Missed it? Catch up - or listen in - here.

Want to know how? 

The source of all my content is you – not me.

I get my ideas from my market (you) and the world – things I see, hear, wonder about and am moved to share – then I put my own take on it.

I am always listening for content – for me and for you.

In my coaching groups and with my 1:1 coaching clients, I constantly “hear” content, especially in the challenges (a.k.a. pain points) creatives like you face every day.

For example, I recently couldn’t not hear so many struggling with their email newsletters. 

So here’s the content I created based on that one challenge: 

• Podcast: What’s the big deal about email newsletters?
• Blog post: How not to rack your brain for ideas
• Video: How to stop avoiding your newsletter
• LinkedIn post with 33 comments

And this very blog post you're reading now.

It’s kind of amazing how, when you gear your attention outward, rather than inward, you find an infinite source of content ideas.

In fact, the beauty of creating content is that once you start, ideas start to flow freely – it can even be hard to stop them!

Plus, you get to add your own creativity and your own spin to the process. By now, this comes naturally to me, but only because I’ve worked on developing this skill over the years.

With practice, you will “hear” content everywhere too.

Want to try it?

Take one idea and split it across multiple media – newsletters, social media posts, podcast episodes – anything!! 

I shared more in the “Best Bits” from our last Simplest Marketing Plan Office Hours – watch it here:

And if you need an idea to get you started (or have one to share), I’m collecting a list here.

That’s plenty for today. Thanks for reading.

Messaging strategist, Stacy Eleczko, launched her email newsletter in exactly that situation — and what happened next might just surprise you. 

Here's what happened....

Two years ago, Stacy realized that if she was going to help clients with their newsletters, she better have one of her own. (Is that you too?)

The problem was she had no goals or plan for what she wanted the newsletter to do for her business, no name for the newsletter and no list of people to send it to.

Still, against her better judgment, she launched it anyway. 

And guess what? 

It worked anyway!

It’s brought her new clients – what I call newsletter magic – plus confidence in her own work and a deeper understanding of where her gaps are, not to mention the opportunities she wouldn’t have known about otherwise – like guesting on podcasts just like the Marketing Mentor Podcast. 

I just love Stacy’s story because it proves the point I am constantly making – you don’t need to have all your ducks in a row.

You don’t need to have everything buttoned up. You don’t even need to know what you’re doing. :)

You just need to trust yourself -- that you’ll figure out as you go. (Trust me, you will.)

And then you need to start. 

That's it!

So here’s my challenge to you

Will you take whatever inspiration and/or motivation my conversation with Stacy has given you in this moment and use it to just do something you’ve been putting off? 

It could be your newsletter – or it could be reaching out to a dream client. Whatever it is, just do it.

Who knows – maybe one day I’ll share your newsletter as an excellent example and maybe even invite you to be a guest on the podcast. Why not? 

If you’re sleeping on your newsletter, listen here (and below): 

If you like what you hear, listen to Episode 539 with Stacy on why AI won't replace her (or you!)

we’d love it if you write a review, subscribe here and sign up for Quick Tips from Marketing Mentor.

And If you want my help figuring all of this out, take advantage of my free mentoring session.

It was brimming with early issues – from 1993 – of my newsletter. This very newsletter you’re reading now, except back then it was called, The Art of Self Promotion, and it was printed and sent in the mail.

Isn’t that fun?

And guess what? 

I’m still saying the same thing! 

As I flipped through them, something occurred to me that I thought I should share with you:

I’ve published my newsletter every other week for more than 35 years - and I’ve never run out of ideas. Not once!

Now, you might be thinking, “that’s a you thing, Ilise.” After all, I do like to say that I’m a “content machine.” 

But my ideas don’t actually come from me. And yours don’t need to come from you, either.

The reason I’ve been able to consistently write and send my newsletter over nearly four decades is very simple:

I don’t rack my brain for ideas. Instead, I listen to the market, and ideas come to me.

In the last Quick Tip, I showed you some “excellent examples” of newsletters, so you can “mimic the masters.” Catch up - or listen in! - here.

Today I’m giving you the “secret” to getting your own ideas, so you never have to “rack your brain” again.

The thing is, it’s not really a “secret” – but it is a mindset shift. You have to think differently. But I know you can. 🙂

How to Listen to The Market for Ideas

You see, my content doesn’t come from my brain. It comes from the market – and yours could, too. 

First, you need to think about what your best prospects are interested in. What they need. What’s helpful to them. 

If you don’t know, take a look at what they’re posting to LinkedIn, and any comments they’re making. (Or ask Artificial Ilise.)

When you meet with them, notice their pain points and the challenges they have.

Then, write about:

• Things you see
• Things you hear
• Things you react to

All in relation to your market.

Here are some newsletter issues that do that particularly well:

Amy Jahnke’s design clients occasionally use stock photos, and she started noticing a surprising trend. So she wrote about it here.

Melissa Bogen, a medical editor, uses special characters in work, and knows her clients and fellow writers do, too. So she published a “cheat sheet” for creating special characters. Find it here.

Isabeau Iqbal noticed a link between her own career journey and those she helps in her career coaching. It became an issue in her micro-newsletter here.

So you see, each of these examples are about listening and noticing. 

It takes a little practice, but once you get it, you’ll have endless ideas for content that’s relevant and helpful to your potential clients.

And if you’re a part of SMP+, remember you have a head-start with the content ideas I laid out in your personalized plan.

Are you already listening to the market for content ideas? Share how you do it here.

When I was in LA with her recently, she sent me home with a box full of my old newsletters – mostly printed ones from as far back as 1993, when it was called The Art of Self Promotion. 

You see, at that point, there was no email and I didn't have a computer. (In fact, the first person I knew with a computer was my cousin and I have a very clear memory of wondering what the heck he would do with it. Turns out he was using it for the stock market. And let's just say that was a smart move.)

The other day, I showed these old printed newsletters to Bonnie Fanning, who helps with my Quick Tips, and she said, “Wait - have you been publishing consistently since 1993 or before?"

I shot back, "Before! I actually started my newsletter in 1990."

"Wow. That's impressive. So many people have trouble even starting. What makes it possible for you to be so consistent for so long?

I said, “I do what I say I'll do.”

That's when she said something I haven’t been able to get out of my head. “Ok that feels more like a personality thing. A YOU thing.”

And I thought, well, maybe.

So I had to do a podcast episode about it! (That's where I get my content ideas -- always in response to something I hear.)

Because here's the thing: there’s nothing special about me. I am simply committed to my business, and therefore to my marketing. Anyone could be.

Plus, one of the principles I live by is that I do what I say I'll do -- even if it's just for myself.

Actually, especially if it's for me. 

Anyone could make that decision. In fact I talked about "deciding" earlier this year when my mother told me she'd "decided" to take her meds every day -- after years and years of being inconsistent. (Ugh!)

Why wouldn’t you decide to commit to yourself and to your business and to your own marketing and never again question whether or not you’ll do your newsletter?

I have been publishing my Quick Tips (the digital evolution of The Art of Self Promotion) via email every 2 weeks for a good 25 years and The Marketing Mentor Podcast also every 2 weeks since 2008. (This is episode #550!)

I don’t think about whether I "want" to or whether I have any good ideas.

I do what I say I will do and that includes my Quick Tips and my podcast. 

For more on this...listen here (and below):

And If you want my help figuring all of this out, take advantage of my free mentoring session.

And if you like what you hear, we’d love it if you write a review, subscribe here and sign up for Quick Tips from Marketing Mentor.

Have you sent a newsletter yet this year?

I asked this question in our recent Office Hours for the Simplest Marketing Plan, and here’s what everyone said: 

Are you with the 33.5% who’s resisting? I hope today’s issue will help. 

In my last issue, on “How to Stop Avoiding Your Newsletter,” we reframed “doing your newsletter” as simply “writing a letter.”

Much simpler, right? Read that issue here.

But maybe you still don’t know what to say.

Whenever you’re short on ideas, I like to say, “mimic the masters.”

That means: 

• Find a few newsletters you really like
• Analyze what they’re doing well
• Do your version 

A flurry of Simplest Marketing Plan members just published their first newsletter (or rebooted an existing one) - and so many are truly excellent! 

Scroll down to see if they spark any ideas for you.

These are all LinkedIn newsletters, by the way. Which are much quicker to start and – best of all – the list is “built-in.” LinkedIn automatically invites all your contacts to subscribe. Watch the video about how to start one below too.

Here are a few really good brand new newsletters: 

A Photo Minder, by Gene Smirnov

The Content Brief, by Clara Mathews  

Deeper, by Joyce Flory 

Quiet Authority, by Bonnie Heisse

And here are a few recently rebooted ones: 

The Creative Spark, by Marla Norton

The Scott Hull Newsletter, by Scott Hull:

Pick your favorites and mimic what you like best. 

Are you ready to start your own? I’ll walk you through it in this 3-minute video:

Do you have a newsletter? Use my network to spread it around. Share a link to it here!

And one tiny outreach tip…

If you ever catch yourself thinking “this person is way out of my league, I shouldn’t reach out…” you just have to watch what happened when SMP+ member, Kathryn Grill, reached out anyway.

Now promise me you will never assume anyone is “out of your league!” 

That’s all for today. Thanks for reading.

That question is about whether your clients will choose AI over you, a human.

But I hear also that question another way:

“Are you already replacing yourself with AI?” 

By that I mean, for example. are you running everything through AI now?

Are you avoiding making decisions without AI weighing in? Or not publishing your own content with AI’s approval? 

So maybe the real question is, "Are you becoming dependent on AI and letting IT replace YOU?"

That’s actually just one of the questions I covered in my latest conversation with Nancy Ruzow, who runs Ruzow Graphics and Creatives Roundtable, prompted by an article on her blog entitled, AI isn’t replacing creatives. It’s changing where we add value.”

So listen here (and below) and learn.

So what do you think? Where do you add value? And where are you becoming dependent? All super important questions to be pondering, I think.

And if you want my help figuring all of this out, take advantage of my free mentoring session. And check out The Simplest Marketing Plan here.

That’s the question on my mind after talking with over 100 SMP+ members about their marketing.

Even after I suggest doing a “micro-newsletter,” so many people still avoid it. 

You, too? Tell me why here.

One problem is the word “newsletter,” which comes with history and connotations.

“News” feels official. Journalistic, even. 

So let’s lighten it a bit.

Here’s my favorite piece of newsletter advice from my good friend, content expert and author of Everybody Writes, Ann Handley:

“It’s not about the news, it’s about the letter.”

Rather than sending a newsletter…

Think of it as sending a letter – maybe even a love letter – to your favorite prospect. Does that lighten the mental burden at all? 

Watch me reframe newsletters in our recent Office Hours for the Simplest Marketing Plan:

Sending a newsletter (or love letter) is one of the surest ways to build credibility and stay top-of-mind to your best prospects.

You might even get “newsletter magic.” ✨

That’s when someone replies “out of the blue” saying “your timing is perfect, I have a project for you…”

But here’s the thing: there is no “newsletter magic” without a newsletter!

Need a little motivation to get yours done? 

Here are some “excellent examples” of newsletters from within the Simplest Marketing Plan community.

Each of these went out after our recent Office Hours (great job, everyone)!

• Inspire - email “micro-newsletter” by Jeffrey J.
  
  
• Career corner email newsletter - by Isabeau I.
  
  
• For affluent buyers, the story is the product - by Kathryn G.
  
  
• Coffee Talk: From My Desk to Yours - email newsletter by Nanette A.
  
  
• The Real Cause of Decision Fatigue Isn't Too Many Decisions—It's Too Few Filters - by StacyLynn S.
  
  
• Is Your Content Pink? - by Amy O.
  
  
• TRUST FIRST - by Dona S.

Some are longer, some are shorter. 

There’s no right way – but there is one rule: Don’t overthink it.

By the way, if you need an ongoing push to get your marketing done, get this year’s Simplest Marketing Plan - and join us in our monthly Office Hours gatherings all year long. Join here for just $197.

Thanks for reading.

So today’s episode is from the best part of the Simplest Marketing Plan: the monthly Office Party, where 100 creative pros from my community come together, to gather and to make new business friends.

It’s a very interactive (and really fun) session where I set the tone and the topic, and then everyone shares their wins and their struggles, what’s working (and what’s not) in their marketing right now.

The topic for March is email newsletters and my pressing question is"

What’s the big deal about email newsletters?

Because honestly, an email newsletter – a.k.a. content marketing – is one of the most effective marketing tools you can use -- and often leads to “newsletter magic.”

But so many creatives avoid it.

Why?

That’s what I want to know.

And more important, how can I help change the way you think about it, so that you will do it. Then you will have newsletter magic too.

Because, as I said in this session,

There is no newsletter magic without a newsletter.

Makes sense, right?

Then listen here and learn…

If you want your own invitation to the next Office Hours, check out The Simplest Marketing Plan.

...and yet they remain one of the most powerful marketing tools available.

Indeed, if I did nothing else to market my business, I would send out my Quick Tips regularly.

Why?

Because my email newsletter is, hands down, my most powerful and most effective marketing tool.

Why?

Because it allows me to speak directly to you, my people, with my voice. And that builds trust. And that way, when you're ready, you just may think of me when you need help getting better clients with bigger budgets. 

That's why Episode 547 is a re-release of one of my favorite episodes of the Marketing Mentor Podcast, with one of my favorite guests, the one and only, Ann Handley, Chief Content Officer at MarketingProfs and author of Everybody Writes.

Ann is the one who said my very favorite thing about newsletters – that it should be more letter than news. And she practices what she preaches, through her own fortnightly newsletter. (Mine is also fortnightly, which is the perfect frequency, if only because we get to use the word fortnightly!)

In this episode, Ann shares her secrets for how to create email newsletters that people actually look forward to opening — the kind that build trust, strengthen relationships and keep you top of mind with your prospects.

If you’ve ever wondered:

• What makes a newsletter worth reading?

• How do you find your voice in email?

• What should you actually include in a newsletter?

• How often should you send one?

• How do you keep it interesting over time?

I just love how Ann shares practical ideas and examples you can start using immediately. So please do!

Here are a couple #excellentexamples of first "inaugural" issues of micro-newsletters that I shared in the March 2026 Office Hours for the Simplest Marketing Plan: 

1. The Clarity in Care Report (LinkedIn)
2. The Lift Brief LinkedIn (LinkedIn) 
3. Connection: No One Wants Their Face Smushed (MailChimp)

Don't forget to subscribe to any or all of these.

And if you are one of the many who keep putting off starting a newsletter — or reviving one you abandoned — you know who you are! -- I do hope this episode is the push you need.

Remember: marketing works when you do it right, and a newsletter is one of the simplest ways to stay visible and nurture relationships with the people who may one day become your clients.

So listen here and learn: 

And when you do publish your newsletter, be sure to add me to your list. One day I just may use it as an #excellentexample!

And if this is the year you stop starting over, be sure you’re signed up for my Quick Tips because you won’t want to miss what’s new in the Simplest Marketing Plan. 

You know I hate hype. And I don’t hang around people who make hyped-up income claims.

So when my friend, a costume designer I met 40 years ago, told me she made $100k in 20 minutes, my ears perked up.

It was very out of character for her - as it is for me to say this to you! 

But when she explained what happened, I realized she was describing something I call compounding.

And it was the perfect example of my new favorite tagline: "It's not a pipe dream if you have a pipeline.

You see, my friend has been building her network and refining her expertise for over 40 years.

She now has one very big customer – a company you’d surely recognize – and for one of their very popular shows, this company orders more than 50 pieces of one garment at a time.

She takes the order, writes the specs, tells her team what to knit, and collects the money.

Each garment costs $1,800, so you do the math!

“My ship came in!” she told me.

No, I thought - that’s compounding.

You may think of compounding in financial terms: when your money earns money over time. 

You don’t just grow what you put in, you grow the growth.

But compounding applies to marketing, too…

Each small marketing action you take makes the next one easier and more effective. Each one reinforces all the actions that came before it.

In fact, everything compounds – your actions, your network, even trust in you and what you do.

So we could say that compounding is the antidote to feast-or-famine – but only if you keep doing your marketing.

How do you keep doing your marketing, even when you don’t “feel like it”?

Rather than relying on willpower, you need a plan made up of things you will actually do.

Small daily, weekly, and monthly actions. Or what I am calling for 2026, your "micro-marketing plan."

In the next Quick Tip, I’ll spell it all out for you, so stick around!

Watch me expound on compounding in the “Best Bits” from our last “Office Hours” for the Simplest Marketing Plan here:

Then check out the amazing sketch of our session by the fabulous Antonio Meza:

And before I go, I just had to share this comment from a brand new Simplest Marketing Plan member:

Congratulations on your potential new client, Evelyn!

There’s still time to get this year’s Simplest Marketing Plan - and join us in our monthly Office Hours gatherings all year long. Join here.

That’s all for today. Thanks for reading.

Episode 546 of the Marketing Mentor Podcast is for you. 

I'm doing something a little different…today’s episode is a live recording from my Fill My Client Pipeline Crash Course.  

You see, I realized late last year that the creative freelancers in my community who were killing it during what was a difficult and challenging year for almost everyone – the ones who had the best projects and the most reliable income were, not surprisingly, the ones with a pipeline.

So I decided to make that my mission for 2026: to teach everyone – and that includes you! – how to build that pipeline!

I gave a 4 day Bootcamp attended by more than 500 creative freelancers. For those who couldn't make it, I did a 30 minute crash course version – that’s this recording – where I explain:

• Who belongs in your pipeline (and who doesn't)...

• Where to find your best prospects...

• What to say to them so you don't feel awkward, salesy, or pushy…

• And how to stay top-of-mind so they reach out when they’re ready!

So listen here (and below) and learn. 

This is all the foundation for my 2026 Simplest Marketing Plan Plus (SMP+) Program. So if you want help filling your pipeline, check it out.

If you like what you hear, we’d love it if you write a review, subscribe here and sign up for Quick Tips from Marketing Mentor.

Maybe, "How are you using AI?" is a better question? 

These days there’s a lot of sharing about how each of us is using AI to do things we never could have done before, including in our personal lives.

Often the response is, “Wow, I never thought of that!”

So I want to share more often and more publicly -- and who best to do that with than my good friend, Terri Trespicio?

So today we hopped on to share a few things we’ve each done that you may want to try for yourself.

So listen here and below: 

I do hope you’ll try a few of those ideas. And be sure to share the creative ways you’re using AI with me. 

And if this is the year you stop starting over, be sure you’re signed up for my Quick Tips because you won’t want to miss what’s new in the Simplest Marketing Plan. And I’ll see you next time.

...and I’ve heard all the complaints! 

Your feed is filled with braggarts.

All you get is one measly reaction to a post you spent hours (or days) on.

Worse, you have a feeling your posts aren’t even being seen by the people in your network.

Don’t be depressed! my guest on Episode 544 of the Marketing Mentor Podcast is Lynnaire Johnston, author of "Link∙Ability," the book and the podcast!

She has solutions to all of these problems. In this brand new episode, Lynnaire shared: 

• How not to get dropped by LinkedIn

• Which metrics to pay attention to and…

• the one thing you should be doing instead of posting

So listen here (and below):

So, if you want my help, make sure you’re signed up for my Quick Tips, because you won’t want to miss what’s new in the Simplest Marketing Plan. 

I’m especially excited about the completely new and reimagined SMP+ program – because this is the year you stop starting over, and when you go from stop and go to steady flow.

And if you like what you hear, we’d love it if you write a review, subscribe here and sign up for Quick Tips from Marketing Mentor.

What about when you get ghosted by a contractor you’ve hired for a project?

And what about when you encounter a big problem that puts you behind schedule and you can’t bring yourself to tell your client there’s a problem? 

Most of us have to learn these lessons from real and often painful experience.

But you could actually learn from this week’s Episode #543 of the Marketing Mentor Podcast. 

My guest, Amy Weiher of Weiher Creative, has made them and lived to write about them in her new book, Good Work, Practical Advice for Starting & Scaling Your Creative Freelance Business.

It’s all based on her more than 20 years running her small graphic design firm.

So listen here (and below):

And if you want my help, make sure you’re signed up for my Quick Tips because you won’t want to miss what’s new in the Simplest Marketing Plan.

In fact, I’m super excited about the improvements we’re making to the SMP+ program – because this is the year you stop starting over, and when you go from stop and go to steady flow. 

Is that what you need?

And if you like what you hear, we’d love it if you write a review, subscribe here and sign up for Quick Tips from Marketing Mentor.

Even though I bought the good stuff. And all evening I kept thinking about pouring myself a glass…

But then I thought about Future Ilise. And about you, actually!

I thought, “Tomorrow I want to feel good. I want my first Quick Tip of 2026 to make an impact. And for that, I need my head to be clear.” 

So instead, I savored a piece of dark chocolate and a book. 🍫

Then, I spent New Year’s Day working - yes! Because I wanted to.

Because I am so excited about our new Fill Your Client Pipeline Bootcamp that I couldn't wait to get up and write this very email message. 

That’s how much I love marketing my business - and helping you learn to love marketing yours.

Skipping the champagne was a moment of clarity. Which is fitting…

Because to me, 2026 is “The Year of Clarity and Action.”

No big resolutions. No more waiting to feel “ready.” Just knowing what to do - and doing it.

One "baby step" at a time.

Because that’s what builds a business you can depend on.

And I’ve seen proof of it again and again this past year.

Take freelance ghostwriter, Tina Matras. 

Tina was laid off from her big corporate job in 2021, while caring for her elderly father.

Since his care required so much of her time - time she wanted to devote to him - she needed something more flexible than another corporate job.

She’d already been a writer in her previous job. Maybe freelancing was the answer…

But her business didn’t “take off” the way she’d hoped. For 18 months, she floundered, volunteering here and there.

She was marketing herself a little, at random.

But she didn’t really know what to do. As many people do at first, she was wasting time on things that didn’t work. She spent months trying to choose a niche. And not landing any paid clients.

One day, she happened upon a course of mine and heard me talk about “baby steps.”

Intrigued, she joined my Simplest Marketing Plan Plus (SMP+) program at the start of 2025, and got something she didn’t know she needed…

Clarity.

She told me:

“Each baby step I took gave me clarity on the next step. That’s what finally helped me build my business.”

By implementing small actions, Tina naturally identified the kind of writer she wanted to be - and who she wanted to serve. 

That’s when things started to work.

Watch her share exactly how things started to finally work:

And now things are really falling into place for Tina! Stay tuned for Part 2 of her story next week…

If you are starting this year thinking:

• “I don’t know where to focus.”
• “I do some marketing… then stop.”
• “I just want to know what actually works.”

I’d love you to join my Fill My Client Pipeline Bootcamp.

It’s Feb 9-12 - and it’s FREE to attend.

Save your seat here.

Over four days, I’ll help you:

• Get clear on who to focus on...
• Know what to do (without overwhelm)...
• And understand how little is actually enough to build momentum...

No champagne required!

Just clarity, one small action at a time.

👉 Save your free seat here

Hope you can make it!

To kick off the 18th (!) year of the Marketing Mentor Podcast, Episode 542 is a conversation with one of my favorite clients, Florian Schleicher, a marketing strategist who has been running Future Strategies only 4 years now and is already, as we say, crushing it. 

How? 

Clarity.

This chat is also a two-year check-in on how his business has evolved since we last spoke in November 2023 (Episode 487 -- listen here).

Today, Florian walks us through his four-year journey from the startup-focused consultant he was then, to the clear, confident corporate strategist he has become—sharing one milestone from each year along the way. 

He shared exactly how he shifted his target market—what he stopped doing, how he changed his messaging, and how he evaluated every touchpoint through the lens of his long-term goals.

Among other things, we talked about:

• The feast-or-famine moment that led him to invest in coaching with me and then launch his podcast (one element of his content marketing strategy) 
• The newsletter he started -- just to stay busy but which has since become a powerful content marketing (and thought leadership) tool
• The Pulse, a marketing trend report (another element of his content marketing strategy) that solidified his credibility with corporate leaders
• The solo offsite retreat he took, where Florian got clear on clarity! He asked himself, “What do I want my audience to feel about me and my brand?” For him, the answer was "clarity," which is now the underlying message woven throughout all his marketing.
  

I just love how intentional Florian has been about building relationships in his market.

Of course, we talked about his content marketing strategy and how he uses social media and podcasts as relationship-builders. We even got into his experience with imposter syndrome. (Yes, he's struggled with it too!)

This conversation is a great reminder that sustainable success isn’t about hacks or hustle; it’s about being steady, being focused and showing up long enough for the right people to be ready.

So listen here (and below) -- and be sure to listen all the way to the end when we share a peek into how Florian will be more involved with the Simplest Marketing Plan for 2026.

P.S. Giving you access to more expert coaches like Florian is just one of the many ways we’re making the SMP+ program even better in 2026 – because this is the year you stop starting over, when you go from stop and go to steady flow.

So if that resonates with you, just sign up for Quick Tips from Marketing Mentor and you’ll hear all about it very soon.

Transcript of Episode 542 with Florian Schleicher

Ilise: Hello, Florian, welcome back to the podcast.

Florian Schleicher: Hi, Ilise—so good to be back.

Ilise: Right? It was two years ago—almost exactly—November 2023, when we recorded our first episode. So let’s see how far you’ve come and what you’ve been doing. But first, as usual, please introduce yourself.

Florian Schleicher: Yes—my name is Florian. I’m a marketing strategist, and my heart beats for sustainability. I’ve been working in marketing for the past 17 years—big corporations like McDonald’s, NGOs like Greenpeace, and I was Head of Marketing at a startup. Four years ago, I started my own business, and now I do consulting and strategy for corporates.

Ilise: Okay—let’s just focus on your elevator pitch for a second. You just said…

Florian: You just said…

Ilise: So now you do strategies… for corporates? Is that what you said?

Florian: Yes.

Ilise: And you’ve been in business four years. I’m sure I asked you this in the first episode, but let’s ask again: why did you start your own business? What prompted you?

Florian: Yeah, so… I think for me, it was a moment when I was working at an agency—my first job—and I met a freelancer working for the agency. I was struck by his approach to work. He had built his own business, and I wanted to do that back then.

But I was still rather young, didn’t have enough gray hair, so I decided it wasn’t the right time. Still, I always had it in the back of my head.

Then when I finished my last job at Too Good To Go—an app against food waste—where I was Head of Marketing, I felt: this is the best time to start. We built amazing brand awareness in Austria, in Vienna, where I’m based. Every tenth person had downloaded the app. We won a couple of marketing awards, too—so there was good traction, which helped me get a good start in my business.

And what I liked most—what always fascinated me—was choosing the clients I work with, choosing the people I work with, and having the freedom to follow my passions on whatever projects I want to create, instead of being bound by corporate structures.

Ilise: And that’s the dream, right? That gets sold to a lot of people who want to freelance or go out on their own. But very few people—based on my experience, and I’ve been doing this for almost 40 years—very few people actually achieve that. And it seems like—tell me if I’m wrong—but it seems like you have, in four years, managed to achieve that?

Florian: I think so, yes. And I hear from other freelancers and entrepreneurs that it’s very hard. And don’t get me wrong—it is hard.

Ilise: It is.

Florian: A lot of hard work. You have to get up every day and try to be a little better than yesterday. You have to have a vision for where you want to take this.

And sometimes it’s also luck—meeting the right person at the right time. Like: I met a client I worked with at McDonald’s in a previous job. She moved to another company. I moved on too, and now I’m self-employed. Then I met her again—at a playground—a year ago, just by chance. And she said, “Oh, I’ve heard what you’re doing. I’m thinking about a project—should we do something together?” That was luck: right time, right place.

But yes—it’s hard work.

And of course, network. Having worked in the field a long time, meeting amazing people—it helps now to approach them and stay in touch.

It feels like a good point. And I always appreciate talking about it because it reminds me: I built this, and it works.

Ilise: Yeah. So let’s talk about the evolution over the four years. I know you have a milestone for each year, which I want to hear about. But you didn’t start out focusing on the corporate market, right?

Florian: No. At the beginning, I was fresh off Too Good To Go, which is a startup, and I thought: I want to work with startups. That was my most recent touchpoint. I reached out to many startups—they knew who I was, they knew the brand. They wanted to get their brand and marketing engine going similarly. So I focused a lot on startups and also solopreneurs in the beginning.

Florian: In my first year—this was my first milestone—summer of 2022, I started writing a newsletter. Not because I thought it would become an amazing tool to acquire business later. The reason was: I was not sold out. I had a lot of time—first year. I wanted to keep myself busy, and I always enjoyed writing.

So I thought: maybe I’ll just start a newsletter. I checked today: it has 1,800 readers—from Bangkok to Amsterdam to Vancouver. It’s gone international. Mostly marketing people read it. And now, three years later, it actually helps me acquire new business.

That was year one.

Florian: In the second year, I realized: the beginning was still good, and then it went down. I felt existential fear—like many entrepreneurs and freelancers do. What you always say—feast to famine—that’s what I experienced. There were times with a lot of work, and then I crashed, and then nothing happened.

I thought: I have two options. Option one: keep the money I’ve made as close as possible and just try to get through it. Option two: invest my money into learning something.

I was listening to a lot of podcasts, and I think it was Jenny Blake’s podcast—

Ilise: Yep. Where I also listened to an interview she did with you.

Florian: —and I thought: “A marketing mentor”—that’s what I’m looking for. I reached out to you, and that was the highlight of my second year: having a couple of sessions with you.

Getting an outside perspective, being challenged, getting new ideas. For example, you pushed me to do a podcast. Now I have, I think, 40 or 50 episodes—and it’s become a driver for my business.

So that was year two.

Florian: In the third year, I felt like the basis was working. I had a mix of corporates and startups and solopreneurs. No feast and famine anymore—more balanced.

But I still felt: what can I do to reach the next stage? So I went on a solo off-site. I went to Norway for a week by myself, with about 40 questions I asked myself each evening at dinner about my business.

I thought about: where do I want to take this? And I figured out I want to focus more on corporates—there are interesting challenges there. It’s easier once you’re in—you can work with several departments. The challenges are more diverse than with startups and entrepreneurs. And what I enjoy most is doing workshops.

So in year three, I changed the focus—fully committed to working with corporates. It also made my communication easier, because I didn’t have to speak to three different audiences.

Ilise: But just focus on one.

Florian: Exactly.

Florian: And now I’m in my fourth year. My highlight this year was writing my first marketing trend report—about a topic that’s followed me for months. It’s been read over 3,000 times now.

Ilise: By a lot of leaders in marketing and communications.

Florian: And it’s become a source of people reaching out to me, wanting my perspective. I’m very happy with how it evolved.

Would I change things if I did it all over again? Yes, of course—but that’s always hindsight. At each point, it felt like the right decision, and it worked out.

Ilise: That’s awesome. And I think I said this in the first podcast, too: you’re one of those clients who, when we first met, I gave you a little direction and you took the ball and ran with it—which is unusual, but I love it. Because marketing works when you do it, and you are really doing it.

And I want to dig into some of the tools you mentioned. But first: a lot of people have questions about shifting or narrowing their market. When you decided to focus on corporates, I’d love to hear: how exactly did you shift? What did you stop doing? You said it was easier to message to one audience than three—how did that show up specifically?

Florian: Let’s look at my channels. In the newsletter, I used to write for three audiences: simple things solopreneurs could use, advice for startups, and occasionally strategic content suitable for corporates.

So I skipped all the freelancing/entrepreneurial stuff and focused on: what would a Chief Marketing Officer or Head of Marketing be looking for? I lost some readers—but it helped narrow it to my audience.

Another thing: I stopped going to events where I knew my target audience wouldn’t be present. I also skipped speaking at startup events—even though it brought in a bit of money—because I knew it wasn’t helping me build the business I want.

I looked at all the touchpoints: my website, what I write there, what I write on LinkedIn, who I reach out to. I kept re-evaluating: will this help me build a track record with corporates or not?

And it worked. It’s still a journey—I’d still like two or three more corporate clients. But at the beginning of 2025, my goal was to bring in new corporate clients.

I structure goals in three levels:

• Small success: 1 new corporate client

• Medium success: 2 new corporate clients

• Epic success: 3 new corporate clients

And now—almost at the end of the year—I acquired three new corporate clients. So it’s been a full success. It’s satisfying: you set out to do something, you do the hard work, you change the things, and then you see: it works.

Ilise: Okay, now part of me wants to ask: what are your three levels of goals for 2026? Do you know yet?

Florian: Not yet. I always write three goals, and each has three levels.

My first goal was what I called “corporate success.” Second was “financial relief”—not thinking about money all the time, building a more robust buffer, building a more consistent stream of monthly income. And the third goal was qualitative: finding and spending time with people who live the lifestyle I want—people who help me grow, inspire me, and challenge me.

Ilise: Nice. I love that. I want to borrow it.

Florian: Because I really feel the more you surround yourself with people who are on the same level—or slightly above—in an area you want to grow, the more you will grow.

I met amazing new people this year who inspired me and were there for me. For that, I’m deeply thankful.

Ilise: I love that—especially the people part. Because when it comes to freedom: yes, financial freedom is important and helpful. But the freedom to spend time—because time is really all we’ve got—with people who help us grow, and who bring out the best in us… that’s the ultimate freedom to me.

Florian: And that’s also not easy. What I saw over the last four years is that with some people I started this journey with, we’re not on the same level anymore—

Ilise: Clients or colleagues?

Florian: In terms of where our businesses are. And I like to call myself an entrepreneur, not a freelancer. For me, an entrepreneur builds a business, whereas a freelancer works project to project.

Some people are still freelancers. And I don’t get as much out of meeting with them anymore. The hard part is saying no to some people—because you can’t just let new people into your life forever and keep all the old ones. You have to restructure.

I’m a big believer—and I tell my clients this whenever they want to start something new—ask: What are you willing to let go of? You can’t just add and add and add. You need to let go of some things.

Ilise: Okay, now I have two thoughts. One is about when you shifted your content focus. And I want to talk about your content marketing because you do a lot of awesome content marketing.

Florian: Thank you.

Ilise: When you shifted the focus, you got rid of things that weren’t what corporate marketing leaders need to hear or want to know. So it makes me want to ask: what do they need to hear and want to know?

Florian: First: they have super busy lives. They’re at the top of their careers. They get thousands of emails and tons of outreach from freelancers and companies that want to work with them.

So I always try to add value to their work. I don’t reach out saying, “Hey, do you want to work on a project?” or “Here’s something I created—don’t you want it?” Instead, I give them tools, questions, and thoughts that I would’ve liked to get when I was a marketing leader.

So number one: always add value.

Second: build long-term relationships. It’s still a people business. I’m under no illusion that I’m the best strategist available, but the people who work with me want to work with me. So I need to show them who Florian is.

I have two content categories:

1. Educational/inspiring: deep dives, frameworks, showcasing work

2. Entertainment: how I approach work, highlights, what frustrates me, what doesn’t work

That entertainment part gives an emotional layer and shows I’m a human being. Some leaders won’t enjoy it, but others feel a connection—like, “Okay, this is someone I’d like to work with.”

Then from there: build the relationship, meet people, talk.

And the challenge—if you have a consulting/service business—you need endurance. It’s a marathon. Some clients I work with now, I first had contact with two years ago. You show up, build trust, and at some point—as you like to say—they’ve marinated enough in the content that they think, “Okay, now I’m ready. I want to work with you.”

That requires trust. And the entertainment/social part—plus showing up and showing my face—really matters.

Ilise: That’s a nice segue into social media. Tell me your social media strategy.

Florian: Should I talk about LinkedIn or Instagram? They’re different.

LinkedIn: my strategy has shifted. The problem with social media is I don’t think it’s social anymore—it’s algorithmic media. The algorithm decides what gets pushed out. So on LinkedIn, I have to provide more entertaining content than inspirational content, because the algorithm punishes me for just posting deep dives.

People want pictures. They want people smiling into the camera, or a certain mood in their eyes.

So whenever I post, I think: what photo of me will work with this? Then the algorithm pushes it further, and I add the value in the text.

I’ve tested a lot. For me, videos don’t work as well on LinkedIn. Photos of me—looking into the camera, or in action on a stage or in a workshop—work better, with value in the caption.

Instagram: I do more videos—short snippets of inspiration. It’s a bit more clickbaity, because that’s the language of the channel. I aim for about 50% video and 50% carousel or photo that adds value.

And one learning from the past year: I have one Instagram channel that’s both personal and private. So when I go on vacation or do something fun, it’s up there too. If you follow me, you’re up for all of it.

Ilise: And you’re saying that works? Or would you do it differently?

Florian: It works—and it was a big learning. In my second year I was thinking: where do I separate work-self and private-self? With a job, you shut the laptop and you’re off. Now I think about work all the time—because it’s my business, I’m involved, and I like it.

But what I learned is: I had to become one person. In business conversations, I bring my private side. In private conversations—even on a date—I’m also the entrepreneur. My Instagram reflects that. It’s not for everyone. If you want highly polished posts, my channel probably isn’t for you. But for people reaching out and coming back to me, it works.

Ilise: Beautiful. All right—let’s talk about your podcast. And then, to wrap up, we can give listeners a question or two to reflect on for next year, so they can move in the direction you have, if they want to.

What I find interesting about your podcast is: your prospects are the guests. You’re doing it for the prospects and the conversations—not for how many people listen, right? What’s the strategy?

Florian: The strategy is… first: my podcast focuses on sustainability and how to communicate about it. That’s my passion. I want to provide a stage for companies doing something good in sustainability—to share their message so others can learn.

I invite companies and people I find fascinating. And in the end, my goal is the same: build relationships.

I had a case where I interviewed a marketing leader two years ago. We stayed in touch because we had a great conversation. We had virtual coffees afterwards. And then two years later she asked, “Hey, I’m working on this project—would you be the right person to work with?” And I said yes. And I’m traveling to the company next week for a full-day workshop.

I don’t want this to sound like my plan is always to turn guests into clients. Sometimes you realize: interesting company, but we don’t vibe personally. Other times, you meet someone and it’s like, “We could talk for hours.” So let’s do this.

I never push anything. But the relational part matters. For me, the podcast is a way to open a door—and then we’ll see where it takes us.

Ilise: I love that. All right—we could go on for hours, but we’ll have to do another episode.

Since it’s the end of one year and the beginning of another, let’s give listeners a question or two. From your 40 questions in Norway—what’s one of the most effective?

Florian: One of the best questions—and I use it a lot in workshops—is: What do you want your audience to feel about you and your brand?

We’re so in our heads. We think: “This is the message, this is my positioning.” But we’re emotional beings. It’s more important to leave an impression as a feeling.

So I ask myself: what feeling do I want to evoke with my whole marketing strategy? With one Instagram post? When I go to an event?

And even when I meet someone on the way to a meeting, I think: what do I want them to leave the conversation feeling?

Just one feeling—not a lot. One.

Ilise: Because then we get confused and overwhelm the other person. It’s really just one thing.

Florian: Exactly. One feeling.

Ilise: Then I have to ask you: what’s the feeling you want people to get from your brand?

Florian: Clarity.

Because there’s so much information out there. I work with amazing people with great strategies—but what gets lost is clarity: What are we doing? Why are we doing it? How are we doing it? That’s what I want to give my clients.

Ilise: And that begs one final question: do you ever struggle with imposter syndrome?

Florian: I haven’t met a really intelligent person who doesn’t struggle with imposter syndrome. If I meet someone who doesn’t have it, I get cautious. So yes, I struggle with it.

When I published my first trend report, I was like: will anybody read my thoughts? It’s 75 slides. It doesn’t follow a structure I copied—it’s my own findings and examples of brands using the insights.

Sometimes when amazing people invite me to speak, my first thought is: why are they inviting me?

Then I give the talk or do the project, and afterwards they say, “This was great.” And I have to remind myself—that’s where the voice gets a little quieter. I don’t think it goes fully away, but it gets quieter.

Ilise: Right. And I asked because listeners might assume you’ve done all these amazing things, had success quickly, and therefore… you don’t have that problem.

Florian: No, I do. I do.

Ilise: I feel like a lot of people do.

Florian: It’s natural.

Ilise: How about you, Ilise—do you struggle with imposter syndrome?

Ilise: Not anymore. I used to, for sure—but I was kind of arrogant and cocky, and if it was a problem I didn’t pay attention. I was like, “I don’t care. I’m doing it anyway.”

So it didn’t get in my way. And over the years, at a certain point—when you get to be a certain age—you’re like, who cares anyway? I don’t care what those people think. I’ve got so many options.

That’s why I always say: marketing is the solution. Because if you have many irons in the fire, what one person thinks doesn’t matter. If one client fires you, it doesn’t matter. You know how to go get more. It’s fine.

So hearing that won’t cure everyone, but the hope is: the more practice we get, the more mature we get, the older we get—some combination—the more we can relax. Because the problem with psychological baggage is it becomes an obstacle to doing what needs to be done. And then you can’t achieve success.

Florian: Yeah—when you get into freeze mode, or flight mode. Bridging that gap is just doing it. Learn on the way. And every negative feedback is just a data point: for this specific example, this did not work.

Ilise: Exactly.

Ilise: Beautiful. That “data point” is the perfect bookmark. We will definitely continue this conversation.

And I’ll reveal right now: you’ve agreed to be one of our coaches for S&P Plus in 2026—so more coming soon. A little cliffhanger.

Florian: I’m super excited to be part of this.

Ilise: Of course. I think you’ll be perfect for it. In the meantime, tell people where they can find you online.

Florian: You can find me on LinkedIn—my name will be in the description, because my last name is Schleicher and it’s difficult to pronounce. You can also go to future-strategies.com—my website—where you can find my newsletter, my podcast, and all the work I do, and get an impression of how I approach what I do.

Ilise: Beautiful. And you mean “future hyphen strategies,” right? “Minus” is the same thing, but we don’t say it that way—just so everyone understands.

Florian: Then let’s use the hyphen, yes.

Ilise: Great. Florian, thank you so much—and I’ll talk to you soon.

Florian: Let’s do that. Thank you for having me.

Ilise: Of course.

And still others, who've been marketing themselves all along, had a "banner" year - like my friend and Simplest Marketing Plan coach, Andy Brenits, of Brenits Creative.

Andy's celebrating a decade in of self-employment this year. And he's always looking for smart ways to streamline his marketing and workflow. 

His "Year by The Numbers" post is filled with tips & insights you can borrow to use in your own business in 2026.

Here's an excerpt:

I last wrote my year-end recap in December 2019. It was, by all accounts, a good year. Then, in March 2020, everything shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

While my business grew that year, due in part to a wave of new solopreneurs navigating layoffs, furloughs, and unexpected pivots, I knew many businesses were struggling. Writing a celebratory “by the numbers” post at the end of 2020 didn’t sit right with me, so I stopped.

2025 feels like the right time to bring it back. Though it was another banner year for me, I’m still hearing about small businesses struggling. My hope is that this is seen as nothing more than insight, perspective, and inspiration.

And so, encouraged by my business coach, Ilise Benun, and inspired by Deidre Rienzo’s long-running “By the Numbers” posts, I’m returning to this format with a fresh perspective. It won’t be another five years before I write the next one. I plan to do this again next December. Who knows, maybe there will even be a mid-year check-in.

Read the rest on Andy's blog here.

The only thing I could think of? Dogs.

So I created a Rover profile, and started dog sitting. The joy is, as you would expect, off the charts. I’ve also made a little extra cash, which feels like fun money to be spent on fun things, like Thai lunch and pedicures and lip gloss. 

But if you’re wondering about my copywriting business, as I’ve shared in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024, here is my (more unhinged than ever!) 2025 by the numbers. Won’t you join me down the rabbit hole? 

Here’s my current work-landscape: 

AI and the uncertainty it’s posing. A husband recovering from spine surgery and a need to financially make more (and pay for health insurance) while he’s readjusting to his new body, capabilities and job prospects. I mean, I’ve always been transparent with my posts — why stop now?! (Excuse me, I see an em-dash, this must be AI-written!)

The money situation: 

I have always prioritized balance, life-joy, and working with nice people over making money. I have worked to maximize my time, and have never worked 40 hours a week. Over the years, I’ve talked about money with a curtained approach. I don’t have the energy; I’m tired of complicated. 

• Most years I’ve made around 60k.

• The most I’ve ever made was 70k (and that felt like a cap, where I would have needed to 1) work to a point of burnout, or 2) raise my rates to a place I didn’t think my ideal clients could afford, in order to make more). 

• Last year I made about 38k, which scared me a lot. Up until then, I always knew there was more work available if I wanted it. Now, it feels like the well has run dry. 

• This year, I made 50k in my business (but only because of an unusually-big project). 

So, without further ado:

• Years in business — 19 (Will I make it to 20? 😂 We shall see!) 

• Total clients — 16

• Clients / partners who are designers or agencies — 9

• Client websites written — 1 (and she’s an absolute beauty, thanks to Jill Anderson, WordPress wizardess). This is where I’ve previously made most of my income. In 2022, I wrote 17.

• Client blogs + newsletters + case studies written — 30+ 

• Cheap landing pages written — 100+ (I’ve learned all I can, and my bandwidth for this kind of thing is now depleted.)

• Clients for whom I write monthly newsletters, case studies or blog posts — 4

• Un-newsletter subscribers (up 33 from last year) — 1108

• Un-newsletters sent — just one (That’s 91 since I started, also posted here.) 

• 20+ — messaging guides I’ve written to guide content before AI gets involved (And yes, this totally results in much better words.) 

• Times someone has paid me to exercise — 15 and counting! (Thanks, dogs!) 

• Amount of work I want to do if my heart’s not in it — ZERO. 

• How convinced I am that AI is capable of zapping our humanity, making us all sound the same, and taking over everything online — 200%  

• Times I’ve gone on LinkedIn and absolutely hated it for a bajillion reasons — all of them! (Robert Lodi, you are not one of these reasons; your content is a delight.) 

• Times I’ve watched my friend Tara’s Christmas reel starring her dog, Ollie — 50+

• Reduction in one agency’s budget as they said, “Use AI more, take less time.” — 90%

• Amount of work expected within the same timeframe (from another agency I work with) — 2x

• Times using more AI, more quickly, created generic content — Both of the above!

• Times I’ve seen AI telling someone who they are without them even realizing it — So many! If we don’t tell AI who we are, it’s going to tell us. That is (unpopular opinion alert!) precisely why I don’t use AI for brainstorming.

• Days I’ve used AI to help me — Most! I’m finding ways to put it into my workflow that feel beneficial, but I also dislike it. (Can something be useful and awful at the same time?) 

• Side jobs I’ve gotten outside of writing — 1. I’m doing some accounting work; it’s meditative and provides steady additional income, which right now, feels like hitting the freaking lottery. (I’ve had a screaming urge to diversify over the past year, because I’ve never felt so uncertain about my prospects of making money.)

• Payment for my biggest project ever — 15k. (It was through an agency, for a very big company, and every time I tried to veer from generic AI copy, they bumped it back because they wanted to sound like their competitors, who clearly used AI to write their copy. Though a massive project money-wise, it’s probably the one I’m least proud of. 

• How much I got paid for writing 2.5 landing pages with AI (probably the smallest “project” of my career) — $42.

• Pressure I’m putting on myself to pay the bills, bills, bills — tons! And this may not shock you, but pressure-cooker Deidre isn’t my favorite version of myself. I’m trying to remember to breathe, picture abundance, and remember that total upheaval and discomfort might be a necessary part of getting somewhere new. 

• Things about my work I’m questioning — everything! At this point, anything is possible. 

Does anyone need a “writer” anymore?

People can now write (decent-enough) content themselves using AI. This is true. So where does this leave me? Someone whose opinion I really value told me: Deidre, you’ve never really been a writer. You’ve been someone who helps people feel heard and understood. Then you share that in writing. 

It really is what I’m best at; I never thought I was that good of a writer anyway. But I know I make people feel comfortable and understood. These skills don’t sound lucrative, exactly, but who knows…

Moving forward

I’d like to get paid for being a listener, a helper, a clarity-finder and a connection-creator. If I end up only getting only one good project a year, so be it. I will watch dogs and find new ways; I have the hustle to figure it out. 

Here’s what I do know: I am very clear on what brings me joy. Thrifting, plants, pets, nature, kind people, tinted lip balms, spicy fragrances (nutmeg, clove, cinnamon), a clean house, my luxury cotton bathrobe (new with tags for 6.99 at the thrift!), metallic shoes, hugs, and watching the absolute glee my 5-year-old experiences life with. 

Here’s to more joy, comfy robes, and dogs! 

What are your solutions for finding joy in a fiery world? And how are you moving into 2026?

That’s because your pipeline - and nurturing it with marketing - is essential to a thriving business.

Not sure what a “client pipeline” is, or how it’s different from your network?

Here’s the difference…

Your network is everyone you know and everyone who knows you, from colleagues, collaborators, business friends, friends-of-friends, and past coworkers, to people you’re loosely in touch with.

Your pipeline is your shortlist - the people who could realistically hire you, refer you, or open a door for you.

It’s mostly past and current clients, warm prospects you’ve been in touch with, and trusted contacts who can connect you to the right people.

When you make it a habit to regularly reach out to people in your pipeline, that’s when projects start popping up “out of the blue.”

As we approach the end of the year, the easiest way to nurture your pipeline (and even drum up year-end or Q1 projects) is to reach out to current and past clients. 

This is about building on your existing foundation, rather than starting something new.

How to nurture your pipeline today:

Send current or past clients a message to wish them happy holidays with a heartfelt “thank you.” Be specific about what you’re thankful for.

Ask if they have leftover budget they need to spend. Don’t be shy! They may need help with a last-minute or rush project.

Propose a check-in call in January, and schedule it. Keep it about them and how you can best support their goals next year.

Not sure what to say? Try this:

—

Happy Holidays, [Name]. 

I hope you’re having a wonderful winter season. 

Is December a busy or slow time for you? I just want you to know that I’m grateful for [specific thing you’re grateful for] and I’m here for you. 

If you need any year-end assistance, rush projects, or want to schedule a check-in for January to get a jump on the New Year, let me know.

Here’s my cell phone – don’t hesitate to call.

[Your Number]

Talk soon,

- Your Name

—

Including your phone number adds a personal touch that can help you stand out. Try it and let me know what happens!

Would you send a note like this, or does it feel too “pushy”? Share your thoughts here.

Watch me explain more about nurturing your pipeline in the Best Bits from our recent live Office Hours from the Simplest Marketing Plan:

That’s the message from Liz Heflin, a ghostwriter who is already almost “booked out” for 2026.

But what exactly does that mean – booked out?

In Episode 541 of the Marketing Mentor Podcast, Liz shares what she means, as well as her daily marketing habit, which is super simple.

It's essentially 2 things, that’s it.

Underneath it all is a commitment to do something every day that moves her business forward. 

That doesn’t sound complicated, right? You could do that too, right? I think so.

So listen here (and below) and learn.

Even if you struggle with imposter syndrome, just be like Liz and do something every day to move your business forward.

Because marketing works, but only when you do it! 

Listen to Liz's first appearance on the Marketing Mentor Podcast, Episode 525, "Pitching isn't that salesy": https://bit.ly/MMPodcast525

And if you want my help, make sure you’re signed up for my Quick Tips because you won’t want to miss what’s coming for 2026 in the Simplest Marketing Plan (SMP).

In fact, I’m super excited about the improvements we’re making to the SMP+ program – because this is the year you stop starting over! Don't you want to go from "stop and go" to "steady flow?"

If that resonates with you, sign up for my Quick Tips and you’ll hear all about it very soon.

And we’d love it if you write a review, subscribe here and sign up for Quick Tips from Marketing Mentor.

Transcript of Episode 541

ilise: Hello, Liz, welcome back to the podcast.

Liz Heflin: Hello! Thank you for inviting me! I feel so honored to be invited back!

ilise: Absolutely. Well, I want you to introduce yourself first, and then we'll talk about why I invited you back.

Liz Heflin: Yeah, absolutely. So, I am Liz Heflin. I'm a freelance writer. And I basically have two arms of my business. So, I am a non-fiction full-book ghostwriter. I also have an agency around that ghostwriting business. And then I have this whole second arm where I create sources, free and paid resources for other freelance writers. So I run a community, I do coaching, I sell resources, all of those kinds of things to help people have more success in a landscape that can be really tricky.

ilise: It is tricky, and… One of the reasons I invited you back, I mean, you shared some really helpful mindset, especially perspectives, that I think everyone needs, and as I like to say, the guests I invite are people who practice what I preach, and some of those are people who work with me directly, and others are just people I've come across. And who I can see are doing marketing and it's working, and just to refresh people's memory, because we will link to the first episode we did, which was episode 525, so not too long ago, but you had pitched to me the ghostwriting agency, basically.

Liz Heflin: Right?

ilise: And, I was impressed by your pitch, and so I said, well, I don't really… have a need for that, but won't you be a guest on my podcast? And so that's why we did the first one, and recently we reconnected, and I saw, actually, I think just this past week, you posted on LinkedIn that you're booked out for 2026, and so I thought, alright, let's get her back, and see what she's doing, and, you know, what other people can do to follow in these footsteps, because, well, maybe we should talk first about how tricky the market is right now, for everyone, really. Freelancers, writers, designers, marketers, it's really for everyone. Some people are doing really well, some people are doing not well at all. So I guess I'm curious, what do you see out there first?

Liz Heflin: Yeah, I think it's foolhardy to say that the industry, the landscape, is not different than it's ever been, because it absolutely is. I've been doing this for something like 20 years. And it is the hardest landscape that I've ever navigated. But by the same token, I'm also having the best year I've ever had as a freelancer, and… I mean that financially, but I also mean it in the sense of the kinds of projects that are coming my way, or things that feel very, very aligned with what I want to be doing. So I'm booked out, not with with work that I don't care to do, but with work that I care very deeply about. So I'm personally kind of navigating both sides of this coin right now, that I feel like, yes, absolutely, it is harder to get yeses, it is harder to get answers to your proposals. It is harder to get your foot in the door, but also… the work is very much still there, so I think we kind of often get one side of that story. I think we get the doom and gloom side of it, but if people can take anything from this, I hope it's just that Yes, it's harder. Yes, you have to knock on more doors. But there are still really amazing clients on the other side of those doors. It's just a little trickier to find which doors those are.

ilise: Yeah, I know a lot of people who are doing really well feel almost ashamed of it, or kind of guilty, and I think that was part of your post also, right? I'm not bragging, but… Yes! I just want everyone to know there are good clients out there, and, you know, don't stop looking.

Liz Heflin: Yes, very, very much true. I think there's just… when you hear so many people who are hurting, and they want to be doing this thing they loved, and maybe they've been doing it successfully for many years past, and now all of a sudden, it's gotten a lot more difficult. You don't want to be tone deaf for that.

ilise: Right.

Liz Heflin: And… I don't think the answer is to stop sharing the wins, which is part of why I made that post, that public post. Because I think it's important to hear the wins as well, because if all you hear is the other side, it's really, really easy, especially when things aren't going well, to just believe that that is the full story and stop. So… You don't want it to feel like you're rubbing your nose… or rubbing somebody's nose in it, or you don't want it to feel like it's gloating, but I think it is also really important to shout from the rooftops, hey. Good things are still lining up and happening.

ilise: So, let's talk then a little bit more specifically about the fact that you're booked out for '26. Maybe you can… start by telling us what exactly that means. I mean, as a ghostwriter, what is your capacity? How do you even know what your capacity is?

Liz Heflin: Sure, yeah. So, I'm not… I'm not quite booked out. I… so I can typically… I know about myself that I can typically take about 3 books a year, if all of the stages, the interview stage, the writing phase, the editing phase, are all sort of staggered. If it all lines up like that, it can usually take about 3 a year. So I have… one that's carrying over from 2025, we'll be finishing up in February. I just booked a new one, which should take me through probably 8 to 10 months of the year, so I'm really looking to book one more. I have… three really viable proposals out in the world right now, so I'm waiting to hear if one of those comes through as a yes, and truly, truly books me out for… for the… for all of 2026. But… You know, booked out is… go ahead.

ilise: Yeah, no, I was gonna say, booked out probably what you were about to say, which is that most people, depending on what your service is, and how much it costs, and how long the sales cycle is, which I'm curious about in your situation, but you don't need hundreds of clients, right? You obviously only need 3 really good ones, and… That, I think, makes it more manageable even to think about and do the marketing for.

Liz Heflin: Absolutely. And I think that it's one of the things that I talk to a lot of people about, like, coaching and things, is you… you don't… need to get… all of these yeses. You need four, three quality yeses. And that's true whether you're booking out really big projects, like ghostwriting projects, you know, full books. Or it could just be, you know, really meaty retainers. You know, it's… it's so easy to get overwhelmed and to think, you know, I have to book myself out for the year, I have to fill all these hours. But re-shifting the lens and reframing it as you just really need a handful of great clients, and if you can you know, navigate the contract and created in such a way that those are recurring clients for you, then everything, I think, becomes a little bit easier to manage and a little bit easier to handle.

ilise: Yeah. And maybe you can talk a little bit about the sales cycle, how it happens, how long it takes, maybe even of the three proposals that you're waiting for a decision on, how did those come about? Is there one you hope more than the others will come through.

Liz Heflin: Yes? There's one in particular that I'm really crossing my fingers on. So for… so for… this is obviously going to be pretty specific to… to me and to ghostwriting, but, I have one that is… came through from a ghostwriting agency. I'm on their bench, so they have a team of writers, a group of writers. when projects come in, they just make an open call, you know, and the call goes out to how many ever people are on the bench? Hundreds, thousands. And of those people, you basically cold apply, and then there's a… there's a person who selects which… which applications go through to the next stage, where you're actually interviewing with the client. And so, in that sort of a situation, it's amazing, because the agency did all of the legwork for landing the prospect landing the job, it's just your job to win it. And you, of course, have to be happy with the rate you're making after… after their fees, because they take their cut, as they should. So that's… that's sort of one that I have on the table. That would be a very sizable contract, and a really… a very cool story. I'm obviously at liberty to share the details of that story, but, very meaningful, would help a lot of people. I would be very honored to be a part of that project. So, really crossing my fingers for that one. I have another one, which is, a very kind of… straight business book. Somebody is the CEO of a financial services company, they're looking to build a book, to create a book that builds their authority, maybe get a bit on the speaking circuit, leverage that book into, into other opportunities. And that was just an open call that they had made on LinkedIn. I reached out, we were in contact for a little bit, and this… I should preface by saying this was more than a year ago. That they made the initial call on LinkedIn. And I had been in contact with the person who was navigating the project, and I gave her my initial quote, and she said, oh, no, that's too much, and I said, no problem. And then… and then I had followed up with it a few, you know, 6 months later or something, and she said, oh my gosh, you know, we should jump on a call, and we… got on a call, and their sort of priorities had shifted, and they talked to more writers, and they kind of figured out what the pricing point should be, and so, you know, here we are, a little over a year after the initial point of contact, and it's still on the table. So, there's just…

ilise: I'll just ask you a few questions about that one.

Liz Heflin: Yeah.

ilise: So, when you say they, you know… well, first of all, the open call, is that… a LinkedIn job posting, or is that someone going into their feed and asking a question, or saying, we have this need, and anyone who sees it can respond?

Liz Heflin: In that case, it was just a post, just in your feed. Just saw it in the feed, yeah.

ilise: And do you look at the job postings on LinkedIn?

Liz Heflin: You know, I actually really don't. Not to disparage that as a tactic in any way, shape, or form, it's just not something that I do. It's much more likely for me that I'll be looking on my feed, I'll see an opportunity, and either I'm connected to that person, so I can either directly DM them, which is always great, or, you know, maybe I have a second-level connection, so there would be…

ilise: A way for me to… an easier path for me to be connected with them.

Liz Heflin: But I don't often just fully… hold scroll through the job openings. I try and come at it from at least some kind of a relationship level.

ilise: Yeah, I agree with that. I would disparage the job postings, actually, because to me, I've never actually heard of someone getting a job or a project through those job postings. They feel more like cattle calls than anything else, but… Sure. So, it's interesting, and I'm glad to hear that that was not that, that that had.

Liz Heflin: It was not that.

ilise: Okay, good. And then, so you submit your proposal with pricing, and they say, oh no, that's too much, and you say, no problem. Does no problem mean, okay, I'll lower the price, or I'll adjust the scope, or both, or what? Do you have a call with those people?

Liz Heflin: Good, really good question, yeah. So, I gave them, essentially… I didn't even get to the full proposal stage yet, because we hadn't met, I hadn't had. Got a chance. to actually talk details with them, so I gave them my minimum rate for a… for a full-length book, and they told me what theirs was, what their… the number that they were looking to pay, and we were quite far off. So, at that point, when I said no problem, what I meant was, I'm happy to open it up to the writers in… I mentioned briefly, I have this sort of agency model around my ghostwriting, so if I'm ever booked out, or if a project isn't right for me for any number of reasons, budget, or it's just out of my wheelhouse, I have a group of amazing writers who I can pull from and say, like, hey, this person would be really great for this, and I can put them forward. And then, logistically, we will run that through my agency, so I would be taking a cut of that contract for bringing the work to the… to the writer.

ilise: Right, but the fee would be lower anyway, because you're not doing it. Oops.

Liz Heflin: Correct.

ilise: But then… so, you weren't discouraged by that, by the fact that you were so far off, and you did follow up, I think you said, 6 months later, so talk about that. Like, why would you follow up if you… it didn't really seem… I mean, it seemed maybe it could be good for someone on your bench, but just the thinking behind the follow-up.

Liz Heflin: Yeah, and it's a great question. Again, I… I followed up, because I was hoping that I could get, a really good job for somebody on my bench. That was 100% the intent. The number that they threw out was very reasonable, it just didn't match with what my minimum was. But for somebody who maybe hasn't been doing it as long. It was… it wasn't pittance, you know, it was a reasonable number. So I was like, I would love, especially in this market where it's tough, I would love to give somebody a project of this scope and size. They would be thrilled. So, I followed up just hoping to… to navigate some work for somebody in… in my network. And then when the conversation picked back up, at some point, we just… when we started talking numbers, it shifted from, oh yeah, that's what we were thinking last year, but now we've talked to more people, I think the company was in a different position, and all of a sudden, I was kind of back in the running unexpectedly.

ilise: Yeah. So just the fact that that can happen, I think, is very… edifying, right, for people. a lot of people would not follow up, especially if they don't have an agency or a network of people to pass it along to, and just assume they're out of the running, but I always like to say, you never know, and you should always follow up, and I assume you agree with me about that, no matter what.

Liz Heflin: Very much.

ilise: It's fascinating that they had come to their senses, it sounds like, actually, or something had shifted, or they talked to enough people and realized, like, our number isn't high enough.

Liz Heflin: Yeah. Yeah, and I think that it's, you know, a matter of circumstance, too, just things sometimes that are totally out of your control. It was… a… not a new company, but they had gone through a massive period of growth in that interim between when I first talked to them and when I second talked to them. So, I think that they were just financially in a better spot to support a project like that, in a way that they weren't… the first time we talked.

ilise: Yeah, things take the time they take, for sure.

Liz Heflin: Yeah.

ilise: Okay, good. So, you're waiting to hear on that one, and what do you do during this waiting period? Do you continue following up? Do you just bide your time? Is there a point at which you decide, alright, I guess I didn't get it?

Liz Heflin: Yeah, I mean, I'm constantly trying to fill the pipeline, even if I'm booked out. And part of that is because I do have the agency that, you know, is a nice, nice place to put overflow contracts if and when they come. But also, because the landscape's tougher, you need to knock on more doors to get those yeses. So, I am, you know, of course, I'm also spending the time writing the contracts, the books that I have, so that takes a good chunk of my time. I'm running the community that I… that I operate, that takes a good chunk of time, but I do always make time for… networking calls, I mean, every… any given week, I'm probably talking to at least I would say between 3 and 7 people, who I think are strategic, good people to know. And, you know, maybe they run publishing houses, and sometimes they partner with ghostwriters, or maybe they're ghostwriters themselves, and they're looking to… to offer overflow contracts. Whatever the case may be. I do always make it a point to meet as many people as I can that I think are good people to know.

ilise: And I do want to get to the third one, I'm not forgetting about that, but you mentioned you're always trying to fill your pipeline, and the pipeline is actually something that we here at The Simplest Marketing Plan and Marketing Mentor are going to be super focused on helping people fill in 2026, especially. So, I'm curious, how would you define a pipeline? What is it for people who aren't really sure? And how… beyond anything you've already said, do you think about filling your pipeline? What does it mean?

Liz Heflin: Yeah, sure. I mean, I just… I think of my pipeline as kind of all of the outstanding maybes that I still have of all these prospects I've met, and it's very much a continuum, a scale here, that some, I think, are very close to ready, some, I think, are not even remotely close yet, but we've had a conversation. So it's just all of those people, wherever they are on that spectrum, of people who I think, yeah, they… they could materialize into project. So that's… that's kind of what I consider my pipeline. And I… I just make it a point to follow up with them, to nurture those relationships, even if it's just dropping them a a Happy Thanksgiving email, like, I know I'm gonna be sending a bunch of emails, you know, later today and tomorrow, of just, you know, grateful our paths have crossed, and… and just, and just… keeping those fires warm. So, it's, you know, it's not reinventing the wheel in terms of the follow-up and the nurturing. It's just… it's just kind of being a good human and keeping those people top of mind.

ilise: And how do you track all of that? Do you use a… what do they call that? A customer relationship management system? Is it just a list on a spreadsheet? What works for you?

Liz Heflin: Yeah, so I do have a CRM, but that's more for, like, the people who are on my newsletter list, the people who are in my community, the sort of traditional customers, you would say. For prospect tracking, I have a Google Sheet it's nothing fancy, other than, my husband, who is quite techy, has put some nice little custom script in there, so it will… I… I… I was just looking at my sheet yes, this morning, I should say, and… I was… I was really surprised. I was like, wow, all of these conversations and things, all this work, all this legwork, there's a good 50 people on this list of… Maybe they want a book, and you don't really realize how much it builds and how quickly it builds, but looking back, I was like, oh yeah? That was a great conversation. Oh yeah, maybe that person will be ready next year. Oh yeah, that person isn't… I know they're not there yet, but maybe they will get there. So it's, it's a… it's really a nice way to take control of your business, if nothing else. You really feel like you are steering the ship and navigating in the right direction when you can see all of these people who are potential work coming in down the line.

ilise: Yeah. You talked about… building how the relationship spilled, and that connects, in my mind, to one of the ideas we've…

Liz Heflin: And trust does not happen automatically. You don't just cold email somebody. Very rarely, I should say, do you cold email somebody? And you're just instantly… given somebody's trust. You have to earn it, and you can do that through small, consistent gestures. And it absolutely, you know, some people are going to be ready after 4 touches, some people are going to be ready after 12, whatever the number is. But the more people you have, and the more people you keep singing and following up with and developing and re-nurturing. Eventually, you know, enough of those pieces will fall into place.

ilise: Yes. Alright, so before we wrap up, let's go back to that third proposal and hear a little bit about that.

Liz Heflin: Okay, let's see, which one am I missing here? Okay, we've got… So, this is an interesting… this is a good one to talk about. This is someone who came through my LinkedIn feed. I had posted some article or piece of content, and he messaged me on LinkedIn, I'm looking for a writer who can help me out, and I immediately jumped on a call with him, you know, a few weeks later, whatnot, just to… just to say hi, and he had a crediting project, which is not something that I really do anymore, so I passed that work off to somebody in my agency. And then he had another one, and again, I passed it off, and another one, passed it off. And… the quality of work was always really high, he was always really happy with the people that I was recommending out for this work, everything was great, clients were happy, so that trust had been built, like I was saying, slowly over time, little piece, little piece, little piece. So when he had this big… ghostwriting contract, he thought to… he thought to pull me in. The guy had some questions about the process, and how ghostwriting even worked, and whether he needed one, and… and he said, would you be willing to jump on a call and just talk to this guy and answer some of his questions? And I said, absolutely. And, and here we are, waiting to see if it falls into place. But that's an interesting one, because it is a mix of showing up consistently on LinkedIn, building relationships, networking.

ilise: It's so good that you are breaking down the steps and the process for all of this stuff in your business, that's really helpful to people, because it's easy to talk in generalities and very vague terms about all of these things, but I think it's really helpful when people are as specific as you are being, so I thank you for that.

Liz Heflin: Of course, of course. I know, and especially, like, with mindset stuff, it is really easy to speak in generalities, but, you know, when you pair the mindset stuff with the nitty-gritty, I feel like that's when you really start seeing the traction, when the… when the wheels really start spinning. Okay, okay, I've got my head right. Now, what direction do I go in? Point me.

ilise: And so, I have two questions, I want to ask you before we wrap up. One is… so, you've described all of this, and I'm curious if you ever have what they call imposter syndrome that gets in the way of you taking the actions that you're obviously taking.

Liz Heflin: Yeah, you know, it is… it's funny, this is another kind of thing where you almost don't want to say it out loud because you know that it is such a prevalent problem for others. I have always been blessed with maybe an overabundance of confidence. But I've always been eminently… convinced of my ability to handle things, whatever comes my way. And I wish I had a magic wand to give that to everybody, and I wish I had a perfect understanding of how I got to that point. But, but, you know, I'm not gonna say, of course, there are times when everybody doubts themselves to some degree. But… I… I have a… a good ability to… to jump. And maybe it's jump even if you're afraid, is a good way… good way to put it. And I think that's been… it's just been huge in my business, the fact I'm able… or willing, I should say, to just… okay, just do it.

ilise: Yeah, and I think the way you framed it also is very, I don't know, positive, this idea… it's not like you can do anything, it's you can handle anything. Whatever comes, you will handle it. To me, that's what confidence is. I'm sure I can figure it out.

Liz Heflin: Yeah, very much. Yeah, no, I think… I think that's definitely a good way to frame it. I think there's a lot of power in that.

ilise: So, my second question, final question, is… so, you're booked out, or almost booked out for 2026, which is fantastic. So, what is your marketing plan for 2027? You know, is there anything different you'll be doing, or is it basically just continuing this consistency that you've already described?

Liz Heflin: Yeah, I mean, the goal, if I can say it out loud, is to keep being booked out, and to keep raising my rate, so that, you know, I can, again, work with more amazing clients, and just keep that ball rolling. And what I'll be doing to accomplish that, is what I'm doing right now. It's continuing to nurture those long-term relationships I have in my pipeline, those people who will materialize in something down the line. So, I post on LinkedIn. Monday to Friday, I do that consistently, and that's been really transformational and really important in my business. And then, those meetings with… with people who I feel are going to be good people to know. I… I did recently invest in a networking group that has really yielded some incredible relationships and some really great opportunities. So, meeting people, and just making sure that my name is out there, that people know what I do, that I'm an option for these given things, and just doing that consistently is very much part of my marketing routine.

ilise: Great. Well, I thank you again for sharing all of your wisdom and your experience, and the nitty-gritty of how you run your business. That's really helpful.

Liz Heflin: Of course. And I hope, you know, for anybody who's listening, if you are a freelance writer, or in the writing world, it's a… it's a great supportive…

ilise: Great.

Liz Heflin: community.

ilise: And that's exactly what I am trying to train people to do and to instill. So, this is kind of a perfect… I don't know, segue into the next year for me, so I don't know yet when I'm gonna publish this, but it'll be… just to start the year, I think this is a nice motivational episode. So, again, I thank you, Liz. Tell the people where they can find you and your community online.

Liz Heflin: Of course, yeah, so you can always find me on LinkedIn, that's it's just Liz Heflin. If...

I took a poll in our recent Office Hours for the Simplest Marketing Plan, and it turns out…

If your answer is “kind of,” you’re in good company.

Out of 44 people, only 2 said they’re “religious” about their marketing. 

And 16 admitted to not having a habit at all.

I’m not surprised - after all, for nearly 40 years I’ve been helping creatives fill their client pipelines. So I know what it takes. 

The top reasons you might have a hard time building a marketing habit are:

• You’re overthinking it
• You’re not sure “what to say”
• Your mother told you not to brag 🙂

Underneath all of those “reasons” may be lurking a core fear: That you’ll do it wrong.

But marketing works when you do it. Even if you don’t get it “right” every time.

And one thing I know for sure: The key to filling up your pipeline with potential clients is having a consistent marketing habit. Even if it’s just a few minutes a day.

It’s never about doing anything “perfectly” or getting it “right.”

Just a gentle reminder as you get through this holiday week and start thinking ahead to next year.

TEST: https://go.marketing-mentor.com/bob-bly-4-0-lp

I don't see why not. 

There are so many different types of mentoring relationships, some formal, others informal, some paid, others unpaid; some explicit, others you don’t even realize that’s what it was all about until years later! 

As a mentor myself, I have a natural bias toward a more formal arrangement with explicit goals and boundaries – since that’s what I offer.

That said, in Episode 540 of the Marketing Mentor Podcast, I loved hearing about the informal relationship Georgiana Dearing had early in her career with one of her clients, who mentored her because that was just his nature. 

She learned so much through that relationship, which she has since internalized and continues to pass along now in her role as marketing manager of a manufacturer. (And also as one of the expert coaches in my Simplest Marketing Program.)

So listen here (and below) and learn. 

And if you like what you hear, we’d love it if you write a review, subscribe here and sign up for Quick Tips from Marketing Mentor.

...especially when you make it a daily habit AND you don’t get in your own way.

That’s what it takes and that's exactly what brand messaging strategist and copywriter, Stacy Eleczko, has done. 

The result: a thriving business in less than 3 short years, with no danger of being replaced by AI.

She's one of many smart creatives who are following the Simplest Marketing Plan -- without even knowing it -- because it just makes sense!

So listen here and below:

And if you want to walk in Stacy’s footsteps, the baby step to take is to build your marketing habit.

She talked a lot about that throughout our conversation and her suggestion is a networking baby step: invite someone for a coffee. Sounds simple, right? Could even be fun. 

Stacy is also doing regular content marketing. You can sign up for her newsletter here.

If you want my help figuring all of this out, take advantage of my free mentoring session.

And if you like what you hear, we’d love it if you write a review, subscribe here and sign up for Quick Tips from Marketing Mentor.

The long responses, the constant urging to give you more and more information…

It can be a lot.

How do you manage AI overwhelm?

You don’t have to. Let me be your filter.

Here’s what’s important right now when it comes to marketing and AI:

When to use it: When you get stuck.

I don’t use AI for writing or thinking. But it’s great when you don’t know how to reply to a client… how much to charge… what to post about on LinkedIn… or you just need permission to do something. AI is excellent at helping you get un-stuck.

When to be wary: All the time.

AI output sounds really good but it’s often wrong, and has the “AI sameness” problem.

And I’ve never seen an “honest” AI. It’s a people-pleaser, resistant to giving bad news. (When people do this, we call it “BS,” by the way.) 

When my clients want an honest opinion, they come to me - the Real Ilise. Which might be a new way to set myself apart: as a truth-teller.

What AI can’t do: Replace what makes you you.

What you have that your clients (and AI) don’t is the taste and judgment that come with your experience and expertise. 

Anyone can prompt an AI. But not everyone knows what you know. Only you can determine when and how using it for your client is helpful - or not.

3 Prompting Methods for Better Output

There are countless ways to prompt AI, but some work better than others. To get better results, try one of these methods I picked up at the Marketing AI Conference (MAICON):

1. Use a framework.

A current favorite, developed by Geoff Woods, author of The AI-Driven Leader, is called CRIT. In a single prompt, include:

Context - give any relevant background information to help the AI

Role - give the AI a “role,” such as an “expert marketer” or “fitness expert specializing in body recomposition for women.”

Interview - tell it to ask you up to 3 questions, one at a time, to help it refine its answer.

Task - define what you want from it.

A quick Google or AI search will give you more frameworks to play with.

2. Ask AI to write or improve your prompt.

Not sure how to write a particular prompt to get the best results? Quickly type one out, then ask the AI to improve it.

3. Ramble!

I was surprised how many AI “experts” are doing this! If you get “stuck” trying to make a perfect prompt, simply use your phone or computer’s “dictation” mode to ramble off what you want the AI to do. That’s it - that’s the prompt. 

Watch as I share my current take on AI in the “Best Bits” from November’s Office Hours for the Simplest Marketing Plan here:

👉 What’s your favorite prompting method? Share it here and let’s see what everyone says.

That’s all for now - thanks for reading.

In today’s episode of the Marketing Mentor Podcast, he generously shares what’s working and which markets are thriving in face of AI.

Because, as I like to say, "Marketing works when you do it."

And September and October is prime marketing time. Before everything slows down for the holidays, this is when people are spending budgets they don’t want to lose and pulling the trigger on projects that need to get done.

I love watching the members of my Simplest Marketing Program get their marketing done – and we are seeing the fruits of their labor. One in particular is Scott Hull who matches big brands with illustrators and illustrative designers. (You can also find him and the work on IG at @scottbhull)

Also, I asked Scott to share one lesson he’d learned over the years and he said something I’ve been saying a lot on this podcast lately – be human!

Easier said than done, I know, but super important these days, right?

So listen here and below. 

If you like what you hear, we’d love it if you write a review, subscribe here and sign up for Quick Tips from Marketing Mentor.

And If you want my help figuring all of this out, take advantage of my free mentoring session. You can find that and lots more resources, including my Simplest Marketing Plan at marketing-mentor.com. So enjoy and I’ll see you next time. 

Complete transcript

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Alright, Scott, welcome to the podcast.

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Scott Hull: Thank you!

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And as I always do, please, begin by introducing yourself.

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Scott Hull: Well…

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Scott Hull: I think I'll start out by giving kind of a description of, yeah, of what I do, as you've said. You know, because you know when the marketing and creative leaders are under a lot of pressure, you know, trying to deliver ideas, you know, and products, and understanding fast, and

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Scott Hull: They're trying to find that right illustrative designer.

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Scott Hull: you know, that's… it's like looking through a needle in a haystack, is what it comes down to, because there's too many options looking for that type of person, there's not enough time, and the risk

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Scott Hull: of picking the right person, who doesn't get it is pretty scary. Well, that's where I come in. You know, I connect decision makers, mainly the creative and the,

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Scott Hull: marketing people, you know, with insanely talented and experienced, collaborative, illustrative designers who understand how to turn a visual, you know, into results. And I've been doing it for over 40 years, and we've been very fortunate in such. But we're seeing a lot of twists and turns that are taking in the business, which are

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Scott Hull: Pretty common, and…

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Scott Hull: And we'll get into that here in a few minutes. So, I'll let you start firing questions, though.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Alright, and you and I have known each other for many years, I don't know, 20, 30.

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Scott Hull: Well, when did you first start, the HAL Design Conference? Because that's the first time I met you.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: I first spoke at Howe in 1993, so…

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Scott Hull: That's when I met you. Was it in San Francisco?

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: I can't remember, actually, where it was.

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Scott Hull: No. Or no, no.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: I was in Chicago. My first one was in Chicago.

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Scott Hull: Okay, yeah, because I spoke a couple times there, but yeah, I know that was the first time I met you, and it was intriguing with what you were doing, and now to see you how many years later, and we're both still around, that's unheard of.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And, if I remember correctly, I mean, in a way, you haven't… you didn't explicitly say this, but you are an agent of.

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Scott Hull: Oh, I'm sorry.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Yeah. And designers, right? And at the time, I was still kind of figuring out what I was doing, and so there was a quality of agenting or potential.

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Scott Hull: Indeed.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: that was what people needed. I decided not to go in that direction. I decided instead to teach people, but I don't know, maybe just start by speaking to that idea of being a representative of an artist in a commercial context.

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Scott Hull: Yeah, yeah. That's interesting, because I started out as a graphic designer, And,

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Scott Hull: it was the days of the art studios, which were, looking back, it's pretty fascinating. And so we had, I think it was, like.

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Scott Hull: 9 illustrators and 7 designers on staff, and did a lot of work for Procter & Gamble, and

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Scott Hull: other large companies. And so, that was pretty phenomenal, at that point. And, like, young, naive, maverick people, after about 3 years or 4 years of it, it was like.

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Scott Hull: you know, freelance was becoming very popular, the fax machine, or at that time, the quip machine, was starting in, so communications were broadening out.

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Scott Hull: And so, I got to thinking about it, and there was a group that wanted to start a new studio, you know, typical jump ship.

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Scott Hull: And it was like, I know, I want no part of it. Dealing and herding cats, and trying to deal with these egotistical folks. So we came up with the concept of becoming an agent. And so each worked individually, and then I became just like a sports agent or a,

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Scott Hull: an actor's agent, and so I handled the talent, and then I would go out, secure work, help develop portfolios, and basically built relationships, is what it all came down to. And I think that's why we've lasted as long as we have, is being fair, being honest, having tremendous talent, being very blessed to be associated with talent.

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Scott Hull: And being able to curate,

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Scott Hull: their careers and such. And so we've seen a lot of, you know, obviously in 40 years, a lot of ups and downs, and like I say, there's a train wreck every 7 years.

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Scott Hull: And so far, it's holding well true.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And I want to get into a little bit the evolution of your business, but I also want to tee it up by saying that

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: one of the reasons I invited you to be a guest on the podcast is because you're a member of the S&P Plus program, and we're near the end of the year, and we're focused on finishing the year strong, and you, I happen to know, are finishing the year super strong, and you sent me a note that basically outlined, at the time, 8 active projects from

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: you know, big companies, and… and so I just wanted you to somehow kind of start by talking about how are you ending the year strong, and what exactly are you doing, and

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And I know that it's cumulative, right? You talked about really…

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Scott Hull: Oh, yeah.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: and the value of relationships, and I imagine that

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: because you have all those super strong relationships, that is one of the main reasons that you're ending the year strong. But just respond to that in whatever way may.

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Scott Hull: Sure, sure. Well, like I said, I'm based in Dayton, Ohio, and so I'm not in, you know, a big area, but in Dayton, Ohio, one time we had the,

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Scott Hull: the largest 90-minute market, which means you basically can drive 90 minutes away and really hit the majority of the marketplace in the country. I did a fair amount of travel to, obviously, New York and other

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Scott Hull: places and did a lot of one-on-one. I enjoyed it. It was fun to get out and hobnob. And I always tried to use the philosophy, I'm not here to sell you. I'm here to give you 15 minutes of recess. So, you know, you carry your

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Scott Hull: portfolio and show your wares, and I always try to use it in terms of learning more about what their needs and such were, so that was… that was a big blessing.

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Scott Hull: And so, over this past year, obviously the last few years, as so many of you are facing, business is just, you know, it's tanked. It's not the 90s anymore. You know, in the 90s, at least the world of design and illustration were coming on strong.

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Scott Hull: And even design, to a point, I think, in the…

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Scott Hull: Probably… the teens, design was doing fairly well, but there was a… seemed to be a shift in the terms of the leadership, or the design thinking was becoming stronger and such.

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Scott Hull: And so we have, kind of started to embrace that, but really what has made our, you know, close the year out strong, because I'll tell you, the last 18 months have been real stinkers, and we have,

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Scott Hull: Yeah, in the last 18 months, normally we'll see maybe 2 or 3 companies either downsize or even close their doors, but in the last 18 months, I figured that 10 clients that we had worked with have either closed their doors, they have downsized.

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Scott Hull: And… or… It just shifts their whole philosophy and such.

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Scott Hull: And I'm not talking about little, one- and two-man people. I'm talking about AT&T. I'll probably get shot for saying this stuff. AT&T. Dan & Yogurt, you know, went from a staff of 42 down to 6.

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Scott Hull: And so we're seeing more of that happening, and on that. So, by taking… that was one reason why I set up for your

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Scott Hull: SMP course, was I just needed, I don't know, rejuvenation, and just to hear what other people were doing.

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Scott Hull: Because, you know, after doing this for 40 years, you think you've got the sales process down, you think that everybody knows you, and there is really nothing different. But yeah, with all these changes taking place, yeah, everything is different, but yet everything is the same.

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Scott Hull: And so, by being associated with it, I realized that, especially talking to Andy,

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Randy Brennitz.

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Scott Hull: Yes. Just listening to him, and on outreach, and that type of thing, which gave a lot of encouragement, and made me realize that it needed to go back to what we were doing. Like, for instance.

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Scott Hull: 10 years ago, our mailing list was 18,000 people.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Ridiculous!

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Scott Hull: And then we started getting in, doing more CRM processes and so on, and then we reduced it down to about 4,000 to 5, is where we're kind of at right now. And even now, I'm looking at things differently, because listening to Andy and the group talk.

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Scott Hull: It is. In today's market, it is geared more towards relationships, more one-on-one, and dealing more with solving problems and being… making beautiful paintings and such. And so, with that, I think what has helped us was, you know, Andy was

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Scott Hull: Andy and the team, Lisa and Bonnie and so on.

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Scott Hull: really were promoting, you know, outreach and writing, emails, and being more aggressive in what you're doing. And so, you know, I went back to doing that again, and trying to do it more on a regular basis. And I think it's just…

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Scott Hull: as you say, Elise, it's momentum. Yeah. And with that momentum, I think, you know, I'll tell you, I'll be honest with you, man, the first 6, 7 months, they were stinkers. Yeah. And I didn't know if I wanted to continue doing this. But then, there at the end, like, all of a sudden, 2 weeks into September.

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Scott Hull: The floodgates started opening, and one of the largest jobs that we ever,

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Scott Hull: You know, ever worked on was through,

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Scott Hull: Olipop, which is a soft drink, and they're getting ready to develop, or we're helping them develop a new character, and it's all focused around, content marketing, but there were 55, illustrations that needed to be done in a short amount of time.

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Scott Hull: So that was like, you know, hallelujah for that. And then, that same week, we ended up getting, Spindrift.

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Scott Hull: the agencies for Spindrift calling us to do some, flavor illustrations for that, and then we ended up,

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Scott Hull: getting, Harvard Marketing, or I'm sorry, Harvard Medical was doing a, website focused on mental health, and so we ended up doing the illustrations for their, you know, branding of their look and such. And then there's been others come in, too, so…

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Scott Hull: Why did it come in all of a sudden? Could have been economics, people realizing that, oh, we're getting ready to go into the fourth quarter, and we gotta spend the money? Yeah. I don't have a rhyme to reason, so I'm…

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Looking at you, at least, to give me those answers.

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Scott Hull: But I would say that it was because of the relationships, because that's one thing I've been doing, is looking at it and saying, why? Why did I get a call from these companies now? And, you know, companies I really don't even know. But what I found out, it was all referring back to referrals.

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Scott Hull: And that was what Andy talked on, I think it was last Monday, was referrals. And that's what I've decided this coming year is, as you said, finish strong, but go into 2026 strong. Well, my whole philosophy is going to be referrals.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Okay, let me just try to respond to some of what you.

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Scott Hull: I'm sorry, I'm just…

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: No, no, there's a lot there.

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Scott Hull: You've got me wound up here. Sorry, guys.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Alright.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: That's alright. I guess I first want to say thank you for telling the truth, number one, about how the last 6 to 18 months has been, because I really don't think there are a lot of people out there telling the truth, and I am a big proponent of the truth, and I don't like sugarcoating things, and making it seem like things are better than they are, so…

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: I think for a lot of people.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: I won't say everyone, because some people do well when things are not going well. But for a lot of people, it has been very, very difficult, especially the first half of 2025.

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Scott Hull: I'm…

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: So I appreciate your honesty. And… and I… I think I also appreciate your consistency, and the fact that you have just kept showing up, and kept

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: doing the marketing, because when things aren't going well, and the marketing doesn't seem to be working, often that's when people give up. Yeah. And I think that's a huge mistake, and the people in my circle know that, and hopefully they

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: give up less than other people would. I know it's hard to keep it going, but that's why we're here.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And so, I think that, one of the things you're talking about that I thought was really interesting, so…

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Maybe we can focus on this mix of what's old is new again, and how, as you said, you had a mailing list, you used to mail to them on a regular basis, there were 18,000 people on that list.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And then it sounded like you intentionally whittled it down to $4,000 or $5,000.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And then started to get more aggressive and proactive. I would think I would use the word proactive and assertive, perhaps, because a lot of people don't like the idea of being aggressive, even though that may be.

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Scott Hull: I would call it focused, is what I would call it.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Focused, interesting, right? And doubling down on outreach and relationships, and then the idea of referrals. I want to come back to that, because often referrals gets confused with word of mouth, where people think you don't have to do anything, but I know you're talking about something very proactive as it relates to referrals as well.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: So, Start, if you would, with how you…

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: What you did with your list.

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Scott Hull: Well, with the 5,000, matter of fact, we're going through a,

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Scott Hull: episode right now because I'm moving my CRM platform to another service because of expense, and as I learned through SMP, it was like, you know, why do I have this

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Scott Hull: this big car with all these bells and whistles, when I… all I'm trying to do is get from point A to point B.

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Scott Hull: And so, that's what I realized with the mailing list. How many people am I really working with? How many does it take for an illustrator, a designer, to have a good year? And so, that's when I started really trying to fine-tune and reach out, and try to reach out to those key people on a regular basis. Now, when I say regular basis, I'm not saying every week. I'm saying

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Scott Hull: Every quarter tops.

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Scott Hull: At least twice a year, just to let them know that, hey, I'm there. And also to let them know that, bringing up, you know, pain points that they might be dealing with, and because of doing this for so many years.

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Scott Hull: also trying to get them to, to see that we might, or I might have the solution to them. Because one of the biggest issues I've had, in my business has been… I've always been behind the scenes. The artists have always taken front and center.

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Scott Hull: And, you know, I've had…

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Scott Hull: people say, well, you know, with all the knowledge that you have and such, you know, people will be interested, and you're basically… you know, artists are going to come and go, but your service has been going on for 45 years, for heaven's sakes. And so, that's when I started putting two and two together and saying, well, then I better quit focusing on

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Scott Hull: helping

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Scott Hull: young people who really don't understand how to commission work, and I better focus, because our artists and talent are, you know, they've been at it for

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Scott Hull: you know, 15 plus years. And so they are expertise, or have expertise in that field. And so that's why we ended up kind of, not downsizing, and that's what I'm looking at now, is having a good, strong list.

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Scott Hull: But then, doing it in such a way, and this is where I'm getting into referrals, doing it in such a way, and that's what Bonnie and Lisa

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Scott Hull: and even George talked about a bit, was, how do you go about, doing that? And Andy's done a really nice job putting together some prompts on, writing it, but what I'm trying to do now with my CRM system

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Scott Hull: is, how can I,

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Scott Hull: start to build curiosity, and start to make them feel like, you know, we're the go-to people, like I said in my opening, that we're the go-to people. If you have this problem, then we own it, and we're who you need to be talking to.

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Scott Hull: So…

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Yeah.

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Scott Hull: Sorry, I'm getting to ramble here, so…

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: That's alright, no, no, it's good.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: So, maybe we can focus a little bit, then, on your approach with referrals that you've been doing and are planning to do into 2026, because you referenced your CRM, which is a Customer Relationship Management System.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And I imagine that's a combination of outreach and content marketing, which are two of the three tools in the SMP.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Talk a little bit about the details there. What exactly are you doing? Are you planning to do? How do those tools work together?

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Scott Hull: What I'm finding is, obviously, Instagram and LinkedIn are very important. Facebook, you know, not so much anymore for us. X, forget that one. But really, also working with you, I'm realizing that,

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Scott Hull: LinkedIn really is pretty robust. The biggest issue that I see we have is the fact that for about 35-plus years, we've been using, been licensing lists, and it was a company that deals with creatives, agencies, in-house brands, and so on, but what I'm finding…

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: the list.

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Scott Hull: Yeah. So, what I'm finding is, their list isn't that strong anymore. And I get it, because when we used to put our list together, you know, I had a couple people that would make phone calls and talk to the creative secretary, and then the creative secretary would fax, not

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Scott Hull: email, because we didn't have email today, would fax that list to us. And so we had the people, what brands they were working for, and so it's

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Scott Hull: It was pretty good. Well, now, it's so fracted, because after the pandemic, it's like I'm working on a client with a client right now. Well.

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Scott Hull: I have the account person in New York, and it's all the same agency. I have, the design person in,

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Scott Hull: San Francisco, and then I have another person that we deal with in Cincinnati.

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Scott Hull: Now, how can I get their mailing list? Or I can give them

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Scott Hull: You know, so it's becoming more difficult. So, the process that we're doing in building our list is basically trying to use LinkedIn more.

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Scott Hull: And then, when we send out an email, or I have a conversation, maybe somebody in the group, or… I pick up the,

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Scott Hull: tone, and what I usually try to do, let's say if I am on the phone, and it's somebody I've worked with for some time, and I feel like we have a good rapport with, well, I'll ask them there towards the end of the conversation. I said, you know, you've been great to work with, and I'm trying to find people just like you.

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Scott Hull: Is there somebody that you could recommend that would be looking for opportunities to use illustration in their processes and such? And because by saying, I want somebody just like you, what that does is makes them feel confident that I respect them, which I do.

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Scott Hull: And that they're more willing to think and give you that on-the-spot opportunity. So that's one trick of the trade that I use.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And that works.

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Scott Hull: It's… so far, it has.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And then what do you do with that information or that person?

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Scott Hull: Usually what I'll do then is, if I think it's a hot lead, I'll send it, you know, that so-and-so recommended I reach out to you, or I'll ask that individual if they mind doing an introduction.

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Scott Hull: you know, I try to make it as easy as possible, and so then, you know, that's what we'll do. We'll do an introduction, and that's what we're doing right now, is trying to finish up a,

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Scott Hull: Just a very simple introduction pitch.

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Scott Hull: and let them look at it on their own time. It'll be maybe 3-minute long. It'll kind of explain what we do, and here's how we go about doing it. But what we'll try to do is to find out, first before we do it, is what problems are they facing?

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Scott Hull: And so that's… that's the big part.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Okay, and when you say a 3-minute pitch, is that a video?

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Scott Hull: Or is that a…

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: call.

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Scott Hull: It… I like to try to do a call, but in some cases, you know you can't, so I might attach a,

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Scott Hull: a video, we have a video made up, or just basically a little slide presentation that they can… almost like a carousel that you would get in Instagram or something of that nature. Those seem to be pretty effective. Probably the best effective tool that we're using, that I'm seeing working well, are testimonies.

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Scott Hull: That's what people are intrigued by. When I post a testimony on Instagram, it seems like it gets some of the higher hits and such, and, you know, we haven't been doing enough of it.

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Scott Hull: First of all, because the first part of the year was so slow that we didn't have anything to testify about, or get testimony.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: money's about.

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Scott Hull: Just joking. But that's one thing that I think is a real plus, because, I mean, if you go to Amazon to buy something, what do you do? You start looking at the reviews, and that's where I think reviews are becoming more and more popular, as sales tools.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: I agree with that, for sure.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: they seem to be super effective, and so then there's the question of how do you… even if someone who wants to give you a testimonial, or an endorsement, or a review, like, it takes their time to do it. Do you have tricks for making it easy for people? Do you just…

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: you know, harass them until they give it to you? What's your story?

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Scott Hull: Yeah, of course.

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Scott Hull: what I usually do is, I send them samples, hey, here's 3 samples of what other people have written, and all I'm looking for are basically 2 or 3 sentences. That's all. You know, some people say then,

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Scott Hull: You know, they'll write it themselves, and then send it to the person, saying, would it be okay to share it like this?

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Scott Hull: I try not to do that, but I have, because if I've had a conversation, I'm taking notes, and they… there are little snippets of that conversation, I think, where they're giving us praise.

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Scott Hull: I will take it and have it massaged and maybe share it with them and say, you know, something like this. And if you like it, well, we'll just go ahead and apply it, and if you're okay, we'll put your name to it.

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Scott Hull: But yeah, you can't… you can't press them, because, like, the people I'm trying to work with, more of the C-level, they're… they're slammed.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: So… I wanna, shift a little bit and talk about the future.

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Scott Hull: And AI.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: In whatever way makes the most sense, but I guess I'll just start with a question, a very general question. Like, what do you see as the future for illustration and design, and where does AI fit in, and

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Where do you think or see that, you know, real images from real illustrators and designers are going to continue?

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Scott Hull: Oh, that… yeah, that's the big… the big open, question these days, is the trends, you know.

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Scott Hull: We all know that AI is coming, and it'll end up basically wiping out the mediocre talent. I mean, that's a given. But it means you gotta step up.

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Scott Hull: and work on your thinking, your thinking and your thinking skills, because, like I said earlier, that, you as an illustrator designing just making pretty pictures isn't going to cut it anymore. You've got to provide strategy and thinking, more to, you know, strategy thinking behind it, because that's what we're seeing is, you know, why we call ourselves illustrator designers is because the

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Scott Hull: At one time or another, that person was probably an art director or a designer themselves.

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Scott Hull: And all we're doing is almost like the old pushpin studio days. Instead of using photography and such, you know, we are providing basically an illustrative solution to that problem, and we're collaborating, you know, with the company and such.

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Scott Hull: So, you know, that's kind of a big part of it. Now, from the dark side, because technology and AI, what you're going to see is mounds and mounds of carbon copies and clones, you know, everywhere.

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Scott Hull: And the issue with that is that marketing is going to basically flock to AI because, you know, they're thinking they're going to be saving money and such, and so you're going to start seeing more

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Scott Hull: of the same tools in social media and all. But if you can differentiate yourself, and really, you know.

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Scott Hull: Move forward with it,

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Scott Hull: you're going to position yourself as being knowledgeable and being able to provide advice, and that's what I think companies are going to be looking for, you know, with AI. Because, like I said before, AI is just basically… you're going to see clones, people swiping from the same, same sources and such, and things are going to be, looking like that, because the other thing that I'm seeing, too, as I said earlier.

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Scott Hull: With all the downsizing, It's taking away the design thinking that

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Scott Hull: really, I think IBM, really started promoting design thinking.

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Scott Hull: And, so what that's doing is disrupting, let's just call it, trying to think of the right word…

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Scott Hull: Your innovation muscle. There we go.

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Scott Hull: You're ruining… the companies are ruining their innovation muscle. They're doing away with the creatives, only thinking that they're saving money on the bottom line, but in reality, two to three years later.

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Scott Hull: everything is shrinking, and they're gonna start to saying, well, you know, why isn't our brand doing better? And I mean, we're seeing that already. Matter of fact, I just had a refrigerator repairman. We had the refrigerator for 6 weeks.

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Scott Hull: And he was really… I was getting excited. Matter of fact, I should have been preparing for this better. But I was fascinated by what he was saying, because he was talking about the chain of command.

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Scott Hull: And how, Samsung and GE and LG are basically trying to cut corners to make more money. And,

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Scott Hull: It's really turning into,

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Scott Hull: lack of innovation, because they're trying to cookie-cutter and template everything together, and that's the same thing that I'm seeing with companies today. So if you can differentiate yourself, you know, and use AI, don't get me wrong, that's why I said, everything is changing. Our tools and so on, AI, but we still remain the same, and what the… the same is basically, we still have to have clients, we still

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Scott Hull: have to have those relationships, those referrals. You know, and as they say, relationships are rocket ships.

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Scott Hull: And so that's why I'm saying everything's the same, and that's why I've enjoyed working with you, at least, is the fact that,

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Scott Hull: I've noticed that it hasn't changed in 40-some years. We still are… are trying to serve the people. It's just that the tools have changed a bit, but it still comes down of relationship building.

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Scott Hull: And, you know…

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Are you saying, then, in terms of the downsizing, that there's an opportunity for designers and illustrators and writers to come in.

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Scott Hull: Oh, yeah.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: The thinking that is being lost.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: In the attempt to save money.

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Scott Hull: Oh, exactly, because I think, within the group, there seems to be quite a few riders. And, you know, I know that a few have lost

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Scott Hull: clients because of AI, because companies thinking, well, I don't need

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Scott Hull: a writer to do this, I can just run it through AI, and I can have one people instead of outsourcing all these, different creatives, but what they're finding is that that's not true. Now, you as a writer, the advantage that you're going to have is you can work a lot faster with AI. You can end up finding more information quicker, and so on, and just like content providers, who would have, you know, these huge,

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Scott Hull: huge staffs and deep pockets to do it. Well, now they can use it, basically 3 people to do that.

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Scott Hull: But the whole situation is, you gotta humanize it, and that's what AI cannot do, and that's why I think writers just have to shift their thinking and start selling curiosity instead of, you know, a hard product and such.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And, you know, one of the other things you said was that you find out… you've been… you've positioned your firm as problem solvers, and so you speak to the problems.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And my question is, because it sounds like you're saying you can differentiate yourself from the same old, same old, and from the mediocre, and from the AI by addressing the problems.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: and providing solutions to the problems, but I think one of the places people get stuck is, well, what… how do I know what problems they have? So, how do you think about that, and what do you do about that?

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Scott Hull: That's a… that's a great question, because, you know, you're so used, or you're in the day-to-day type of operations, and you think that everything is the same, but, you know, it's like.

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Scott Hull: You put in all these years, and you start to see the pivots. You start to see things, you know, starting to shift, just like I said earlier.

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Scott Hull: you know, it used to be you showed your portfolio, you had beautiful pictures in it, and they go, - isn't that great? And and then they would hire you because they were looking for that particular style or something of that nature. But in today's market.

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Scott Hull: they could care less about beauty. What they're looking at is, are you solving the solution? Are you getting that attention from our audience? And that type of thing. So, that's where I see, you know, really trying to differentiate, you know, what is that one thing that you, your company, is all about?

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Scott Hull: And what are you going after, and what's making you different than your competition?

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And when you say you there, you're talking about the client?

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Or are you talking about the creative service provider?

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Scott Hull: I'm talking about the creative service provider.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Okay.

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Scott Hull: the client has to realize that for themselves, and, you know, it first has to start with us, or with the… with the one person, and that's why I'm seeing even,

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Scott Hull: Personal branding has become so popular.

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Scott Hull: you're no longer a company, you're basically your own company, whether you are working for a huge company or, you know, a solo performer. So, that personal brand is important, and what you do is important. That's your resume.

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Scott Hull: It's what makes you, or what has been your successes, and not a list of, here's my education, but here is the successes that I've had, and here's how I helped this company go from this to that.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And so, just back… circling back to the question of how do you find out what the problems are, or the main problem.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: That they need solved, that you could propose the thinking

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: How do you find that out with your market?

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Scott Hull: Well, that's where AI comes in. I'm finding that being very intriguing, and that's why, you know, at least AI,

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Artificial.

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Scott Hull: Yeah, there we go.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Eye collar, artificially.

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Scott Hull: Well, you're… you hit it, I just… I forgot the brand name of that. You know, using programs like that have been very interesting, because I can ask, you know, what are…

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Scott Hull: from character development, you know, what did, Cracker Barrel…

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Scott Hull: you know, have to deal with, and what were some of the issues. So, writing a good prompt is extremely important, and then I can come back and kind of analyze it. So, I mean, how long would that have taken me to do all those interviews and such, where AI can help you streamline it a lot quicker?

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Scott Hull: And so that's one of the big tools and how I'm using AI, is just, you know, how to write the right prompts.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Okay, two more questions.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: I want to just circle back also to this question, big picture question about the future of design and illustration. I guess I would say…

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Is there a future for design and illustration? What do you.

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Scott Hull: Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Design, most definitely. You know, but as I said earlier, you've got to watch it because,

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Scott Hull: Yeah, you know, just keeping focused on the human, human environment, you know, and staying close to the customer.

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Scott Hull: and getting insight, and then, you know, how to use AI to work with the customer faster. That's where I see it going. In terms of illustration, yeah, there's going to be a big change, because it used to be, with editorial and such, there was a big market in that. It didn't pay as great, but you had a lot of it.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And now with AI, you're seeing.

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Scott Hull: You're going to be seeing more content being developed,

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Scott Hull: visuals being developed by AI and all. But what you're going to have happen is the thinking isn't going to be there. Everything's going to look cookie cutter.

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Scott Hull: And, you know, pretty much the same. So, if you can, you know, kind of ride that wave and move forward, but you've also got to look at where is your audience shifting to?

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Scott Hull: Because it's like what we're dealing with… let's take magazines, for instance. They're pretty well gone.

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Scott Hull: And, but what we have found is there's still alumni magazines out there, and they pay pretty decent. And they're looking for, you know, good writing, they're looking for good visuals, and so on. So, you know, that's a market that you've just got to twist and focus a little bit more on.

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Scott Hull: The fact that, Printing is basically… you know.

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Scott Hull: shrunk a big time. And what we have found is packaging, there's still, and there always will be, need for packaging, which is still print. And so we're doing a lot of work with packaging design firms and in-house design firms. So, you know, that's a big one.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And what about environmental graphics?

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: What do you see?

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Scott Hull: Well, obviously, we're seeing a lot of murals.

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Scott Hull: And communications, we're seeing, a lot of companies, doing murals in-house. We just, Thursday, I was just… last Thursday, I was just down, we did, artwork for,

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Scott Hull: the Cincinnati Children's Hospital. And the whole premise that they were trying to do with their environmental graphics was when the

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Scott Hull: patient, the child, walks into the hospital, they're relaxed, they're calm, and they're using, you know, beautiful colors and great organic designs, animals. We did artwork, murals that was almost like, Where's Waldo? where you would see animals and that type of thing.

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Scott Hull: And you know, you can't get that through AI.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Right?

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Scott Hull: And so, there are opportunities like that. It's just, you know, thinking ahead of the game, and where's, you know, where's the next move going to be?

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Alright, last question.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: I want to know what the most important lesson is that you have learned over your 40-ish years.

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Scott Hull: Oh, hang with the right people.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Mmm.

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Scott Hull: Let's see…

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Scott Hull: Well, I'd have to say, like I said earlier,

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Scott Hull: Focus on the human environment. Stay close to your customer with insight.

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Scott Hull: And,

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Scott Hull: you know, by letting them know, you know, what you do, and what problems you solve in that, and then you can use AI to continue that insight. So, you know, really, it's just…

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Scott Hull: staying face-to-face, making sure that they know that you're there, and you know, it's like, we've been dealing with, I'll tell, I'll name names, Lowe's. And that's been a frickin' disaster, because they have forgot what customer service is all about.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Hmm.

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Scott Hull: And even, you know, fast food restaurants, customer service, and yeah, just be human. I would say that's the biggest lesson I've learned. And hence, that's why I…

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: And learning more, you know, through your S&P classes, too.

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Scott Hull: I guess that's it. Be human.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: I love that. Beautiful.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: All right, thank you so much, Scott.

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Scott Hull: Thank you.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Where they can find you online.

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Scott Hull: Online, I'm at Scott Hall, that's H-U-L-L dot com, that's my website, and then, Instagram, it's Scott, B as in boy, Hall, and I think my LinkedIn is also Scott Hall.

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Scott Hull: But there are… there is the, bass player for the Pig Destroyers that, also has the name Scott Hall, so…

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Scott Hull: But he seems like a nice guy.

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Scott Hull: So, that's it.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Alright, beautiful. So please reach out and say hey.

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ilise benun, marketing-mentor.com: Beautiful, thank you so much.

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Scott Hull: Thanks, Elise, appreciate the time.

And, after attending MAICON (the Marketing AI Conference put on by SmarterX) last week…

I believe that’s true now more than ever – and for all of us. We have no idea what our potential is.

The conference was eye-opening, and I have so much to share with you, from prompting tips and frameworks to productivity tips, and more. Stay tuned!

But today I want to give you my biggest take-away. The reason why I believe your potential is expanding faster than you may realize.

Thanks to AI, according to Alex Kantrowitz of The Big Technology podcast, we’re now entering…

The Age of the Individual

What does that mean?

It means that being “on your own” is no longer a disadvantage.

And that the label you give yourself and your business may not matter in the future.

It means that your knowledge, expertise, and perspective can now be augmented with AI. (You’ve probably heard that recently.)

What you “offer” can expand past the boundaries of your “self.”

And that, my friends, puts you in a position to “crush it” in your business, as Kantrowitz told us at MAICON.

But only if you’re able to do what I’ve always said you need to do. 

That is:

Listen to the Market

This is a time of immense opportunity. And as a solo creative professional, if you listen to your market, then use your creativity and a little AI, you can out-create a bigger, slower team. (We saw plenty of examples of that at MAICON.)

Here’s what to do with that:

1. Find new problems you can solve (with AI).

One problem everyone seems to have is "time to learn AI" so, off the bat, that's a problem anyone can help solve.

A woman I met at MAICON recently started training small businesses on how to use AI. It’s not too late to learn and then teach AI tools. Could you do that? 

2. Look for new ways to solve old problems (with AI). 

What do AI tools allow you to do for clients that you never could have done before, or that would have been too expensive for them to afford?

3. Think “market-first,” instead of “role-first.”

Currently, your clients may think they need  a “writer,” “designer,” or “coach.” But in reality, what they really need is a solution to their problems. That’s you (and AI)! So that’s how you should position yourself.

As always, and especially now, treat your business as a laboratory.

My conversation with tech humanist and author, Kate O’Neill went from “Should AI write your first draft?” to “Will AI be a good companion?” 

Kate is the author of "What Matters Next: A Leader's Guide to Making Human-Friendly Tech Decisions in a World That’s Moving Too Fast."

I was intrigued when she added a comment to one of my popular my LinkedIn question posts, in which I asked, "What exactly does it mean to be human?" (Thanks to Beth Granger for tagging Kate!)

Kate wrote ....”your call to 'be more human,' as I hear it, aligns with the imperative to keep the sense of meaning and purpose in our work.”

That only made me want to dive deeper into this question -- and that’s exactly what my podcast is for. So I invited and Kate immediately accepted!

Our conversation started very organically with the question, “Should you write a first draft before handing it over to AI?” -- a big debate for anyone who does any kind of writing. 

• Should you (and I) generate a first draft from AI that we then polish and “make our own?”
• Or should you (or I) be the one who thinks through that first draft, handing it over to AI only for editing and “perfecting.”

What do you think?

As for me, writing is thinking and I love to write so at this point I don’t use AI at all in my writing process (including this). Plus there are so many other uses for AI that I am loving.

Anyway, our conversation meandered from there and I did a lot of free associating – everything Kate said brought so many more questions to mind. I have a feeling that will happen for you too as you listen. 

You can listen here (or below):

BTW this conversation took place in early August 2025 – on the Thursday that ChatGPT 5 was released actually. 

At the end, we barely touched on another big debate topic about AI as a companion. I like to say that, "I thrive in response," but do I thrive in response to any “thing?” Or do I thrive in response to a person, or to whatever the elusive thing is that a real human brings to a conversation? Will AI replace our human companions? Can AI even be a companion?

Lots of questions and no answers! But certainly lots of fodder for more thinking and talking, with people (and maybe with Artificial Ilise, the chat bot I make available to the members of my Simplest Marketing Plan and program).

It’s a fascinating one! And if you like what you hear, we’d love it if you write a review, subscribe here and sign up for Quick Tips from Marketing Mentor.

I can hear your objections to doing your marketing. It’s a sixth sense from nearly 40 years as a business coach for creatives.

Because after all these years, what works to get clients hasn’t changed…

It’s connecting with real humans.

And guess what? That’s exactly what you seem to fear the most. 🫣

So today, I’d like to help you quiet the voice in your brain and start connecting, with…

4 Low-Effort Outreach Actions 
(And My Retorts to Your Objections)

1. Check your piles. 

You went to an event and came away with a pile of business cards, now collecting dust in a drawer.

Why not dig them up and reach out?

Your Objection: “It's too late. They won’t remember me.”

Reality: It's never too late, you just have to provide context. Tell them, “Wow, I just found your business card at the bottom of one of my piles! So I'm reaching out. How's tricks?” Totally relatable.

2. Check in on a past client.

Ask, “How's everything going since our last project?”

Your Objection: “That's so boring. That's so salesy.” Or, “It's too simple, it has to be more complicated than that.”

Reality: It’s just a check-in. And it could be that simple. In fact, that's what my long-time client, renowned copywriter Bob Bly does! (Just sayin’.)

3. Send a thank-you for current work. 

We don't often reach out in the middle of a project, but it's a nice surprise. 

Just say, “I know we're in the middle of something, but I just want to say I love working with you, so thank you for this opportunity.”

(Of course, it should be genuine.)

Your Objection: “Isn’t that overkill?”

Reality: Not at all. Remember it’s all about relationships. 

4. Thank someone who referred you recently. 

You got a referral but forgot to say thank you.

I give a lot of referrals, and I always appreciate when someone says thank you and tells me what happened. 

Ex. “It never actually materialized, but I really appreciate you thinking of me anyway.” 

It doesn't even have to be a project that came through. What matters most are the connections.

Your Objection: “I forgot to say thanks and now it's too late.”

Reality: It’s not too late, really! Just do it. 

And when it comes to outreach, remember this: 

You don’t need everyone to respond. You just need one good, solid project to make your efforts worthwhile and to keep the outreach going.

Don’t give up too early. If you keep at it, you will start to see your efforts pay off.

The credit for this list goes to the wonderful and very organized Reesa Del Duca, of Ballyhoo Design Co., who made a list of 20 outreach actions and shared them with the SMP+ members. Thank you, Reesa!

Watch as I share my simple definition of outreach and more tips for just getting it done in the October Office Hours for the Simplest Marketing Plan here:

Then, for a little fun, watch the "Ink Insights" cartoon recap from my friend and SMP member, the very talented Antonio Meza:

That’s all for now - thanks for reading.

Some call it a hamster wheel.

It’s a real thing and it’s been coming up in my coaching groups lately.

You see, the marketing is working and now they feel like all they're doing is getting a client, doing the work, getting another client, doing another project, etc.

A good problem to have, no doubt, especially right now.

But they want to know, “Will this treadmill ever end?”

I recruited my good friend, Ben Callahan, to tackle this question. (We both just love questions :)

And it turns out, the answer starts with another question: What do you value?

That’s the baby step Ben suggested. But don’t answer by cogitating about it. Because we can tell ourselves anything we want and it’s not always the truth.

Instead, look at a few of the decisions you’ve made in the last year. Why did you do what you did? And what value(s) is/are underneath it?

That way, your values are more actual than aspirational. 

Listen here (and below):

And If you want my help figuring all of this out, take advantage of my free mentoring session.

And if you like what you hear, we’d love it if you write a review, subscribe here and sign up for Quick Tips from Marketing Mentor.

Have you ever taken on a client project you didn’t believe in, and you couldn’t wait ‘til it was done?

I’ll bet you have. 🙂

But what about when you’re enthusiastic about a project, client, or mission, and can’t wait to use your talents to “transfer that enthusiasm” to the world.

What’s better than getting paid to do that?

If you’re not “feeling it” with your current clients, maybe it’s time to adjust your own marketing so you can attract a better fit.

But first you have to reconnect with (or remember) why you’re in business in the first place.

When you're disconnected from your “why,” it can be harder to find clients because something inside of you doesn’t actually want the work.

So, try asking yourself this 2-part question: 

1. Why am I self-employed?
2. What am I trying to achieve?

When I shared this question in our last Office Hours for the Simplest Marketing Plan (SMP), here’s what came back:

Do any of those feel true to you?

What else?

Once you have your answer, there are two types of actions you can take to find clients that are a better fit:

1. Getting ready: Actions that make you feel ready
2. Getting clients: Actions that generate real clients

Which ones are you doing? 

Learn which actions actually generate better clients in the “Best Bits” from September’s SMP Office Hours here:

And here’s a delightful “hint” at what we talked about in Office Hours, from my friend and SMP member, the very talented Antonio Meza:

Are you taking “get ready” actions or “getting clients” actions? Find out for sure with this handy chart.

That’s all for now - thanks for reading.