Marketing & Cocktails

Episode #14 Autumn Pimms Cup [00:00:00] Terrica: Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. We're your hosts. Terrica Strozier, that's me a brand designer and sugar addict and Vanessa Shepherd, launch strategist and content creator. With a love of all things Disney. Each week, you'll hear our behind the scenes conversations and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer a product while doing it all ethically and organically. And giving that bro marketer advice the booth. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink and let's jump into today's episode. Welcome to episode 14 of the marketing & cocktails podcast. And we have another cocktail hour guys. So today's episode, I have done a spin on the traditional parents cup. We are a segway digging into what is really fall for most of the country, but as 2020 has already set the pace to be a truly odd year in Georgia. [00:01:00] It's just starting to get just a wee bit cold. And when I say cold, I mean, we finally got the low 50's at night. For like a week or two. So, but anyhow, I decided that I wanted to do a fall version of a traditional Pimms cup. So for people who are not aware of Pimm's, Pimm's is a gin-based liqour that was originally created to be a digestive, like basically to help with your digestion. This was back in the 1800s. So. I also figured out that the liqueur is named, was it the name of it is Pimm's, but it's Pimms number one, because the original creator of Pimms used to serve in a small tanker known as a number one cup. And so that's how it got the name Pimm's cup. And the liqueur is, labeled Pimm's number one. [00:02:00] So. At one of my favorite, local restaurants here in Atlanta. Well, it's outside of Atlanta in Decatur. It's called, No. 246. They had this, Oh my gosh. Amazing. autumn take on a Pimm's cup. And that was the first time I ever had it. And I was like, this is so good. Eventually I have to make my own version. So I wanted it to be simple and I didn't want it to be like really, really complicated or take a lot of, different bakers and look cores and bitters and all that jazz. because sometimes you just want like an easy to make comforting type recipe. So Pimm's cup is normally made with a combination, of lemon juice, ginger ale, and then some people even add in like cucumber and mint, like really refreshing AHS, usually served during the summer. And as a fun [00:03:00] fact, it's the favorite cooler at Wilmington. So. I tried it originally, how it was meant to be served. And I did it with lemonade and some ginger real, and it's really nice, super simple, really refreshing, easy cocktail. But I, my brain started turning and I said, how can I take an out and twist on this? So one of my favorite drinks. Especially during the fall is Apple cider. I love, love, love Apple cider. I have made my own at home. I, if I'm on a run, I'll stop at Starbucks and get the, they don't call it Apple cider. What is it called? It's like steamed Apple juice with their cinnamon Dolce syrup in it and a little whipped cream. Oh, so, so, so, so good. So I said, how can I combine these two? So I came up with my autumn [00:04:00] Tim's club. So what it consists of is, okay, I use an unfiltered Apple juice. I went to my local grocery store here, which is Kroger and they had their own brand and it's a honey crisp Apple. I could not find any Apple cider. I guess everyone has the same idea that I had. And. All the Apple cider was gone. So this is the closest, you can also use, just a pure Apple juice. You want to get that? Just like. Clean flavor of it. So it consists of Apple juice, pamphlet core. Then I add a orange core and you can literally find any orange, little core that's in your local liquor store. there's a few brands that go by like P street. You can do a contrary. All I found a French orange little core. And it was really, really good. So that's what I used. And then I decided, okay, [00:05:00] like I said, one of my favorite drinks is the one that Starbucks and they use a cinnamon, Dolce syrup. I found a, homemade version of that and I've made it before and it's good. But I said, how can I elevate this? What makes me think of fall? And I was like, Ooh, warm spices. Okay. So how can we get those warm spices in a drink? And then I thought, Oh, my other favorite thing, chai tea, and the spicier the better. So I made a chai spiced, simple syrup, and that includes. I did have bound sugar, have white sugar, nutmeg, all spice, cinnamon steaks, ginger peppercorn, Carmen, and, and guys. Oh, it's so good. So spicy with the sweetness. It's it's perfect. So. What you do is you can just literally mix it yeah. In a shaker, or you can build it in a tall glass with ice. So [00:06:00] you're going to do ice. You're going to add four to five ounces of the Apple juice, an ounce and a half of the pencil core. A half an ounce to an ounce of the orange, the core, depending on how much, orange flavor you like orange and Apple pear really well. So that's why, I added that. and then a apps and a half of the chai, simple syrup. You can also sub in a cinnamon, simple syrup as well. If you just don't want to go, through. Through the painstaking, think of making your own simple syrup or you can't find the ingredients for, a cinnamon, simple syrup can be easily found in most stores. if you go by the coffee section and just like buy one of the, a simple syrups that they include there, and then you just shade, or if you're mixing and tall glass, take a tall spoon and swirl guys. Really easy, really refreshing. I also added did a different version and I added about a half an ounce to an ounce of bourbon. And that was really good as well. [00:07:00] Now what really took it over the top is I said, let's make this and hot toddy version. So I warmed up. the Apple juice, you can steam it on the stove, however you prefer. And then you're going to build everything in it. So you're going to steam the Apple juice. adding the orange lip core out in the chest space and adding the pencil core. And that is really tasty. And if you're not, if you try a Pimm's and you're not a big fan, you can literally make this a hot toddy version, take out the pencil core and then just do the Apple juice, the orange, the court that the simple syrup and bourbon or a whiskey or a rum and guys. Oh, so good. So comforting just feels like home in a cup. So I hope you enjoy this. guys, we are on the cups of Thanksgiving. this would be a really great, drink to serve if you're having some adults there. and [00:08:00] if not, then just take, A nice evening and make the high tidy version and curl up on the sofa with a good book. a furry friend, even the human variety, they work too. Thanks for listening. Y'all you can find the show notes at she's got vision.com/podcast. If you've enjoyed what you've heard today, please leave a review and subscribe to the podcast. And because word of mouth is still the best marketing Avenue. Please tell a friend to share it. If you do, don't forget to tag us as she's got vision on all platforms until the next time y'all were wishing you much success. And remember, there's always time for cocktails.

Episode #13 - Essentials to a Solid Marketing Foundation [00:00:00] Terrica: Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. We're your hosts, Terrica Strozier, that's me a brand designer and sugar addict and Vanessa Shepherd, launch strategist and content creator. With a love of all things Disney. Each week, you'll hear, our behind the scenes conversations and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer a product while doing it all ethically and organically. And giving that bro marketer advice the booth. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink and let's jump into today's episode. Welcome to episode 13 of the marketing and cocktails podcast. Today's podcast is all about the essential keys to a solid marketing foundation. A solid foundation is essential to the growth of your business. So today we've decided to give you a few tips and tricks to just strengthen the foundation of your business. So if marketing has been on your to-do list for awhile, take a listen. Vanessa: So we're back with some [00:01:00] marketing foundation chit chat about all the things. That you kind of need to have to have an awesome, solid foundation for your business and all the things that you really need to be reassessing and fine tuning as you go. So the cool part about creating a business is that it is always going to keep evolving. You're always going to have to be making sure that you were kind of coming in and looking at everything and how it's working, where it's not working and adjusting it just because you have. Something today, whether it's a product or a service that isn't selling doesn't mean that you're not on the right track or you're not on the right vein. It just means that maybe it's not reaching enough people or maybe your messaging is a little off, or maybe the people that you thought would vibe with it. Aren't actually the right people. And some other group is going to vibe with it instead. So we're going to kind of cover some of the essential marketing foundations and then talk a little bit about, even how to like, look at fine tuning some of those pieces as you go as well. So [00:02:00] one of the big things you've probably already heard about, and you're going to keep hearing about if you're in the online business space is a sales funnel. that's something that. There's some people out there that they say, you, you know, you have a bajillion funnels and you do this really, all you need is one, one way to get people in and to get people converting from somebody that's just viewing you on the outside to actually signing up for your email list to actually purchasing your product. However, that is what ever that is. Whether it's a product you're selling our service, you're selling. So a funnel is basically just. A flow of how you attract a lead, turn them into a prospect and finally turn them into a customer. So it's basically a process of gaining awareness, enticing those people to sign up for your list and then nurturing the relationship so that those people will become lifelong customers. And the reason why we use a funnel is that it starts [00:03:00] out, as a way, just to demonstrate the fact that you have to put yourself out there. And that you have to get people aware of your brand. think of like the shoes that you buy, the brand, you chose, you chose it because you became aware of the brand and then you became aware of the product and the features and how it could benefit you. You knew what your needs were and you made that final purchase because it checked all those boxes on your list. So a funnel is basically going to help people do the exact same thing with whatever that you're selling. It's kind of a, a flow of a way to get leads in, get the leads, learning about you. Seeing him as the expert, seeing him as somebody with the right solutions to help them solve their problems. And eventually they're going to basically buy your product because they see that you are able to help them in solving this specific problem. Terrica: Yeah. I always look at funnels as just the direct implementation of a [00:04:00] customer journey. So if you look at super simply, I want someone to walk into, I'm going to say, even if you don't have a real store, is it if you have a brick and mortar, but we're going to have like give a digital store or a digital storefront. I want people walking in. I want them to feel this way. As soon as they come in, they're like excited. You know, the lighting's amazing, the music, the ambiance something catches their eye, whatever. Then I want them to direct to like this product I have, maybe it's the clothes. And then they pick up the clothes and then they're like, Oh, this is amazing. And then you like brought that up. But then while there, you know, Picking up a little clothes that intrigued them, the sales person comes along and says, Oh, Hey, you liked this sweater. Gorgeous. Did you see the pair of pants that are looking at amazing with it? You know? And then now you have digitally, you have an upsale, but in a regular store, you would have a sales person telling you, you know, something else that [00:05:00] will boost up what you've already chosen or what you already purchased because you came in there with this need. And so now. Hopefully along the way, by the time someone gets to the register and they walk out, they have this full, complete outfit, even though they came in thinking that all I needed was a sweater. And then now they feel amazing. And they're like, everybody used to go to said store because they help you get the complete op outfit. You just don't need this sweater. They don't tackle one thing. They tackle everything. And now I feel amazing about myself. I have like all these options mean you can do this with a service or product. To me, that's how my brain sees funnels because funnels can get really complicated and convoluted and all of that jazz. And my brain is like simple, simple, simple, simple, simple. How can I make what I want people to feel? And then put it into a way that is application. And then on the tail end, we both get what we need. Vanessa: Exactly. And we [00:06:00] can't stress enough that what you're doing in your marketing, what you're doing with, you know, running a promotion, running a launch, creating a product, creating a service. It doesn't have to be complicated. It can be really, really simple. And actually when things are simple, they're more effective. because they they're eight people are able to just glom on. They're not, they're going to be less overwhelmed because there's not a ton of things going on. they're going to be able to kind of hop into something and be really clear, really fast on what it is you do and how you can help them. And the simpler things are. The better it is for you now over time. What started out as one, one simple thing , you might, eventually expand some way of like maybe getting awareness or expand the process a little bit. That's okay. Because it's not going to, over-complicate what you're doing. It's just going to like accent what you're doing. It's like throwing a scarf on top of an already awesome outfit. What we need to get you to in your marketing is having that already awesome [00:07:00] outfit, which is like the core of your business. So to go with a sales funnel, you definitely need an email so that you can do email marketing. And this is something that you're not going to run out of your Google inbox. Please do not do that. So you're going to need an email list service kind of like ConvertKit, which is what we use or like Flodesk. Oh, it's basically a service that allows you to collect people's email addresses when they sign up for an opt-in. And it allows you to email them on mass, something like your ordinary email service provider. Like your Gmail is only designed to send emails to a few people at a time when you need to email hundreds of people at a time, you need to use a special service so that your emails actually get priority. And they're not treated like spam. Terrica: Yes. Yes, guys. I've, I've been behind the scenes at a business who ran like this, like no joke. Everything was in Gmail. We used to send, or [00:08:00] I used to send emails to 200, plus people blind, copied as groups. The issue, then what you get is the deliverability there's people who are like, I never got your email and never showed up. Then what you get is from Google is. Oh, sent at this point, essentially 600 emails in a day, and then they penalize you and you can't send anymore. Yeah. And then you wait too, like you're out of Google jail, email jail, and it's like, you're free to go. Don't do it again. Watch out. And then what we go do we do it again. And this is revolving cycle. When you have an email service. There's no limit. I mean, you can email 10,000 people at a time and they take a while you won't get it done instantly, it may take an hour. It may take, you know, whatever the service is, maybe 30 minutes and maybe it's dripped [00:09:00] out for a couple of hours because it's such a massive amount of emails, but you don't get penalized about that. So please guys, don't conduct your email marketing from Gmail and groups. Lesson learned. Vanessa: Yeah, the other great part about using a service like convert kit is that you get data built in. So if you think about your, your Gmail inbox, you have no idea. If your email say, if it was delivered, if it was opened, but an email marketing provider will allow you to see things like your email open rate. Or the email link click-through rates, how many people are hitting the unsubscribe button, how many people are actually going through and opening your content and clicking through to what you want them to do with that, with including a call to action in your email, that data's really helpful because that helps you to see if your marketing message nailed it or failed it. Terrica: Yes. Vanessa: And when you know that if an email message, you know, knock

Episode # 12 – All About Pinterest [00:00:00] Terrica: Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. We're your hosts, Terrica Strozier, that's me a brand designer and sugar attic and Vanessa Shepherd, launch strategist and content creator and  lover of all things Disney. Each week, you'll hear our behind the scenes conversation and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer or product while doing it all ethically and organically. And given that bro marketer advice, the book. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink and let's jump into today's episode. Welcome to episode 12 of the marketing and cocktails podcast. Today's podcast is all about Pinterest. We are going to talk about the full gambit on Pinterest today from why you should be on Pinterest. If you're not already to Pinterest ads, Pinterest strategy, how I got started on Pinterest and how I started with five monthly viewers and so much more. So if you're ready to dive in. Take a listen. All right, guys. All about Pinterest and where. I wouldn't say where it should be your next step. If it's not already in your repertoire right now, Vanessa: Most people's audiences are on Pinterest. Take, for example, we've had, we've had one client say that their, their audience can't be on Pinterest. I love when people assume, never assume, never assume it makes you donkey. So this, this [00:02:00] person, they target other people who are in the wedding industry and the travel industry kind of as a whole. So they're targeting travel agents and they're targeting wedding planners and event planners and people who want to get into the wedding space. And they think that their audience isn't active on Pinterest when the opposite is actually true travel agents. I've picked up on Pinterest really, really, well over the last couple of years, especially. They've kind of gotten a little bit more online savvy. They're popping online more. They're starting to blog more share social media content about, you know, fun vacations photos there people have submitted. it's actually really crazy to see how many travel agents have globbed onto it and hopped on Pinterest and are actually driving traffic for their local business or their online travel agency. Through Pinterest. It is a long game, but they've invested in it for the long game. And in telling these clients, this they're there, they were kind of like a little bit skeptical, but over time, they're starting [00:03:00] to see that that's kind of the way to move. but at the same as the wedding industry, like it's not just brides on there. It's people who are within the wedding industry as a whole people who are thinking about getting in, like maybe. It's the, it's the mom who  uses Pinterest to plan her kids, parties now. But when she sends those kids to school, she's like, you know, I have the, all the skills that I've developed. I'm say help, mom. I don't want to do whatever. You know, my degree has given me, I don't want to go down that career path again. I want to do something that I actually enjoy. I really enjoy this thing. I like weddings. Maybe I want to get into the wedding industry this way. And then they become somebody who pops in and is a potential lead. Who then becomes a customer like you're playing the long game with people's psychology on Pinterest, but it's so cool to watch it evolve. Terrica:  I mean, and if you do, if you are not a B to C and more of a B2B, then all of the vendors who were heavy in the wedding industry are on Pinterest. So that's even a better way to connect and find people because if [00:04:00] you are a wedding planner, let's say for instance, You need to have that go-to resource for your clients. So that may be okay. Well, I need to have like this amazing stationer. I always go to a calligrapher or someone who does this style or this person who can give me this kind of decor or an amazing florist or a photographer Vanessa:  all those little bits and pieces and there's a break people. Terrica: Yeah. But those people are heavy on Pinterest and they're heavy on Pinterest because I like to think everybody says that Instagram is like the original visual platform, but to me, Pinterest is all day. Like as soon as you click on it and you search. And if it has this easily, serves as this double duty, that is a search engine plus a social platform. But as soon as you search, what do you get guys? A [00:05:00] ton of photos. So how can this not be the ultimate visual platform? And if you work in an industry where people. Pick you and choose you initially, because they say don't judge a book by its cover, but we all know that visual, you know, aesthetically, that's what intrigues us. Everybody says that you eat with your eyes before your mouth. So if it looks unappetizing, you'll never pick up the spoon or the fork and be like, Oh, this is tasty. And I'm like, it's disgusting. Why does it look like that? I don't even want to touch it. If it looks bad, it must be bad. So if, all of these people are on Pinterest  you're going to showcase  the ultimate, visual representation of your work so that when people do it and then people will follow you. And then the traffic trickles down that way as well, like on both sides of the coin. Vanessa: Yeah. You get the people that are your customers, so the B2C aspect of it, and then you get the people that are. You're partners in helping to build up and get those customers, those BB people. And that's really cool, like, [00:06:00] especially within the wedding industry, as a whole, like, I had a different client a few years ago and she was, a wedding planner and she did a lot of, she did like printables for weddings, but for people who wanted to DIY. And it was really cool because she had gotten herself organically and managing her own Pinterest to a certain point, and needed help, like taking it over the top and kind of growing her numbers. And w I took her from, a few hundred thousand kind of views and impressions, a month, all the way up to like over 3 million by the time. Terrica: Wow. Vanessa: I stopped working with her, which is really crazy. I'm really cool. But the one thing that I made sure we kept in mind was that. For her specific audience, we always kept in mind that planning on Pinterest starts early. And the way that that happens, if you need like a little visual is taking somebody from inspiration to the shopping cart. So it's, it's the customer journey. It's no different on Pinterest than it is anywhere else. [00:07:00] Like your basic marketing foundation. But what that really looks like is people. Start thinking about, Oh, I have this event or have this party or have this thing that I need to accomplish. So they start thinking about it. They start looking for inspiration and it might not even be. Anything that they are like landing on right now, because I think about you, like, if I have something, like if I want to decorate my house for Christmas and I want it to look a certain way, or I want it to look a little different this year, I don't have a set idea of what I want it to look like, but I look for inspiration first. So you collect a bunch of ideas, you save a bunch of ideas to Pinterest. You kind of start curating them into little boards or sub boards, to kind of really feel out what you want, your party or your event to look like. Then you start getting a little bit more specific on your searches. And then you're like, Oh, I've, I'm super inspired about this one thing. Or this one style, this one design, like maybe you decide on a style or a color or a theme or something. He started making little incremental decisions and you start your painting starts getting more and [00:08:00] more and more specific. And then the final end, you know exactly what you're looking for. And the ultimate trifecta would be finding exactly what you're envisioning. Which if it's close, doesn't always happen. but then you make a purchase of something and if it's a wedding you're going through inspiration and narrowing down your choices. And maybe that looks like I need to find a local photographer, or I need to find a, if I'm having like a nationally kind of destination wedding and I'm going to a different state or a different area of my country, I need to find somebody in that area that can provide whatever service so that I don't have to like. Pay the cost of having somebody fly from where I live to this new place. so no matter whether you're serving B to B or B to C, that journey is going to look the same. and the people you connect with and the way you network and, and kind of get in touch with people might look a little bit different than it does on other platforms. But you're always going to be thinking about planning earlier than you think you would need to start planning. There are people out there who aren't even [00:09:00] engaged yet. They're already planning their weddings. There's people out there who are, you know, thinking about having a baby, but not going to do it for the next like five years, no matter what angle you're kind of coming at, people are starting to plan early. And even earlier than sometimes they're willing to admit that they're planning for, Like, you're always, people are always kind of tapping in and curating things from different angles and are different topics, which is really, really cool. So if you can have your content geared towards really planning and planning early, you're going to win the long game a little bit faster because Pinterest is a long game. It's a marathon. It's not a sprint. You're going to need to approach it and tackle it the way you would tackle a marathon. So you want to set a personal pace. You want to set a pace that, you know, you can keep up with as things get busier, as you take on more clients as you, you know, sell more products and your attention gets divided because life throws some hurdle at you basically like approach Pinterest as if [00:10:00] it's this race where the t

Episode #11 Minisode - Top 4 Launch Mistakes + Tips [00:00:00] Terrica: Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. We're your hosts. Terrick astrologer, that's me a brand designer and sugar addict and Vanessa shepherd launch strategies and kind of to create her with the love of all things Disney each week. You're here, our behind the scenes conversation and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer or product while doing it all ethically and organically. And given that bro marketer advice, the boot. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink and let's jump into today's episode. Welcome to episode 11 of the marketing in cocktails podcast. Today is a mini episode and another solo episode for Vanessa where she will cover the top four mistakes that we see often when people are launching their product or their offer, while also giving some actionable tips to elevate your next launch. So without further adieu, Vanessa take it away. Vanessa: let's dive in to some tips for making your next launch rack. [00:01:00] So the top four mistakes we see people make with their launches are failing to plan their launch, neglecting to do a pre-launch phase, cramming too much into their launch phase and skipping over a post launch breakdown. Failing to plan. Your launch can lead to a whole host of issues from emails, not delivering properly tech going haywire and your audience not being primed to convert. If you have an audience at all before you launch and neglecting to do a pre-launch phase means that you're leaving money on the table. Think about how annoying it is when someone pops in your inbox with like, Hey, buy my stuff. And you've never heard of the product before. Heck, you don't even remember if you've heard of this person before. That's what it's like when you don't prime your audience to buy in the pre-launch phase. You want your audience to see you as an authority in your zone of genius, become educated about your product and have them vibing with the pain points so that they see that your product will solve their specific problem. That way, when you [00:02:00] head into your launch phase, your audience is already excited and prime to buy. You just need to open the door and let them in. I'm cramming too much into your launch phase causes a lot of confusion. If you're doing a webinar stick to a webinar, don't add in a challenge or an email mini course or a live video series or a whole house of brand new lead magnets. You want to keep your launch activities focused on the main way that you want to convert people so that you can keep your audience really honed in on what you're saying and offering to them. If you have too much going on, people will get easily distracted and overwhelmed and they won't show up anywhere, which is a surefire way to lead to the really bad, poor performing launch. You want to avoid that as much as humanly possible and then skipping over a post-launch breakdown means that you miss learning from the launch that you just did. And see in that launch, you collected buckets of data and every launch has [00:03:00] buckets of data from the way people interact with your brand, the things they said, the data from Google analytics, your Facebook pixel, and your Pinterest tag, all of those little data points. Really come together to give you buckets of data and failing to stop and examine all that data and compare it to pass lunches or just your everyday normal performance means that you have no way to really learn from what went right. And what went wrong. And if you're not learning from your launches, then you're destined to repeat the same mistakes over and over again. Uh, no, nobody wants that. So if you plan out your simple launch, Break all the tasks down into a project management timeline with goals, attract, inspire, and convert your audience, and then stopped to examine how that launch performed. You're setting yourself up for growth and profits and in the end, that's what everybody wants. Terrica: Thanks for listening. Y'all you can find the show [00:04:00] notes at she's got vision.com/podcast. If you've enjoyed what you've heard today, please leave a review and subscribe to the podcast. And because word of mouth is still the best marketing Avenue. Please tell a friend to share it. If you do, don't forget to tag us at she's got vision on all platforms until the next time y'all were wishing you much success. And remember, there's always time for cocktails.

Episode #010 International Gin & Tonic Day [00:00:00] Terrica: Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. We're your hosts, Terrica Strozier, that's me a brand designer and sugar attic and Vanessa Shepherd, launch strategist and content creator and  lover of all things Disney. Each week, you'll hear our behind the scenes conversation and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer or product while doing it all ethically and organically. And given that bro marketer advice, the book. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink and let's jump into today's episode. Welcome to a special episode of the marketing and cocktails podcast, because we are celebrating international gin and tonic day. So I am going to bring two recipes to you all today, which are a spin on the traditional gin and tonic, which is just a combination of ice, gin, tonic water and lime. So super simple drink. [00:01:00] these are some twist that I found that I have really, I really enjoy lately. So I'm sharing them with you. So the first it's going to be, be a take on the gin, Ricky, which is really, really similar to the gin and tonic. It's just a combination of Jan Aline and club soda. So. I stumbled upon this recipe a while ago, and I've kind of been making it a little bit nonstop even as we transition seasons because guys I'm in Georgia and the season just don't really change that heavily. We are in and the myths of what they call false fall. So it is a whopping I think today, 75 degrees. So. This take on the gin. Ricky is going to include a frozen linemate concentrate. [00:02:00] The ones that you get in your normal grocery store that come in a little, the little tin, I think that's what they're called, like little, tin. They almost remind me of the same container that you get, canned biscuits in, but you all know what I'm talking about. So. It is that your gen of choice. And the last couple of times I've been using the London dry gin and that works really nicely. And then this recipe calls for clips soda. Now I normally don't have club soda on hand, but recently my husband has really been into seltzer waters, which they're all pretty similar tonic water, adds in the. Quinine or Quinine guys don't. Get me started on pronunciations, but that has that addition and title water. then you have clubs, soda, and seltzer water, and they're all different versions of carbonated water with their own additions. So [00:03:00] I feel like they're pretty interchangeable. So I have you sell salt water. I've used plain seltzer water. Or, we have gotten a little fancy and we have had a cucumber melon, seltzer water, or lemon line, seltzer water. All of them are really great additions. so this one just includes one and a half ounces of gin. Two tablespoons of the frozen Limeade and then four ounces of club, soda, or seltzer water, or even tonic water. whatever you decide to use, you are just going to combine the gin and the frozen line made in a, the recipe. Cause it put it in the shaker. I'm going to be honest guys. I was a little bit lazy and I didn't even want to do that. So I had to do two tablespoons of lie made into, a tall glass. Then I. added in ice. And then I added in my Jane stirred that together and then just poured the seltzer [00:04:00] right on top and start that one more time. And it turned out really delicious and refreshing. But if you want to go. just by the book you're going to combine the gin in the frozen lemonade is shaker. We're going to shake that up, pour it over ice and a tall glass. And then top with, again, like I said, soda club, soda, tonic, water, or seltzer water. And then if you want to be really fancy garnish with a little twist of line. so that is the first recipe. And then the second one is I've had gin and tonics. And they were okay, but I felt like I wanted just the little different flavor profile, but similar. So what I decided to do is add in grapefruit juice. So the normal kind of ratio for gin and tonics, depending on your level, level of preference, if you really, really love [00:05:00] alcohol and you wanted a little on the heavy side, That send me some days, or if you want to go a little bit lighter, you can just do one Oh one. well, one Oh one is probably going to give you right in the middle of road, or you could do one to three. So one part Jan to three parts tonic. or some people do a two to four guys. You just have to kind of play around with it and see which measurement kind of gives you the preface that you like, the palatable kind of tastes that you can kind of handle and the alcohol level that you, so what I did was added, I did about a week, one to one ratio of everything. So one part grapefruit juice to one part, gin. Okay. And then we tried a grapefruit mango seltzer water, and that one was really tasty. And I did that on top and then just, added, I just use actually a low ball glass cause that's, what I just kind of grabbed. So I put ice in that, out at the grill fruit, the [00:06:00] gin, and then a seltzer water. Gave it a little quick stir and guys again, a really easy refreshing take on a normal gin and tonic. So. I want you to try these guys, celebrate today as international diatonic day. if you do try these recipes, please let me know, and I will have the recipe below for everyone to try. So again, guys, thanks for coming and joining me today on today's episode. And I was really glad to share. Two favorite two of my favorite, gin recipes. Thanks for listening. Y'all you can find the show notes at she's got vision.com/podcast. If you've enjoyed what you've heard today, please leave a review and subscribe to the podcast. And because word of mouth is still the best marketing Avenue. Please tell a friend to share it. If you do, don't forget to tag us. Yeah, she's got vision on all platforms until next time. Y'all we're wishing you much success. I remember [00:07:00] there's always time for cocktails.

#009 Cocktail Hour - Sangria [00:00:00] Terrica: Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. We're your hosts. Terrica Strozier, that's me a brand designer and sugar attic and Vanessa shepherd and launch strategist and content creator. With the love of all things business each week, you're here, our behind the scenes conversations and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer while doing it all ethically and organically. And given that bro marketer advice, the book. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink and let's jump into today's episode. Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. Today's episode. It's another one of our monthly cocktail episodes. This is where we just. Are able to showcase another side of us and really show you the cocktails that we love and their, Fixture in our lives. So this cocktail. Came to me by way of a local restaurant here in Atlanta. There, unfortunately just closed. [00:01:00] Well, not just closed, but it closing. This past December of 2019, and it was called legal seafoods and it was located downtown right off lucky street. And we went there for one father's day because my dad was an avid fishermen and he loved his seafood. And I was like, this is a perfect place to go. As soon as we got there, I'm always looking at the cocktail list, I know most people immediately go for the food and I'm a foodie, but I love to see the cocktails that each restaurant or bar comes up with because there are some. Beautiful and crazy inventions and twists on classics. So I had never really had sangria before then, but I saw the description and it looked interesting. So I was like, you know what, let me just get one of those house ingredients and see what this is all about. Guys. It was amazing. So, so, so good. It was the perfect balance of sweet with a little bit of tart. And then [00:02:00] there's this underlying taste of almost carbonation, but not quite like a full on soda. So while my palette was completely teased and so happy my mind was whirling. Like what's in this, Because there's no detailed description. minus like our house. I think they described it as maybe their house, summer sangria. Some people, we'll have some summer sangria. Some people do a white sangria or red sangria. I believe maybe it was, A red and a white sangria. Those were the options. And I got the red. So after. our visit was done. As soon as I got home, I started scouring the web and Googling like  crazy, trying to find. A recipe basis. Cause I'm like, I know that if I enjoy this sangria, as much as I did, then someone else has been illegal seafood and has enjoyed it as well. And. The one in Atlanta, wasn't their only [00:03:00] location. So I just made a general assumption that maybe they serve this as all of their restaurants. So finally, after. What felt like hours of scouring? I found a recipe and it looked pretty legit based on what I remember tasting. So I said, you know what? I'm just gonna buy all these  components and we're just going to try it at home. And while I love cocktails, guys, my husband is the resident mixologist. So I said, Hey. Whatever you think we should get. If we can't find this, can we sub it with this? So we were just in liquor store is trying to make it work. So we came home and that was our first batch and we tasted it. We were like, This is it maybe with little tweaks, but this is, this is really it. So. It just felt so good. and then the next time we made it, we made it for friends. Cause we are always entertaining and [00:04:00] our friends know if they come over our house, they're gonna eat good and they're going to drink. Good. And people raved and love the sangria. So along the way we've made our own little personal tweaks. to the recipe and I will insert recommendations as well so that you can put your own spin on it too. But the basis of this is just so perfect. it is an amazing summer drink. just kind of relaxing outside, but it can definitely be a fall drink as well. Just look at how you decide to make some additional, changes to it. So we end up. taking this recipe and making enormous batches of it. And it was a signature cocktail at our wedding. And I'm telling you guys, it made quite the impact. Not only with taste. But impact people had an amazing time because of the sangria. So, that just giving you a little bit of backstory. So I'm gonna go ahead and just hop into some of the components of the sangria. [00:05:00] So your basis is going to be, a dryier red wine, like a Shiraz or something similar. I have done a red wine blend before. . So see what your local. Liquor store grocery store has to offer your favorite one Mart, whatever. Maybe you already have a personal favor. Doesn't have to be anything expensive. Guys do not spend a ton of money on the basis cause you're going to be adding so much other. Spirits to this that there's just no reason to go spend 40,  $50 on a bottle of wine. So. again, at the basis, it's going to be this bottle of red wine, then you're gonna add. In the original recommendation was a  Bacardi Limon, but what you can do is you can do any citrus space rum. So we're talking about Bacardi or Cruzan or any of those brands that do a lot of the amazing, infusions and flavors. So you can go for lemon or a [00:06:00] lime or something. Along those, flavor profiles, then you're going to add. In. A raspberry vodka and a strawberry vodka. Again, we have played around a bit with. Our choices of this vodka, but along that berry family, it's gonna be amazing. So any kind of combination of those two, you're going to add those then the original recipe calls for a peach Brandy or liqueur. So we just go, in our local liquor store, they always have a peach liqueur called Peachstreet. And so we'll grab a bottle of that and then add that in. You're going to also add in a sour mix now. This recipe is going to include a homemade sour mix. Don't be intimidated. Guys is super simple. It's just water, sugar and citrus. So you're going to do equal parts [00:07:00] of sugar and water. So just basically almost like a simple syrup, then you're going to boil cool that, and then add in some freshly squeezed lemon and lime juice. And then now you have an easy homemade sour mix. So outside of the sangria recipe, it's amazing to add to your margaritas. Or any other places you need a sour mix so much better than a bottle version that you get from the store. So after that, you're also going to add in. Two cups of Sprite. We've done Sierra mist . Anything that's along that similar flavor profile and then the last option  calls for Cointreau, which is an orange base liqueur so. an easy alternative. It's just a bottle of triple sec. And that's the addition that we have made as it's a lot cheaper than a bottle of Cointreau that is the basis of this sangria. You literally just add it [00:08:00] all into a big pitcher. you can double, triple, quadruple it. We made enough for a hundred people. Two times over. So believe me, the recipe is easily expandable. then you're gonna take. Some lemons, limes, oranges, slice those up, throw those into your pitcher to help just infuse that citrus flavor. You can add in some other fruit, if you would like especially if you're going into the fall, maybe adding in some apples or cherries or things of that nature. So guys that is the basis of my sangria recipe. I would love if you would try it out. If you do, and you make a batch, please take a photo. Post it on social media tag us at she's got vision on all platforms and let me know what you think. So until next time guys, remember there's always time for cocktails.

Episode #008 It’s Not About You It’s About the Customer [00:00:00] Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. We're your hosts, Terrica Strozier, that's me a brand designer and sugar attic and Vanessa Shepherd, launch strategist and content creator with a love of all things Disney. Each week, you'll hear our behind the scenes conversation and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer or product while doing it all ethically and organically. And giving that bro marketer advice, the boot. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink and let's jump into today's episode. Welcome to episode eight of the podcast. And today we're tackling a really important topic, which is customers, and that it's not all about you. And it is about the customer. The customers are at the heart of your business. So if you want our advice on how you craft offers and keep the customer at the forefront of your mind, even though they're not always right, stay tuned to this episode. In business, it is not all about what you want, [00:01:00] but you need to create your offers and your items that you sell or services that you provide with your customer in mind. So, while I don't love the ideal customer avatar, there does need to be, I'm going to, I'm going to keep saying this guys, whatever, here we go. Terrica: You do need to have an end goal for your customer, whoever that customer is, having some specificity on that customer will allow you to craft offers and, products that fit the needs of that client. But along the way, one thing that I focus on a lot is the customer journey. When people work with me or purchase something from me, I want that process to be seamless. I want it to be easy. I don't want them to feel that they have to click on that about 10 gazillion links [00:02:00] or get inudated with like popup ads all the time. Cause that'll make people run like so fast. I want the people during the process to feel like, Oh my gosh, this was so easy to buy her product. I love it. I love the support that I got. I love the process of it all. So having that in mind, when you're crafting these things is like paramount. I know that we create businesses based off of what we're good at or what we want to put into the universe, but it's not all about you. It's not, it's not, it's not. And if you focus on yourself, Then even if you do make money, cause I'm pretty sure there's people out there there's always an exception to a rule. You will get to a point where you plateau, you will get to a point where you can't go any further or you will get to a point where people really start to see you for you are not saying that's a bad thing, but in business it could be on the end that. [00:03:00] Someone says, Oh, I mean, their products are nice, but the customer service socks, or they don't care about me. And I sent an email, never, no one never answers. Like, do they not value my money? Do they not value my time. Well, if they don't value me, then I'm going to go to their competitor. maybe across the physical street or across the proverbial virtual street and I'm going to purchase from them because they obviously don't value me. Vanessa: That happens so often in business. And there's even like a whole, whole segment of industry research around being able to craft those awesome customer experiences. Like, I don't know what it was maybe four or five years ago. Now I went to an entire conference that was just around customer experience, customer journey and customer service. And we spent 48 hours talking. Nothing else. And let me tell you the ideas that were coming in were wicked. And I went, you know, went back to my corporate job cause I was one of two people that got sent or no, there's three of us on that [00:04:00] trip. But two people from the area I worked in and we went back and I was like, let's implement, you know, some of what we learned, not all the things, cause not all of them made sense, but, and the other person was like, No, we're good. It was a fine conference. It was got me in the office. I was like, Whoa, we can be doing so many. I think better if we actually were approaching the way we do business with that end customer in mind, even, even though like at the time, our end customer was just people in a different department. I said, if we think about those people as our customers a little bit more than our coworkers, then we can actually come out with. A process and assistance and collaboration that works and, and strengthens that relationship instead of us always butting heads with them or them always butting heads with us. And I actually got to spearhead that whole, kind of like kickoff of the project to be able to frame out what [00:05:00] would work and what didn't work. And we had so many different conversations about it that it actually reformulated the entire way our department was structured and the way we brought people in. And that shift allowed there to be a lot less contention between what our department did and what the other department date. And now the collaboration is even stronger than where it was when I, when I worked there a few years ago Terrica: And see, I love that. If you all don't know, then people are my jam, but then we get into customer experience. And it's really, my jam is it's combining my love for people and my love for making people happy and satisfying a need. But that's here nor there, regardless of that, what I really love about that is it shows you that it doesn't always have to be a. Business to customer type relationship, relationship for you to really have that, that end goal in mind [00:06:00] that it can be, I think, at the baser level it's relationship building. Cause that's what it is. And even super, super foundational book below that, to me, it's. Having that empathy in mind and putting yourselves in the shoes of your customer on a consistent basis. It's not only a one time deal. Guys. You don't start your business or, or craft an offer or craft a product and say, Oh, this is going to be an, you know, the customer journey of the customer is gonna start here, here, and I'll walk into our store. They will be greeted. Then they will be able to browse for X amount. And then they get here and they buy, they sell, we follow up and it's done. That's great that you have that laid out and you should have it, However, this is an ongoing process. Your customers will change as your offer shape as your product changes as the market changes because the world is always changing and being in tune with your customer being open, [00:07:00] being receptive, the feedback and not immediately taking it as a hit to you. I know guys. to quote Erkyah Badu, I'm an artist and I'm sensitive about my shit. I am. So when you tell me you don't like it? Yes. There's initial like pierced to the heart, like, Oh, I spent so much time and it's amazing, but I have to step outside of myself and then see, okay. What was it about it that you did not like, how can I make it better? And that openness to changing and crafting and pivoting yourself in a way that really serves those people will have you with, you know, what we call super fans. I mean, look at Apple guys, and I'm an Apple super fan. I, you know, iphones, they annoy me and they're like sometimes glitchy, but I keep buying one. I will keep buying one and I will buy another Macbook. And, and right now I'm sitting on my [00:08:00] desk. I have a Macbook an iphone and a iPad. Air pods, Apple pencil. It's a bad, however, I am so going to cause cause when I go into an Apple store, I'm immediately greeted. I mean the atmosphere's is light and it's bright and you see all these new tech goodies that just get you like the little kid, that little gift that goes the little girl that gets skipped so excited. Like I just want to go play with them. I want to touch it. And even though people tell me the price point is like, Oh, ma'am,you like that that's $1,400. I'm like, shit. But then I'm like, Oh, it's Apple. I'll buy it. I don't know what I gotta do to pay for it, but I'm gonna buy it. You want people to have that feeling and that experience when they engage with you and your business. Vanessa: Absolutely. Like, there's so many different reasons. Like if you, if I actually think about all the different reasons that I've [00:09:00] boycotted a brand or that I've like gone in and gone out of my way to drive clear across the city to shop at a store when I probably could have found something similar, you know, probably in my neck of the woods. I don't know there stores I don't shop at here because the services sucks. And there's stories that I'll go out of my way to shop at because services is awesome. but it's about that experience from the way it looks the way it feels all the way down to how your people interact with, with the customer when you're in the store, all of that matters and listening. Oh my gosh. So if you ha, if you do, if you're doing everything right, if you're checking all the boxes all the way down, but you're not actually listening to the customer in the end, The again, you're going to get, like I said, I'm just going to go somewhere else because people want to feel like you're actually hearing what they have to say. and internalizing it and, and making what you do even better. It's a kind of a continual, its a continual cycle that is never going to end for as long as you're in business Terrica:  And that is so [00:10:00] true. we've seen it. So many times I've seen it in, in really small businesses where, where people give a service and people at their core, they love it. They're like we really don't want to go anywhere else. We want to stay here. We want to continue learning from you, buying from you. But your customer service has to be better. Like, I want to feel like I'm heard, do you hear me? And then the owner, someone says like, yeah, I hear you. But in their head, they've immediately turned off already because they want it done th

Episode #007 Repurposing Your Content to Create Digital Products [00:00:00] Terrica: Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. We're your hosts. Terrica Strozier, that's me a brand designer and sugar attic and Vanessa Shepherd  launch strategist and content creator. With the love of all things Disney each week, you'll hear, our behind the scenes conversations and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer while doing it all ethically and organically. And given that bro marketer advice, the book. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink and let's jump into today's episode. Welcome to episode seven of the marketing and cocktails podcast. Today's episode is all about repurposing your content to create digital products, which is super important as we embark on the holiday season. And many of us are prepping for launches first and foremost, black Friday, which is right around the corner. So hopefully today's episode gives you some ideas on products to [00:01:00] create. If you don't have one already lined up. And help make your upcoming launch. If you do decide to launch just a little bit easy because in this day and age, We all deserve just a little bit of easy so let's jump right in So let's start about using what you have to create digital products. Vanessa: So we can't stress this enough. Absolutely. Can't stress this enough. If you create content on a regular basis, you literally have. A treasure chest that you can pull from any time to whip out a brand new product. And I know that sounds crazy to a lot of people cause like, I don't understand how that, how that works. I'm creating one thing, I'm putting it up in one spot. How is that supposed to lead me to create a whole bunch of other stuff really easily? Well, let's walk through a few examples. Shall we? the best one that I, that comes to mind that has the most flexibility. Is blog posts.  if you blog, [00:02:00] even once , a week, once a month, by the time you do it for, I don't know, a couple months to a year, two years, however long, depending on how often you're creating stuff, you can actually take those blog posts, find common topics or common threads, and reassemble them in different ways. So you can use say a blog post on a specific topic. I don't know. Maybe you're. Blogging all on a set of recipes and you can, you can actually take all those blog posts and all the recipes and assemble them into a recipe book. And you can have that as a digital product, as an ebook, when you're ready, when you have like a huge audience and you want to go, into like the offline realm, you can also assemble it into a physical product. There's so many different ways that you can repurpose. Your blog posts and reassemble that content into creating digital products. We took all of the blog posts that had ever done on the topic of Pinterest and I assembled them into a course, and that was the first ever Pinterest course that I created [00:03:00] Pinning for Business. You can also take them and make them into, to digital downloads. You can take how to blog posts and turn them into worksheets. Like there's so much potential. And that's why I keep stressing that if you create content, you have so much potential to pull out other types of content without having to really reinvent the wheel and waste a ton of time in the process Terrica:  I'll come at it from a different angle. Cause I don't blog a lot. but as a designer and anyone else who is in more of a one-on-one creative field, so photographers or designers, or even web designers, many of us have. Either done something for a client  it was a rejected concept. Nobody decided to use it. Maybe you decided to design something for yourself and then you don't quite love it, but you started, but you never quite [00:04:00] finished or that's just sitting on your hard drive. I have a whole folder of half done projects  I would take some of my all rejected concepts, spruce them up a bit and. if I wanted to, depending on where your audience is, you could use Canva or InDesign or make them an editable PDF. And then now you have a template that you can like pop up in your shop and sell, and it hasn't really cost you any time because you always had it there. So now you're just sprucing up it and making it like cohesive and come together. Also, if you have a process that you do for your business, that for some people they think yeah. That nobody will ever know, but I'll use an example. A lot of creatives used Dubsado. People are always looking or ways to effectively use that CRM. Even better than what they have. And if they're in the same niche as you, or the same industry that really [00:05:00] could use it, you can easily turn that into a quick little ebook or a little mini course so that someone can use those and they can immediately see the results in their business. Vanessa: Absolutely. Like even. You know, you're talking about those digital service providers like photographers. I know so many photographers who like go out and they have edits and they saved the way they edit certain things. That's like instant presets, bundle them together, sell them individually. You could pop up. A set of presets. You could even go through like the process that you do to onboard people, on onboard clients or to get people thinking about their brand or what they want out of a photo session, turn that into a worksheet or turn all your expertise and your brain into a tip sheet, even on how to get ready to do a session or how to, plan for one, you know, in the months before you're ready to do. And there's so many ways. To use all this information that you have at your fingertips. And there's so many [00:06:00] things that I think people don't, they don't realize what they have until they start going through it. Heck I don't realize what I have until I start going through like Google type folders and they have that in there. I wrote that for fun one time or, Oh yeah. I started creating that and I didn't finish it. Go through what you have, think about it and kind of sit down and come at it from a different angle of not, maybe not like how can I use this or what was the original intention, but. What else can I use this for? How else could this be beneficial? Just because one person rejected your design or one person rejected, you know, a certain concept doesn't mean that somebody else out there isn't going to love it and fall in love with it instead. Terrica: Exactly. And another way, even though we're talking about creating digital products for sell, you can easily use a blog post that you wrote, or maybe you even wrote an Instagram caption and you got really good engagement and you're like, Oh, people need more information about that. Or they're really in tune with that. You could use that to create a lead [00:07:00] magnet. So even though you're not making initial money off of it, you literally put that out to the universe. It's for free people get immediate access to it and they can learn some from whatever you're offering, but then you, as the creator can see, use it as a test. Do people really want more information about this? Is this really effective? How can I change it? How can I make it better? And it's like immediate, Vanessa: it's, it's putting it out there and testing your audience. I know exactly where you're coming from. It's all good. Lead magnets are an excellent way to test the waters. And if you're out there, especially if you're somebody who's creating awesome Instagram, captions, and. You're like, man, people love what I'm putting out on Instagram, but they're not, they're not loving so much on my website. Paul, you can pull things, the pull those like little nuggets from there and infuse them into your website. You're probably infusing more personality into Instagram than you are into some of your website copy. So you can [00:08:00] take that into consideration too, and even use what you have to, to fix up what you already are putting out in the universe to make it even better. Terrica: Right. And when crafting. An idea, some of the things I know you're talking about going through a lot of your old folders and what do I have, but the easiest access that we have to information is our brains. And there's so much stuff that's really simple that we would never think that people want it. I was on Facebook recently in a group and, someone posted and they thought it was just like, Really funny, but at the same time enlightening that their mom who's older.  came to them and was like, look, I was on YouTube and I saw this video and it was  10 things you need to have in your home. And she's like, Oh, okay. That's really interesting mom.  Well, what where they? And she's like, Oh wait, let me go back. And she came back with a notepad [00:09:00] and she wrote down in that YouTube video, the 10 things that you should have in your home. And none of these things were rocket science or anything. It's like. You should always have a duvet and you should always have a really large area rug or a runner for your dining room table. It was really simple things, but she said, what was enlightening for her mom is even though these were simple things, she said it helped. Kind of corral her mom's thoughts. And when she was deciding to spruce up her home, rather than thinking about all the things she could buy, now, she had a list of 10 things that she's like, Oh, I don't need a new cupboard, but I do need new knobs on my cupboard. So I'm going to go buy new knobs on my cupboard and it helped. Corral her spending so that she wasn't like spending all the money, but there wasn't that extra anxiety over, what should I spend? It was [00:10:00] like, no, I know exactly what I need to buy. I know exactly what I need now. I'm going to , just take this list and compare it with what I have in my house now and my style and sales. And now you have a whole plan on what to purchase next and I'm pretty sure we all have information in ou

Episode #006 Leverage Your Business and increase Profits by Creating Products [00:00:00] Terrica: Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. We're your hosts. Terrica Strozier, that's me a brand designer and sugar attic and Vanessa Shepherd and launch strategist and content creator. With the love of all things Disney each week, you'll hear, our behind the scenes conversations and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer while doing it all ethically and organically. And given that bro marketer advice, the book. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink and let's jump into today's episode. Welcome to episode six of the marketing and cocktails podcast. Today's episode is all about taking your business to the next level by creating products. This is going to be a solo episode for Vanessa. I will be back on the podcast next week, But today you'll get an insight into the genius marketing brain of Vanessa's so without further ado here's today's episode Vanessa: all right. Let's talk about leveraging your business and increasing profits by creating products. [00:01:00] We're all faced the same 24 hours in a given day, but how you use those hours is what differentiates a successful business from a floundering business. If you're filling your available hours with coaching clients or working one on one. With clients or even subcontracting to somebody else and still aren't bringing in the money you'd like to bring in. And then maybe it's time to try something new. Having multiple streams of income can help to grow your business, expand your reach, and increase your profits all in that same 24 hour time period. So let's look at a couple of examples of other streams of income that can help your business and your income explode over time. So the first one we're going to talk about is product creation. I absolutely love creating products. It's one of those things that I get excited about when most people dread it, it's kind of fine, but no matter what type of product you create, whether it's a webinar or an ebook, a downloadable [00:02:00] packet, online classes, you know, an actual physical published book, printed materials that you're mailing out to people. No matter what type of product that is once the work is done, you can actually sit back and sell those products for years to come. Sure. With some things like courses and dental, little packets and things, depending on what your material is on, you might need to update them, repackage them, make sure they're, you know, still up to sniff and still valuable with what's going on in the world, around you. But the bulk of the work gets done right up front. And of course there's work involved in promoting those products, but many entrepreneurs and business owners find that the marketing work is easier than the actual product creation. So products are priced lower than, say a one on one coaching service or one on one, , service that you're gonna offer to your clients. So your products are still offering to help those people that aren't quite ready for that larger investment. The lower price point also helps to expand your reach to your target audience because you're offering more options [00:03:00] for people you're being able to hit them no matter where they're ready to make an investment, the chances are pretty high that you'll attract people with products first. And then they'll kind of travel through your sales funnel and hopefully purchase say private coaching or one on one services where they're convinced that you can help them. You may also want to consider hiring a customer service agent who can handle all of your product inquiries and problems with some training, your customer service agent can handle all those inquiries without bothering you. And that allows you to have more time for work with your clients. You can also consider your product library as separate gear in your business. One that works in the background where you focus on working with clients and providing that value and building those one on one relationships. So the next thing we're gonna talk about is group coaching, creating group coaching classes still involves you being personally involved, more so than producing a physical product. So it's a lot more of a time investment, [00:04:00] but the great thing about it is that you're still able to reach more people at one time. Then you would, if you were kept working one on one with clients, So you can consider this type of product, a step up from an ebook or a signature course, because you were involved in leading the group. They're getting that one on one time with you. it's just more of a one to many kind of time with you, but they still get to interact with you. They still get to hear from you. They still get that feedback, that you would give them in a one on one environment. But you're actually able to help more people at once. And the cool thing is that those other people are often able to help each other too. So there's multiple win-win situations going on. You can use the time that you spend, to showcase your expertise by personalizing your advice for every person, by being able to facilitate dynamic conversations. Like there's so many ways to use your skills, to be able to help people, one group setting, think of it like how a teacher helps in a classroom. They're able to help, you know, 20, [00:05:00] 30 students at a time. And those students actually learn from it other as well, and get more value out of that experience as long as everybody's, you know, involved in and actually involved in the conversation and making the conversation better. And even in a group coaching situation, your group members should feel that they're getting the advice they need. Not simply one size, all one size fits all advice. if you're not able to be able to tailor advice specifically to people on the spot, then group coaching may not be a good fit for you. So just keep that in mind, if it's something that you're considering adding to your product lineup. And the dynamic group often dictates the conversation, but you should still plan kind of like a course outline of what specific topics you cover in each session. The beauty of group coaching is you can take notes on what works, what doesn't work, so you can fine tune your next session and you can keep learning and building. And the more you do them, the better they'll get over time. And even if you continue group coaching on the same topic, [00:06:00] it'll always be different based on the people in the group. That's the really cool thing about having a class based situation is that it can be totally, yeah. Different depending on who speaks up, who joins who's in the group, what experience they bring. It can be really fun to take one topic and see how many different ways it can go over many classrooms I've taught on. The topic of Kendra, is there talking to the Facebook ads or just creating content and depending on which people are in the room, those conversations can go a thousand different ways. So it's really, really cool to see what I'm bringing to the table, the same kind of skills. they grow a bit over time too, but it's basically the same topic, the same kind of skillset. And then you add other people to that. You kind of plugged them in there and the conversations get really, really cool. So as you can see, adding products or a group coaching package to your business offering allows you to help more people while also earning more profits. But simply creating a product doesn't mean that it will sell. You need [00:07:00] to have a large sequence in place so that you're ready to promote your product. Even before it's completed, you're going to have a live launch sequence. You can have an evergreen launch sequence. You can have something that, is only turned on when you're on vacation. There's so many yeah. Options to be able to launch this product to your audience, that it gives you a bunch of different options that you can use to plug into your strategy, depending on where you're going. So this is something that interests you, this something you want to do, but you're like, Oh, I don't want to go it alone. Join our membership group. Launching made simple what we'll be discussing all things, launching, marketing, your products and services and how to fine tune your marketing for increased profits. I'm all about fine tuning things and testing and making them better and actually making sure that you're having. Your launches in business run in a way that's profitable and that works for you and your unique needs and your audience's needs. So we're giving our students lots of action steps that they can put to use right away with feedback to help keep it improving their [00:08:00] offers, funnels, and launches. Visit she's that vision.com to join. Terrica: Thanks for listening. Y'all you can find the show notes at she's got vision.com/podcast. If you've enjoyed what you've heard today, please leave a review and subscribe to the podcast. And because word of mouth is still the best marketing Avenue. Please tell a friend to share it. If you do, don't forget to tag us. Yeah, she's got vision on all platforms until next time. Y'all we're wishing you much success. I remember there's always time for cocktails.

Episode #005 - 5 Tips to Conquer Your Fear of Selling Show Description This episode is all about actionable tips to help conquer your fear of selling and transform it into a routine part of your business that feels good. Show Notes [00:00:00] Terrica: Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. We're your hosts. Terrica Strozier, that's me a brand designer and sugar attic and Vanessa Shepherd a launch strategist and content creator. With the love of all things Disney each week, you'll hear our behind the scenes conversations and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer while doing it all ethically and organically. And given that bro marketer advice, the book. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink and let's jump into today's episode. Welcome to episode three of the marketing and cocktails podcast. Today, we're going to give you some practical tips and tricks on overcoming your fear of selling. I know that this is a really weighty topic for many business owners as we try to find that comfortable balance of selling, but doing so in a way that feels good and true to us so let's dive right into this episode Vanessa: Alrighty today, we're talking about ways you can overcome your fear of [00:01:00] selling. If you have a business, your goal is probably pretty likely to make money. I know most people say, but the only way to make money is to sell something. Either products or services. So what really happens if you're really like definitely afraid of selling, you're probably going to not make as much money and you're going to become managing  a hobby instead of running a business. But if you're ready to ramp up your income, then you need to overcome your fear of selling. So we're going to go over some tips for being able to reframe your selling mindset and overcome your fear of selling to the people who are going to absolutely love what you have to offer. Once they get to know you. So the first tip we're going to run with is don't think of it as selling, think of it as having conversations. So if you're worried about being perceived as someone who's pushy, hard selling, you know, the used car salesman that everybody hates, then you can start off by simply having a conversation and getting to know the other person. [00:02:00] You're not gonna be able to convince everybody to buy the first time you meet them, just like in real life, you know, become friends immediately. As you're going to be able to ask them questions about their business, maybe about their personal life, whatever it is that's going to help you really understand them in a better way. By asking those questions, you'd be able to qualify them as potential prospect or somebody who is not a good fit for you. And then you can follow up with them at a future time. And what we're talking about, having conversations, it's not something that. It's just one method. So there's so many different ways to communicate with people that you can find what works best for you. So some people might like to go and. Have conversations in DMS on Instagram or Facebook. Other people are email people. Some people are face to face people. I think people love taking phone calls. it's a matter of finding what method is that you're most comfortable with and that you're just like [00:03:00] feeling that this is a way that you can actually have a conversation and get people to know you a little bit better. Terrica: so I'm gonna ask this question, cause I know you have a good answer. And it's one thing that I, struggle with a little bit when I first started is having the conversations for some people. once they, like you said, they kind of, you know, get into it, find a commonality and just kinda like talk to someone like they would in person. But then there's a lot of people who say, Well, I don't have anybody to talk to. I don't, I don't have an audience,  where do I find the people?, Do i have to basically enact the digital version of cold calling , do I just go into somebody's DMS and be like, Hey, how you doing? my name's Terrica, nice to meet you. does that work? Is that sleazy? Vanessa: With that high pitchy voice to dude that's awesome. Please don't do that. Yeah. Calling cold [00:04:00] calling drives me a little bit. Nuts. It does work for some things. It works for some industries. If you're a salesperson, you will spend half your life, cold calling people, but. The people who wind up,  the MLM, people that hop into your DMS, they find you on Facebook and they're just there to try and sell you. Those are not people who are open to having conversations. And those are people that almost everybody hates so much so that they get mad from Facebook. So if. And everybody has had this problem. Everybody will have this problem. And it depends on how big your network is or how small it is or what your, I don't know how comfortable you are with going out and talking to people. You can find somebody to talk to. Just about anywhere and everywhere and yeah, it's going to be hard and it's going to be awful and it's going to feel gnarly. And there's something in your brain. That's going to tell you that I have nobody to talk to you like ever. Cause I never leave my house and I walk around my bathroom and nobody wants to talk to somebody who's walking around their house in their pajamas all day, but you have to get [00:05:00] out of your head. So think about how many Facebook groups are you in. Or how many people do you know in your family, your circle of friends, your alumni from school, there's so many different ways to tackle it. That if you really start to think about it, you can probably find at least one person to talk to. Even if it's just a friend to be like, okay, I have this thing. I'm trying to find people that I can. I talked to you about this thing. Do you know of anybody? That type of conversation helps too. That's the type of conversation that salespeople have to have all the time. I know when I was in sales and I thankfully did not have to cold call that many people, because there was always somebody that I could talk to who could refer me to somebody else. And it started with, just talking to people that came into the store that would actually reach out because they found our information through awesome marketing materials. But those times when it was kind of dead and dry and I had to start finding people and pulling them out of the woodwork to talk to you, then I would go [00:06:00] back to the people who I had either already talked to or people I like, sort of knew I'd strike up conversations with them, even if it was just like a, Hey, hi, how you doing kind of angle to get in, to be able to talk to people. So even though things feel hard, conversations are hard. I dunno, especially on a Monday, like there are times where it's going to feel like awful, but know that that's completely, honestly normal and everybody has that thought that I have nobody to talk to. But yet when you really start to think about it and journal it out, write it down, make a list of all the different people that you could talk to. Even if you think that those people. Would have nothing to do with what you're offering. I've made a list of people and been like, these are the people I know the chances of them actually buying what I'm selling are pretty much slim to none, but nine times out of 10, when I talked to those people, those people know other people that I can talk to. Terrica: That's true. a super [00:07:00] easy way that I've done this and. Ironically, I did this when we were in a creation phase. one of our upcoming offers is while I be classified as an introvert and just say this guy's not all introverts are antisocial just means that you don't get your kind of fuel from people. You get your fuel from yourself. So, I said, you know what, I'm just gonna write a Facebook post on my personal one. I'm just going to put it out there. I'm going to let people then come to me. Cause I know that at this point, I don't really remember. I think I have maybe 500 to 800. Yeah. Facebook friends. I'm like, somebody is going to see this post. Somebody will like it. Somebody will comment. And because they comment and it'll show up in like their feed and then somebody else will see it. And I don't really have to do any of the hard work. Minus respond to the people who already felt some visceral reaction and say, [00:08:00] Ooh, yes, I have that problem. Or, Oh, I have a solution for you. And then I'm like, Now I can just use, like Vanessa said my own community online without having to pick up the phone and talk to anybody, or I don't even have to reach out to somebody and send them like a text message. I just put a post and said, Hey guys, this is what I'm doing. do you think it's a good idea? what could make this better? and you have an easily warm audience. These are people where you are used to talking to, like you said, you went to school with them, you know, them through something and then. Sometimes I always like at the end to put like a little simple, just piggybacking off of what you said call to action. Hey, if you know somebody else tag them, let people work for you. Vanessa: And that's like the power of people, the power of networking, even if you're not like, quote unquote networking, we're going out to mixers or whatever. It's a matter of just letting people, putting it, putting your offer out there or putting what you're do out there or who you serve, or some little snippet of. What you're doing. [00:09:00] It's amazing that just putting it out there, how other people that are like, Oh, I might not need that, but I know a guy right. Might do that. Or who might need that, or I don't need that now, but I'm gonna save that info and then we'll come back to it later. Exactly. There's so much, so much power and conversations. It's awesome. Okay. So the next thing we were going to cover is why you should offer your help instead of just hard selling people. Hey, hard s

Episode #004 - Cocktail Hour! - Fruit/Rum Punch Show Description This episode is our monthly cocktail episode! Tune in as Terrica shares a favorite fruit punch recipe that you can turn up a notch with some rum, beach ready anybody? Show Notes [00:00:00] Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. We're your hosts. Terrica Strozier, that's me a brand designer and sugar attic and Vanessa Shepherd and launch strategist and content creator. With the love of all things business each week, you're here, our behind the scenes conversations and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer while doing it all ethically and organically. And given that bro marketer advice, the book. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink and let's jump into today's episode. Terrica: Hey, everybody. Welcome to a cocktail episode, which is my favorite episodes. I love giving you marketing and business advice cocktails have, have my heart, so we're not going to make this long. but I am going to just dive right in. So this cocktail episode, the basis is going to be this fruit punch that I kind of created on accident a bit. I'm [00:01:00] not sure where all of you all reside or what restaurants look like in your area, but I am born and raised and still live in Atlanta. Well, now the Metro Atlanta area and here a lot of the local wing places, and even some of the Jamaican restaurants always have the combination of punches. So in the local, and when I say wing, I mean like chicken wing places. So the local chicken wing places, they have these almost fountain type. Drinks. I, don't not quite sure what they're called. They're in the same container that you have, like the really big frozen daiquiris dispense out of. And they have different flavors like peach and lemonade and fruit punch. And. They even combine them, . So my kind of go to is like a little bit of peach juice and a little bit eliminate and it's like, perfect. It's like sweet. And then you get the salty wings and it's, Oh, it's the best. So recently my husband and I had a [00:02:00] hankering for some wings. So I went to our local wing place, but unfortunately they don't have the juice thing anymore. since COVID, they've gotten rid of it. So I really wanted it. Like a good fruit punch. I haven't purchased one in the store that I really love. But as I said before, I like locally, they have some of the Jamaican restaurants. They make their own fruit punches and Oh gosh, they're so good. And again, if I couldnt' the recipe for it, so. I at first, I was like, Oh, don't worry about it. I came home, we ate the wings, I just had some water. And I was like, I really want a fruit punch and I'm going to figure this out. So I did a little bit of research. So I combined a little bit of what I know from my palette. Some YouTube videos, Google searching and just what was available in my local store. So this is my [00:03:00] base for my fruit punch. And, you will have, there will be a link in the show notes to a blog post, and then I'll have the whole recipe written out, now with this fruit punch, you can add your spirit of choice. I have a love of all things, rum and subsequently Tiki drinks and anything that has rum in it I have tried, I've lost count the amount of rums that I tried. And when I went on my honeymoon in the Dominican Republic, I was in heaven with the open bar and all of those rums. if you're, uh, had ever been to the Dominican Republic, one of their go to brands is brugal, and it's a really solid, rum, but I have just so many that I love my plantation rum, diplomatico will like, Oh, so many good things. So. And a really good addition for this is rum, I use just a simple [00:04:00] silver rum. You can use an aged rum if that's what you have. And if you're not a big rum person, this would do really well with another what I consider a little bit of a neutral spirit. So, so you could add in vodka or maybe even gin, but I would not go into any other categories other than those, those are gonna. Be your best combinations. So the fruit punch is a combination. And so I started with a quarter of a watermelon. So I didn't want to buy a ton of watermelon because I didn't even know how much this will yield. So it was just easier to go for a quarter. So I took the quarter of a watermelon, and then just slice that up and cube did scooped it out, threw it in my blender and. I just went ahead and blended that down. And then I used a strainer, a mesh strainer, and just strained out the extra pulp and seeds. And [00:05:00] so that was my base t0 that I added. one of the frozen concentrates is a, was an orange and pineapple juice. I then added that into the watermelon. So, going in between a huge mixing bowl and my blender. So every time I would blend something, strain it, I put it into the mixing bowl and then just keep adding things. So, in my blender I put the frozen concentrate and then I added in two bananas and then blended that down, just pulsed it. It really good. Straighten that out as well. I also added the juice use of one Naval orange, two limes and a lemon. And then here and my local store, they have a juice that is a passion fruit base, but it's like a tropical juice or as passion, fruit juice, guava and papaya, I believe. And pineapple juice. And I just added overall probably about. A [00:06:00] cup to a cup and a half of that, just to add it in with the different fruit I was using, as I was blending that up to kind of create it a more of a liquid base. additionally, if you cannot find, like a tropical juice that you really love, and I really liked this one because the ingredients are minimal and you really get a fruit flavor. if you can find the fruit nectars. we have those around, especially, and some of your local, international stores. if there's anywhere in your city where they have a large, Caribbean population, then you tend to find those, really frequently. So if you do that and I would, I would, purchase, a passion fruit or guava or papaya or mango. nectars and add a combination of those in those cells would be like really good as well. I additionally felt like I needed a little bit more fruit flavor, so I had some frozen fruit and my freezer and I had some mixed berries and [00:07:00] mango. So I blended that in the blender with the little bit of the passion fruit juice though. One cup to one and a half cups is going to include all of these is additional additions. Anytime you need to add, like just a little liquid, I added the passion fruit juice. and then I blended that up, straighten that out, added that in there. And what are the YouTube videos that I found? it was for a Jamaican fruit punch and he added mixed essences  while I've seen it in the store. I wasn't quite sure what that included. So I did a little bit of a research and mixed essence is a combination of  vanilla  Almond and lemon extract,  so he suggested as a recommendation, if you couldn't find mix essence was to use almond extract for once. And I can't tell you how long, cause I bake a lot. I was completely out of almond extract. But another alternative to almond, almond and vanilla go hand [00:08:00] in hand and play like a really nice part with, additions and baking and things like that. Almond with really, strong, taste still, you have to be really careful with the almond extract. So even in his whole punch, he was only using. About a half of a teaspoon. So I substituted that with some vanilla, stirred that up and that was my juice and it was, Oh guys, it was so amazing. Now what you can adjust depending on your preference. So as you've seen it in a lot of recipes, they always tell you to season to taste. And I would say the same for fruit punch. So you're not adding any salt or pepper guys. So as you finish the punch, just taste it along the way. Some people like a sweeter flavor. So depending on where you are, that may work perfectly for you. Additionally, some may like a little bit [00:09:00] more. Of tartness and not like an equal balance. So I kind of went back and forth as I was tasting. And I was like, Oh, it's a little too sweet. So I'll add a little additional lemon or lime juice just to kind of pump up that tartness to give, a good flavor balance that was in tune with what I like to drink. Cause we went through this punch super quick guys. So to make your cocktail. You're gonna pour, the punch into a glass. I just put it into a normal bout 16 ounce glass. And I did about half of it for that. So eight ounces of the juice. If you want to make a larger  mix then by all means, add more alcohol let's punch. Just kind of play with it a bit. So. I added in about eight ounces of the punch and then two shots of rum and stirred that together. And then what always is an amazing [00:10:00] addition to run punches. Cause I made rum punches separately that I did not make a complete fruit punch base and. Is the addition of Angostura bitters. So I had about three to four dashes of Angostura bitters. And guys it's such a, just refreshing cocktail makes you feel like you've been transported to the beach. I know many of us can't really get to some of our friends. Favorite destinations, but it's like Calgon. It takes you away just for a little bit. So that's the cocktail guys. I'm just going to sum it up and call it terrica's fruit punch. And you can add in, like I said, any addition of alcohols that you would prefer,  Where I used the two shots of rum then you can add in vodka or gin in his course are going to give you a lot more floral notes. So the [00:11:00] addition of the bitters in using vodka and gin was probably not needed, but based on your personal preference, please like try it out. If you have them in your home. If you make cocktails often, try a little bit taste it, see what it, see what it does for you. So a little bit too. You know, heavy on the bitters and just add a little bit more juice to balance that out. So hope you enjoy guys. If you decide to make the fruit punc

Episode #003 - Marketing Your Business w/ No Expertise + Our Personal Stories Show Description In this episode we're diving into a pretty big topic for most business owners especially at the beginning. That is how do you market your business when you don't feel like you're an expert in your field? Or you feel like your knowledge is not on par with others in your field. We're also going to give you some behind the scenes of our businesses and what our early days look like too. Show Notes [00:00:00] Terrica: Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. We're your hosts. Terrick Strozier, that's me a brand designer and sugar attic and Vanessa shepherd and launch strategist and content creator. With a love of all things Disney, each week, you'll hear our behind the scenes conversations and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer while doing it all ethically and organically. And given that bro marketer advice, the book. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink and let's jump into today's episode. Welcome to episode three of the marketing cocktails podcast. Today, we're diving into a pretty big topic for most business owners. And that is how do you market your business when you don't feel like you're an expert in your field, or you have the expertise that is on par with the rest of your niche. We're also going to give you some behind the scenes of our businesses and what our early days look like too. So if you're ready to hear us stories, let's dive in. So what about when you don't have the [00:01:00] expertise to market your business. Well, I'll just do what everybody else does. I'll fake it till I make it. I'll act like a habit all to get together. When in reality behind the scenes, now this is a shamble that maybe I've never gotten a client act like I'm booked out. and when I'm marketing myself, I'll take one little. nuance of something that I've done and I'm going to blow it up tenfold, because we've all seen that someone, no one person take a step forward. Now they've transformed somebody's business and then that's how they market themselves. And that's okay. They put it out there even though they have, they don't have the expertise and it's okay if you don't, we all start somewhere. You all don't even want to know what my stationery business looked like when I started back in 2011, then in a one bedroom apartment with. This laser printer that [00:02:00] I didn't even really know that like how I was going to use it, but I took a client and I couldn't figure it out. And my inkjet didn't work.  and I went and spent $350 on a laser thinking that that was going to fix him. It was an Epic fail guys. It was so bad. I don't even want to look back at those things anymore, but I've come a long way in nine years, but I didn't fake it too. I, I wasn't faking it at that point. I just put out what I knew, what I could do offer. And at this offer point that I felt was congruent with where I was, so that if I underlay under delivered just a little bit, and it didn't feel like I was ripping these people off, but the whole time I was trying to overdeliver, I was like, I'm going to give you the best product that I can right now. And that's okay. Vanessa: Yeah. Oh my gosh, you, you don't need really don't need a college degree or a super extensive, consultant or, [00:03:00] all these fancy things that you could invest in right away to start and to start marketing your business. If okay, let's go back to some super simple examples. If a little kid can have an idea and start talking to people about it and make sales. Then you as a grown ass adult can do the exact same thing and I'm completely serious here. So if, if we're going to turn back the clock, once upon a time, I was a cute little blonde girl in Northern Canada, and I, they essentially started a business without knowing it because as you're a kid, you don't know what it's doing. You don't know what, you're, what you're kind of leading things in. I essentially started my first business when I was like six or seven. And I was making things I was crafting and making things for weddings or that people needed. And people bought them. I don't know if they actually thought they were good or why, or if they were just seeing, being nicest, poor little kid, but either way I made stuff, I sold it. I [00:04:00] talked to people that the people that bought my set I've talked to other people and people kept coming back fast, forward 20 years. I'm still doing the exact same thing. On down though. Cause that's not something I promote or push anymore a while. It was, I did a lot of weddings. I did a lot of birthday parties, a lot of baby showers I made and crafted my heart out. Did I have a website and a fancy, set of tools that I hire, a fancy consultants? No, I did make money. I did cover my bills. I covered my expenses. I was profitable doing it. I loved what I did. until it took like the fun out of it. but essentially like you D I didn't, I didn't have a college degree at that point. I didn't have, a marketing education, but I still was able to create a plan that was true to me. It was treating my customers, it communicated what I did, how I helped, people knew how to get in touch with me. And I took steps [00:05:00] that were really methodical because that's the way I am one foot in front of the other one step after the other. And I reached my goals. Was that okay? Absolutely. Everybody has different goals. Everybody has different outcomes for me, it was just having a fine side hustle that I did something I loved. I was helping people. I was creating things. and I paid a few extra bills. And was profitable doing it for somebody else. Somebody else might want it. They could turn around and do the exact same thing. They could turn around and make something, but they might want to grow it to six figures instead of, a few, four figures or whatever. And that's totally okay too. You don't, you don't need a degree to make a plan. I know people that have started their business by writing their, their plans and their goals and how they're going to go from point a to point B on a napkin. Okay. It's just a matter of write it down, figure it out, learn what you don't know. Constantly. Always be learning. Don't hack your way to the top. Don't super fake it. Be true to who you are [00:06:00] and people will. They'll they'll come and they'll, they'll flock towards you because you're real because you are relatable. And because you're, you're putting yourself out there in a way that's honest and ethical and is just like, Hey, I have a thing. I do this, and I want to help these. And people will appreciate the clarity that that brings to the table. Terrica: Exactly because real is not a trend or a fad. I know everyone loves that word authentic right now, but at the core of it, if you're true to yourself, that'll always be in season. It's interesting that you were using the example going back to when you were like six or seven, because as not every little girl, but many of us had the experience to be girl Scouts. I stopped [00:07:00] after brownies, but I, so I sold my fair share of cookies and we all learned really quickly to find a unique. Way of selling cookies. Cause everybody wanted to, the amazing you got when you sold like X number and higher and you wanted to be better than the other troops, or maybe somebody in your troop, you want to beat them. And you, I realized that maybe their mom worked here and they were doing it. They're like, what can I do different. What, what can I make up when I go knock on the doors and say, to make people want to buy my cookies and buy more than one box buy like three or four or five boxes? we've all heard the stories, like you said, Where someone started their business on a napkin with an old laptop in their closet. like all of the rags to riches story, does it take Vanessa: all the detours and other fancy techniques? okay guys, at one point in my life, I was [00:08:00] homeless and broke and I had absolutely nothing. I managed to get my hands on a snow shovel and I shoveled walks all winter. And that's how I made money, extra money and paid the bills and got myself back into having a roof over my head. So there's always a way there's always a way to communicate what you do and to put money in your pocket Terrica: and see. I learned something new about Vanessa every day. And this speaks to her, not just her innovation, but her grit guys cause I'm in Georgia and we barely have snow. So I couldn't even imagine having to do that, but it does speak to one thing that I've focused on, especially as a brand designer and everybody feels like. You gotta have the pretty brand. You gotta have the logo and the amazing website, [00:09:00] but guys, I know people who are booked out and I've made six figures off of emails. no actual website. My folk is, and I'm going to be a broken record with this. Is that the core of it all is people. And that empathy that you can have for your fellow man and finding out how you can truly help, how you can truly connect to actually listen, and to hear people that in itself takes no money. All that takes its time and focus and energy. And when you can do that, To me, that is the core of ourselves. That's how people book out. Doesn't matter how pretty now don't get me wrong. I love some pretty and true design has not only the aesthetic piece, but the impact is, [00:10:00] well, it converts and you need it when you get to a certain level, Vanessa: but Terrica: starting out, you don't have to have that. Like you were saying, Vanessa, it's. Having this idea. I do this, I offer this. This is how I can help you guys talk. And you have that full, that conversation that you go in that's cost you nothing. So even if you don't have this expertise, even if you feel like you don't have 10 years of experience and three degrees, and guys I'm telling you that doesn't mean anything. I have two degrees and sometimes I feel li

Episode #002 - Busting Marketing Myths: Part 2 Show Description In this episode, we're busting these marketing myths: "content is…?" and "You don’t need a marketing plan". Myths can be so damaging to entrepreneurs and business owners who decide to make decisions based on them. We've heard both of these myths so many times in online business, and it's about time that someone set the record straight! Show Notes [00:00:00] Terrica: Welcome to the marketing cocktails podcast. We're your hosts. Terrick astrologer, that's me a brand designer and sugar attic and Vanessa shepherd and launch strategist and content creator. With the love of all things business each week, you're here, our behind the scenes conversations and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer while doing it all ethically and organically. And given that bro marketer advice, the book. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink and let's jump into today's episode. Welcome to episode two of the marketing cocktails podcast. Today's episode is going to be a continuation of the first and we're just rounding up the final three marketing myths. The ones we'll do tackle today. Our content is blank. We all have a definition that can probably fit in there. Everyone is your customer, and lastly, you don't need marketing plan. So let's dive in. . So , you use the word content a lot. And that seems  to be as [00:01:00] confusing, a word for people as marketing is, and that people are like,  content is just the written stuff, right? So my content is just blog posts, but I hate blogging. So I guess I have no content. And then I heard people, no, your content is,  what people. Read about you, what they see. Oh, you mean my Instagram and my Facebook. So that's my content. So my content strategy needs to be centered around the first place. I want people to find information about me and there's this business owner back end.  that's YouTube for me. And someone else's like, Oh, I don't do videos. So I guess it's Instagram for me. And so we know that content is more. Then social media. Cause there's some people killing it right now and they have no social media presence at all. And that blows people's mind. And they're thinking I'm wasting all my time on Instagram [00:02:00] and someone's making six figures in your in box and I'm like, yeah. But if that's where your people are and where your people connect, put your time and energy there. So what else. Would you say about content? Cause I know that it's literally  you're  baby, you know, digital baby, I guess Vanessa:  I love content you can tell because, , I just spent the last 10 years deep diving into basically content in front of  break it down to a nutshell. Content is cool. Content is I really want to simplify it. It's every single message that you put out into the universe. So it's every time you open your mouth to tell somebody about you, your business and your brand that's content, you're creating content just by talking. We're creating content right now and all we're doing is yapping at each other. It's all the stuff you write down. So  your invoices, the way the stuff you put on them, [00:03:00] that is also a piece of content. The, blog posts you put out there. The stuff on your website, the stuff in your emails, the stuff on your videos, on your podcasts. Every time you send people have a box or a message or a Slack message, all of that is technically content. And people over complicated. They're like, well, content is only, blog posts or videos or whatever. Nah Nah  it's, everything, every single thing. There's so many different forms of what's called media or medium. and that's the format that your content comes in. So if you are writing it down, Then that's written or text based content if you're doing a video and that's obviously video content, same word. if you're doing a podcast or an audio snippet, anything is, that you can, you, hear it only. That's audio content, you can get, visual. So that's if like when Tara designs pretty awesome graphics that go up on, [00:04:00] Instagram, like all those pretty designed things. It's visual. Anything that's really graphical visual content. you can mix and match others media together. If you write, say you're doing a Rob blog, I like blogging. I'm old school. yeah, blog posts. I'm going to write that content down. I might record an audio for the people out there who hate to read and there's lots of, yeah. Are there, I might do a video for all the people who. Hate to read. They don't really want to listen. They want to see somebody's face as they're conveying the information. And I might do some infographic infographics, or maybe I'll do up some pretty pictures or maybe I'll do app like pins or little other visual elements. I'm gonna put them all into one post. I just created four different types of content. Put it into one delivery vehicle and put it out in the universe. Terrica: And we see this so much. At least I feel like my ads are flooded with [00:05:00] content planners, content strategy, content, content, content. It feels like one of those,  neon signs just flashing at you like seven, 11 time. and I wonder, cause I struggle with content. I can create all day. You say Terrica   design this for me. Sure. My nose is into my laptop and I'm focused, but then you say, stop doing that. And write something for an audience. Oh, I have to get out my artist's brain and say stuff to people. Okay. I have no idea what to talk about. And so, you know, I just sit there and then there's  crazy gaps. And anybody, if you, if you find me on Instagram, there's going to be gaps. I'm just telling you, I'm human. I'm getting better though. So what is your. Advice to people when it comes to developing a content [00:06:00] strategy, not just as a whole, because I feel  everybody's telling you that, but one that feels good or is in tune with what they like to do. Can someone say if I don't want to be on Instagram? It's fine.  my business won't implode on itself. If someone finds me and they're like, she doesn't have an Instagram, she's not reputable. Or if I just want to do video. Can I just live on YouTube and never write anything else again in my entire life? Vanessa: Technically all those situations are, could be true. And we could probably, if we think long and hard to come up with the right names, I'm really bad with names, by the way, I just didn't stick in my head. It's awesome. but we could probably come up with lists of people who they were, they went through a really simple process. They were like, okay. So I want to get into online business and I need, I know I need to put something out in the world to tell people what I do. What do I like doing actually, do I really love doing, [00:07:00] because if you're going to create content for the internet, you gotta love doing it because you might do it for a while before somebody ever stumbles upon it and goes, man, you are the next hot thing. And you become this overnight sensation, which doesn't actually happen. Almost everybody. Who's an overnight sensation has been doing something for awhile. Anyway, I digress.  a good example. We had a conversation when we were  hashing out. Do you even want to be on Instagram are your people even on Instagram or , do I have to be there? Cause everybody out there is telling me I have to be on Instagram. Cool. That's awesome. I know you don't have to be on any one platform. You have to be where your people are. You have to decide that. So by looking at things, we figured out your Pinterest, it was like blowing up continually, even when you do nothing and you're inconsistent, your Pinterest still blows Terrica: up. Yeah. Vanessa: And so we know there's a good segment of your people on Pinterest. And the great thing about Pinterest is it's very visual. Which meets your designer, inner artist [00:08:00] and it  can pull it out and we can automate that. So you don't have to spend hours at the scheduler and you can continually just keep designing and popping it up on your blogs. That auto feeds to Pinterest, and you never really have to touch any of it. and that works and that will work for people. You get clients through there, you get people at least inquiring. Finding it, maybe they send your pin to a friends and kind of refer you that way. we know that you don't like writing things down and that's totally okay too, but you have no problem picking up your phone and recording a video and putting it up on a live. So then you're kind of fine becomes I love designing things. I am totally comfortable doing impromptu videos when I feel like it. The mood strikes her that again, that's the artist flow. It's pretty awesome. And that's what I'm going to do because I know my people watch my videos and I know my people, I love my designs. So those are the two things that I'm going to tackle this year. And that's totally fine [00:09:00] because that works for you and it meets your people where they're at and how they want to interact with you. Me on the other hand, my people and what I love to do, I can write all day long. I could probably speak things out, but there's going to be a lot of ums and AHS because I overthink everything and I go down and cute little rabbit holes, not very efficient. If you just want to learn one thing, I have to really focus. It's fine. So I write, I have had many, many, many blogs over the years. People always find me. They always find the stuff and it drives traffic for freaking ever. It's awesome. you won't catch me jumping into video cause I, I don't know. I still have to learn how to do that stuff. When all the rest of the people of the world that were  super into video hopped on, I was out writing things down and doing degrees and doing research. So. I write my people find me. It's fine. I also like to design kind of findings or I might take photos and I'll put those up again. That's a visual form and people like it, the audience [00:10:00]

Marketing Myths: "Marketing & advertising are the same thing" and "Facebook ads are like an ATM". Show Description In this episode, we're busting these marketing myths: "Marketing & advertising are the same thing" and "Facebook ads are like an ATM". Myths can be so damaging to entrepreneurs and business owners who decide to make decisions based on them. We've heard both of these myths so many times in online business, and it's about time that someone set the record straight! Show Notes [00:00:00] Terrica: Welcome to the marketing and cocktails podcast. We're your hosts. Terrick Strozier, that's me, a brand designer and sugar addict, and Vanessa Shepherd, launch strategist and content creator with a love of all things Disney. Each week you'll hear our behind the scenes conversations and expert advice on marketing and launching your next offer while doing it all ethically and organically. While giving that bro marketer advice the boot. Thanks for spending some time with us today. Grab a drink. And let's jump into today's episode. Welcome to episode one of the marketing and cocktails podcast today, we're talking about debunking marketing myths. So we're going to break this up probably to maybe one to two part episode, and we're going to debunk five of the marketing myths that we have heard so much, and we want to just address them. So here we go. Vanessa: Alrighty. Let's debunk some marketing myths. Marketing and advertising are the [00:01:00] same thing. Not. Big time, not. I hate when people say that they're not the same thing. They're very related. Advertising is a part of marketing, but they're different. So marketing is that kind of ongoing end to end plan that covers  everything you do, the entire process, your business should follow how it provides products or services to the people you serve. That includes everything like designing a price of the product, deciding where it will be sold, how to persuade people to buy it. All the branding,  all of that stuff is related to marketing. Whereas advertising is only one teeny tiny piece of the marketing plan pizza. So it's more focused on creating and placing ads to help spread the word about all the amazing products or services that you actually have to offer. [00:02:00] Terrica: Does that make sense then? I feel like everybody puts it together. Cause you, you watch the TV shows and you see the people on the ad team and they're creating these  jingles   and commercials and all that jazz. And then people are like, Oh, they're marketing the product. So it's the same thing and they're designing it and they have a script. So.  in,  my marketing plan, I'm supposed to write about X, Y, and Z. So that means that marketing and advertising are the same thing. Vanessa: I get that. I get that. It's funny how,  we don't, people don't see the back end. Like they don't see that the ads on TV are like one tiny thing. And there's a lot of overlap, especially if you're getting into  the online space, you can have  a lot of people use the copy from their emails, the copy from their social media posts, or  that pool of content that you create. They pull from that and use it  in their like Facebook ads or in their Pinterest ads or wherever they're blasting things out to their audience. So there's a lot of overlap, but the strategies have to, I think they have to work together and they have to be really specific to what your goals are. [00:03:00] For each piece of the puzzle,  you'll have overall marketing goals about how you want to communicate the things you want to achieve related to the big picture. And you have advertising goals, like how well you want your Facebook ads to do, or your Pinterest ads to do, or the TV and radio ads that you might run. You have to be able to define. How that one little piece of the advertising puzzle will perform and then how all the other marketing around that product or service will perform.  most people think about it as this one big piece of the puzzle.  I'm gonna throw up ads and I'm gonna do a thousand sales total, and I'm going to expect all of that to come up, come from ads and they don't have to do anything else. When the reality is you have to be communicating or marketing your product in. So many different ways and some people never, ever put up ads and that's totally fine because they have a rock solid  marketing strategy that is so on point with the messaging and the offers for their audience, that advertising just helps to [00:04:00] amplify those positive things. And see, Terrica: I think that's the difference is that everybody feels  in order to make money, You have to have ads, even though people tell you that you can do it organically. There's usually the big people don't show you that, , An actual viable Avenue. It just feels like, Oh, they tell me that, but it's organic because they put up ads and then all these people are coming to their stuff. So they already love them. And nobody knows me because nobody knows me. I have to pay to play. I need ads. Vanessa: Yeah. And those are the, like the surface level stories are so aggravating.  what's that when we keep hearing from Gary V all the time, he was , Putting stuff out there and creating content and marketing his stuff, Terrica: right? Like, like 10 years or something crazy. He has stuff on YouTube from forever that people are now finding. And he was , I was making that when nobody knew who I was and nobody was really listening to me. Vanessa: Yeah. So  his content fell [00:05:00] on deaf ears the same way. Like lots of regular people feel that our content falls on deaf ears too. marketing can take time, especially. If you, if you're not paying the play, if you're not like putting some ad spend behind it to help it reach market, it's really, really hard to have your stuff be seen when there's 10,000 other people out there,  putting out the same message at the same time. Terrica: So then I know somebody is listening to this and thinking  well, I thought I knew what my marketing plan was. So now my marketing plan has to include advertising or am I missing something or am I okay with this current marketing plan I have, which may be.  a combination of I'm going to do  these launches, I'm going to design my offers, these what this way, and this is my funnel, but I didn't even think about advertising. And I guess I'm missing out. Cause I don't have advertising. Vanessa: And some people are definitely going [00:06:00] to feel that way. But the, the great part is  not everybody run out. It's not every business out there is running ads and making sales and hitting,  four figures figures, six figures, seven figures a month. I've worked with a lot of people who really didn't start ads until they'd hit a really, really solid place in their business.  they nailed their organic strategy. They made sure that their messaging knocked it out of the park, that their funnel worked flawlessly, that they were having everything was at the conversion rate that they really wanted to see from it so that they knew that when they did finally put ad spend behind it, That it would get to this place of only amplifying what was working the worst part of advertising is people jumping in too soon when their messaging is not really refined or they don't really have a lock on their audience, or maybe it's a brand new offer. And they're not really sure how it's going to convert. A lot of people go out and jump into ads. A lot of [00:07:00] people, unfortunately have really bad experiences with ads managers who don't look at the bigger marketing picture too, so that layers into it. And then they're like, Oh, well, ads don't work for me because I lost a whole bunch of money. When the reality of it is their marketing just wasn't solid before they went in and ran ads. So it's almost better to go at it from following a markerting strategy, and a marketing plan a little bit more organically, nailing things down, and then adding advertising to it when you're ready, instead of going the opposite direction, because paid ads really. They only amplify what does and doesn't work. And the something doesn't work. Say your email sequence isn't converting, or maybe you're landing page design just sucks, right? Advertising is only going to amplify that. And, and it's only going to show you that you have problems, and you're going to have to read the lines between the data to be able to figure out that you have these problems. And not everybody is really proficient at being able to, to [00:08:00] read that data, to figure out where all those problems lie. Terrica: So with that being said, I feel like this then segways into the next myth, which is that Facebook ads are like an ATM. Vanessa: Yes. Oh my gosh. If I have to hear somebody say that one more time and we're going to hear it, it's an online space. That's why some of these awesome bro marketers do their like Facebook ads or like an ATM. I put money in. I get my money back out. Sometimes I get more money out. Which actually sounds more like a slot machine than an ATM, but whatever. Um, or Terrica: one of those little change machines at the laundry mat. Vanessa: I put it, I put a dollar bill and I got a . whole bunch of quarters out it's fine. Um, Facebook ads are not an ATM machine. It can feel like that. You can definitely get to the point where it feels like money in and more money out. It covers my expenses. I make a profit from it, but that's not the reality for everybody.  we can put ads that maybe it's the wrong time, or maybe it's the wrong [00:09:00] offer. Or maybe the photo just didn't stand up enough to be noticed. Like you never know how things are gonna are gonna do until you like test them. Terrica: But testing costs, money, Vanessa: Testing costs money. and especially if you don't have say you don't have that marketing strategy on lock, you don't have a clear plan. You're not creating content consistently. You're hiding behind a computer screen. You're not going