Marketing Happy Hour Podcast

Shelby McFarland
  • 5.0 (1)
  • MARKETING
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Join The Marketing Broker, Shelby McFarland, for the Marketing Happy Hour Podcast. With over 13 years of entrepreneurial experience and as the owner of a successful sign shop, Shelby brings a unique perspective to the world of marketing. Each episode, Shelby dives into insightful discussions, practical tips, and expert interviews designed to help entrepreneurs and marketers alike navigate the ever-evolving landscape of digital marketing, branding, and business growth. Grab your favorite beverage and join us for a lively conversation at the intersection of creativity and strategy. Welcome to the Marketing Happy Hour Podcast with your host, Shelby McFarland. Cheers! 🥂

  1. 6D AGO

    Visibility Blueprint For Small Businesses

    Send us a text Ice on the roads turned into clarity on the plan. After six days at home with my five‑year‑old and a full notebook, I’m sharing a practical visibility blueprint for small businesses that want more than likes—they want bookings. We start with the foundation most people skip: crisp clarity. If a stranger can’t describe what you do in one sentence, the algorithm won’t either. I walk through how to define your core service, name your ideal client, and trim the offers that drain your energy so you can do your best work and get better results. From there, we go hyperlocal. Big follower counts feel good, but buyers live down the street. I talk about becoming “famous where it counts” by showing up in your community, partnering with nearby businesses, and choosing quality over quantity when it comes to followers. You’ll hear simple co‑marketing moves—like tagging the local florist after a client gift—that build goodwill and referrals. Then we shift to your feed: how to create a scroll‑stopping presence with clean, on‑brand visuals, real photos, and a voice that matches the experience clients have when they work with you. Attention only matters if it turns into action, so we map the path from a post to a purchase. I break down one clear call to action per campaign, basic funnel setup, CRM tagging, and email follow‑ups that feel helpful, not pushy. You’ll get a simple workflow example that moves someone from a free webinar into a course or service without friction. Finally, we anchor everything in consistency. Visibility is a daily discipline, so I share how I plan content, keep stories alive, and refine the client journey while onboarding new clients—small systems that keep momentum even when life gets messy. If you’re ready to be seen, heard, and booked with straightforward steps you can apply this week, press play and take notes. If this helped, subscribe, share with a friend who runs a local business, and leave a quick review so more owners can find the show. Support the show

    10 min

  2. JAN 30

    Launch Smart: Five Free Marketing Moves

    Send us a text Ready to grow a new business without draining your wallet? We break down five free, high-impact moves that build a clear brand, boost visibility, and turn real-world connections into steady referrals. Shelby McFarland, the marketing broker behind Marketing Happy Hour, lays out a lean playbook you can execute right now and refine as you scale. We start by building a brand foundation that actually guides decisions: simple logo and colors, consistent voice, and a mission that shows customers what you stand for. From there, we claim the essentials—domain, Google Business Profile, and social handles—with an eye on clarity and search discoverability. Shelby shares why consistent naming matters, how to fill profiles so they rank, and what images and keywords help your pages get found without ads. Content becomes your proof of reliability. You’ll hear how to create a weekly cadence you can sustain, pick formats that reduce stress, and publish posts that teach, answer questions, and highlight wins. Then we move offline to the rooms where trust is built: chambers, leads groups, and events. Learn how to make networking intentional with clear asks, thoughtful follow-up, and one-to-one meetings that turn contacts into referral partners across cities and even countries. To keep your momentum, Shelby points you to a free bank of 55 marketing ideas and introduces the BOSS mindset—Bold, Opportunistic, Strong, and Service-minded—as a filter for every choice you make. If you’re launching in 2026 and feeling the pressure to do everything, this guide shows you where to focus your time so your message is clear, your presence is consistent, and your service drives word-of-mouth. Subscribe, share with a founder friend, and leave a review telling us which free tactic you’ll try first. Support the show

    9 min

  3. JAN 23

    Rethinking Collaboration And Competition In Marketing

    Send us a text Ready for a hot take that might change how you grow? We unpack why competition—not vague “collabs”—is the engine that sharpens your craft, speeds up decisions, and wins better clients. From a fast start to 2026 with a new office and a rentable photo studio in Little Rock, we dig into the systems that turn momentum into measurable wins and the partnerships that actually add value. You’ll hear how a competitive mindset fuels daily execution: smart discovery questions, tight proposals, and respectful, consistent follow-up. We talk through real bid stories—what it feels like to go head-to-head, the thrill of landing a multi-month deal, and how to ask the right post-loss questions to fix price, scope, or fit next time. It’s not bravado; it’s process, iteration, and the discipline to get one step ahead of direct rivals without cutting corners. Then we reframe collaboration the right way. Forget the trend where “let’s collaborate” means unpaid trades or mismatched swaps. We define strategic collaboration as co-marketing with complementary experts—PR partners for earned media, marketing strategists for planning and budgets, production shops for wraps and signage—so clients get integrated results while each pro leads in their lane. Think lender-title-realtor playbooks, launch events, and studio days that share audiences and drive action without handing attention to your closest competitor. If you want a simple filter: compete to set the standard, collaborate to extend capability. Protect your brand’s edge, choose partners who make the whole stronger, and build a repeatable path from prospect to win. Subscribe for more grounded marketing tactics, share this with a teammate who needs a nudge toward clarity, and leave a quick review to tell us where competition or collaboration moved the needle for you. Support the show

    9 min

  4. JAN 16

    Refuel Your Creativity On Slow Days

    Send us a text Stuck in that “blah” headspace but still need to ship content that moves the needle? We’ve been there—staring at a blank calendar, juggling client work, family, and admin, while the algorithm and your sales pipeline quietly drift. Today we share the exact system we use to market consistently even when inspiration doesn’t show up, and why it led to a 25% lift in sales after just thirty days of steady posting. We start by breaking the cycle of stop‑start marketing and the frustration that follows halfhearted posts. You’ll hear how we map a month of content in one sitting with three simple prompts—service, audience, message—then schedule it so low‑energy days become execution, not invention. We also walk through the mix that actually works: weekly service spotlights, clear buyer‑focused copy, social proof, and behind‑the‑scenes posts that build trust without draining your time. Then we get honest about delegation. For years we trusted our content lead with every client but clutched our own brand out of perfectionism. Handing over our channels created better work and steadier results. We outline how to brief a creator with voice, pillars, and approval guardrails, plus the cadence that keeps quality high while freeing you to focus on sales, delivery, and strategy. We wrap with the mindset and energy tactics that prevent rework: protect generous blocks for deep creative tasks, avoid forcing big ideas into tiny windows, and use short resets—walks, workouts, family time—to return with clarity. Creativity is seasonal; consistency is a system. If you’re ready to trade willpower for a plan, this conversation gives you the tools to stay visible, build authority, and grow revenue even on your slowest days. If this helped, follow the show, share it with a friend who’s stuck on content, and leave a quick review so more builders can find it. Support the show

    16 min

  5. JAN 9

    Social Media ROI Reality Check

    Send us a text You expect a few weeks of posts to move the needle. We’ve been there—and we’ve watched that expectation wreck good strategies and strong partnerships. This conversation resets how to think about social media ROI, not as instant sales magic, but as the credibility layer that turns referrals into real revenue and keeps your brand top of mind when buyers do their homework. We walk through the journey from Yellow Pages and TV spots to the early days of Facebook’s outsized organic reach, and into today’s reality where attention is scarce and competition is fierce. Instead of chasing hacks, we focus on what works now: consistent, useful content; clear calls to action; smart use of keywords in captions; and formats that align with your strengths. You’ll hear why word of mouth still sits at the top of the funnel, how your social profiles function as proof of life, and why your feed should sell your skill and reliability before anyone picks up the phone. We also dig into measurement that matters. Monthly analytics, side-by-side comparisons, and attribution questions reveal which posts and formats move warm leads toward bookings. Don’t love video? Use strong images and graphics while staying authentic and on brand. Overwhelm creeping in? Break the process into manageable steps, audit your presence across Google and social, and improve steadily rather than sporadically. The takeaway is simple: social media compounds. It validates your reputation, fills search results with proof, and supports sales made through relationships. Ready to level up how you show up online? Listen now, then subscribe, share this with a business friend who needs a mindset reset, and leave a quick review to help more owners find these strategies. Support the show

    11 min

  6. 12/19/2025

    Choose You: Selling Without Trash Talk

    Send us a text A prospect looks you in the eye and asks, “Why should I choose you over someone else?” Your mind races, your pitch speeds up, and the urge to compare kicks in. We slow that moment down and turn it into a clear, confident answer rooted in discovery, principles, and proof. We start with the questions that actually matter: revenue targets, sales goals, and the outcomes a client would recognize as success. From there, we outline a practical framework that replaces competitor talk with substance. You’ll hear how we set expectations for monthly access, create accountability with transparent reporting, and use simple decision rules to evaluate channels. A real client example brings it to life: when geofencing underperformed, we shifted budget into Meta ads plus organic content and saw an immediate lift while cutting costs. That pivot wasn’t luck; it was process. Along the way, we dig into what real differentiation sounds like for small businesses. It isn’t louder promises or longer feature lists. It’s the discipline to tell a client when something isn’t working, the willingness to challenge assumptions, and the habit of making timely changes based on goals and data. We show you how to bake your “why us” into the sales conversation from the start so prospects don’t need to ask. If you’re ready to sell with integrity and win on clarity, hit play, take notes, and then share your own one-line differentiator with us. If this helped sharpen your pitch, follow the show, leave a quick review, and share this episode with a friend who needs a stronger “why you.” Support the show

    10 min

  7. 12/12/2025

    Your Billboard Isn’t Psychic, And Neither Is Social Media

    Send us a text Tired of hearing “marketing doesn’t work for me”? We dig into why that belief keeps businesses stuck and show how simple shifts—clear goals, consistent execution, and real tracking—turn scattered efforts into steady sales. From community sponsorships and billboards to social media and your website, we break each channel down to what it should do, how to measure it, and how to iterate without wasting time or money. We start by connecting the dots many teams ignore: marketing and sales are the same system. If the phone stops ringing, the fix isn’t a miracle post; it’s alignment. You’ll hear practical ways to log lead sources, set up unique codes and URLs, and ask every caller how they found you. Sponsorships move from “nice to have” to measurable brand equity. Billboards stop being guesswork when you pair them with a single offer and trackable contact points. Social shifts from “posting a few times” to a 12-post monthly plan anchored in education, proof, and clear calls to action. Then we head to the engine room—your website. We unpack analytics in plain English: which pages attract attention, where visitors drop off, and how to streamline paths from click to call. You’ll learn why a focused headline, one strong CTA, and proof above the fold can lift conversions fast. Along the way, we share small tests that create big wins, like matching creative across channels to build recall and asking sales to log sources so budgets are guided by facts, not feelings. The takeaway is simple and empowering: marketing will work for you when you choose a goal, track the path, and tweak the details. If your growth feels random, this conversation will give you a roadmap to make every channel accountable and every experiment meaningful. If you found value here, follow the show, leave a quick review, and share this with a business owner who needs a nudge from guessing to growing. Support the show

    10 min
  8. Marketing Works When You Make It Work

    12/05/2025

    Marketing Works When You Make It Work

    Send us a text We challenge the belief that “marketing doesn’t work” and show how goals, tracking, and consistency turn scattered efforts into sales. From billboards and sponsorships to social media and websites, we share how to test, tweak, and align marketing with sales. • marketing and sales as one system • defining goals for each channel • measuring ROI and attribution • balancing branding with response • billboard tracking and offers • social media cadence and clarity • website analytics and conversion paths • mindset shift from guessing to testing And if you ever have any questions, you can always reach out to me, themarketingbroker.com. I am here for you. You can also follow me on all social media Support the show

    10 min
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About

Join The Marketing Broker, Shelby McFarland, for the Marketing Happy Hour Podcast. With over 13 years of entrepreneurial experience and as the owner of a successful sign shop, Shelby brings a unique perspective to the world of marketing. Each episode, Shelby dives into insightful discussions, practical tips, and expert interviews designed to help entrepreneurs and marketers alike navigate the ever-evolving landscape of digital marketing, branding, and business growth. Grab your favorite beverage and join us for a lively conversation at the intersection of creativity and strategy. Welcome to the Marketing Happy Hour Podcast with your host, Shelby McFarland. Cheers! 🥂

Information

  • Creator
    Shelby McFarland
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    60
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Marketing Happy Hour Podcast
  • Show Website
    Marketing Happy Hour Podcast