Make Marketing Suck Less

Dr. Michelle Mazur (00:00): What if the business advice, the common wisdom about how to grow your business is not meant for you? What if how you've been taught to market and sell, what if that advice was meant for the masses and not for someone with your very particular set of skills? If marketing doesn't seem to be working for your business, let me tell you, there's nothing wrong with you or your business. It is 100% because the way you've been taught to market doesn't work for an expert like you. So let's bust through some of the biggest misconceptions so you can stop trying to market like everyone else and start communicating the value of your work so the people who need to hire you know you exist. Let's do this.

(01:06): Get ready for the Rebel Uprising Podcast, the only podcast dedicated to business owners who feel overlooked for their expertise, skills and experience. Let's claim your expertise and turn your complex ideas into unmistakable messaging that grows your business. I am your host, Dr. Michelle Mazur, the author of the 3 Word Rebellion and Your Rebel Truth Telling Guide to Building a Business That Gets Noticed.

(01:36): A few years ago, I was in a program where I was an expert surrounded by generalists. It felt like the people in that group had so many more options to sell and market in their business. It felt like they could be so creative. It felt like they had so much more opportunity because they could do so much more than me and that's because I had deep expertise. I left that program feeling like I was somehow limited. I realize now that that was bullshit and that program really wasn't for me.

(02:19): And most of what we see in business, the programs that are offered, those aren't for experts. That advice, that consulting, really won't work for us and that's okay because it is meant for the generalists, not for you and me. That's why I wanted to expose some of the biggest misconceptions about being an expert in a world that is filled with generalists.

(02:47): Let's start with the elephant in the room. Misconception number one: and this is the one that I was falling into when I was in that program. Claiming your expertise is limiting for your business. Now, on the face of it, this misconception makes sense. It's super similar to the common worry about nicheing. If you narrow your focus on what you offer and who you offer it to, it's going to be somehow limiting for your business. That's why we see so many business coaches saying that they can do it all, from marketing to sales, to operations, to hiring, to messaging.

(03:30): They position themselves as the ultimate generalist, casting the widest possible net. And here's the Rebel Truth, these coaches are probably only really good at one or two of the things they claim they do. If there isn't something clear and specific that you can offer, you're always going to be fighting for clients. You're always going to be fighting to be recognized. It's just going to suck. There's going to be a lot of competition. So claiming your expertise is not limiting for your business. In fact, it's business expanding because you can become known for your expertise.

(04:19): Now, if you're thinking, "Michelle, I'm a multi-passionate, I have a lot of tools in my toolbox," that's awesome. You can specialize in the problem you want to solve for your client. You can be an expert in that and bring all of your tools and knowledge to produce a specific result. In a world of generalists, be the specialist, claim your expertise and then follow that mandate to communicate why your expertise matters in your marketing.

(04:55): And I talked about that mandate in my Rebel Expert manifesto. So you can download your own copy of that to remember how powerful your expertise is and why it matters. So go get your copy at drmichellemazur.com/ expert. Narrowing in on your expertise expands your business and reaches more people. Do we have different struggles in messaging and marketing? Yes, of course, we do. So that's why you want to find people and programs that are meant for experts and not for the masses.

(05:39): Misconception number two: the size of your audience signals your expertise. Hell, no. Can I just move on? Is that enough? I feel like that should be enough but I know it's not. I don't know when audience size became a marker of credibility and expertise but in a world full of social media influencers, it has. I've seen too many experts get hung up on how big their audience is and what it says about their business if they don't have a big audience, when really most experts don't need a huge audience to make their business work.

(06:20): And I'm going to talk more about that in a future episode. But most expertise driven businesses need a much smaller audience than the marketing web celebs would have you believe. The size of your audience has nothing to do with how expert you are, how many years of experience you have or the results that you get for your clients.

(06:46): And ps, how much money you make is not an indicator of expertise, either. The size of your audience, the size of your bank account does not impact your expertise and your results. So you don't have to market in a way that deals with income claims, yay. So remember, it's not about the size of your audience, it's about serving the right people who need your expertise.

(07:21): And finally, misconception number three: experts should market like the charismatic few. The reason you think you need a huge audience or that you need to brag about the racks and stacks of cash you make is because most marking advice isn't meant for the expert. Most marketing programs are designed for people who are charismatic and cute. The people who derive energy from marketing, they can just show up and be themselves and their audience grows and their clients flock to them. Well, at least it seems like their clients flock to them, right?

(07:59): Charisma is not the only way to build a platform. You don't need to be everywhere. You probably shouldn't be dancing on reels or TikTok unless it lights you up. In fact, your mandate to communicate means your selective and you pick marketing that plays to your strengths. And in the 300th episode of this podcast, we talked about doing marketing that you love. So you market where your right clients are. You are not marketing to the masses. Most experts would rather be working with their clients than marketing.

(08:41): So making your expertise visible doesn't rely on charisma, it doesn't rely on being everywhere like Gary V. It relies on your big, beautiful brain. Remember, your unfair advantage is your ability to think, your ability to apply your expertise to various situations. So create marketing that highlights that. Translate your expertise into a message that makes your audience think and you're on the way to building your platform on your own damn terms.

(09:23): Experts have been left out in the cold far too often when it comes to business. Most advice makes experts feel at a disadvantage. But when you discard the misconceptions, embrace the business expanding potential of your expertise and build a platform using your own unique strengths, then your expertise becomes visible and known to the right people. And that, my friend, is what gets you hired. Hey rebel, wouldn't it be amazing if people just recognized your expertise on the spot and decided to hire you? Of course it would but we know business doesn't work that way.

(10:06): Instead, you have to show up and market. And let's face it, marketing has not been your jam and it feels like it doesn't work for your business and there's a reason for that. In order to market effectively, so you grab attention and lead people to your offer. It takes having a one of a kind message and an ability to build the case for why people should hire you. And that's exactly what we'll create in the 3 Word Rebellion messaging intensive.

(10:40): Yes, we will co-create your 3 Word Rebellion. But you'll also create all of the other messaging your business needs to efficiently and effectively show up and market your business while translating your expertise into a message your clients want to know more about. Interested in that? Then let's chat. Go to 3wrcall.com. That's the number three W-R call.com and book a free consultation with me. I look forward to helping you get your message out in the world so that more people can hire you.

(11:25): If the Rebel Uprising Podcast is helping you claim and communicate your expertise so that your clients can find and hire you, please share the show with a friend. The easiest way to do that is through Pod. Link. You can find the show at pod.link/rebel and that page will allow anyone you share the show with to subscribe and start listening in their favorite podcast player. That's pod.link/rebel.

(11:55): The Rebel Uprising podcast is a production of Yellow House Media. Our production coordinator is Lou Blazer. Our production assistant is Emily Kilda. The podcast is edited by Stephen Mills. Our executive producers are Sean and Tara McMullen. The Rebel Uprising podcast is recorded on the unseated traditional land of the Coast Salish Peoples. Specifically the first people of Seattle, the Duwamish people, original stewards of the land, past and present.