which would be clearly that the sales team obsessively integrates content into the sales process as much as possible. That they're always looking for ways to do this. Somebody might listen to this and say, "Well, we're e-commerce. We don't have a sales team." Yeah, you do. The page is your sales team. Are you integrating content so well into that page that the person says, "Every single question I had about that particular product has now been resolved. I'm ready to click the buy button"? Are we doing these things? We still consistently see, when they do this right, amazing growth, but you've got to be qualitative and quantitative. For a long time, there was this dumb debate of, "Should I focus on quality, or should I focus on quantity?" Well, you've got to do both. That's just the truth. I mean, you can't do one great blog article a month and expect to see hockey stick growth. Generally, that's never going to occur unless you already have some established audience. If Oprah started a blog, she's probably going to get great growth at once a month. We're not Oprah. We can't do that. We continue to see the pattern of great success when you start something is two to three pieces of content a week on that thing. In other words, for most companies, if they're producing two to three textual pieces of content a week, they're going to start to see hockey stick growth after the first year. Same thing with video. What happens is it becomes habit at two to three a week. It just becomes who you are as a company. At two to three a week, you've got to have owners, you see what I mean? Because you have owners, it's like everything is self-fulfilling and self-perpetuating. This is the pattern that we've seen time and time again. It's fun to watch it. It's really, really neat. They are obsessed about the continual education and they'll add something each year. Maybe they're crushing it with the textual content, they're crushing it with the video. Now they add chat and they want to become the best at chat. Don't try to be great at all these things. Most of the companies don't try to be great at all social media platforms. They recognize if you try to be a jack of all social media trades, you're going end up being a master of none. You're way better off just focusing and being a master of one. This is how it works. You knock out one at a time and you grow that way. The last thing I'll say about this, every company that's been obsessive about They Ask You Answer since the beginning has done everything that Google says today that they want you to do. They were never afraid of a single algorithmic change, because this was a long-term solution to a long-term problem, which is search. Search is a long-term problem. Google's obsession, "Give it to them as quickly as I can. Make it as relevant as possible. Make sure it's the best, most qualitative answer they could possibly get." Anything that doesn't align with that is a short-term solution. Vanity link building that got many people penalized these last few years, that was doing a deal with the devil, Kathleen. It came back to bite so many people. Those that were just doing it right and obsessing over the quality and the quantity component, they're the ones now that own the industry. I MPACT is one of those. 600,000 visitors a month of traffic is a big deal for any agency. The reason why that happens, it's been a long-term play. We ain't out there asking people for their links, though, I'll tell you that. Kathleen: Definitely not. I'm not sure I would enjoy my job very much if that's what it involved. It's like the cold-calling of marketing. Well, you just did a great job of bringing us full circle. I started this conversation talking about how I feel like you've always been somebody who's less focused on how to do marketing and more focused on how to make that human-to-human connection. I think what you closed with, at least the way I heard it was, when you're solving for search engines, the best approach is also to solve for humans, because that's ultimately what the search engines want to solve for. Marcus: They're completely aligned. Kathleen: At the end of the day, all the latest, greatest tactics of marketing don't mean anything if they're not solving for people. Marcus: It's our moral compass. That's always going to bring us back where we need to go. Not to make this about They Ask You Answer, but I'm trying to show the principle here. Whenever we would have a debate about a piece of content, we would say, "Do our customers really want and need to know?" If the answer was yes, we said, "Okay, we're going to talk about it." Kathleen: I love it. Marcus: It always worked. Kathleen: Awesome. Well, I'm going to have extensive show notes on everything that you shared. If somebody was listening and they want to have this, essentially which is a playbook for 2019, they can find it in the show notes. How to Reach Marcus Sheridan Kathleen: We need to close, because I could talk to you forever, but you don't have forever to talk to me. If somebody's listening and they want to learn more, they want to contact you, they want to ask you a question, what's the best way for them to find you online? Marcus: You can still find me at TheSalesLion on the Twitters. You can find me at Facebook. I'm public there. You can email me. An easy one to remember is Marcus@MarcusSheridan.com or MSheridan@ImpactBND.com. Either one works. Hit me up, folks. I love the personal contact. Kathleen, otherwise, this was a pleasure. Hopefully, we delivered a few nuggets today that are going to help those wonderful listeners of yours tomorrow. Kathleen: Absolutely. My one ask to anyone listening is if you do any of this and you see success with it, let me know. I would love to share your story. Maybe you could be somebody that I interview in 2019 about your inbound success. That's it for today. Thank you for listening. Happy New Year. Thank you, Marcus, for joining us and sharing all of your wisdom.

The Hidden Entrepreneur Show with Josh Cary
THE20: The Power of Becoming Likable Through Communication and Trust

The Hidden Entrepreneur Show with Josh Cary

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 7, 2018 56:14


Where do I begin with today's show... how about in 2013... I've been lucky enough, blessed really, to be connected with our guest today for over 5 years. He was incredibly gracious and generous to keynote my live event 3 years in a row. He is 1 of 20 "Speakers You Don't Want to Miss" according to Forbes. A "Web Marketing Guru" says the New York Times. Marcus has also been featured in Inc., The Globe and Mail, Forbes, and more. A highly sought-after international speaker, Marcus is known for his unique ability to excite, engage and motivate audiences. Event professionals and attendees around the world have experienced his high-energy style and interactive presentation approach. Marcus' ability to clearly and concisely deliver his message ensures that audiences can quickly absorb his teaching and immediately begin to apply it in their businesses. The universal applicability of his message means that diverse audiences can receive tremendous benefit from attending his talks. Within his speaking company, Marcus Sheridan International, Inc., Marcus gives over 70 global keynotes annually where he inspires audiences in the areas of sales, marketing, leadership, and communication. Keynote topics include: The Digital Consumer; We're All Media Companies; The Future of Sales and Marketing; The Business of Trust; Letting Go of "The Way It Has Always Been Done." Mashable rated his book, "They Ask, You Answer," the "#1 Marketing Book" to read in 2017. Forbes listed it as one of "11 Marketing Books Every CMO Should Read." Read more about it, or better yet, purchase the book and find out for yourself what all the buzz is about! As founder and president of The Sales Lion, which recently merged with IMPACT in 2018, Sheridan has established one of the most successful digital sales and marketing agencies in the country. For years, I've analyzed his every move, I've quietly observed him as mentor, and I call him a friend. You will quickly agree and see what I mean... Welcome Marcus Sheridan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices (megaphone.fm/adchoices)

Why Can't You?
Marcus Sheridan, Speaker, Author and Founder of the Sales Lion is our guest on Why Can’t You? this week!

Why Can't You?

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 11, 2018 41:05


Marcus Sheridan is my Why Can’t You? podcast guest today.  If you want to step up your sales game this is the podcast for you!   Marcus is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker known for his unique ability to excite, engage and motivate audiences. Talk about challenges, listen in as Marcus talks about how he […] The post Marcus Sheridan, Speaker, Author and Founder of the Sales Lion is our guest on Why Can’t You? this week! appeared first on Why Can't You?.

Leading with Genuine Care
Episode 6: Facilitating Great Discussion, with Marcus Sheridan

Leading with Genuine Care

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 26, 2018 101:23


Marcus Sheridan got his first start in the business world in 2001 when he began installing swimming pools with two other friends out of the back of a beat-up pickup truck. Nearly a decade later, Sheridan’s company triumphed through the adversity after the collapse of the housing market to become one of the largest pool installers in the United States. Their website has become the most visited swimming pool websites in the world. Marcus transitioned his success with River Pools and Spas into the development of his marketing and personal development blog —The Sales Lion, which has become a staple in the inbound and content marketing world. It has been featured in multiple industry publications including the New York Times where he was referred to as a “web marketing guru.” His book, “They Ask, You Answer” was rated the #1 Marketing Book to Read in 2017 by Mashable. His digital marketing and website design agency, IMPACT, helps businesses make their visions a reality by growing their marketing and sales. When Sheridan isn’t spending time presenting compelling and passion-filled keynotes around the world and consulting with businesses and brands, he is usually with his wife and 4 children exploring new adventures. What you’ll learn about in this episode: Reasons Marcus feels the life lessons he learned as a child have shaped him and how he carried those lessons into adulthood both professionally and with his family Why Marcus believes it’s important to have private jokes with your kids The lessons Marcus learned, while on a mission in Chile during college, that taught him the skill of asking excellent questions and facilitating discussion The surprising benefit that being married and having children had on his college experience How Marcus is able to maintain his energy even when traveling up to 150 days per year When, how and why Marcus came to the realization that he had a unique ability to teach Why Marcus believes in passionate debate with business partners and the importance of a strong set of core values Reasons Marcus chooses not to dwell on the past How Marcus intends to disrupt the speaker bureau agency business The unique philosophy Marcus has regarding education Why Marcus wakes his wife up in the morning before he gets his day started One of the best decisions Marcus ever made in his life Why Marcus would rather exercise than take a nap The importance of being around people who make you want to be a better person Why Marcus believes waiting tables is a valuable skill and how it helped him create his own system that became useful in his own business success Why paying attention is essential, no matter how far something is above your head The importance of being present while spending time with your family His inspiration for the “They Ask; You Answer” style of business that brought his pool business back from the brink of bankruptcy Why building trust is essential, why it works, and how answering uncomfortable questions makes it work Ways to contact Marcus: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcussheridan Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MarcusSheridanInternational Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheSalesLion Website: https://marcussheridan.com/ and https://www.impactbnd.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marcussheridan1 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/MarcusSheridan River Pools and Spas: https://www.riverpoolsandspas.com Buy His Book “They Ask, You Answer”: https://bit.ly/2MJ4RC8

Absolute Advantage Podcast
Episode 137: Promoting Videos to Enhance Inbound Marketing, with George B. Thomas

Absolute Advantage Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later May 9, 2018 44:12


After spending 15 years working in a traditional marketing agency designing and developing websites, George B. Thomas stumbled into Inbound Marketing & HubSpot in 2012. After helping run the Wild Boy agency in Massillon Ohio for 2 years, George had the joy of accepting a phone call from Marcus Sheridan asking him to join The Sales Lion team. After he picked the phone up off the floor and stuttered his way through an acceptance, he joined the team and @GeorgeBThomas was born. As an inbound marketer and brand strategist, George’s daily contributions include inbound strategy and design, HubSpot intensive training, speaking at conferences, content marketing, and social media marketing as well as business management and development. ----- What can you learn about inbound marketing from a former youth pastor and bouncer in a pub? George B. Thomas definitely took a different path as he entered the field of inbound marketing and developing high-quality video content. After he learned to be proud of his nerdy tendencies, he expertly applied them to become a “nerd who needs to educate” in the areas of content, inbound, and social marketing. George Thomas strongly believes in the potential of HubSpot and has done tutorials about HubSpot’s CRM. From his work in the industry, he has witnessed the ways that HubSpot certifications enhance abilities in marketing and sales and the value that video adds for inbound marketing. In this episode, George Thomas talks about how video bridges sales and marketing with digital customers. Whether we want to reach current customers, prospective customers, or our own employees for professional development, making well-designed videos allows them “to see us, hear us, know us.” There are various ways that you can enhance your business by incorporating video. For example, George Thomas gives you reasons that you should have a video signature on your email so those you communicate with can know about you, what you do, and learn “something fun” about you. A strong video presence is important because 70 percent of a buyer’s journey may be finished by the time they reach you. This is certainly a conversation you will want to hear! I hope you enjoy the full episode now. I appreciate you listening to us discuss the ever-increasing importance of video-based content on the web. Ways to contact George: Website: georgebthomas.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/Mr.GeorgeBThomas Instagram: @georgebthomas LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/georgebthomas Twitter: @GeorgeBThomas YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCT5E1GJlfF4fnGbWlV8AdsA

Google Partners
#27 - Effective Inbound Marketing, with Marcus Sheridan (Part 2)

Google Partners

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 18, 2018 18:16


Many companies sense the value of inbound marketing and use it to some degree. But beyond simply posting articles, keeping up an obligatory blog, or investing more in SEO, what can we do to build real trust and grow business? Marcus Sheridan, author of one of the definitive books on the subject, They Ask, You Answer, is generous with concrete, practical ideas on how to use inbound marketing to drive growth. In fact, his advice is so useful and plentiful, we split his interview into two parts. Guest - Marcus Sheridan, Keynote Speaker, Author, Partner at IMPACT The story of how Marcus saved his swimming pool company from the economic crash of 2008 has been discussed in books, magazines, and university case studies. Today, he is an international speaker known for his unique ability to excite and motivate audiences. In fact, Forbes named Marcus in its list of “Speakers You Don’t Want to Miss.” The New York Times dubbed him a “Web Marketing Guru,” and he has been written about in Inc., The Globe and Mail, Content Marketing Institute, Social Media Examiner, and more. As founder and president of The Sales Lion, he has worked with hundreds of businesses, helping them to become trusted industry voices while growing their market share. As owner and partner at IMPACT, and as owner of Marcus Sheridan International, he motivates clients to achieve their potential. His book, They Ask, You Answer, was listed by Forbes as one of “11 Marketing Books Every CMO Should Read.” Mashable rated it as the “#1 Marketing Book” in 2017.

Build a Better Agency Podcast
Episode 132: Go video or go home with George Thomas

Build a Better Agency Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 16, 2018 52:02


It started with the cats. Who knew cats were trend setters but when it comes to video they were on board long before we were! One of the biggest trends I’ve seen over the last five years is the proliferation of video. You can’t go anywhere (Online, mass transit, Times Square or your home security system) without seeing a video these days. And these are not the videos of old. When I started in the business, we make gorgeous videos, shot on film and painstakingly edited for days. Today’s videos can certainly be that but more often than not – they’re run and gun videos that are often shot, edited and posted the same day, if not in real time. To think any agency can avoid getting proficient at video is a fool’s folly these days and I don’t want ignorance, fear or the “I hate the way I look on video” worry to keep you from evolving your agency’s skills in this area. You simply can’t afford not to be good at video, not to understand how to leverage video and most important – how to create videos for yourself and your clients in a cost effective, profitable way. That is why I invited George B. Thomas onto the Build A Better Agency podcast. This guy gets video and has a passion around it that is infectious. George has an interesting past – he’s a recovering youth pastor, a former pub bouncer, but no matter what his title was, he's always been about helping people at different points in their journey. Now he is the Resident Nerd at the Sales Lion, an inbound and content marketing agency helping businesses become rock stars in their markets. George believes that video is the next step of the inbound marketing evolution. He loves helping businesses wrap their heads around video. As he is quick to tell you – he’s a branding guru, a video marketing ninja, and an inbound Jedi. A little peek into George right there! When he's not running video workshops or speaking around the world, he's hanging out with his family enjoying the beautiful world that is North Carolina. What I love about George is that he's got an energy and a passion for this, which you will feel in this episode, but he also brings the goods in terms of expertise and he's going to get down to the really needy gritty of telling us not only what to do, but how to do it. I want you to listen to this conversation through parallel tracks. First, I want you to listen to it while thinking, “how can video help our clients grow their business and improve their customer’s experience?” But the other lens I want you to be using is, “how do I use video better for the agency and our biz dev efforts?” Some of you are already swimming in these waters but many of you are not. Time to get to it! What you’ll learn about in this episode: Why George believes that getting great at video is the difference between having a successful agency and closing your doors The difference between creative, big budget video that dominated agencies of the past and the much cheaper, revenue-driving videos of today Making quick, easy videos that answer the questions your sales people get the most How to sell clients on making these quick videos The kind of equipment you need to own to make video for yourself and your clients that looks great Everything you need to know to pick the right editing software The skills needed to be great behind the camera and in the editing room The kinds of videos your agency should be producing Why every person in your agency needs a video of themselves in their email signature The danger of being too salesy in your videos How to become more comfortable on camera Why you don’t have to be afraid of live video Misassumptions agencies and other businesses make about video that consumers don’t make Matching the right video to the right platform/audience Ways to contact George Thomas: Free video assessment: thesaleslion.com/assessment Content video workshop: thesaleslion.com/video Facebook: www.facebook.com/Mr.GeorgeBThomas Twitter: @GeorgeBThomas We’re proud to announce that Hubspot is now the presenting sponsor of the Build A Better Agency podcast! Many thanks to them for their support!

Google Partners
#27 - Effective Inbound Marketing, with Marcus Sheridan (Part 1)

Google Partners

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 11, 2018 31:55


Many companies sense the value of inbound marketing and use it to some degree. But beyond simply posting articles, keeping up an obligatory blog, or investing more in SEO, what can we do to build real trust and grow business? Marcus Sheridan, author of one of the definitive books on the subject, They Ask, You Answer, is generous with concrete, practical ideas on how to use inbound marketing to drive growth. In fact, his advice is so useful and plentiful, we split his interview into two parts. Tune in to listen to the second part of this episode on Wednesday, April 18th. Guest - Marcus Sheridan, Keynote Speaker, Author, Partner at IMPACT The story of how Marcus saved his swimming pool company from the economic crash of 2008 has been discussed in books, magazines, and university case studies. Today, he is an international speaker known for his unique ability to excite and motivate audiences. In fact, Forbes named Marcus in its list of “Speakers You Don’t Want to Miss.” The New York Times dubbed him a “Web Marketing Guru,” and he has been written about in Inc., The Globe and Mail, Content Marketing Institute, Social Media Examiner, and more. As founder and president of The Sales Lion, he has worked with hundreds of businesses, helping them to become trusted industry voices while growing their market share. As owner and partner at IMPACT, and as owner of Marcus Sheridan International, he motivates clients to achieve their potential. His book, They Ask, You Answer, was listed by Forbes as one of “11 Marketing Books Every CMO Should Read.” Mashable rated it as the “#1 Marketing Book” in 2017.

Inbound Back Office
E18: Inbound Sales (The Sales Lion)

Inbound Back Office

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 16, 2018 23:58


If your agency does inbound marketing, it's crucial that you get your sales team on board. Marcus Sheridan of The Sales Lion talks about why that's important and how to do it.

Inbound Back Office
E18: Inbound Sales (The Sales Lion)

Inbound Back Office

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 16, 2018 23:58


If your agency does inbound marketing, it's crucial that you get your sales team on board. Marcus Sheridan of The Sales Lion talks about why that's important and how to do it.

Creator's Block
Ep. 62: How to Be Great Creative Collaborators & Project Managers

Creator's Block

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 27, 2018 74:23


We’ve talked a lot about collaboration, feedback, and project management in very abstract, generalized ways in previous episodes. But for the past two to three weeks, Christine and I have been proverbially attached at the hip to complete two massive projects with substantial content and design requirements. For example, she and I -- with an assist from a few others -- had to stand up five new, from-scratch IMPACT website pages in a single week that were associated with our merger with The Sales Lion.  Then, yesterday morning, she and I launched a more than 10,000-word pillar content offer for IMPACT about everything companies need to do before the pick up the phone to call a web design agency. Granted, these two projects -- and their insane timelines -- were fringe cases, but they were also the first time Christine and I got to really work with each other in such an intense way since I officially joined the internal brand team. More to the point, we had a crash course in how to not only successfully get big creative projects across the finish line, but also how to establish a rock-solid foundation for a long-lasting, collaborative marketer-and-designer relationship. Since these projects are still so fresh in our minds, we thought this would be a great time to have Christine on as a guest to provide candid insights on what we did well, what we could have done better, and what it really takes for marketers and designers to partner up and be successful -- whether you're working on an in-house team or for clients in an agency setting. Enjoy!

Inspired Money
025: Increasing Sales by Answering Customers' Questions | Marcus Sheridan

Inspired Money

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 5, 2018 51:01


Inbound marketing saved Marcus Sheridan's business, his family's finances, and brought him to the place where he is today -- a successful business owner, keynote speaker, and author. We dig into the mindset it takes to be successful in marketing/sales and more. Guest Biography Called a “web marketing guru” by the New York Times, the Story of how Marcus Sheridan was able to save his swimming pool company, River Pools, from the economic crash of 2008 has been featured in multiple books, publications, and stories around the world—and is also the inspiration for his newest book, “They Ask, You Answer,” which was dubbed the #1 marketing book to read in 2017 by Mashable.   Known for his incredibly unique ability to engage live audiences, Sheridan has become a highly sought after global speaker and consultant in the digital sales and marketing space, working with hundreds of business and brands alike to become the most trusted voice of their industry while navigating the ultra-fast rate of change occurring within consumers and buyers today.   No one ever says, “When I grow up, I want to be a pool guy.”   Neither did Marcus Sheridan when he was a youth being raised in the small town of Callao, Virginia.   But that’s exactly what he was for 10 years of his life—a decade that would go on to become the foundation of his incredible “They Ask, You Answer” story, one where his swimming pool company would go from near bankruptcy to one of the most successful pool builders in the entire country while being featured in multiple best-selling books, the New York Times, and many other publications.   For Sheridan though, one can trace his success as a business and communications thought-leader today back to his time spent as a missionary for his church, when he lived in Chile for two years from 1997-1999. During this time there, Sheridan, who had never spoken Spanish and up to that point had a fear of public speaking, was constantly put in positions to speak to and teach large audiences.   Eventually, Sheridan’s fear for public speaking would turn into a strength. By the end of his mission, he realized he had a knack for explaining complex subjects in a way audiences could easily understand and relate to them.   Furthermore, he could see that audiences seemed to resonate with his unique, interactive speaking style, something he would end up using full time as a professional speaker 15 years later.   After his mission, Sheridan married his high school sweetheart, Nikki, and finished his degree at West Virginia University. While looking for his first post-college job, Sheridan was approached by two close friends from home who had just started a swimming pool company—River Pools and Spas. Upon asking him to be the first employee of their fledgling company, Sheridan responded:   “Sure, at least until I find my ‘real’ job.”   The rest, as they say, is history. Sheridan’s two friends invited him to join them as owners 6 months later, and for the next decade, he would help River Pools and Spas find the ultimate success it did.   With such success, Sheridan started his personal blog, The Sales Lion in 2009. By focusing on an array of sales, marketing, and personal development issues—Sheridan developed a large following and eventually, the site was recognized as one of the top 10 Social Media sites on the web.   The momentum with The Sales Lion naturally led to speaking and business opportunities for Sheridan, where today, he and his team are internationally known for keynotes, workshops, sales/marketing coaching, and HubSpot training.   But outside of all this, the thing that means most to Sheridan remains the marriage he has to his wife (Nikki) of 15 years and their 4 children: Danielle, JT, Larsen, and Casey. In fact, if you happen to run into Marcus at a conference or event, there is a very good chance one of these 5 is right there with him. Show notes: http://www.inspiredmoney.fm/025 In this episode, you will learn: Whether you’re a business owner or trying to build your personal brand, learn the mindset that can bring you success. Elements of effective business blogging. Why it’s important to become a world class communicator and how that can positively impact your life. Links The Sales Lion Twitter LinkedIn YouTube Instagram Google+ Marcus' book: They Ask You Answer: A Revolutionary Approach to Inbound Sales, Content Marketing, and Today's Digital Consumer IMPACT Branding and Design River Pools and Spas Video: INBOUND Bold Talks: Marcus Sheridan Thanks for Listening! To share your thoughts: Leave a note in the comment section below. Share this show on Twitter or Facebook. To help out the show: Leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts. Your ratings and reviews really help, and I read each one. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts. Special thanks to Jim Kimo West for the music.

Social Media Marketing Podcast
How to Use Video Content to Sell - 287

Social Media Marketing Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 2, 2018 43:46


Wondering how video can support your sales process? Looking for tips on how to use video in your marketing funnel? In this episode, I interview Marcus Sheridan, an amazing keynote speaker. Formerly known as The Sales Lion, Marcus is a partner at a digital sales and marketing agency.  Show notes: https://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/287

The Storytellers Network
Season 1, Episode 5: Marcus Sheridan (#005)

The Storytellers Network

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 15, 2018 54:52


Marcus Sheridan, The Sales Lion or The River Pools Pool Guy -- depending on how you know him, talks about storytelling, owning your story and helpful marketing in this episode of The Storytellers Network with Dan Moyle.

Marketer-to-Marketer - #M2M
Sherri Powers and Marcus Sheridan on Video Marketing and Sales Integration

Marketer-to-Marketer - #M2M

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 19, 2017 28:38


Video marketing is no longer the future, it is the now, and it’s becoming more and more attainable according to this week’s hosts, Marcus Sheridan and Sherri Powers. Marcus is the Founder and CEO of The Sales Lion and Sherri Powers is the Director of Marketing at TechSmith Corporation.Marcus works to share with his audience the basics of video marketing so that they can meet consumer’s expectations. “If you say, "It's our people that make us different," it doesn't matter because everybody else in the marketplace is saying it. Unless you show it, it's not true. Or if you say, "Our product or service is the best," doesn't matter because everybody else is also saying it. Unless we show it, it's not true.”Marcus gives us some Video Marketing tips on his Sales Lion Youtube channel.Sherri believes that the key to successful video content lies in authenticity: “One of the biggest hang-ups I see marketers having in creating video is the fear that it had to be perfect. Or that a video's not a video if it's not perfectly polished, with an intro and an outro and all the right transitions in between. I think some of the most successful content that I've seen out there is just brands being authentic.”Watch these two video experts as they discuss their own approaches to sharing video marketing knowledge with their audience and clients.https://enterprisemarketer.com/podcasts/m2m/season-01-show-03/

The Business of Video Marketing - YouTube, Facebook Live Streaming, & Online Video Ads, Strategy for Entrepreneurs

George B Thomas of The Sales Lion is an expert in shooting video with just a mobile device. In this episode, you will get all the tips, tricks, and tactics on shooting video with your mobile device. G E T  L I V E  A L E R T S:      thebusinessofvideopodcast.com S H O W  S P O N S O R:      The Video Marketing Toolkit   Your smartphone is very capable of recording videos, and you can look for apps and equipment to make your smartphone better! WHAT DO YOU NEED TO GET STARTED? There are two main places to go, Bescript.com and iorgapher.com First, think about what you can put on around your phone so you can focus on lighting, audio, and stability of your phone. Next, start looking at apps that you can download to help with production. With BeScript you can use those nice camera lenses to shoot on your phone! WHAT MOBILE APPS SHOULD YOU BE USING? For recording, Film Like A Pro and Movie Pro. Film Like A Pro has a super simple interface. You have many presets that help you quickly shoot in the style to your liking. Movie Pro has an actual editor built into it, but use this one more for just shooting. For editing Luma Fusion allows you to edit similar to Adobe Premiere Pro. You can also use Premiere Clips. This is good for creating a rough draft before cleaning it up when you have time. These apps are very easy for EVERYONE to use. The apps mentioned above work on both iPhone and Android. First get the gear you want to use. Second, you need to make sure you have enough room on your phone. Make sure the notifications are off so you do not get disrupted during your shooting. Have bullet points on what the video will be about. DON'T SAVE YOUR VIDEO TO YOUR PHONE! When you save your video to your phone, it compresses it and you lose the quality of the original video. You may want to have two audio sources when recording then you have two choose from in case something happens with one.    

Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saunders, MBA
Marcus Sheridan The Sales Lion

Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saunders, MBA

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 17, 2017 23:21


No one ever says, “When I grow up, I want to be a pool guy.”Neither did Marcus Sheridan when he was a youth being raised in the small town of Callao Virginia.But that’s exactly what he was for 10 years of his life—a decade that would go on to become the foundation of his incredible “They Ask, You Answer” story, one where his swimming pool company would go from near bankruptcy to one of the most successful pool builders in the entire country while being featured in multiple best-selling books, the New York Times, and many other publications.In 2015 alone, award-winning speaker Marcus Sheridan has traveled the globe, giving multiple sales, marketing, and leadership keynotes in a total of 8 different countries and 24 states. Sheridan, along with team member George Thomas, can be counted on to teach, inspire, and move audiences of all sizes to action while embracing today’s digital consumer and new way of doing business.Learn More: www.thesaleslion.comInfluential Influencers with Mike Saundershttp://businessinnovatorsradio.com/influential-entrepreneurs-with-mike-saunders/

Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saunders, MBA
Marcus Sheridan The Sales Lion

Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saunders, MBA

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 17, 2017 23:21


No one ever says, “When I grow up, I want to be a pool guy.”Neither did Marcus Sheridan when he was a youth being raised in the small town of Callao Virginia.But that’s exactly what he was for 10 years of his life—a decade that would go on to become the foundation of his incredible “They Ask, You Answer” story, one where his swimming pool company would go from near bankruptcy to one of the most successful pool builders in the entire country while being featured in multiple best-selling books, the New York Times, and many other publications.In 2015 alone, award-winning speaker Marcus Sheridan has traveled the globe, giving multiple sales, marketing, and leadership keynotes in a total of 8 different countries and 24 states. Sheridan, along with team member George Thomas, can be counted on to teach, inspire, and move audiences of all sizes to action while embracing today’s digital consumer and new way of doing business.Learn More: www.thesaleslion.comInfluential Influencers with Mike Saundershttp://businessinnovatorsradio.com/influential-entrepreneurs-with-mike-saunders/

Agency Journey
How Agencies Can Dominate Video Marketing with George B. Thomas from The Sales Lion

Agency Journey

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 16, 2017 33:26


In this epiosde of Agency Journey, George Thomas from The Sales Lion shares how you can leverage for yourself and bring video marketing services to your clients. Enjoy! 

LIVETHEFUEL - Health, Business, Lifestyle
105: They Ask, You Answer with The Passionate Sales Lion

LIVETHEFUEL - Health, Business, Lifestyle

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 28, 2017 59:46


A Passionate and Interactive Co-Host, The Sales Lion Himself: Our co-host today has been called a “web marketing guru” by the New York Times. The Story of how he was able to save his swimming pool company, River Pools, from the economic crash of 2008 has been featured in multiple books, publications, and stories around the world. It is also the inspiration for his newest book, “They Ask, You Answer,” which was dubbed the #1 marketing book to read in 2017 by Mashable. Known for his incredibly unique ability to engage live audiences, Marcus Sheridan has become a highly sought after global speaker and consultant in the digital sales and marketing space, working with hundreds of business and brands alike to become the most trusted voice of their industry while navigating the ultra-fast rate of change occurring within consumers and buyers today. (http://thesaleslion.com) On This Episode You Will Hear: [spp-timestamp time="01:30"] The Sales Lion joins us as our latest co-host for a fun conversation. [spp-timestamp time="03:30"] Sales as a Profession vs a Job. Marcus doesn't agree with the point that nobody likes to be sold to. [spp-timestamp time="06:45"] 70% of the buying decision has already been made before we walk in the door these days. [spp-timestamp time="07:45"] Channeling They Ask, You Answer to save his pool business. [spp-timestamp time="08:45"] The online content that took him 45 minutes to write on his kitchen table has generated over $3.5 million in sales. [spp-timestamp time="10:45"] Active Listening vs Just Listening. [spp-timestamp time="13:45"] Good Parenting as a Teacher. [spp-timestamp time="16:25"] Analyzing how Tony Robbins works. [spp-timestamp time="17:35"] World Class Communication. [spp-timestamp time="18:50"] Marcus' #1 frustrated email that he receives. [spp-timestamp time="20:05"] You can be a profit to the world but nobody listens to you in your hometown. [spp-timestamp time="25:00"] How do YOU propose we solve the problem. [spp-timestamp time="28:00"] The #1 thing that dictates someones compensation in 2017. [spp-timestamp time="31:30"] Marcus' disappointment with George Washington University. [spp-timestamp time="32:45"] Read outside the lines, we don't need to follow outdated systems. Marcus' 16-year-old daughter travels the world with him since she was 14! [spp-timestamp time="33:45"] His daughter rocked her first keynote speaking opportunity, opening for Marcus, at a recent Content Marketing Academy. [spp-timestamp time="34:35"] His daughters 15-year-old entrepreneurial journey into the glitter eyeshadow market. [spp-timestamp time="38:50"] She said "Why Not Me". [spp-timestamp time="40:20"] Living Spouse, Family, First. [spp-timestamp time="45:00"] Updating your website with a section for the problems you solve. [spp-timestamp time="46:00"] Updating your website with a section for who you are not a good fit for. [spp-timestamp time="47:30"] Saying NO to prospects to grow your success. Save yourselves from the ones that cause you all the stress. [spp-timestamp time="53:50"] Final Words   [spp-tweet tweet="Is It Possible That This Applies to Me?! Listen in with @TheSalesLion @LIVETHEFUEL "] [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YG6wnisRwak] Links and Resources: TheSalesLion.com (http://thesaleslion.com) @TheSalesLion on Twitter (https://twitter.com/TheSalesLion) @TheSalesLion on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TheSalesLion/) @TheSalesLion on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/thesaleslion/) @TheSalesLion on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2X9pBr24FsAMRgDhiUTTdw) River Pools (http://www.riverpoolsandspas.com/) Marcus Sheridan on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcussheridan/) Marcus Sheridan on...

LIVETHEFUEL - Health, Business, Lifestyle
101: Content Marketing, Get Customers, Grow Your Business

LIVETHEFUEL - Health, Business, Lifestyle

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 14, 2017 56:17


Your Content Marketing Academy Founder & Co-Host: A human being and Dad to Spencer. Your latest co-host enjoys doing more of what makes him happy. He's an award winning community creator from the United Kingdom. 2009 – 2011 was a transitional time for Chris. He was studying academically and non-academically, Chris started blogging and was fired up about the potential of social media and content marketing. This is when he started to help small businesses in his spare time, cutting his teeth with social media and content for commercial enterprises. It makes sense now, looking back, that when he left his job to go to the university, that he decided to never work for anyone else, ever again. "So, my story isn’t that dramatic – I didn’t quit my job to become an entrepreneur. I simply decided to not get a job after university." - Chris Marr CMA was registered in 2012 and Chris become a Director the day he graduated from the University of St. Andrews in June 2013. "No one has ever asked me about my degree, and no one has ever asked me for my CV. This stuff doesn’t matter anymore." - Chris Marr Click and Read about Chris Marr of Content Marketing Academy... (https://www.thecontentmarketingacademy.co.uk/about/)   On This Episode You Will Hear: [spp-timestamp time="01:00"] Intro [spp-timestamp time="10:30"] Obsessed with the customers you have vs the customers you don't have. [spp-timestamp time="11:05"] Get customers for "less than free". [spp-timestamp time="17:25"] Allowing mistakes to happen and to learn from them. [spp-tweet tweet="The biggest killer in most businesses is complacency isn't it? @hellocma @LIVETHEFUEL "] [spp-timestamp time="20:50"] The biggest killer of most businesses is complacency. [spp-timestamp time="24:40"] Chris loves to teach. [spp-timestamp time="32:00"] Creating speaking freedom by building lifestyle freedom into his business. [spp-timestamp time="35:20"] Chris' first "real job" at 19. [spp-timestamp time="38:35"] Massive influence from Marcus Sheridan aka The Sales Lion. [spp-timestamp time="40:00"] Being a great speaker doesn't just come from having a successful business, best-selling book, etc. [spp-timestamp time="44:20"] I lot of people don't know what they don't know when it comes to public speaking. [spp-timestamp time="44:35"] The World Class Communication Workshop at CMA and creating the World Class Communicator Podcast coming soon. [spp-timestamp time="50:00"] Final Words     [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UYLhiy-4C0]   Links and Resources: CMA (https://www.thecontentmarketingacademy.co.uk) CMA Podcast (https://www.thecontentmarketingacademy.co.uk/podcast/) CMA Membership (https://www.thecontentmarketingacademy.co.uk/community/) CMA on Twitter (https://twitter.com/hellocma) Chris Marr's Blog - Be Less Busy (http://www.chrismarr.co.uk/be-less-busy/) Chris Marr on Twitter (https://twitter.com/chrismarr101) Chris Marr on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrismarr101) Chris Marr on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/chrismarr102) Chris Marr on Instagram (http://www.instagram.com/chrismarr101) People Mentioned: Mark Asquith (https://www.excellence-expected.com/) Marcus Sheridan aka The Sales Lion (https://www.thesaleslion.com/meet-the-sales-lion/meet-marcus-2/) Ryan Holliday (https://ryanholiday.net/) Final Words: You have to live for yourself. You have to stay true to yourself. Don't get distracted by too many other people, your competition, etc. Keep moving forward all the time. Embrace those mistakes. The quote, "The Obstacle is the Way" from Ryan Holliday. Action Steps: Please  Submit an iTunes Show Rating & Review (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/livethefuel/id1150969758?mt=2) , we need more reviews to increase...

Agency Intelligence
Who Do You Listen to That’s Actually Right?

Agency Intelligence

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 10, 2017 19:42


There’s only one person’s advice that has proven itself right time and time again. That person is Marcus Sheridan, The Sales Lion, who provides the most practical and effective marketing advice for insurance agents. There’s a lot of different people trying to sell you their version of success, but you need to make sure it’s […] The post Who Do You Listen to That’s Actually Right? appeared first on .

Agency Intelligence
Who Do You Listen to That’s Actually Right?

Agency Intelligence

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 10, 2017 19:40


There’s only one person’s advice that has proven itself right time and time again. That person is Marcus Sheridan, The Sales Lion, who provides the most practical and effective marketing advice for insurance agents. There’s a lot of different people trying to sell you their version of success, but you need to make sure it’s […] The post Who Do You Listen to That’s Actually Right? appeared first on .

Begin Self-Publishing Podcast
Ep 106: They Ask, You Answer for Fiction with Marcus Sheridan

Begin Self-Publishing Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 9, 2017 25:00


In this episode and I talk to Marcus Sheridan who is the owner of a swimming pool company who suddenly learned in the days when his business was suffering in the recession that by creating an absolutely amazing blog just about the questions people have about swimming pools, he managed to hold his company back from the point of oblivion just by doing blogging and answering questions. He's now known as the Sales Lion and goes around training people internationally on how to do Content Marketing for fiction especially focusing on answering the questions that readers actually have. You can find full show notes at http://beginselfpublishing.com/content-marketing-fiction

Marketing Speak
93: Sell Like a Lion and Lead the Pride with Marcus Sheridan

Marketing Speak

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 2, 2017 55:45


Today’s guest, Marcus Sheridan, AKA the Sales Lion, has been called a web marketing guru by the New York Times, perhaps thanks to his sometimes unconventional advice on what sales techniques really work. We discuss deeply valuable information that gives insight into how customers think and behave, and how this relates to what you should do in your sales process. In today’s conversation, Marcus will talk about how to influence the buying criteria of your prospects to preempt their objections, and how to differentiate yourself in a sea of competitors. Find Out More About Marcus Here: Marcus Sheridan on LinkedIn @TheSalesLion on Twitter The Sales Lion Meet Marcus Sheridan Marcus Edward Sheridan on River Pools River Pools In This Episode: [01:17] - Marcus talks about the biggest mistakes that he sees people make in sales. [02:48] - What would be some of the best practices or tips for getting your sales to be more effective? As he answers, Marcus explains that he owns two companies. He then gives deeply valuable information that gives insight into how customers think and behave, and how this relates to what you should do in your sales process. [07:31] - Stephan agrees that there is reluctance to make costs public. Marcus then steps in to clarify what he’s been saying. [09:52] - Marcus steers the conversation to swimming pools to illustrate his point about being more transparent with pricing. [14:10] - What are the best ways to package these buyer-based questions? Is it best done, for example, as an article, a YouTube video, a downloadable buyer’s guide, or something else entirely? [16:59] - The goal, Marcus explains, is to preemptively answer the 80% of questions that are the same across most first sales calls. [18:06] - We hear about an interaction between Chris Sacca and Kobe Bryant that Marcus read about. [19:29] - Stephan recently created a welcome or intake packet that includes a questionnaire for people to fill out before he talks with them. [20:30] - Marcus makes one further point, talking about the pool industry again. [22:08] - Point one is to list the questions that people ask and link to the answer on every product page; what are the other points that will transform the website and facilitate sales? Marcus offers an incredibly valuable exercise to help you figure out how to better address customers’ concerns. [25:54] - Marcus offers a third activity, which involves writing down every claim you make about your company. [27:47] - Marcus gives us two more tips as a bonus round. He talks about making a website section called “Problems We Solve.” His fifth and final tip here is to make a section on your website about who you’re not a good fit for. [31:48] - As Marcus went through those five points, Stephan was thinking about how they would make a perfect five-day challenge. He then goes into more depth about these challenges, including a recent one of his own. [36:54] - What is the best approach to doing a webinar? After answering, Marcus talks more about what he does instead of webinars. [41:20] - Marcus talks about how reacts to pushback about his insistence on using video during sales calls. [45:21] - Stephan brings us back to the topic of public speaking. Marcus offers some suggestions on groups for listeners to check out, then gives advice on how to progress in a speaking career. [49:32] - We hear more about moving from free national events to paid events. Marcus then offers one of the keys to speaking: if you do a good job on one talk, you’ll likely get three or four others from it. [52:43] - If you’ve just done a fantastic job on a speech, how do you turn the attendees into leads? [53:58] - Marcus explains why he chose the name the “Sales Lion.” Links and Resources: Marcus Sheridan on LinkedIn @TheSalesLion on Twitter The Sales Lion Meet Marcus Sheridan Marcus Edward Sheridan on River Pools River Pools They Ask You Answer 10 Marketing Books to Read in 2017 (Mashable) Inc. Magazine Chris Sacca Kobe Bryant Chris Sacca’s interaction with Kobe Bryant The SEO Maximizer Five-Day Challenge Answer the Public Mike Mandel on the Optimized Geek Leaddigits Instant Customer  

Hire Power Radio
Marcus Sheridan: Conquer The Elephant In The Room And WIN Over The Talent You Need To Hire To Succeed

Hire Power Radio

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 28, 2017 23:53


What is the “elephant in the room,” and how can you conquer it? Trust! This week on Hire Power Radio Show, Marcus Sheridan, president of The Sales Lion and author of They Ask, You Answer, (Amazon.com) joined us to discuss how a company’s reputation, and the unspoken issues surrounding it, can impact hiring/recruitment, and how being open with candidates about the “elephant in the room” can build trust and win over the talent you need to hire. Called a “web marketing guru” by the New York Times, the Story of how Marcus Sheridan was able to save his swimming pool company, River Pools, from the economic crash of 2008 has been featured in multiple books, publications, and stories around the world—and is also the inspiration for his newest book, They Ask, You Answer, which was dubbed the #1 marketing book to read in 2017 by Mashable. Known for his incredibly unique ability to engage live audiences, Sheridan has become a highly sought after global speaker and consultant in the digital sales and marketing space, working with hundreds of business and brands alike to become the most trusted voice of their industry while navigating the ultra- fast rate of change occurring within consumers and buyers today. To learn more about Marcus Sheridan, visit thesaleslion.com. Check out the Blog on the Stride Search, Inc site for the supplementary “show recap” article with detailed takeaways/insights from the interview.

Neon Noise Podcast
E34 - The Power of Simply Answering Questions with Marcus Sheridan

Neon Noise Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 12, 2017 39:22


In the Fall of 2008, Marcus Sheridan was fighting to keep his swimming pool company alive. To save his company, knew he needed to get more traffic and leads to his website. He began blogging about all the most common questions he heard from customers. This lead to his company having the most trafficked swimming pool website in the world. Single blog posts would bring in over $1 Million in revenue. This led to amazing growth for his swimming pool company and the birth of Sales Lion, his marketing and sales consultancy and speaking agency. In this episode, Marcus talks about: How the economic fall in 2008 became a major pivot point for him. The changes in consumer behavior and its impact on marketing and sales. What the Ostrich Marketing Strategy is. How companies like Uber, Netflix, and Tesla can have success disrupting markets that no one though could be penetrated. The 5 types of content subjects that have the greatest impact. ... and much more. We hope this energized interview with Marcus Sheridan gets you blood pumping and wheels turning about how you can gain so much by simply answering the questions your customers are asking.

Video Marketing Mastery with Todd Hartley: Online Video Strategy | YouTube Tips | Video Production
Ep. 101: How to Supercharge Your Content Strategy with Video (with Marcus Sheridan)

Video Marketing Mastery with Todd Hartley: Online Video Strategy | YouTube Tips | Video Production

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 11, 2017 43:11


It used to be if you wanted to make a purchase or do business with someone, you would have to get on the phone or meet with a sales rep. But it’s 2017, and the ways in which we prefer to make a buying decision has drastically changed. Customers are bypassing your sales team and doing their own research on their own time. They don’t want to be hassled by a sales rep; they’d rather read reviews, browse your website, and search YouTube to get their questions answered. In fact, most of your customers don’t want to deal with a salesperson until they have to make a purchase. Now more than ever, the buyer is in control of the sales process, not the salesperson. Today, a smooth buyers journey is paved with content (at least for businesses that adapt), and if you want to more customers to the finish line sooner, video is the way to go. If there’s anyone who understands the role and value of video in the sales process, it’s Marcus Sheridan. You might know him as The Sales Lion, but to me, he’s the king of using content to build trust and drive sales. That’s why I’ve invited Marcus to join me again on the podcast to talk about how buying habits have changed, and how smart businesses are using content — not sales people — to sell their products or services. Tune in to hear how your business can use the most powerful sales tool to pave the way for your customers — video!

B2B Growth
442: Stop Overthinking It: How to Implement Video Into Your Strategy w/ George Thomas

B2B Growth

Play Episode Listen Later May 27, 2017 20:27


In this episode we talk to George Thomas, Inbound and Brand Strategist at The Sales Lion.

#SMBMad Podcast
33 - Creating an Inbound Marketing Strategy Without Blowing Your Budget On Tools

#SMBMad Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later May 23, 2017 37:25


33 - Creating an Inbound Marketing Strategy Without Blowing Your Budget On Tools (May 17, 2017) Hubspot expert George B. Thomas, kicked off Wednesday’s Social Media Breakfast with a jam session, wowing the crowd with his beatboxing skills. George is also a self-described “inbound Jedi” at The Sales Lion. George dove right in asking the crowd about their knowledge of inbound and content marketing. He said in his work over the years, he’s found that there are two main problems people face when coming up with a plan – the buyer and budget. He illustrated his buyer point with a picture of actor Ed O’Neill, who played shoe guy Al Bundy on the hit show Married with Children. George then showed a picture of Zappos, an online shoe and clothing shop. George said Zappos changed the game and is now the shoe guy. “They made it so that you can buy them online, get them, try them and send them back. Things are changing. People are more than willing to get anything they need online,” he said. So how do you build your own inbound marketing machine? “There are many moving parts to an inbound machine. Social media, analytics, SEO, automation, content, lead conversion, lead nurturing. These are all the buzz words about things we should be doing to do a digital business right,” George said. George asked the crowd if they use WordPress for their websites and received an overwhelming response. He then discussed various tools to use with WordPress sites. Content, design and development Visual Composer – Page builder plugin for WordPress. Gives you a lot of functionality and allows you to set up your pages the way you want to set them up. Cost: $34 one-time fee George said once you get your website set up, you should be measuring everything that’s happening. Measure your website and consider these tools: Google Analytics MonsterInsights Slim Stat Analytics To drive people to your website, George said focus on keywords and keyword questions. Thinking about experiences with Google, Siri and Alexa, people simply ask them a question. George has started coaching his clients on using keyword questions. Increase website traffic consider these tools: Ahrefs Yoast Your website is looking good, you’re measuring results and you’re bringing people to the website because you’re using keywords. Now, how do you convert those people to leads? Convert web visitors to leads consider one of these tools: Mautic Inbound Now George said you have to make your site look good, measure everything and focus on the questions that people are asking. “We need to get them in a position where they convert and then we need to be able to segment those contacts and nurture them down the buyer’s journey into our sales and marketing funnel,” he said. “Go forth and become an inbound marketing hero and rock out the world!” To learn more about Social Media breakfast: www.SMBMad.org To learn more about George head to: www.TheSalesLion.com

Crack the Customer Code
211: Marcus Sheridan, They Ask, You Answer

Crack the Customer Code

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 10, 2017 37:04


Marcus Sheridan, author of They Ask You Answer, shares powerful, proven ways to build trust and increase sales through content. Marcus Sheridan, Sales Lion You want to increase sales, but you don’t have unlimited funds for advertising… What can you do? Believe it or not, this may put you at an advantage. Today’s guest, Marcus Sheridan, isn’t just a sales expert. He is a “Sales Lion!” And he’s here to tell you how content marketing can not only save your business, but push it towards exponential growth. “We can either make the rules…or we can watch our competitors make the rules…” -Marcus Sheridan Maybe you don’t know the first thing about content marketing, or maybe your strategy isn’t getting the results you want. Don’t fret! Marcus started from scratch as a last effort to save his business after the market collapse of 2008, and he’s seen phenomenal growth ever since. Today, we cover how to get started with content marketing, how to determine what customers need the most, and how to marry this up with long-standing sales techniques. This episode covers so much ground, so get ready to build trust like never before. “When all is said and done, the only thing that really matters is trust.” -Marcus Sheridan You’re going to have things to do after this episode, so sharpen your pencils and listen in! Highlights from the interview: Marcus explains how the philosophy of “They Ask, You Answer” saved his business. [2:50] Why is trust so important in sales and marketing, and how can content build that trust? [7:15] If 70% of buying decisions are made before customers meet us, how can we get through the vetting process? [10:40] What is the “ostrich marketing strategy,” and why is it so effective? [15:00] How can we “disarm” customers, or get them to let their guard down and be receptive to communication? [16:40] Marcus shares best practices around sharing prices (or not) on company websites. [24:00] About our guest: Called a “web marketing guru” by the New York Times, the Story of how Marcus Sheridan was able to save his swimming pool company, River Pools, from the economic crash of 2008 has been featured in multiple books, publications, and stories around the world—and is also the inspiration for his newest book, “They Ask, You Answer,” which was dubbed the #1 marketing book to read in 2017 by Mashable. Today, Sheridan has become a highly sought after global speaker and consultant in the digital sales and marketing space, working with hundreds of business and brands alike to become the most trusted voice of their industry while navigating the ultra-fast rate of change occurring within consumers and buyers today. Connect with Marcus LinkedIn Twitter Website Email: marcus@thesaleslion.com Related Content 360Connext® post, No Longer a Buzzword: Customers Redefine Transparency Episode 205: Colin Shaw, The Intuitive Customer Episode 104: Pat Helmers, Sales Babble Podcast We’re on C-Suite Radio! Check it out for more great podcasts Sponsor message: Develop your customer experience mission Do you know how to deliver the superior customer experience you visualize? We can help your team become a force for positive change, starting with a customer-centric mission. The Customer Experience Investigators™ at 360Connext specialize in helping companies across industries and around the globe. Developing and internalizing unique and scalable customer-focused missions has been crucial to their success. Want to compete with the other 89% of companies staying afloat by providing better experiences? You need a compass for making astounding changes in the customer experience while breaking down the silos that are holding you back. We offer evaluations, workshops, and roadmaps to keep your wheels firmly planted on the road to a customer-centric future. Join us on our mission To Create Fewer Ruined Days for Customers™ today. Visit us at 360Connext.com.   Take care of yourself and take care of your customers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

REACH OR MISS
Ep. 003 – ​ How to lead the market by answering questions your competitors Never answer with Marcus Sheridan

REACH OR MISS

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 20, 2017 27:43


Marcus Sheridan Show Notes Called a Web Marketing guru by the new York times, the story of how Marcus Sherridan was able to save his swimming pool company “Riverpools” form the economic crush of 2008, has been featured in multiple books, publications and stories around the world. It is also the inspiration for his newest book “They Ask You Answer” which was dubbed the number 1 marketing book to read in 2017 by Mashable. Today, Sherridan has become a highly thought after global speaker and consultant in the digital sales and marketing space, working with hundreds of business and brands alike to become the trusted voice of their industry when navigating the ultra fast rate of change occurring within consumers and buyers today. Most passionate about “Nobody ever grows up and says they want to be a pool guy…”, Marcus Sheridan believes he had to go through the crush of 2008 almost losing his swimming pool business in order to become what he is today, a teacher trying to help companies and organizations see the world differently and  see themselves as teachers in order to build a trust. The next step I think I had to do what I do today in order to get to where I want to be, and talk about the intersection between personal and profession. There are so many principles to success that are relevant to our business life but they impact us as much in our personal life. Marcus want to get to speak to even more and bigger audiences about how they can reach a full fulfilment in their life personally and professionally. Company Today River Pools (http://www.riverpoolsandspas.com/) (Marcus’s first company) is the most trafficked swimming pool website in the world. We went from being a struggling retailer to manufacturing swimming pools throughout the United States having dealers looking for us, we install swimming pools throughout Virginia-Maryland and it’s all because we said we are going to be the best teachers in the world for fiberglass pools. That’s the thing that did it. The Sales Lion (https://www.thesaleslion.com/) started as a personal website where Marcus started to write his thoughts on sales and business. It’s all started in 2009 in order to save the swimming pools business and it worked! And he felt he needs to tell everybody about it… For the first year he didn’t think anybody was listening, it didn’t get much traffic and then all of a sudden people started to read and Marcus was invited to speak at an event and then two … It just snowballed… Today the Sales Lion is a consultancy that help small medium businesses to become leaders in their space and thus to be the most trusted voice, with what we call “Social Media”. The customer Marcus believes the most important point is not to find who you are but rather when you understand what you are not, you understand What can you be best in. that’s what defines who your customers are. Does the concept of “they ask you answer” works for entrepreneurs? A lot of customers don’t even ask about an innovative unfamiliar product. Even though customers might not have a question about the new product or service, they do ask a lot about the problem. In business the product is always built by the problem. When it comes to the way consumers / buyers think and buy and shop there are five subjects every consumer or customer is looking at: – How much it cost? – What are the problems with it? (Negatives) – How it compares to other things in the market, – What everybody are saying about it (reviews) – What product is the best? Unfortunately most companies aren’t willing to talk about it. You want to become not only the experts of your niche but the expert of the things that leads the marketplace Biggest failure with a customer Marcus gave two stories….! The first failure was when he hired an accounted manager and almost lost his swimming pool...

Bella In Your Business: Pet Industry Business Podcast
Episode 38: Branding & Content Marketing With George Thomas

Bella In Your Business: Pet Industry Business Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 16, 2017 30:18


On this episode Bella speaks with George Thomas, Inbound Marketing & Brand Strategist for The Sales Lion.  George also specializes in training people on HubSpot. George spent  15 years working in a traditional marketing agency to design and build websites and  other types of content. George then joined The Sales Lion where as an inbound designer and brand strategist. […]

Youpreneur FM Podcast
How to Communicate Like a Pro, with Marcus Sheridan

Youpreneur FM Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 8, 2017 28:09


There is one skill that all entrepreneurs strive to master to help push their businesses forward: communication. Whether it's communicating with customers, an audience or even with your own team, it matters. In this episode, I'm joined by author, communication coach and keynote speaker, Marcus Sheridan also popularly known as the "Sales Lion" as we have a great fireside chat about communicating like a pro, why he wrote his latest book and so much more. Marcus talks about the essence of great content, the importance of listening and acknowledging how you started out. Marcus and I also talk about home life and why Marcus thinks he is winning big at home as much as he is in business. This was a great talk with Marcus, as we dove into not just the business aspect but also the personal as well which I know a lot of listeners can appreciate so get that note pad read, sit back and enjoy. Essential Learning Points From This Episode:Why Marcus is still called "The Pool Guy". Why the greatest marketers today are all about listening. He also talks about the difference between success and fulfillment. Why Marcus believes mixing personal and professional can be a skill that can be learned. Much, much more! Important Links & Mentions From This Episode: Marcus Sheridan's website (https://www.thesaleslion.com/) Marcus Sheridan on Twitter (https://twitter.com/TheSalesLion) They Ask You Answer: A Revolutionary Approach to Inbound Sales, Content Marketing and Today's Digital Consumer (http://amzn.to/2ksnf9c) Gary Vaynerchuk (https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/) Pencils of Promise (https://pencilsofpromise.org/) Personal Branding Roadmap (http://youpreneur.com/ebook) Sign-up for the FREE Youpreneur Launchpad Training Course (http://chrisducker.com/launchpad) Youpreneur Personal Brand Business Building Community (http://youpreneuracademy.com/) Thank You for Tuning In!There are a lot of podcasts you could be tuning into today, but you chose mine, and I'm grateful for that. If you enjoyed today's show, please share it by using the social media buttons you see at the top and bottom of this page. Also, kindly consider taking the 60-seconds it takes to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes (https://www.chrisducker.com/itunes) , they're extremely helpful when it comes to the ranking of the show and you can bet that I read every single one of them personally! Lastly, don’t forget to (https://www.chrisducker.com/itunes) , to get automatic updates every time a new episode goes live!

Six Pixels of Separation Podcast - By Mitch Joel
SPOS #556 - They Ask And You Answer With Marcus Sheridan

Six Pixels of Separation Podcast - By Mitch Joel

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 5, 2017 55:26


Welcome to episode #556 of Six Pixels Of Separation - The Mirum Podcast.  Here it is: Six Pixels Of Separation - The Mirum Podcast - Episode #556 - Host: Mitch Joel. He has one of the most profoundly powerful stories about how to grow a complex (and regional) business using everything from social media to marketing automation. It has worked so well for him, that he went from selling swimming pools (which he still does) to helping other businesses understand how to leverage this amazing moment in time to grow a business (which he spends the bulk of his work time on). Marcus Sheridan is an incredible human being. Not just because of how he transformed River Pools And Spas into a thriving business during economically challenging times, but how he morphed that into The Sales Lion. Now, he's published his first business book, They Ask You Answer, in which he breaks down how inbound sales, content marketing and the digital channels can help your brand flourish. He's an amazing speaker and passionate entrepreneur. I count myself lucky that I can call him a friend as well. Enjoy the conversation...  Running time: 55:25. Hello from beautiful Montreal. Subscribe over at iTunes. Please visit and leave comments on the blog - Six Pixels of Separation. Feel free to connect to me directly on Facebook here: Mitch Joel on Facebook. or you can connect on LinkedIn. ...or on twitter. Six Pixels of Separation the book is now available. CTRL ALT Delete is now available too! Here is my conversation with Marcus Sheridan. The Sales Lion. They Ask You Answer. River Pools And Spas. Follow Marcus on Twitter. This week's music: David Usher 'St. Lawrence River'. Download the Podcast here: Six Pixels Of Separation - The Mirum Podcast - Episode #556 - Host: Mitch Joel. Tags: advertising advertising podcast audio blog blogging brand branding business blog business book business podcast business thinker content marketing david usher digital marketing digital marketing agency digital marketing blog facebook google inbound inbound sales itunes j walter thompson jwt leadership podcast management podcast marcus sheridan marketing marketing blog marketing podcast mirum mirum agency mirum agency blog mirum blog mirum podcast river pools and spas social media the sales lion they ask you answer twitter wpp

Bella In Your Business: Pet Industry Business Podcast
Episode 36: They Ask, You Answer with Marcus Sheridan

Bella In Your Business: Pet Industry Business Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 2, 2017 26:56


On this episode Bella speaks with Marcus Sheridan, a former pool guy turned digital sales and marketing expert.  He is the President of The Sales Lion and a Partner at River Pools and Spas. Bella and Marcus discuss: The philosophy of “They ask, you answer” Why business owners are afraid of just giving honest answers […]

Accelerate! with Andy Paul
393: Boost Sales by Building Trust Through Content. With Marcus Sheridan.

Accelerate! with Andy Paul

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 28, 2017 42:18


Marcus Sheridan, marketing and sales expert, Founder of The Sales Lion, and author of the new book, They Ask You Answer: A Revolutionary Approach to Inbound Sales, Content Marketing, and Today's Digital Consumer.

The Law Entrepreneur
Ep. 52 - The Sales Lion Roars About Content Marketing

The Law Entrepreneur

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 13, 2017 41:20


Neil chats with Marcus Sheridan, aka “The Sales Lion.” Marcus started River Pools & Spas in 2001, and since has gone on to create a sales, marketing, and personal development blog The Sales Lion.   If you've enjoyed the podcast, please head to iTunes and leave a rating & review for the show! It only takes a moment, and really helps me to reach new listeners. You can also head to the website at TheLawEntrepreneur.com for more information on the podcast and my legal services.   -- Thank you to our sponsors! Daylite by Marketcircle – business productivity apps specifically for Apple products, with cloud syncing between your Macs, iPhones, & iPads Spotlight Branding – Web presence and branding for law firms Production & Development for The Law Entrepreneur by Podcast Masters

On Brand with Nick Westergaard
Answering All of Your Customers Questions with Marcus Sheridan

On Brand with Nick Westergaard

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 6, 2017 33:06


“The art of the question has fundamentally been lost.” As a global speaker and consultant in digital marketing and sales, Marcus Sheridan has made name for himself and his business by answering all of the questions. I couldn’t wait to talk to the content marketing legend and author about all of this, on this week’s On Brand podcast.   About Marcus Sheridan Called a “web marketing guru” by The New York Times, the story of how Marcus Sheridan was able to save his swimming pool company, River Pools, from the economic crash of 2008 has been featured in multiple books, publications, and stories around the world—and is also the inspiration for his newest book, “They Ask, You Answer.” Today, Sheridan has become a highly sought after global speaker and consultant in the digital sales and marketing space, working with hundreds of business and brands alike to become the most trusted voice of their industry while navigating the ultra-fast rate of change occurring within consumers and buyers today. Episode Highlights The 20-second version of Marcus’ story. “In 2008, I was going to lose my business. I had two consultants tell me to file for bankruptcy. I started reading about inbound marketing and content marketing and created a four-word philosophy.” They Ask, You Answer. This philosophy applied to content marketing helped Marcus save River Pools. It’s also helped countless marketers who have read his story and heard him speak. “If you can’t explain it — if you can’t answer the questions — it’s no good.” These four words are also the title of his new book. They Ask You Answer, which is full of case studies of “digital Davids” like River Pools. “It’s 50% marketing, 25% sales, and 25% implementation.” The most important social media question. “It’s not ‘how can I be great on Facebook today?’ It’s ‘how can I be great on Facebook forever?’ You do that by solving customers’ problems.” How can you cultivate a culture of questions? “Businesses need to think more like buyers and less like businesses. Marketers aren’t subject matter experts.” You have to get out of your bubble and seek the expertise of leadership, engineering, and sales to effectively answer your buyer’s questions. What question is Marcus asked most often? “It’s not, ‘I’m a leader/business owner — how do turn my business around?’ It’s ‘I’m in sales and I need leadership’s buy-in.'” Marcus recommends getting leadership re-acclimated with customers’ needs for a better connection between the business and the buyer in your sales and marketing execution. What brand has made Marcus smile recently? “I’m gonna use this example because it would be easy for them to say, ‘but we’re too big’ — Home Depot.” Citing their “exceptional blog where they teach, teach, teach,” he noted that it features products without being too sales-y. To learn more, go to The Sales Lion website, check out his book They Ask You Answer, and follow him on Twitter. As We Wrap … Before we go, I want to flip the microphone around to our community …Recently Sean Carpenter gave us a shout on Twitter for our recent episode on millennial marketing featuring Gabriella Mirabelli. Thanks for listening, Sean! Did you hear something you liked on this episode or another? Do you have a question you’d like our guests to answer? Let me know on Twitter using the hashtag #OnBrandPodcast and you may just hear your thoughts here on the show. Subscribe to the podcast – You can subscribe to the show via iTunes, Stitcher, and RSS. Rate and review the show – If you like what you’re hearing, head over to iTunes and click that 5-star button to rate the show. And if you have a few extra seconds, write a couple of sentences and submit a review. This helps others find the podcast. OK. How do you rate and review a podcast? Need a quick tutorial on leaving a rating/review in iTunes? Check this out. Remember – On Brand is brought to you by my new book — Get Scrappy: Smarter Digital Marketing for Businesses Big and Small. Order now at Amazon and check out GetScrappyBook.com for special offers and extras. Until next week, I’ll see you on the Internet!

The Speaker Lab
117. How to Give Keynotes and Teach Workshops, with Marcus Sheridan

The Speaker Lab

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 24, 2017 37:01


Have you given both keynotes and taught workshops? Some speakers prefer one over the other, while some enjoy both. Marcus Sheridan of The Sales Lion is an interactive and engaging speaker who likes doing both. On this episode of The Speaker Lab, Marcus is here to talk about his journey from a missionary in Chile to running a successful pool company to commanding audiences around the globe today. He also shares how that journey led to the creation of latest book, They Ask You Answer. You'll hear about all of that plus the importance of video today, why it's only going to continue to become even more vital and what he learned from his worst speaking moment ever. Check it out on episode 117 of The Speaker Lab! THE FINER DETAILS OF THIS SHOW:    Are good keynote speakers always good at teaching workshops too? What did being a missionary in Chile teach him about speaking? The lesson you can learn from how he landed his first speaking gig. How he made the leap from workshop speaker to keynote speaker at Content Marketing World in one year. Why is giving gigs the most effective way to land more gigs? Why it works for him to be so interactive with his audiences. How much attention should you be paying to content marketing? Should you have a videographer? And so much more!   EPISODE RESOURCES Marcus Sheridan's web site Email Marcus They Ask You Answer, Marcus' latest book Marcus Sheridan on Twitter 7 Proven Steps to Finding And Booking Paid Speaking Engagements The Speaker Lab Summit The Speaker Lab Facebook group Top Speakers Tips Ready for more speakers? Join our free speaker workshop Got questions? Send them in here Email me! Subscribe on iTunes, and leave us a rating or review >

Lead Through Strengths
Use Your Gifts To Chase Career Fulfillment - With Marcus Sheridan

Lead Through Strengths

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 24, 2017 30:23


This Episode’s Focus on Strengths Today's episode features Marcus Sheridan, also known as The Sales Lion. Marcus is a marketing and sales guru. He's best known for his concept "They Ask, You Answer." He has definitely given us a kick in the pants when it comes to making helpful video content and making an "answers" page for our customers. As a professional speaker, he's also delving into area like: individual strengths, personal success, and true fulfillment. He's such a likable guy, and you'll love him on his show The Balance if you dig the ideas they explore on fulfillment. If you're curious about how he's become so good at interacting with clients and prospects, listen in. This episode is especially perfect for marketing and sales people. Lisa and Marcus also get a kick out of their mutual love of the word "dang." Yes, it's a southern thang. Lisa is from Austin, Texas and Marcus is from Heathsville, Virginia, so they had a laugh about their vernacular. And don't worry, neither one will drop a "bless your heart" phrase on you when they're actually trying to tell you that your marketing or strengths based leadership efforts are terrible.   What You’ll Learn In This Episode How to tap into your personal strengths. Marcus tells us that he has done this from a young age. He's accomplished this by being self-aware at all times, and by tuning into his audience's reactions (whether it be one person or a whole audience). Signs to look for: Is the person leaning forward because he is interested, or back because he's bored? Is he looking up because he's having a reflective moment (which should be your goal), or is he looking down because he's only listening and not thinking? If he is smiling at you, this is good, but if he's looking at you blankly, he may just be trying to stay awake!   The art of the question. Our job as communicators is to help our audience discover an insight, before we even say it. This can only occur if we ask the right questions. Listen for Marcus' mention of the mirror of life, and see how people are really reacting to you. If you present things in the correct way, your audience will feel like "it" (whatever that is), is their idea. They won't conclude that you forced them into compliance with your idea. Besides Marcus being a great listener in a human-to-human way, he's also excellent at tuning into customers. You'll see his living proof of "they ask you answer" in the way he adds value on his website and how he shows up in helpful video content.   Prioritization. It's important to prioritize everything in your life, based on what brings you the most energy. Using your strengths will often bring you energy. To find out what your strengths are, grab the book StrengthsFinder 2.0 and use your code in the back of the book. Peak states in life when you're (in the flow) are times when you are gaining energy, not spending it. Learn to love what you are, and know what you aren't. For example, Marcus put his family first and his business second. the helps him to know exactly what he should say NO to. You may have to walk away from opportunities, even when they are attractive, if they don't fit in with your priorities. There was a time when Marcus failed to say no to a great opportunity in San Francisco, California. It turned out to be four days of speaking all day, seeing no Silicon Valley sights, and missing his family. And, people were eating while he was speaking, instead of listening. This was an "ah ha" moment, when he decided to never let money or ambition supercede his priorities - family and self-care.   How To Chase Fulfillment In order to feel true fulfillment, you must move toward something rather than running away from it. Explore your career. It's very much like a hiking trail. You can't tell where it's going to go; you need to keep walking to see. If an idea seems seeded in you, explore it. See what it grows into, and play with it. Get in the sandbox. For example, even Marcus has given himself a  3-5 year on-ramp to play in a career transition. Keep an eye on Marcus. He's living proof of how this works as he authentically shares his exploration into the topic of life, family, and fulfillment - and how they intersect.   Resources of the EpisodeYou can reach Marcus through his website or Twitter. To listen to his amazing podcasts, click here. Lisa particularly loves The Mad Marketing show. He also does the Hubcast Podcast, One Last Tool on sales and marketing tools. And The Balance show we mentioned earlier. How does he keep up with all of this? The man is an animal (a very kind one). Marcus' book is They Ask You Answer: A Revolutionary Approach to Inbound Sales, Content Marketing, and Today's Digital Consumer. Books mentioned in this podcast include: A selection of Jim Rohn's books - Leading an Inspired Life, My Philosophy For Successful Living, The Art of Exceptional Living (a cd). Jim Rohn was a huge inspiration to both Marcus and Lisa when they were first digging into personal development. In fact, Lisa used to drive around listening to Jim Rohn and Zig Ziglar tapes (yeah, cassette tapes back in the day). Edgar Schein's Humble Inquiry: The Gentle Art of Asking Instead of Telling Jim Collins' Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...And Others Don't Subscribe To Lead Through StrengthsTo subscribe and review, here are your links for listening in iTunes and Stitcher Radio. You can also stream any episode right from this website. Subscribing is a great way to never miss an episode. Let the app notify you each week when the latest episode gets published.   Go Live Your TalentsRemember, using your strengths every day at work makes you a stronger performer. If you place a lopsided focused on fixing your team’s weaknesses, you’re choosing the path of most resistance. Go claim your talents and share them with the world!

Critical Mass Radio Show
Episode 971 - Critical Mass Radio Show January 17, 2017 Marcus Sheridan

Critical Mass Radio Show

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 18, 2017 27:27


  He's called a web marketing guru by multiple platforms including the New York Times. President of the Sales Lion, Marcus Sheridan is a highly sought after global speaker and consultant in the digital sales and marketing space. Marcus has worked with hundreds of businesses and brands alike to become the most trusted voice in the industry.

The Marketer's Journey
CONEX S5: Five Content Questions That Drive Conversions

The Marketer's Journey

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 1, 2016 40:16


Marcus Sheridan, Owner and Practitioner of The Sales Lion, joins the Content Pros Podcast to share the five questions that creates impactful content that will immediately energize your sales.   Special thanks to our sponsors: Oracle Marketing Cloud Uberflip: Flip the Switch ClearVoice Convince & Convert: The Business of Story   In This Episode How in-person questions lead to massive content curation Why competitive content means addressing the flaws of your product How to use five subjects to immediately move the needle in your industry Why content shock doesn't mean you should stop or slow down content production How a play on words leads to thinking of the world from a digital content perspective   Resources Marcus Sheridan on Twitter: @TheSalesLion The Sales Lion on Facebook and YouTube River Pools and Spas They Ask, You Answer Mad Marketing Youtility   Visit ContentProsPodcast.com for more insights from your favorite content marketers.

Agency Advantage - Actionable advice to help digital agency owners, consultants, and freelancers  be more successful

For this 1-year anniversary episode of Hubstaff’s Agency Advantage Podcast, I’m talking with none other than Marcus Sheridan of the Sales Lion. Today Marcus is one of the biggest names in the inbound and content marketing world, but in 2008 he was the owner of a swimming pool company that was on the brink of... The post Agency Advantage 52: Marcus Sheridan on The #1 Reason Agencies Fail With Clients appeared first on Hubstaff Blog.

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk
149: Marcus Sheridan - The Sales Lion: "They Ask, We Answer"

The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 10, 2016 53:50


Episode 149: Marcus Sheridan - The Sales Lion: "They Ask, We Answer" Marcus Sheridan has coached multiple businesses of all types from around the globe in an effort to help them achieve world-class communication in all its forms, online and offline. Specifically, he has become known for: Content Marketing, HubSpot Training, Keynote Speeches. In 2015 alone, award-winning speaker Marcus Sheridan has traveled the globe, giving multiple sales, marketing, and leadership keynotes in a total of 8 different countries and 24 states. Sheridan, along with team member George Thomas, can be counted on to teach, inspire, and move audiences of all sizes to action while embracing today’s digital consumer and new way of doing business. Episode 149: Marcus Sheridan - The Sales Lion: "They Ask, We Answer" Subscribe on iTunes  or Stitcher Radio The Learning Leader Show “I teach companies how to become the most trusted source in their industry." In This Episode, You Will Learn: Having an obsession with continuing to learn will help you sustain excellence. A mindset that says "I have not figured it all out yet." His core philosophy is: "They ask. We answer." How Jim Rohn helped him fall in love with learning The process in which Marcus teaches companies to be the most trusted source in their industry "The reason why people buy from you is TRUST." When people go to your website, they want to know how much it costs... So tell them Talking openly about your competitors is a wise way to go about your business What's the most important part of the sales cycle? 70% of people decide what they're going to do before talking to a sales professional The magic happens before they talk to someone (this is why your website is critical) If someone read 30 pages on his website, they bought 80% of the time 80% of the questions are the same... Answer them on your website Why it's required at his company for each employee to build their personal brand Why is Marcus a great public speaker? "He knows how to explain things so that people can actually understand them." "When we tell stories, the audience can see it." Think, Feel, Act - Your speech can hopefully change all three Why he took his daughter on the road with him for an entire semester A learning leader is curious.. Constantly learning “If you're going to be ultra successful in sales, you need a personal brand." Continue Learning: Go to: TtheSalesLion.com Follow Marcuson Twitter: @TheSalesLion To Follow Me on Twitter: @RyanHawk12 You may also like these episodes: Episode 078: Kat Cole – From Hooters Waitress To President of Cinnabon Episode 082: Dan Pink – The Science of Motivation, Legendary Writer & Ted Talk Episode 086: Seth Godin – How To Become Indispensable & Build Your Tribe Episode 107: Simon Sinek – Leadership: It Starts With Why Did you enjoy the podcast? If you enjoyed hearing Marcus Sheridan on the show, please don’t hesitate to send me a note on Twitter or email me. Episode edited by the great J Scott Donnell Bio From TheSalesLion.com Marcus Sheridan has coached multiple businesses of all types from around the globe in an effort to help them achieve world-class communication in all its forms, online and offline. Specifically, he has become known for: Content Marketing, HubSpot Training, Keynote Speeches. In 2015 alone, award-winning speaker Marcus Sheridan has traveled the globe, giving multiple sales, marketing, and leadership keynotes in a total of 8 different countries and 24 states. Sheridan, along with team member George Thomas, can be counted on to teach, inspire, and move audiences of all sizes to action while embracing today’s digital consumer and new way of doing business.

Agency Journey
Marcus Sheridan from The Sales Lion

Agency Journey

Play Episode Listen Later May 23, 2016 40:10


In this episode of Inbound Agency Journey we welcome Marcus Sheridan from The Sales Lion. Marcus shares his story from struggling business owner in the fiberglass pool business to one of the most sought after keynote speakers and consultants on the topic of inbound marketing. Marcus takes a unique approach to building his agency. In this episode you'll learn what is working well and what isn't working well in his journey forward. Enjoy! 

Agency Journey
George B. Thomas from Sales Lion

Agency Journey

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 29, 2016 52:39


Today, we can learn from an agency that is standing out in a big way. George B. Thomas is a back on Inbound Agency Journey to talk all about building a creative, butt-kickin inbound agency content plan.  I loved this interview because George and the team aren't afraid to let their passion bleed into their marketing. They're also not afraid to give new mediums a shot. (Just look up George on Snapchat if you don't believe me!)

The Bright Ideas eCommerce Business Podcast | Proven Entrepreneur Success Stories
BI 191: Marcus Sheridan Shares the Story of How He Merged River Pools with a Large Pool Manufacturer

The Bright Ideas eCommerce Business Podcast | Proven Entrepreneur Success Stories

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 2, 2016 32:06


Show notes for this episode: http://brightideas.co/191 In this episode, Marcus and I talk about how he merged River Pools with a much larger pool manufacture and how he was able to get his digital assets valued just as high as their real estate, plant, and equipment. We also talk about why he started the Sales Lion and how doing so has helped him become even more successful. Have a question about this episode? Record it at: http://brightideas.co/asktrent

The Bright Ideas eCommerce Business Podcast | Proven Entrepreneur Success Stories
BI 027: How to Turn Your Blog into a $250,000 Business with Marcus Sheridan

The Bright Ideas eCommerce Business Podcast | Proven Entrepreneur Success Stories

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 5, 2015 63:48


Show notes for this episode: http://brightideas.co/27 Would you like to have an inbox that fills up daily with prospect who want to give you their money? Would you like to be seen as a thought leader in your niche? Would you like to be able to do this while working from home and enjoying very healthy relationships with your family? In this episode of the Bright Ideas podcast, I’m joined by Marcus Sheridan, founder of The Sales Lion – a leading blog in the business development niche that is earning it’s owner over a quarter of a million dollars per year. Have a question about this episode? Record it at: http://brightideas.co/asktrent

Smart Pizza Marketing Podcast
SPM #11 Content Marketing with Marcus Sheridan

Smart Pizza Marketing Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 27, 2015 30:27


Content Marketing with Marcus Sheridan This week I get to chat with Marcus Sheriden "The Sales Lion" . Marcus is a super smart guy who started in the marketing world with his fiberglass pool company River Pools and Spa out of Virginia. He tells us how his pool company hit a really rough patch to the point where he almost lost his entire business and had to lay off his whole team, and in a last ditch effort decided to take to answering questions he got asled all the time from customers. With this method now called content marketing. Marcus built his website into the most visited pool website in the country and saved his business. He now has a website and podcast over at www.thesaleslion.com where he talks and teaches all about content and inbound marketing. Go listen and visit his website he's a great guy and you'll learn a ton.   What to Listen For: How he almost went out of business and what he did about it. Why he decided to start with content marketing. What exactly is content marketing? Is content marketing for every business? Why everyone who thinks content marketing is dead are dead wrong. Why your industry isn't special and why you have to use content marketing. How to get to know your customer beforethey ever meet you or use your service. Why you need to make your information easy to find and consume. Why the old ways of business are dying and never coming back.marcus  Marcus' Website River Pools and Spa website Macuss' Podcast Marcus on Entreprenuer on Fire  Marcus on Twitter  Thanks For Listening Thank you for taking the time to listen to this episode. I hope that you have found it to be valuable, if you have a question you can email at Bruce@smartpizzamarketing.com . Big Thank You to Marcus for coming on the show with us he's a super smart guy and great to be able to talk with him and share his knowledge with everyone. If you did find this information valuable it would be awesome if you could share it using the social media buttons on the side of the post. Aslo Please leave a quick review on Itunes or Stitcher that would really help grow the show and get more guests on to help you grow your business and marketing efforts. Visit Smartpizzamarketing.com for tips and resources to help grow your business or for help with anything mentioned in this show. Twitter: https://twitter.com/Irvingmedia Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Smart-Pizza-Marketing Google+: https://plus.google.com/+Smartpizzamarketing

The Dealer Playbook
DPB 049: Content Marketing Done Right w/Marcus Sheridan

The Dealer Playbook

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 24, 2015 37:48 Transcription Available


Welcome to “The Dealer Playbook session #49 and we are so glad you are here. We have a exciting session on deck for you today and we are excited to dive in!  You are going to love our guest today. In this session we are sitting down with the brilliant Marcus Sheridan of The Sales Lion and he is dropping some powerful insight and nuggets that will help grow your business.  Here is a little bit about our guest Marcus Sheridan Marcus Sheridan, with boundless energy and contagious enthusiasm, helps business embrace the power of inbound and content marketing. The Sales Lion website is a information hub for small/ medium business owners who are lovers of personal development. The Sales Lion helps individuals and business alike throughout the world find more ways to be successful in their sales/marketing/web 2.0 efforts.  Here is a quick preview of what you will learn more about here.  Addressing the buyers fears  Marcus goes into detail about how used car giant Car Max embraced reality, identified their customers fears and offered solutions to eliminate those fears.  Understanding todays consumers buying habits  The habits and routines of car buyers is obviously changed over the years. Marcus goes deep into how consumer ignorance is not a viable sales and marketing strategy. Why you need to have the teachers mentality  Be the go to source of information in your market. Your site needs to be the Wikipedia of its industry. Marcus gives some awesome examples and tips of how you need to be a teacher in your market.  That is just a quick preview of some of the power bombs Marcus Sheridan drops on this DPB session.  Get connected with Marcus Sheridan Marcus Twitter Sales Lion Website Get the free eBook from The Sales Lion here  You Know The Drill, Now It's Your Turn The whole team at DPB can not thank you enough for all the support and love you have been giving us. Whether you loved it, hated it, want more of it, or want something different , we want to hear your voice. Sound off below with your thoughts, opinions, suggestions, questions, etc. and lets keep this conversation going. See you next time ;) Connect With Team DPB Connect with The Dealer Playbook on Facebook here. Check out Michael Cirillo's blog here. Check out Robert Wiesman's blog here. Connect with Michael Cirillo on Twitter here. Connect with Robert Wiesman on Twitter here.

The Dealer Playbook
Marcus Sheridan: Dealership Content Marketing Done Right

The Dealer Playbook

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 24, 2015 37:48


Welcome to “The Dealer Playbook session #49 and we are so glad you are here. We have a exciting session on deck for you today and we are excited to dive in! You are going to love our guest today. In this session we are sitting down with the brilliant Marcus Sheridan of The Sales Lion and he is dropping some powerful insight and nuggets that will help grow your business. Here is a little bit about our guest Marcus SheridanMarcus Sheridan, with boundless energy and contagious enthusiasm, helps business embrace the power of inbound and content marketing. The Sales Lion website is a information hub for small/ medium business owners who are lovers of personal development. The Sales Lion helps individuals and business alike throughout the world find more ways to be successful in their sales/marketing/web 2.0 efforts. Here is a quick preview of what you will learn more about here. Addressing the buyers fears Marcus goes into detail about how used car giant Car Max embraced reality, identified their customers fears and offered solutions to eliminate those fears. Understanding todays consumers buying habits The habits and routines of car buyers is obviously changed over the years. Marcus goes deep into how consumer ignorance is not a viable sales and marketing strategy.Why you need to have the teachers mentality Be the go to source of information in your market. Your site needs to be the Wikipedia of its industry. Marcus gives some awesome examples and tips of how you need to be a teacher in your market. That is just a quick preview of some of the power bombs Marcus Sheridan drops on this DPB session. Get connected with Marcus SheridanMarcus TwitterSales Lion Website Get the free eBook from The Sales Lion here You Know The Drill, Now It's Your TurnThe whole team at DPB can not thank you enough for all the support and love you have been giving us.Whether you loved it, hated it, want more of it, or want something different , we want to hear your voice.Sound off below with your thoughts, opinions, suggestions, questions, etc. and lets keep this conversation going.See you next time ;)Connect With Team DPBConnect with The Dealer Playbook on Facebook here.Check out Michael Cirillo's blog here.Check out Robert Wiesman's blog here.Connect with Michael Cirillo on Twitter here.Connect with Robert Wiesman on Twitter here.

Archive 1 of Entrepreneurs On Fire
56: Marcus Sheridan The Sales Lion

Archive 1 of Entrepreneurs On Fire

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 19, 2015 36:06


Marcus Sheridan is an author, public speaker and online marketing consultant. He is the author of 3 Self Help Books, Co Owner of one of the largest inground fiberglass swimming pool companies on the East Coast, Professional Blogger, and Founder of The Sales Lion.

Agency Journey
George B. Thomas From The Sales Lion

Agency Journey

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 5, 2015 41:17


In Episode 001 of Inbound Agency Journey Gray interviews George B. Thomas from The Sales Lion. George opens up and shares how he got involved with inbound marketing and agency life. This episode is packed full of tip and takeaways that will help you run a better agency!

WP Elevation WordPress Business Podcast
Episode #63 Marcus Sheridan from The Sales Lion

WP Elevation WordPress Business Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 14, 2015 49:51


  Marcus Sheridan wanted to be a dentist, grew up to be a Pool guy and now travels the world teaching inbound content marketing. He does not hold back in this episode. If you're struggling at all with content marketing this is a must watch. The post Episode #63 Marcus Sheridan from The Sales Lion appeared first on WP Elevation.

The Sales Evangelist
TSE 078: Why Sales Professionals Need Inbound Marketing and Transparency More Than Ever Before!

The Sales Evangelist

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 17, 2014 40:43


In this episode I interview Marcus Sheridan, aka “The Sales Lion”. Marcus helps businesses embrace the power of content and inbound marketing through his personal experiences. Him and his team offer content marketing consulting & workshops, HubSpot consulting, speaking opportunities and blogging services. He is passionate about selling and the power that comes to an organization and sales professional when they […] The post TSE 078: Why Sales Professionals Need Inbound Marketing and Transparency More Than Ever Before! appeared first on The Sales Evangelist.

Jay Today TV
Why You Need to Pick a Smartphone for LIFE

Jay Today TV

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 10, 2014 3:47


Gone are the days when being locked into one specific carrier was a make-or-break in terms of your mobile phone decisions. Now, it's all about the hardware.  The next age of smartphones will not only control your contacts, email, and media, they will also control your car, your house, your appliances... your entire life.  If you're thinking of switching phones, now is the time to do it. Once you're locked in to a certain piece of hardware, switching will become extremely painful. Today's Sprout Social shout out goes to Marcus Sheridan, also known as The Sales Lion, whose blog about pools and spas has reached over 320,000 visits per month. Marcus wrote about the amazing journey on his blog here: http://www.thesaleslion.com/seo-content-marketing-techniques/ Jay Today is sponsored and produced by Candidio, a simple and affordable video production company, and Sprout Social, a social media management and analytics tool that Jay uses for much of his social media every day.

Casual Fridays Podcast
The Secret Sauce to Content Marketing: They Ask, You Answer

Casual Fridays Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later May 22, 2014 42:42


Do you think there is some secret sauce to effective content marketing? Are you looking to improve sales through your website? This week on the Social Media Social Hour, Marcus Sheridan aka “The Sales Lion” joins me to talk about the secret sauce to content marketing with his key philosophy, “they ask, you answer.” Marcus is the founder […] The post The Secret Sauce to Content Marketing: They Ask, You Answer appeared first on Casual Fridays.

The Agents of Change: SEO, Social Media, and Mobile Marketing for Small Business
How a Blog REALLY Generates Leads and Sales - Marcus Sheridan

The Agents of Change: SEO, Social Media, and Mobile Marketing for Small Business

Play Episode Listen Later May 19, 2014 40:54


For years, blogs were heralded as the most important tool in a business's online marketing toolbox.   But still many small businesses struggle with content, time, and showing any type of real results.   Does a business blog REALLY help generate leads and sales for a business?    It does, if you do it right. And in this week's episode of The Marketing Agents Podcast, Marcus Sheridan, the Sales Lion, shares how blogging helped save his company.   If you've never heard Marcus's amazing story, you'll definitely want to check it out. And even if you have, you'll want to check out the great tips and advice that he offers in how you can turn your own blog into a tool to help attract more of your ideal customers.    http://www.themarketingagents.com/46

Franchise Euphoria
How You Can Conquer Marketing in Your Small Business or Franchise!

Franchise Euphoria

Play Episode Listen Later May 14, 2014 40:50


Marcus Sheridan from the Sales Lion joins me today. Marcus is a highly successful business owner and speaker. His highly energetic personality is paired with amazing insight into business marketing. Listen in as he gives you some amazing tips and advice. His energy is infectious and by the end of the interview you will be ready to start implementing his advice today!   About Marcus Marcus started a swimming pool company, River Pools and Spas  in 2001. The pool company grew to be one of the largest of its kind in the world (due to inbound marketing efforts and their incredibly popular swimming pool blog). After huge success teaching other pool professionals how to embrace inbound marketing, Marcus has become a very successful HubSpot Partner, training inbound marketers and companies everywhere how to find success. With an incredibly entertaining and educational style, Sheridan has become a highly sought after speaker for many marketing and business conferences globally. He is also the author of the blog, The Sales Lion, one of the best marketing, business, and life-success blogs on the internet.   Show Highlights Ø  What makes a great website Ø  The importance of teaching your clients Ø  Joining you sales and marketing teams Ø  How to rule with content marketing 70% of buying decisions happen before the customer even makes contact with your company. That number is still growing and will continue to grow. This puts an ever growing importance on marketing. Marcus explains what you need to be doing to capitalize on this growing trend.   Want to know more about Marcus? The Sales Lion Mad Marketing Podcast River Pools and Spas Marcus1@thesaleslion.com Twitter: @thesaleslion   Feedback   Have any suggestions for future shows? Have questions or topic you would like us to do an episode on? If so, please leave a comment. If you enjoyed the podcast would you please take a moment to leave a review and rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Every review means we can reach out to more people.  iTunes:  Franchise Euphoria Podcast   Tune in on Stitcher!

Social Media Marketing Podcast
Haters: How to Deal With Haters and Trolls of Your Business - 91

Social Media Marketing Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later May 2, 2014 54:41


Have you ever been publicly criticized or mocked for something that you did? Are you wondering how you can deal with this type of negativity when it happens on social media? In this episode, I interview Marcus Sheridan, who blogs at The Sales Lion, is host of The Mad Marketing Podcast and is a partner at River Pools & Spas. Marcus is a consultant and keynote speaker.  Show Notes: https://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/91

Social Media Pubcast by Jon Loomer
PUBCAST: Comments and Social Shares are Overrated -- with Marcus Sheridan (Episode #35)

Social Media Pubcast by Jon Loomer

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 7, 2013 30:45


Jon welcomes Marcus Sheridan (AKA The Sales Lion) to today's show. The two sit at the virtual bar (Marcus with a Diet Coke, Jon with a Stout) to discuss business KPIs. Marcus asserts that comments and social shares are overrated while Jon isn't so sure (here is the blog post he wrote that inspired the discussion). The two also discuss money keywords and the importance (or lack thereof) of short blog posts or videos. Marcus has been a major influence on Jon's career during the past year, and is the main reason this podcast was created in the first place. Make sure you follow Marcus' blog at TheSalesLion.com for brutally honest and entertaining posts that will help you improve your content marketing. You can also find him on Twitter (@TheSalesLion) or listen to his podcast called Mad Marketing with The Sales Lion.

The Bright Ideas eCommerce Business Podcast | Proven Entrepreneur Success Stories
BI 027: How to Turn Your Blog into a $250,000 Business with Marcus Sheridan

The Bright Ideas eCommerce Business Podcast | Proven Entrepreneur Success Stories

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 29, 2013 63:48


On‌ ‌the‌ ‌show‌ ‌with‌ ‌me‌ ‌today‌ is‌ a guy called The Sales Lion. Originally, the ‘pool guy’ behind River Pools and Spas, Marcus Sheridan has become well known for both his success as a inbound marketer (his pool company is a lead generation machine) as well as the guy behind the popular blog, The Sales Lion. Here’s a short summary of his achievements: Thank you so much for listening! Please subscribe rate and review on your favorite podcast listening app. To get to the show notes for today's episode, go to https://brightideas.co/xxx...and if you have any questions for me, you can leave me a voicemail at brightideas.co/asktrent

Entrepreneurs on Fire
Marcus Sheridan The Sales Lion

Entrepreneurs on Fire

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 3, 2012 37:00


Marcus Sheridan is an author, public speaker and online marketing consultant. He is the author of 3 Self-Help books, Co-owner of one of the largest inground fiberglass swimming pool companies on the East Coast, Professional Blogger, and Founder of The Sales Lion.

Social Media Marketing Podcast
Blogging for Business: How Content Can Improve Your Sales - 7

Social Media Marketing Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 13, 2012 31:53


Are you wondering how a blog can help your business? Are you trying to figure out how content can improve your sales? In this episode, I interview Marcus Sheridan, founder of The Sales Lion and author of the ebook Inbound and Content Marketing Made Easy. Marcus shares insights into the struggles marketers have to get results from business blogging. Show Notes: https://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/7

Six Pixels of Separation Podcast - By Mitch Joel
SPOS #285 - How To Be A Marketing And Sales Lion With Marcus Sheridan

Six Pixels of Separation Podcast - By Mitch Joel

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 25, 2011 46:10


Welcome to episode #285 of Six Pixels Of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast. Are you ready for some tough love? I often find that that brands have millions of questions about sales and marketing, but most of them are thinly veiled complaints about how they don't have the time or budget to make a lot of the strategies and tactics come to life. It becomes that much more depressing when you start uncovering that few brands are doing the bare bone basics well (if at all). Marcus Sheridan (known to many as The Sales Lion) brings a dash of motivational content coupled with a healthy helping of reality-based concepts that will make some of the most seasoned Marketers smack their heads with a, "why am I not doing this!" kind of motion. Before we dive into the discussion, please allow me to wish you (and yours) a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday season. Enjoy the conversation... Here it is: Six Pixels Of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast - Episode #285 - Host: Mitch Joel. Running time: 46:10. Please send in questions, comments, suggestions - mitch@twistimage.com. Hello from Beautiful Montreal. Subscribe over at iTunes. Please visit and leave comments on the Blog - Six Pixels of Separation. Feel free to connect to me directly on Facebook here: Mitch Joel on Facebook. or you can connect on LinkedIn. ...or on twitter.  Six Pixels of Separation the book is now available. Episode #41 of Media Hacks is coming soon and it might feature:  Chris Brogan - New Marketing Labs - Co-author of Trust Agents, Man On The Go, Human Business Works, Third Tribe Marketing and Escape Velocity. C.C. Chapman - Managing The Gray - Digital Dads - Content Rules. Hugh McGuire - LibriVox - iambik audio - PressBooks. Christopher S. Penn - Blue Sky Factory - Marketing Over Coffee. Julien Smith - In Over Your Head - Co-author of Trust Agents. In conversation with: Marcus Sheridan. The Sales Lion. Follow Marcus on Twitter. This week's music: David Usher 'St. Lawrence River'. Download the Podcast here: Six Pixels Of Separation - The Twist Image Podcast - Episode #285 - Host: Mitch Joel. Tags: across the sound advertising bite size edits blog blogging blue sky factory book oven cast of dads cc chapman chris brogan christopher s penn digital dads digital marketing facebook facebook group hugh mcguire in over your head itunes julien smith librivox managing the gray marcus sheridan marketing marketing over coffee media hacks new marketing labs online social network podcast podcasting pressbooks six pixels of separation social media 101 social media marketing strategy the sales lion trust agents