WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.080 Welcome to Milestone Moments, the show where 00:00:03.080 --> 00:00:05.960 we explore the journeys that lead to success. 00:00:06.620 --> 00:00:10.199 I'm Sheila Slick, your host and founder of Five 00:00:10.199 --> 00:00:13.859 Milestones. In every episode, we will bring you 00:00:13.859 --> 00:00:17.100 insights from the minds of entrepreneurs, leaders 00:00:17.100 --> 00:00:20.800 and experts who will share not just their expertise, 00:00:20.879 --> 00:00:24.120 but the milestone moments that have reshaped 00:00:24.120 --> 00:00:27.039 their journeys and led to significant achievements. 00:00:27.960 --> 00:00:30.379 So if you're looking for motivation, you're in 00:00:30.379 --> 00:00:33.560 the right place. Subscribe now and discover the 00:00:33.560 --> 00:00:40.920 milestones that mark the path to success. Welcome 00:00:40.920 --> 00:00:44.520 to another episode of Milestone Moments in Business 00:00:44.520 --> 00:00:47.280 and Leadership. I'm Sheila Slick, your host. 00:00:47.500 --> 00:00:52.299 And today, my special guest is Amanda Reed, owner 00:00:52.299 --> 00:00:56.619 of Reed Mobile Marketing. Amanda started her 00:00:56.619 --> 00:01:00.640 marketing agency as a single mom of five very 00:01:00.640 --> 00:01:05.959 young kids over 16 years ago. Her focus has always 00:01:05.959 --> 00:01:09.359 been to help small businesses beat big brands. 00:01:10.239 --> 00:01:15.359 She is also author of the book, Unapologetically 00:01:15.359 --> 00:01:19.900 Me, to help other moms balance starting and growing 00:01:19.900 --> 00:01:24.329 a business while being a mom. She also founded 00:01:24.329 --> 00:01:27.829 a free online membership, The Mob Community, 00:01:28.209 --> 00:01:31.849 that stands for Mom -Owned Businesses, where 00:01:31.849 --> 00:01:35.849 she teaches other moms how to market their businesses 00:01:35.849 --> 00:01:40.269 online. Welcome to the show, Amanda. Awesome. 00:01:40.310 --> 00:01:41.969 Thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited 00:01:41.969 --> 00:01:45.189 to be here and can't wait to chat with you about 00:01:45.189 --> 00:01:48.670 all things marketing, moms, business, leadership. 00:01:49.450 --> 00:01:53.530 So we can begin. You had five young kids, but 00:01:53.530 --> 00:01:57.349 that was many years ago. So let's start by going 00:01:57.349 --> 00:02:00.390 back to what that life was like. I know that 00:02:00.390 --> 00:02:03.069 even marketing has evolved, technology has evolved, 00:02:03.170 --> 00:02:06.730 but motherhood hasn't, right? It's still a balancing 00:02:06.730 --> 00:02:09.870 act when you're a working mother or, you know, 00:02:09.870 --> 00:02:13.050 your own entrepreneur and you have kids. So what 00:02:13.050 --> 00:02:18.370 was that like? You know, I often tell the story 00:02:18.370 --> 00:02:21.550 of where I felt like the biggest failure. And 00:02:21.550 --> 00:02:24.590 it's when I first had started my business. My 00:02:24.590 --> 00:02:27.669 kids were very young and I remember it like it 00:02:27.669 --> 00:02:30.729 was yesterday. I'm in Safeway and it's that like 00:02:30.729 --> 00:02:36.050 crazy time between when kids are getting out 00:02:36.050 --> 00:02:38.349 of school and we're kind of wrapping up the day 00:02:38.349 --> 00:02:39.990 and you have to go make dinner and you forgot 00:02:39.990 --> 00:02:42.050 a few things and you're just kind of in the chaos 00:02:42.050 --> 00:02:44.569 of trying to get the day done. And my son says 00:02:44.569 --> 00:02:48.909 to me, Mom, we need ketchup. So me and my five 00:02:48.909 --> 00:02:51.189 kids go over to the condiment aisle, grab the 00:02:51.189 --> 00:02:54.189 ketchup. And my other son says, we need ranch 00:02:54.189 --> 00:02:57.870 dressing too. And in that moment, I just started 00:02:57.870 --> 00:03:02.909 crying. Because as so many days, I had been adding 00:03:02.909 --> 00:03:05.889 up every single set that was going into the cart. 00:03:06.229 --> 00:03:09.310 And I knew that I simply could not afford both 00:03:09.310 --> 00:03:12.289 the ketchup and the ranch dressing. And I felt 00:03:12.289 --> 00:03:15.349 like the biggest failure. And I felt like I wasn't 00:03:15.349 --> 00:03:18.060 just failing. me, but I was failing my kids. 00:03:18.219 --> 00:03:20.780 I was a single mom. I was all that they had. 00:03:21.180 --> 00:03:24.780 And when we take a look at that and take a look 00:03:24.780 --> 00:03:27.860 at that life, it's that struggle of all the responsibility. 00:03:28.039 --> 00:03:32.340 How do I make it work? And how do I push forward? 00:03:32.740 --> 00:03:37.759 And while there were many other nights, many 00:03:37.759 --> 00:03:39.780 more than I would like to admit, but I still 00:03:39.780 --> 00:03:42.139 questioned the decision. It is the choice to 00:03:42.139 --> 00:03:44.919 keep moving forward that actually propelled me 00:03:44.919 --> 00:03:48.400 to break through those obstacles and get where 00:03:48.400 --> 00:03:50.740 I was. Even though it felt like failure, you 00:03:50.740 --> 00:03:53.319 had to go through the failure to get to the success. 00:03:54.620 --> 00:03:57.379 Were you able to work from home though? So you 00:03:57.379 --> 00:04:00.960 had that down packed, holding that fork down? 00:04:01.500 --> 00:04:07.300 You know, I've worked from home. I had other 00:04:07.300 --> 00:04:09.060 businesses before I started this business, so 00:04:09.060 --> 00:04:11.020 I've been fortunate that I've worked from home 00:04:11.020 --> 00:04:13.740 for about the last 21 years in some capacity. 00:04:13.800 --> 00:04:17.519 So I've worked from home, and as I said a lot, 00:04:17.560 --> 00:04:20.180 I worked from a lot of coffee shops. There was 00:04:20.180 --> 00:04:23.439 one point where I decided to get an office space 00:04:23.439 --> 00:04:26.040 and did that for a while. I didn't really think 00:04:26.040 --> 00:04:28.740 it helped my business all that much, and so went 00:04:28.740 --> 00:04:31.600 back to working from home. So there's a lot of 00:04:31.600 --> 00:04:34.829 benefit in being able to juggle that. Being able 00:04:34.829 --> 00:04:38.410 to have a space where I can work and still be 00:04:38.410 --> 00:04:42.189 able to provide care for my kids. So with this 00:04:42.189 --> 00:04:45.529 community, what are some of the current challenges 00:04:45.529 --> 00:04:50.329 that some of the women face? I think the biggest 00:04:50.329 --> 00:04:53.990 thing is when you want to start a business, we 00:04:53.990 --> 00:04:56.949 have that desire, we have the passion, but we 00:04:56.949 --> 00:04:59.629 don't really know exactly what it takes. And 00:04:59.629 --> 00:05:03.290 I think the biggest challenge that we face. right 00:05:03.290 --> 00:05:07.750 now in like as we record this in 2025 is this 00:05:07.750 --> 00:05:11.189 idea that owning a business or entrepreneurship 00:05:11.189 --> 00:05:15.829 or a side hustle should be easy. And so basically 00:05:15.829 --> 00:05:19.610 it's been sold as this like amazing thing. You 00:05:19.610 --> 00:05:21.689 just work an hour and all of a sudden you're 00:05:21.689 --> 00:05:24.540 a millionaire. And that just isn't reality. And 00:05:24.540 --> 00:05:26.439 so I think a lot of people are coming in and 00:05:26.439 --> 00:05:29.720 not understanding the process and the work that 00:05:29.720 --> 00:05:31.240 it's going to take to build the business. Is 00:05:31.240 --> 00:05:34.660 it worth it in the end? Absolutely. But basically, 00:05:34.699 --> 00:05:36.980 people thought that, oh, I just bought a program 00:05:36.980 --> 00:05:39.379 or I just have to post on social media once. 00:05:39.459 --> 00:05:40.779 And all of a sudden, I'm going to have all these 00:05:40.779 --> 00:05:43.120 sales rolling in. And it doesn't work that way. 00:05:43.180 --> 00:05:44.980 So what we're seeing in that community is a lot 00:05:44.980 --> 00:05:48.259 of frustration of people feeling like maybe they 00:05:48.259 --> 00:05:52.250 were. sold a lie that maybe that they didn't 00:05:52.250 --> 00:05:53.689 understand what it was going to be. And so we're 00:05:53.689 --> 00:05:56.930 trying to help them understand, okay, now what 00:05:56.930 --> 00:05:58.970 are the basics that we need to actually get started 00:05:58.970 --> 00:06:02.689 and actually start growing your business? You 00:06:02.689 --> 00:06:05.329 know, everything that you just said really resonated 00:06:05.329 --> 00:06:07.889 with me. I was on a different podcast yesterday 00:06:07.889 --> 00:06:11.589 as a guest, and that was one of my key takeaways 00:06:11.589 --> 00:06:16.250 was it doesn't happen overnight. A lot of the 00:06:16.250 --> 00:06:21.209 current generation is selling my how -to. And 00:06:21.209 --> 00:06:23.550 this is how I do it. You can do it too. And within 00:06:23.550 --> 00:06:27.250 30 days, we're going to get you to seven figures 00:06:27.250 --> 00:06:32.689 now and just follow this system. And wait, there's 00:06:32.689 --> 00:06:38.069 more. I can't believe that that's what you're 00:06:38.069 --> 00:06:40.910 mentioning is the number one thing. I would have 00:06:40.910 --> 00:06:43.529 thought, you know, time management, how do I 00:06:43.529 --> 00:06:46.230 do these responsibilities? But it's really a 00:06:46.230 --> 00:06:50.029 frustration of really understanding that having 00:06:50.029 --> 00:06:53.629 a business takes many years to get to the level, 00:06:53.670 --> 00:06:57.069 perhaps where you want to be. Absolutely. And 00:06:57.069 --> 00:07:00.589 I think on the other side of that is there definitely 00:07:00.589 --> 00:07:03.410 you have to figure out time management. Sometimes 00:07:03.410 --> 00:07:05.129 we have to figure out tech and there's all sorts 00:07:05.129 --> 00:07:06.769 of different things that we have to figure out 00:07:06.769 --> 00:07:09.709 in it. But the biggest frustration is just the 00:07:09.709 --> 00:07:12.490 false expectations. And so sometimes you have 00:07:12.490 --> 00:07:15.709 to break through that first. And then it's like, 00:07:15.810 --> 00:07:18.290 OK, now what are the strategies we can put in 00:07:18.290 --> 00:07:20.990 place to actually do this? And I love what you 00:07:20.990 --> 00:07:23.149 said there, because I think the number one thing. 00:07:23.920 --> 00:07:26.439 that we can do to help be more successful is 00:07:26.439 --> 00:07:29.939 extend the timeline of our horizons of expectations. 00:07:30.699 --> 00:07:33.819 So if we look at, it might take us 10 years, 00:07:34.060 --> 00:07:36.600 that's okay. But when we start thinking it's 00:07:36.600 --> 00:07:40.800 supposed to happen in 30 days or a month or a 00:07:40.800 --> 00:07:43.779 year even, right? Most businesses, it takes a 00:07:43.779 --> 00:07:45.899 lot longer than a year to build to get to where 00:07:45.899 --> 00:07:48.319 you want. So just extending that expectation 00:07:48.319 --> 00:07:51.600 of how much time it's going to take actually 00:07:51.600 --> 00:07:55.129 relieves some of the pressure. I also serve women 00:07:55.129 --> 00:07:59.870 that perhaps are finishing being professors or 00:07:59.870 --> 00:08:03.649 they're ex -executives and they're not ready 00:08:03.649 --> 00:08:06.129 to retire, but they have a lot of expertise. 00:08:06.550 --> 00:08:10.750 They have a lot of connections. And I think that 00:08:10.750 --> 00:08:14.850 when you do have that base, it may be a shorter 00:08:14.850 --> 00:08:18.649 timeframe, but they're also not looking to build 00:08:18.649 --> 00:08:22.069 these huge companies, right? They're looking 00:08:22.069 --> 00:08:26.029 to earn, extra income while they can still enjoy 00:08:26.029 --> 00:08:31.750 their post -executive life. And it's a lot more 00:08:31.750 --> 00:08:35.350 about purpose than it is about trying to build 00:08:35.350 --> 00:08:39.529 something huge. And I think part of that, which 00:08:39.529 --> 00:08:43.850 is always super interesting, is I say one thing 00:08:43.850 --> 00:08:46.350 is you have to decide what you want, right? Society 00:08:46.350 --> 00:08:48.669 tells us we should have this, this, this, or 00:08:48.669 --> 00:08:51.350 whatever. So building a business could mean I 00:08:51.350 --> 00:08:55.580 want an extra... $500 ,000 a month, right? Like 00:08:55.580 --> 00:08:57.899 that's, that's cool for me. Building a business 00:08:57.899 --> 00:09:00.000 can mean I want to make millions of dollars a 00:09:00.000 --> 00:09:02.120 year. That's cool too. Like you get to decide 00:09:02.120 --> 00:09:06.440 what you want. And, but also one of the fun things 00:09:06.440 --> 00:09:08.399 about marketing and advertising. So whether you 00:09:08.399 --> 00:09:13.620 want, like you said, these basically end of their 00:09:13.620 --> 00:09:15.960 career and of that stage of their career, but 00:09:15.960 --> 00:09:20.299 not quite ready to be full retired stage, or 00:09:20.299 --> 00:09:22.159 I'm just starting out and want to build a huge 00:09:22.159 --> 00:09:26.299 business. The key is still marketing and advertising. 00:09:26.899 --> 00:09:29.500 Now, if you already have a network of people 00:09:29.500 --> 00:09:32.580 that want what you have to offer, that's fantastic. 00:09:32.720 --> 00:09:34.379 But reaching out to them and saying, hey, I'm 00:09:34.379 --> 00:09:36.960 available is still marketing and advertising, 00:09:37.139 --> 00:09:39.679 right? So we have to let people know we exist. 00:09:40.000 --> 00:09:42.179 We have to let people know our products and services 00:09:42.179 --> 00:09:44.080 exist. And I think that's one reason why I'm 00:09:44.080 --> 00:09:46.039 so passionate about marketing and advertising 00:09:46.039 --> 00:09:49.309 is because if nobody ever knows you exist. nobody 00:09:49.309 --> 00:09:52.190 can buy from you. So it's just, it doesn't matter 00:09:52.190 --> 00:09:54.950 how big you want to go, it's a solid foundation. 00:09:55.169 --> 00:09:58.629 And if we can just focus on the inputs, like 00:09:58.629 --> 00:10:01.230 what are we doing to make that happen, then the 00:10:01.230 --> 00:10:02.909 outputs will happen at the time that they're 00:10:02.909 --> 00:10:05.830 supposed to. Well, I'd love to hear a lot more 00:10:05.830 --> 00:10:10.710 about what you do and some tips of what's working 00:10:10.710 --> 00:10:15.690 best for your clients. Awesome. Well, I appreciate 00:10:15.690 --> 00:10:18.750 that. We kind of have a couple different ways 00:10:18.750 --> 00:10:21.429 that we work with our clients. Obviously, we 00:10:21.429 --> 00:10:24.129 have a marketing agency where we are a full scale 00:10:24.129 --> 00:10:26.350 digital marketing agency. So people just pay 00:10:26.350 --> 00:10:28.509 us to handle their marketing. And that's where, 00:10:28.549 --> 00:10:30.429 as you said, we work with small brands, helping 00:10:30.429 --> 00:10:33.870 them beat big businesses. The reality is bigger 00:10:33.870 --> 00:10:37.669 businesses have people like myself, other marketing 00:10:37.669 --> 00:10:39.929 agencies that they're paying hundreds of thousands, 00:10:40.009 --> 00:10:42.110 if not seven figures a year just to do their 00:10:42.110 --> 00:10:44.080 marketing. And what we understand is small brands 00:10:44.080 --> 00:10:46.460 can't afford that. So we take all that expertise 00:10:46.460 --> 00:10:50.299 and help them be able to grow while still having 00:10:50.299 --> 00:10:53.539 the same tools, expertise, and knowledge. So 00:10:53.539 --> 00:10:55.500 they'll just pay us to handle their marketing. 00:10:55.580 --> 00:10:57.500 We love working with small brands at that capacity. 00:10:57.720 --> 00:11:01.440 We also have our memberships where we teach. 00:11:01.620 --> 00:11:04.840 We just teach you what you need to do to go market 00:11:04.840 --> 00:11:08.059 your business. And then on parts of that, we 00:11:08.059 --> 00:11:10.620 can offer software and additional coaching and 00:11:10.620 --> 00:11:14.679 services to make sure that you can fill those 00:11:14.679 --> 00:11:16.820 gaps. Those are kind of the done -with -you services, 00:11:16.919 --> 00:11:19.019 we say. You're still going to do all the execution, 00:11:19.200 --> 00:11:21.480 but we want to make sure that you're on the right 00:11:21.480 --> 00:11:24.799 track. And as far as what's really working, I 00:11:24.799 --> 00:11:26.720 think the biggest thing is always understanding 00:11:26.720 --> 00:11:30.279 in this world of social media, in this world 00:11:30.279 --> 00:11:36.940 of online, where most people maybe miss a step 00:11:36.940 --> 00:11:39.440 is understanding that they don't own their own 00:11:39.440 --> 00:11:42.259 audience. So our goal when we're putting stuff 00:11:42.259 --> 00:11:45.179 out there should always be to be building our 00:11:45.179 --> 00:11:47.480 own list, whether that be an email list, a text 00:11:47.480 --> 00:11:49.779 message marketing list, something like that, 00:11:49.799 --> 00:11:51.860 that puts you in charge of being able to communicate 00:11:51.860 --> 00:11:54.620 with your potential clients at any given time. 00:11:54.700 --> 00:11:57.399 So many times people are just posting on social 00:11:57.399 --> 00:11:59.539 media or just doing something there and they're 00:11:59.539 --> 00:12:03.259 never owning their client list or their contact 00:12:03.259 --> 00:12:07.340 list. That actually puts all of the control onto 00:12:07.340 --> 00:12:09.720 the social media platform. So if it changes or 00:12:09.720 --> 00:12:12.259 something happens to your account, you actually 00:12:12.259 --> 00:12:14.419 don't have a way to contact anybody anymore. 00:12:15.600 --> 00:12:19.620 I've seen that happen to so many people and they 00:12:19.620 --> 00:12:23.659 don't have a plan B. They haven't prepared or 00:12:23.659 --> 00:12:27.139 it gets hacked. And now all of their people are 00:12:27.139 --> 00:12:29.879 just seeing things that someone else is posting. 00:12:30.080 --> 00:12:35.350 So what about AI? How is... AI affecting marketing 00:12:35.350 --> 00:12:38.009 and the messaging? Because some people may be 00:12:38.009 --> 00:12:41.769 thinking, I don't need a marketing agency. I 00:12:41.769 --> 00:12:45.889 have an AI, right? Or there's a software that 00:12:45.889 --> 00:12:48.429 will auto post for me. I know that when it comes 00:12:48.429 --> 00:12:51.230 to editing the podcast, for example, I can upload 00:12:51.230 --> 00:12:57.250 an audio to AI. And when I replay it, it just 00:12:57.250 --> 00:13:03.740 doesn't sound like it flows. So I can't. hand 00:13:03.740 --> 00:13:07.139 it over to the AI. I'd rather have someone do 00:13:07.139 --> 00:13:10.500 it manually because it's just not the same. And 00:13:10.500 --> 00:13:12.659 I think that when we talk about messaging, a 00:13:12.659 --> 00:13:16.039 lot of times people are missing the mark, but 00:13:16.039 --> 00:13:18.759 that's my opinion. I want to hear from you how 00:13:18.759 --> 00:13:21.320 it's affecting not just the industry, but the 00:13:21.320 --> 00:13:26.220 messaging. Yeah. So I think I think AI is fascinating. 00:13:26.480 --> 00:13:30.960 We utilize AI a ton and we continue to find different 00:13:30.960 --> 00:13:34.940 ways that we can adopt AI. And I think we're 00:13:34.940 --> 00:13:36.779 going to see in the next couple of years a lot 00:13:36.779 --> 00:13:40.700 of different amazing use cases for AI. That being 00:13:40.700 --> 00:13:44.480 said, it also doesn't replace the human element. 00:13:44.799 --> 00:13:48.440 So we have to, I say it's a starting place, not 00:13:48.440 --> 00:13:51.360 the ending. It's great for brainstorming. It's 00:13:51.360 --> 00:13:53.659 great for helping us come up with ideas. It's 00:13:53.659 --> 00:13:55.899 even great with helping with some messaging. 00:13:56.159 --> 00:13:59.659 But we have to have a baseline first. Whether 00:13:59.659 --> 00:14:03.200 it be, hey, here's a list of 50 different things 00:14:03.200 --> 00:14:06.870 my customers have said to me. It's going to get 00:14:06.870 --> 00:14:08.669 the ball rolling and help us come up with different 00:14:08.669 --> 00:14:12.090 ways to say that or incorporate that in our messaging. 00:14:12.330 --> 00:14:14.750 But I always say that AI is kind of a starting 00:14:14.750 --> 00:14:16.909 place. It's a great place to say, hey, give me 00:14:16.909 --> 00:14:20.830 10 ideas on this or what would be the basics 00:14:20.830 --> 00:14:23.690 of this? And then you have to go in and humanize 00:14:23.690 --> 00:14:26.809 it and actually make sure that it reads the way 00:14:26.809 --> 00:14:30.250 it should. And I think that people that don't 00:14:30.250 --> 00:14:34.919 do that. it becomes very obvious that it was 00:14:34.919 --> 00:14:37.320 all written by AI because it all sounds the same. 00:14:37.419 --> 00:14:41.220 So I think it's a great tool and we need to continue 00:14:41.220 --> 00:14:43.220 to find ways because that's how we maximize our 00:14:43.220 --> 00:14:45.960 time. That's how we maximize how we can be most 00:14:45.960 --> 00:14:50.019 effective. And there's some different automations 00:14:50.019 --> 00:14:53.100 that allow us to be totally hands -off. But when 00:14:53.100 --> 00:14:56.279 it comes to messaging and understanding conversation 00:14:56.279 --> 00:14:58.980 and humans, I just don't think AI is quite there 00:14:58.980 --> 00:15:02.840 yet. And so we need to make sure that we're always 00:15:02.840 --> 00:15:05.019 reviewing our copy. And I've seen some great 00:15:05.019 --> 00:15:07.460 AI tools and they literally say at the bottom 00:15:07.460 --> 00:15:09.539 of them, make sure you read it because it can 00:15:09.539 --> 00:15:13.100 lie. OK, right. So we need to make sure that 00:15:13.100 --> 00:15:17.600 we are we're not just posting whatever AI says. 00:15:17.980 --> 00:15:19.940 We're not just taking it for whatever it is. 00:15:20.000 --> 00:15:22.320 We need to make sure that we're editing it and 00:15:22.320 --> 00:15:26.679 making it ours. Somehow you lose credibility, 00:15:26.940 --> 00:15:30.059 even though we are. perhaps using it as tools, 00:15:30.220 --> 00:15:33.320 I've seen at the bottom where it'll say, this 00:15:33.320 --> 00:15:36.440 will make it sound more. So it even makes you 00:15:36.440 --> 00:15:40.159 think more now, or I'm distracted reading the 00:15:40.159 --> 00:15:42.200 response because I'm trying to figure out, well, 00:15:42.200 --> 00:15:45.139 what did this person ask the chat GPT to write? 00:15:45.240 --> 00:15:47.639 Because, you know, it'll say it at the bottom. 00:15:47.679 --> 00:15:52.100 So I love that tip, right? Yeah. Filter, just 00:15:52.100 --> 00:15:55.700 like think before you post. Read before you post 00:15:55.700 --> 00:16:00.620 if you are using. artificial intelligence. So 00:16:00.620 --> 00:16:04.059 in your website, you emphasize that finding the 00:16:04.059 --> 00:16:07.000 right partner is essential for business growth. 00:16:07.120 --> 00:16:10.960 If someone is out there looking for a marketing 00:16:10.960 --> 00:16:15.820 agency, what's the difference between A and B, 00:16:15.919 --> 00:16:19.100 or what guidelines or tips can you offer people 00:16:19.100 --> 00:16:24.419 that perhaps want to look at agencies to work 00:16:24.419 --> 00:16:28.690 with? I think it's important to understand proof 00:16:28.690 --> 00:16:31.909 matters above all, right? So what results have 00:16:31.909 --> 00:16:36.950 they been able to get? And be able to understand 00:16:36.950 --> 00:16:41.750 where you want to go. Oftentimes what we see 00:16:41.750 --> 00:16:45.309 happen is sometimes people will not really have 00:16:45.309 --> 00:16:48.629 a whole lot of experience in something, but they 00:16:48.629 --> 00:16:51.269 have more experience than you. And so they're 00:16:51.269 --> 00:16:55.480 able to use more complex terms because... They 00:16:55.480 --> 00:16:58.000 know those terms and it makes them sound like 00:16:58.000 --> 00:16:59.200 they know what they're talking about. So what 00:16:59.200 --> 00:17:02.559 I would say is one good test for an agency is 00:17:02.559 --> 00:17:04.880 can they explain it to a level where you understand, 00:17:05.160 --> 00:17:07.180 where you understand what they will be doing 00:17:07.180 --> 00:17:10.460 for you and what the expectations are of those 00:17:10.460 --> 00:17:14.960 results. And I say that that's always huge. I'll 00:17:14.960 --> 00:17:17.759 take it from maybe the other side as well is 00:17:17.759 --> 00:17:19.480 like, who should you listen to when it comes 00:17:19.480 --> 00:17:22.440 from training? coaching or mentorship. Maybe 00:17:22.440 --> 00:17:24.039 you don't want to pay for a marketing agency, 00:17:24.160 --> 00:17:26.599 but you want to learn how to do this. We all 00:17:26.599 --> 00:17:28.900 start somewhere and oftentimes we start out doing 00:17:28.900 --> 00:17:32.079 it all ourselves, right? That's okay. So you 00:17:32.079 --> 00:17:34.680 need to make sure that you're looking at, in 00:17:34.680 --> 00:17:38.740 my opinion, has this person actually executed 00:17:38.740 --> 00:17:40.859 the job? One of the things I say when I say from 00:17:40.859 --> 00:17:43.519 marketing training perspective or the coaching 00:17:43.519 --> 00:17:46.650 that we do is We actually run a marketing agency. 00:17:46.890 --> 00:17:49.009 We can tell you what's working in the space because 00:17:49.009 --> 00:17:53.049 we're doing it every single day. I see a lot 00:17:53.049 --> 00:17:56.509 of bad information in the marketing space because 00:17:56.509 --> 00:17:59.390 people haven't actually done the marketing. They've 00:17:59.390 --> 00:18:02.470 maybe understood the theories or read a book 00:18:02.470 --> 00:18:04.730 or watched a training, but they haven't gone 00:18:04.730 --> 00:18:07.650 and either executed it for themselves or for 00:18:07.650 --> 00:18:11.150 another business. So making sure that that person, 00:18:11.289 --> 00:18:13.829 whoever you're going to hire, whether it be for 00:18:13.829 --> 00:18:16.509 them to actually handle your marketing or just 00:18:16.509 --> 00:18:18.250 to learn from them how to do your marketing on 00:18:18.250 --> 00:18:20.329 your own. Make sure that they actually have the 00:18:20.329 --> 00:18:22.869 experience to get the results that you want. 00:18:23.930 --> 00:18:28.390 So is it better to focus on one or two platforms 00:18:28.390 --> 00:18:32.529 or to try and be in all of the platforms? My 00:18:32.529 --> 00:18:34.609 advice on this has actually changed a little 00:18:34.609 --> 00:18:38.529 bit recently. And it's because of some of the 00:18:38.529 --> 00:18:40.549 stuff we see happening. So the first thing I 00:18:40.549 --> 00:18:44.339 would say is. understanding that you should master 00:18:44.339 --> 00:18:48.359 one platform. And that platform, let me be very 00:18:48.359 --> 00:18:51.480 clear on this, that platform should be the platform 00:18:51.480 --> 00:18:55.000 where your ideal customer hangs out. Not the 00:18:55.000 --> 00:18:57.000 platform you like the most, not the platform 00:18:57.000 --> 00:18:59.559 you feel the most comfortable with. It's wherever 00:18:59.559 --> 00:19:02.460 the platform is that your ideal customer is spending 00:19:02.460 --> 00:19:06.039 the most time. So that's how you decide what 00:19:06.039 --> 00:19:08.880 platform to use, right? Where are your customers 00:19:08.880 --> 00:19:12.720 going to be hanging out? but you do need to master 00:19:12.720 --> 00:19:16.019 one platform and you need to be consistent with 00:19:16.019 --> 00:19:19.400 it. And mastering it means understanding all 00:19:19.400 --> 00:19:23.180 the nuances of it. How do I actually post to, 00:19:23.299 --> 00:19:27.019 whether it be, do I do it things? Are I doing 00:19:27.019 --> 00:19:30.759 reels? Is it, can I go live? What are all the 00:19:30.759 --> 00:19:33.720 different components of that platform? Because 00:19:33.720 --> 00:19:36.519 the reality is you don't want to be trying to 00:19:36.519 --> 00:19:38.519 figure out the tips and tricks. You don't want 00:19:38.519 --> 00:19:42.609 to try to like, somehow scam the algorithm. Trust 00:19:42.609 --> 00:19:45.029 me, the algorithm catches up. The algorithms 00:19:45.029 --> 00:19:46.589 are already changing. So you need to understand 00:19:46.589 --> 00:19:49.950 what the platform is for and what it's and like 00:19:49.950 --> 00:19:52.910 why you're getting the results you can. And always 00:19:52.910 --> 00:19:55.589 remember, all platforms, all they care about 00:19:55.589 --> 00:19:59.369 is keeping people on the platform. So in reality, 00:19:59.589 --> 00:20:03.309 you just have to create good content. So master 00:20:03.309 --> 00:20:06.289 one. And I used to always say, just stick to 00:20:06.289 --> 00:20:10.470 one. That being said. I'm telling people that 00:20:10.470 --> 00:20:12.569 they should probably repurpose their content 00:20:12.569 --> 00:20:17.230 onto other platforms, but don't try to really 00:20:17.230 --> 00:20:20.789 learn that platform. Just understand it won't 00:20:20.789 --> 00:20:23.890 perform as well. Because normally when we're 00:20:23.890 --> 00:20:26.049 repurposing content, we want to make sure it's 00:20:26.049 --> 00:20:29.230 platform specific. I understand that most entrepreneurs 00:20:29.230 --> 00:20:32.349 are starting out, don't have time for that. So 00:20:32.349 --> 00:20:36.029 just repurpose it, just post it again on another 00:20:36.029 --> 00:20:39.660 platform because we're seeing too many. too many 00:20:39.660 --> 00:20:43.140 variables in the space where accounts do get 00:20:43.140 --> 00:20:46.819 hacked or an account gets shut down or things 00:20:46.819 --> 00:20:49.240 like that. And I would rather you start building 00:20:49.240 --> 00:20:52.779 an audience somewhere else as well than not have 00:20:52.779 --> 00:20:54.559 that and have to start all over. So you just 00:20:54.559 --> 00:20:57.119 have to understand that place that you're repurposing 00:20:57.119 --> 00:21:00.059 to is just probably not going to do as well and 00:21:00.059 --> 00:21:02.480 just be okay with that. But it allows you to 00:21:02.480 --> 00:21:05.460 start building an audience there. I'm going to 00:21:05.460 --> 00:21:07.680 repeat because it was so important what you said. 00:21:08.190 --> 00:21:12.210 Start with the audience where your ideal client 00:21:12.210 --> 00:21:17.069 hangs out, not your favorite, not where you feel 00:21:17.069 --> 00:21:20.670 most comfortable, but where the people that you're 00:21:20.670 --> 00:21:26.710 looking for are going to be. Right. That puts 00:21:26.710 --> 00:21:29.309 us, we have to remember, we're not in that space 00:21:29.309 --> 00:21:31.670 when we're posting. We're not a consumer. We're 00:21:31.670 --> 00:21:35.640 a creator. We're creating for a platform. And 00:21:35.640 --> 00:21:38.339 those people that will be looking at it and consuming 00:21:38.339 --> 00:21:42.440 it, they have to be the right people. They have 00:21:42.440 --> 00:21:44.660 to be our ideal people. And let's be honest, 00:21:44.740 --> 00:21:47.200 the platforms are amazing at finding the right 00:21:47.200 --> 00:21:49.240 people, assuming you're posting the right kind 00:21:49.240 --> 00:21:52.670 of content. If you know a little bit about your 00:21:52.670 --> 00:21:55.190 customers, that's what helps you understand what 00:21:55.190 --> 00:21:57.730 platform you should be posting to. If you're 00:21:57.730 --> 00:22:01.670 100 % going for sales executives, you should 00:22:01.670 --> 00:22:04.009 probably be on LinkedIn, right? That's where 00:22:04.009 --> 00:22:08.849 they hang out. If you're looking for 18 -year 00:22:08.849 --> 00:22:11.430 -olds, maybe Snapchat is the best platform for 00:22:11.430 --> 00:22:13.650 you. So you just have to understand the different 00:22:13.650 --> 00:22:16.769 platforms and really be focusing only on where 00:22:16.769 --> 00:22:21.240 your audience is. And with your groups, The Mob, 00:22:21.440 --> 00:22:28.640 tell us a little bit about who can join. So The 00:22:28.640 --> 00:22:31.319 Mob is an absolutely free group over on the school 00:22:31.319 --> 00:22:33.160 platform. If you know anything about that platform, 00:22:33.299 --> 00:22:36.140 it's an amazing platform. And it's a community 00:22:36.140 --> 00:22:41.619 built for moms and those that support moms who 00:22:41.619 --> 00:22:44.799 own businesses. Now, you do not have to be a 00:22:44.799 --> 00:22:48.750 mom to join the group. But we do want to say 00:22:48.750 --> 00:22:50.589 that you have to be supportive of moms in business. 00:22:50.829 --> 00:22:53.670 And the whole point is just to get you the support 00:22:53.670 --> 00:22:56.529 you need to start, build and grow a business 00:22:56.529 --> 00:22:59.549 online. We know how challenging it is. And it's 00:22:59.549 --> 00:23:02.369 basically the resource that I wish I had when 00:23:02.369 --> 00:23:05.009 I started my group. So it's a community as well 00:23:05.009 --> 00:23:07.470 as live teaching and then recorded trainings 00:23:07.470 --> 00:23:11.369 as well. Perfect. I will leave the link in the 00:23:11.369 --> 00:23:14.589 description for anyone that's interested in joining. 00:23:15.369 --> 00:23:19.390 the community in school. Before we wrap this 00:23:19.390 --> 00:23:24.089 up, what is your next milestone? My next milestone. 00:23:24.289 --> 00:23:30.750 I love that question. Right now, I am on a mission 00:23:30.750 --> 00:23:33.930 to help a million moms make money online. So 00:23:33.930 --> 00:23:36.049 that's my next milestone is how do I help a million 00:23:36.049 --> 00:23:41.309 moms make money online? Well, that's very short, 00:23:41.450 --> 00:23:46.039 sweet, concise. So I think you'll hit the mark. 00:23:46.200 --> 00:23:48.619 There's no doubt about it. Thank you. It goes 00:23:48.619 --> 00:23:51.619 to you. Well, thank you for joining me today, 00:23:51.819 --> 00:23:54.619 Amanda. Thank you so much for having me. I really 00:23:54.619 --> 00:23:58.480 appreciate it. And thank you to all of our listeners 00:23:58.480 --> 00:24:01.799 for tuning in to another episode of Milestone 00:24:01.799 --> 00:24:05.460 Moments in Business and Leadership. Until next 00:24:05.460 --> 00:24:05.859 time.