Marketing is one of those necessary evils for small business that nobody can get around. To some, it comes naturally while others find it challenging and plain annoying. If Marketing is not your thing and you are in the early days of your Startup, outsourcing or seeking support from a coach or consultant should be a serious consideration on your radar. It lets you focus on your main business idea and investing in a freelance expert is worth every cent (and then some).
Lisa Byrne and I first met at a The Digital Picnic Social Media intensive course last year. She is one of those people you meet and instantly have a connection with – bubbly, super smart and a gun at her trade. So who else to feature on the CAN DO! Blog other than Australia’s #1 Ecommerce Marketing Coach.
She has made a name for herself for supporting women on a truly personal level, a true understanding of small businesses and never-ending hunger for learning. Lisa shares her personal journey into entrepreneurship with us and the odd wisdom that you can apply to your Startup. Grab a cuppa, find a quiet corner and enjoy the read.
Go from wondering ‘what next’ to having a simple, step-by-step marketing strategy for more traffic, sales and profit with Lisa Byrne’s eComm Grow Strong (AFFILIATE LINK)
JOIN THE WAITLIST OR ENROL HERE
Who is marketing gun Lisa Byrne and how can you transform small ecommerce businesses?
I’m an ecommerce marketing coach. I help women in the early years of their product-based business. They are struggling with direction for their business and marketing and aren’t seeing a return on their efforts.
My area of genius is providing a clear direction for your marketing, stripping back activity that isn’t serving you and positioning your brand and product in the right way to the right people. I see too many women trying to be everything to everyone. This simply doesn’t work. To stand out in an overly saturated online market you HAVE to get focused and clear or you will be lost in a sea of sameness.
What did your early days as an ecommerce marketing coach look like?
After 15 fun yet gruelling years in TV marketing I had my first baby and in 2016 I started my first marketing consulting business “Messy Bun Marketer”. It felt so right as I was connecting with so many women who also had a baby on their hip, mum-bun and running a small business and they desperately needed help with their marketing.
I fell for the whole wifi-and-a-dream thing, said yes to everything, didn’t charge enough for my service and in 12 months I burnt out. That’s when I met my business coach! The single best thing I have done for my business and myself was to invest in the support of a business coach who helped me niche down, streamline and simplify my services to create more impact and income. And here I am today! Working under my name Lisa Byrne Marketing and supporting women make better choices in their business.
Now, convince us why ecommerce brands should seek help with their marketing efforts right from the start?
I have spoken to hundreds of women and the most common mistake I see t is not having clear target market or message, or a strong point of difference in an overly saturated market. Without these foundational pieces, their marketing will never work. So they’re wasting precious time, money and energy.
I love helping women be more effective with their marketing by building solid foundations first. Only once that is done do we look at specific tactics. I specialise in email marketing (aka money-making-machine!) and collaborations which are both good for the soul and the bottom line!
As an ecommerce marketing coach, I become a part of your team. I’m in your back pocket 24/7 to guide, support, brainstorm, train or just listen. Marketing and branding is one of those things that you need support on. It will save you time and money trying to figure it all out on your own.
What are your top 5 tips for a successful marketing effort?
1. Investing in support from a consultant, coach or mentor who specialises in your industry at the start… not 3 years down the track.
2. Get specific – on your customer, your offer, your message your mission.
3. Stop-the-hustle – your marketing efforts have to be sustainable otherwise you will burn out or give up.
4. Upskill – What skills are you missing and in order to market and grow your business? Upskilling in certain areas will save you a lot of money in outsourcing.
5. Don’t compare yourself to other businesses! You have no idea what’s going on under their hood. They could be spending 100k on Facebook ads and have zero profit. They could be working all night and not seeing their family. They could have big investors. Stay in your lane and do you.
Can you share a Marketing industry myth that just isn’t true?
There is no such thing as “build it and they will come”. You have to have a plan to attract your customer, get them to buy and keep them buying. It takes money, time and effort. So if you don’t have a marketing budget, start thinking about getting one. It drives me crazy how many women I meet who have dropped tens of thousands of dollars on a website, logo and product and have nothing set aside for marketing.
Have you got a success story for us that shows how marketing is key to sustained business growth?
I recently worked with a business owner of a children’s clothing label. She was on the verge of closing her business but desperately didn’t want to. This was her life passion, but she just couldn’t make it work, didn’t know how to change and lacked the confidence to do it on her own.
In our first session together we had an incredible breakthrough that changed the course of her business. We have since narrowed down her niche, refined her product offering, re-branded, relaunched her website, up-skilled her Marketing skills and developed a fresh new Marketing strategy across social media, email marketing and influencer Marketing. The most satisfying part for me is watching her confidence and self-belief grow week by week.
Follow Lisa’s Marketing insights across her online platforms:
Website, Instagram, eComm Grow Strong Course
