Released June 19, 2017

Recorded in the Dog House Studio, Sweden.

 

Last week I had the privilege to attend and speak at the Fifteen Seconds conference in Graz, Austria. With four stages and three or four thousand young, thoughtful, and engaged people, the event was a veritable tidal wave of information and ideas. I’m excited to share my thoughts and feedback with you on the podcast this week.

The list of attendees included huge companies and brands like Red Bull, Facebook, GQ, the Economist, BBC, and Getty Images. Not one to let this get to my head, I saw this quite simply as a chance to talk about the creative power of podcasting. Both as an individual and as a business, podcasting has played a central role in my journey through life.

Through my podcasts, I’ve really found a way of connecting with the world. I’m not Red Bull or the Washington Post and frankly? I don’t want to be! But I’ve come to a good place, with a huge global community of people who listen and actively engage.

The beauty of podcasting is how it gives anyone and everyone the ability to talk about whatever’s important to them. Whether your passion is basset hounds, knitting, mental health, or gender equality, a podcast lets you share that passion in a creative way. You, as an individual or a business, can use this as an exciting and dynamic platform. That’s what made it so gratifying to meet people at the conference!

I want you to think about something, whether this is your first episode of the Moondog Marketing Podcast or your 200th. Here I am, speaking to you from the Doghouse Studio in Sweden. You’re out there listening, maybe out for a walk with your own dogs, maybe in the gym. But we can build a powerful, personal connection this way, at a distance. Most importantly, that connection can be the start of business.

The Power of Creativity

I thought a lot about the nature of creativity while listening to Jim Piercy of Wall Street Journal, Michael Goldberg of Victoria’s Secret, and Pamela Kaupinen of Conde Nast. When it comes to creating engagement, you can’t ignore the intersection of technology and creativity. Big brands know this, which is why you see videos where a peregrine falcon with a camera on its head chases a downhill rider.

While I admire bold creative moves like this one, I can’t help but wonder how these large brands measure their ROI. As a small business owner who works primarily with small to medium businesses, creativity has to be on a budget. Most of my clients can’t fly a camera-equipped bird of prey over a volcano in Iceland.

How do you compete with these massive brands with deep pockets? Certainly, piquing interest has gotten harder as the deluge of social media increases. Often, you’ll find yourself torn between carving out the time, energy, and budget for creativity, or simply outsourcing.

Small to medium businesses need to take a different tack to work around this high barrier to entry. What I came to realize: creativity can be as simple as engaging creatively, and finding an authentic entry point for a connection. Often my Twitter conversations start with Liverpool football or dogs, and eventually lead to the marketing podcast here.

Don’t be Afraid to Pivot

What’s really interesting to me here is how these companies used creativity and engagement with customers to pivot their businesses. The Washington Post has evolved into a tech company, while Red Bull has become a sort of media company. (Though maybe they’ll expand their interest in falconry, if the response to that video stays strong)

We’ve even done a bit of that ourselves here at Moondog! After working closely with a variety of clients, we’ve broken up our branding in order to target specific customers. If you’re looking for assistance in editing your podcast, Kelly now helms our podcast editing service over at Face4rad.io. Those of you in the market for commercial photography or business storytelling should check out Moondog Photography. A business should never remain stagnant, and it’s critical to listen to your clients and respond to their needs.

On Reaching Episode 200

After the conference, I shared a cab ride with Torsten Panzer where we ended up discussing podcasting at length. True to form, I found myself excited to share all manner of tips, tricks, and insights as the cab ride turned into an impromptu consultation session on wheels! In that spirit, I’m extending a special celebratory “Episode 200 consultation offer.”

For a short time, you can book a consult with me for 99€. (That’s a cool 75€ off my normal rate, in case you were wondering) I’d love to chat and share my experience, as well as audio and branding tips with you.

I’ll be back next week to talk about the old models of inbound marketing, and whether or not they can still be successful. In the meantime, enjoy the pleasant gravel of my man cold on this, my 200th episode.