Be A Marketer with Dave Charest

Constant Contact
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  • MARKETING
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As a small business owner, you need to be a lot of things to make your business go—but you don't have to be a marketer alone. Join host Dave Charest, Director of Small Business Success at Constant Contact, and Kelsi Carter, Brand Production Coordinator, as they explore what it really takes to market your business. Even if marketing's not your thing! You'll hear from small business leaders just like you along with industry experts as they share their stories, challenges, and best advice to get real results. This is the 2x Webby Award Honoree Be A Marketer podcast! New episodes coming in July!

  1. Engaging Your Community and Growing Your Cause with Lisa Franco

    19H AGO

    Engaging Your Community and Growing Your Cause with Lisa Franco

    How do you take a nonprofit that relies entirely on donations and turn it into a thriving community hub for wildlife, education, and conservation? Lisa Franco, Director of Development at Woodford Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge in New Jersey, joins the Be a Marketer podcast to share how she combines a marketing background with a passion for wildlife to grow support, increase donations, and strengthen community ties. In this episode, you’ll hear how Lisa balances fundraising with education, why storytelling is her most powerful tool for driving engagement, and how Cedar Run uses creative approaches like “Weddings in the Wild” to reach new generations of supporters. Lisa also explains how Constant Contact helps them segment audiences, simplify giving, and keep donors connected to the impact of their contributions. If you love this show, please leave a review. Go to RateThisPodcast.com/bam and follow the simple instructions. Additional Resources: Understanding contact segmentationAdd your contacts' details to an emailCustomize what each contact sees in your email with dynamic contentUse the Content Generator to write email, landing page, social, and SMS content for youMeet Today’s Guest: Lisa Franco of Woodford Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge 👤 What she does: Director of Development at Woodford Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge, the oldest and busiest wildlife hospital in New Jersey, which also serves as a sanctuary and education center. Lisa oversees fundraising, donor stewardship, communications, and special events. 💡 Key quote: “The best marketing is just being genuine. For us, it’s easy because our mission is a good cause. There’s nothing bad about saving animals and protecting the environment.” 👋 Where to find her: LinkedIn 👋 Where to find Cedar Run: Website | Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | TikTok

    52 min
  2. How to Scale Your Franchise Without Losing Your Culture with Marcus King

    OCT 2

    How to Scale Your Franchise Without Losing Your Culture with Marcus King

    What does it take to grow from 100 to nearly 400 franchise locations in just five years, without losing sight of people first? Marcus King, Global CEO of House of Colour, joins the Be A Marketer podcast to share how the UK-founded style and image consultancy scaled internationally by balancing empathy with structure. With operations in seven countries and rapid growth in the U.S., Marcus explains how the franchise has managed to maintain its personal, one-to-one impact while equipping stylists with the systems they need to thrive. In this episode, you’ll hear why empathy and structure are the secret ingredients to scaling a people-first business, how House of Colour empowers solo entrepreneurs with marketing and operational support, and why Marcus sees email as a critical channel for maintaining brand consistency and driving ROI. You’ll also learn how the company uses community, culture, and communication to turn growth into something sustainable. If you love this show, please leave a review. Go to RateThisPodcast.com/bam and follow the simple instructions. Additional Resources: Constant Contact Multi-Account SolutionConstant Contact for FranchisesMeet Today’s Guest: Marcus King of House of Colour 👤 What he does: Global CEO of House of Colour, an international franchise helping people discover their best colors and styles, with operations in seven countries and rapid growth in the United States. 💡 Key quote: “Empathy and structure are the secret ingredients to scaling a people-first business.” 👋 Where to find him: LinkedIn 👋 Where to find House of Colour: Website | LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook

    42 min
  3. Building a Social Audience That Grows Your Business with Evan Kirstel

    SEP 25

    Building a Social Audience That Grows Your Business with Evan Kirstel

    Evan Kirstel, tech influencer and founder of eViRa Health, has built one of the largest B2B social audiences by showing up consistently, curating conversations, and turning digital presence into measurable influence. He joins the Be a Marketer podcast to explain why small businesses shouldn’t obsess over going viral and what really matters when building an audience that drives results. In this episode, you’ll hear how showing up as a person, not just a logo, helps build trust online, why consistency and community outweigh follower counts, and what Evan recommends if you only have 15 minutes a day to market your business. You’ll also discover why documenting your journey, highlighting others, and focusing on trust over trends can be the difference between noise and real impact. If you love this show, please leave a review. Go to RateThisPodcast.com/bam and follow the simple instructions. Additional Resources: Create a Social Post and schedule it to publish on social mediaUse the Content Generator to write email, landing page, social, and SMS content for youAllow Constant Contact to publish to your social media accounts Meet Today’s Guest: Evan Kirstel of eViRa Health 👤 What he does: Tech influencer, B2B content creator, and founder of eViRa Health, a Boston-based agency that helps executives and companies grow influence and customers through social media. 💡 Key quote: “It’s not about the number of followers, it’s about being a trusted source of content.” 👋 Where to find him: Website | LinkedIn | Instagram | X 👋 Where to find eViRa Health: Website | LinkedIn

    28 min
  4. Protecting Your Business and Intellectual Property with Peter Nieves

    SEP 18

    Protecting Your Business and Intellectual Property with Peter Nieves

    What happens when you build a law firm designed around education first, not billable hours? Peter Nieves, founder of Nieves IP Law Group, joins the Be A Marketer podcast to share how he turned decades of intellectual property experience into a business that helps small businesses, startups, and creators protect what they’ve built—without getting lost in legal jargon or surprise fees. In this episode, you’ll hear how Peter went from running a top-ranked IP department at a large firm to launching his own practice and educational platform, why small business owners need to understand the risks of AI-generated content, and the most common intellectual property mistakes entrepreneurs make (and how to avoid them). If you love this show, please leave a review. Go to RateThisPodcast.com/bam and follow the simple instructions. Additional Resources: How to Add a PDF to Your Constant Contact EmailDownloading .PDF Files After Form SubmissionsNieves IP Legal ServicesMeet Today’s Guest: Peter Nieves of Nieves IP Law Group 👤 What he does: Founder of Nieves IP Law Group, a New Hampshire–based law firm and educational institution dedicated to making intellectual property law accessible for small businesses, startups, and creators. 💡 Key quote: “If you get to the top of the mountain and you’re alone, you did something wrong. Somebody should be at the top with you to enjoy the view.” 👋 Where to find him: LinkedIn | Facebook 👋 Where to find Nieves IP Law Group: Website | LinkedIn

    59 min
  5. How to Boost Engagement with Data and Segmentation with Gloria Hammond

    SEP 11

    How to Boost Engagement with Data and Segmentation with Gloria Hammond

    How do you keep a member-driven organization relevant year-round without overwhelming people? Gloria Hammond, Director of Communications at the National Golf Course Owners Association (NGCOA) Canada, pulls back the curtain on how a tiny but mighty team serves golf course owners and operators across the country. She walks through the pillars they run on (advocacy, research, education, and member marketing) and how smart segmentation keeps the right messages in front of the right folks.  Gloria also shares the system behind their communications calendar, why she caps weekly sends to avoid fatigue, and how email is the primary engine that drives traffic and action. If you’re juggling limited bandwidth and big goals, her playbook for consistency, measurement, and member value is refreshingly doable. If you love this show, please leave a review. Go to RateThisPodcast.com/bam and follow the simple instructions. Additional Resources: Understanding contact segmentationUse the Content Generator to write email, landing page, social, and SMS content for youOverview: Email reporting  Meet Today’s Guest: Gloria Hammond of NGCOA Canada 👤 What she does: Director of Communications at National Golf Course Owner’s Association Canada in Ottawa. She’s been with the organization since 2006, starting in events before moving into her current role in 2018. 💡 Key quote: “Two minutes after that communication goes out, I have my first survey response.” 👋 Where to find her: LinkedIn 👋 Where to find NGCOA Canada: Website | LinkedIn | X | Facebook

    50 min
  6. From Rivers to ROl: Turning Passion Into a Profitable Business with Mark Soanes

    SEP 4

    From Rivers to ROl: Turning Passion Into a Profitable Business with Mark Soanes

    What happens when you stop theorizing and fully commit? Mark Soanes turned a love for the outdoors into a leadership training company and has used email marketing to fuel growth for nearly two decades with Call of the Wild, a leadership and team development company in South Wales, UK, operating for 26+ years and known for its “green classroom” outdoor approach  Mark’s team uses the “green classroom” approach, which takes learning outside so people actually apply what they learn. That hands-on style has helped thousands of professionals communicate better, collaborate more, and see measurable ROI.  We also dig into how he blends segmentation, metrics, and a touch of AI to keep relationships warm and content consistent, plus the simple “cash on the table” test he still uses to decide which marketing bets are worth it.  If you love this show, please leave a review. Go to RateThisPodcast.com/bam and follow the simple instructions. Additional Resources: Using the Contact Management DashboardUnderstanding contact segmentationSend birthday wishes using the Automation Path BuilderOverview: Email reportingHow Constant Contact is innovating with AI and what that means for you Meet Today’s Guest: Mark Soanes of Call of the Wild 👤 What he does: Director at Call of the Wild, a leadership and team development company in South Wales, UK, known for experiential learning in the outdoors.  💡 Key quote: “No point doing it if you’re not tracking the results, because that’s the key. That’s why you’re doing it.” 👋 Where to find him: LinkedIn 👋 Where to find Call of the Wild: Website | LinkedIn | X | Facebook

    41 min
  7. Grow Your Business by Showing Up as Yourself with Christine Gritmon

    AUG 28

    Grow Your Business by Showing Up as Yourself with Christine Gritmon

    Your personality might just be your most powerful marketing tool. Christine Gritmon, personal brand strategist and host of Let’s Talk About Brand, helps entrepreneurs build confidence in showing up as themselves, and turning that into their biggest business advantage. In this episode, Christine shares why your quirks are your magic, how to build trust faster by being yourself, and why email is still your strongest owned asset. Whether you’re just starting out or ready to elevate your personal brand, her insights will help you show up more confidently and connect more authentically. If you love this show, please leave a review. Go to RateThisPodcast.com/bam and follow the simple instructions. Additional Resources: Save your brand colors, logo, and images in your account (BrandKit)How to schedule and send an emailCreate more personalized emails to improve engagementBuild your brand with a custom designed template Meet Today’s Guest: Christine Gritmon of Let’s Talk About Brand Podcast 👤 What she does: Christine Gritmon is a personal brand strategist, international speaker, and host of Let’s Talk About Brand. She’s worked with business owners and marketers worldwide, helping them use personal branding, storytelling, and content to grow their businesses with confidence. 💡 Key quote: “People connect with people, not job titles. Stop hiding the things that make you memorable.” 👋 Where to find her: Website | Podcast | LinkedIn | Instagram | YouTube

    48 min
  8. How to Find Clarity and Confidence in Your Marketing with Cindy Clearwater

    AUG 21

    How to Find Clarity and Confidence in Your Marketing with Cindy Clearwater

    What happens when you stop chasing likes and start building real connections? Cindy Clearwater, also known as Cindy Leigh, turned her passion for island life into a thriving multi-channel business by focusing on what really works: email, authentic content, and showing up as herself. In this episode, Cindy shares how she built My St. Croix VI into a trusted travel guide, why 95% of her product sales come from her email list, and how she uses one business as a testing ground for all the others. If you’ve ever felt like you’re spinning your wheels on social media, this conversation will remind you that consistency, personality, and email marketing are the real game-changers. If you love this show, please leave a review. Go to RateThisPodcast.com/bam and follow the simple instructions. Additional Resources: Grow your contact list with sign-up formsUse an email to grow your contact listEnable Text to Join to grow your listUsing the audience growth centerAutomatically generate a marketing campaign based on your goals (Campaign Builder) Meet Today’s Guest: Cindy Clearwater of Cindy Leigh Media and My St. Croix.VI 👤 What she does: Cindy Clearwater is the creative director and content strategist for Cindy Leigh Media. She runs Mystcroix.vi, a popular island travel guide based in the U.S. Virgin Islands, and is the founder of IDM Strategy Lab. Cindy is also preparing to launch Explorinista, a platform for Gen X women who love to travel smart. 💡 Key quote: “People want connection. When I started sharing my own stories, my email list became my strongest marketing tool.” 👋 Where to find her: Website | LinkedIn | Instagram 👋 Where to find My St. Croix.VI: Website | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram

    57 min
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About

As a small business owner, you need to be a lot of things to make your business go—but you don't have to be a marketer alone. Join host Dave Charest, Director of Small Business Success at Constant Contact, and Kelsi Carter, Brand Production Coordinator, as they explore what it really takes to market your business. Even if marketing's not your thing! You'll hear from small business leaders just like you along with industry experts as they share their stories, challenges, and best advice to get real results. This is the 2x Webby Award Honoree Be A Marketer podcast! New episodes coming in July!

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