Social PR Secrets: public relations podcast for entrepreneurs by Lisa Buyer Lisa Buyer

Friendly reminder that “doing your best” doesn’t mean working yourself to the point of mental breakdown.
Here are 21 things I’m slightly obsessed with this month.

A lot of agency owners dream of the day they’ll be able to walk away from the business they’ve started and nurtured over so many years. But how do you get there? What are the mistakes you should avoid on the way? How do you lead a successful agency while avoiding burnout? And if you ever find yourself overwhelmed or depressed because of your work, how do you get out of it?
In this episode of the Social PR Secrets Podcast, host Lisa Buyer talks to agency owner and all-around icon Cat Howell. Cat is the founder and CEO of Eight Loop Social as well as the biggest Facebook advertising group in the world, FB Ads Academy. After founding Eight Loop Social in 2015 and growing it to new heights, Cat recently welcomed two new partners. The new additions changed her life. Here is how. 
When it All Gets Too Much
Two years ago, Cat realized her business, which managers over $250,000 in Facebook ad spend per month, was reliant on her. If she made a mistake, it affected the entire business disproportionately. She felt trapped and almost went bankrupt. Last year, her mental health started deteriorating so badly she couldn’t even function. That’s when she realized she needed a change. 
Cat is all about processes. When implementing changes within her agency, she started with getting rid of anything they did that couldn’t be replicated for most clients. Indeed, if you cannot replicate the service and outcomes a client is getting, you are outside the scope of your core operations. That is putting yourself and your team on a constant learning curve that will either lead to costly business consequences or burnouts for yourself and your employees. 
It’s All About Streamlining the Process
So where do you go from that realization? You refocus, says Cat. Think about the core thing people are paying you to do, and focus on that. Once that becomes systematic, you will have access to scalability. In turn, dealing with a large book of clients will be effective and won’t cost you your mental health. 
When it comes to agency management, Cat advises starting by being clear on what you want your business to do for you and what that looks like. If you don’t make that vision clear from the start, you will get stuck. Additionally, surround yourself with people who will help you get where you want. Agency owners can’t wear all the hats, that’s just not humanly possible. Not only will a good staff and mentors alleviate some of your workloads, but it will also shift your entire perception of the industry and will introduce you to a plethora of new possibilities. 
Taking Care of Yourself as an Agency Owner
Cat says depression and burnout were a long time coming for her. But when she experienced a mental breakdown and couldn’t even leave the bed, she knew she had to do something about it.

SMS has a 98% open rate. Yes, you read that right. So why aren’t most brands using it? Well, it’s not that simple. In this episode, the founder of Worth eCommerce, Ryan O’Connor, shares who should be using SMS versus email marketing, how to go about it, and tips to maximize your returns. 
In this episode of the Social PR Secrets Podcast, host Lisa Buyer talked to Ryan O’Connor for the first-ever SPS episode on SMS marketing! Ryan is the founder of Worth eCommerce, a Portland-based email and SMS marketing agency helping businesses scale their customer relationships with email and SMS Marketing. 
Why Use Email and SMS?
For the first half of his career in eCommerce, Ryan was focused on getting new commerce. He only thought about conversion rates and user experience. But quickly, he realized he was only looking at surface level. Instead, he started working on creating a brand with supportive customers he could turn into VIPs who would be loyal for life. And now, he helps businesses do the same thing. 
Emails and SMS allow businesses to develop longer relationships with customers. To do so, companies should focus on communication and content rather than the actual user experience and design of the email. Indeed, Ryan has found that high repeat customer rates are usually due to great content. Emails and SMS will expose your customers to your brand in a way nothing else will
Turn Customers Into VIPs
The first step to any email or SMS strategy is to grow your lists. A good way to do that is popups on your website offering a discount or another offer against their contact information. With this strategy successfully implemented, Ryan is able to collect 10 to 15% of website visitors not ready to buy and turn them into first-time customers. Ryan advises businesses to start with one channel first, usually email. Email is a richer experience. It’s longer, has more designs and customers invest more of their attention in it. Conversely, SMS is a very small touchpoint and people are less willing to give their phone number.
Once you’ve built a list of about 3,000 emails, you can start thinking about SMS. You will only need a few hundred SMS subscribers for the strategy to be profitable. Indeed, it requires little time and effort and it will have a high engagement rate. Why? Well, if someone is willing to give you their phone number it means they like your brand and are loyal. In short: they want to hear from you. So give them the VIP treatment: send them the best discounts, first access to products, podcasts, and more!
SMS Tips
So what should you do and not do when using SMS to market your brand? Ryan has the answers!
DO: Use the right SMS sending tools. If you use Shopify, PostScript is the most robust option. For other eCommerce platforms, you can use SMSBump. And if you are a bigger company,

“Email is dead.” “Email is making a comeback.” Chances are, you’ve heard both of these statements in the past few years. The truth is, email has always been a crucial part of any PR and marketing strategy. In this episode, learn all there is to know about using email for your business, agency, or clients from Email Optimization Shop’s Jeanne Jennings.
In this episode of the Social PR Secrets Podcast, host Lisa Buyer chats with Jeanne Jennings, CEO of Email Optimization Shop and General Manager of Only Influencers to discuss everything email-related. Jeanne is a recognized expert in the email marketing industry and a consultant who helps organizations make their email marketing efforts more effective and more profitable. So what are the current email marketing trends? Should you use emojis in your subject line? How many pictures should you include in an email? Look no further to find out!
Latest Trends in E-mail Marketing
Why has email always been such a reliable source of revenue? The answer is simple. It’s cheap and effective. But, Jeanne says, if you start putting resources behind your email efforts, it will become an incredibly profitable marketing method.  But what are the latest trends?
Jeanne recommends taking advantage of automation tools. Create trigger emails based on the behavior of the people on your list. For example, create browser reminder emails for potential customers who visited your website but didn’t make a purchase. Sending them an email could be the push they need to buy something. Or set up reminder emails sent to people who added something in their cart but left the website without buying it.
It’s All About Your Website
When it comes to emails, the key is to make sure people want to get updates from you in their inbox. As such, you should always allow people to opt-in for newsletters and all other emails. The best way to do this is within your website, following these 3 rules:
#1. Include a value proposition, offer people something so they feel like they will gain from being added to your email list.
#2. Add your call to action above the fold on your website, not in the footer. The sign-up box should appear on every page, either on the right column or at the very top, next to your logo.
#3. Experiment with popups. While popups can be annoying for us marketing pros, they yield incredible results. Jeanne recommends including them on the second or third page so that website visitors can get to know your business before opting in. 
Email Newsletters 101
Jeanne recommends sending a newsletter out at least once a month. However, make sure it’s not all about your company updates but rather provides real value to your subscribers. Jeanne also advises against dividing your newsletter into types of medium. Instead, make sure your categories focus on the types of messages.
Visually, your mission will determine how many images you should include. If you’re a retailer, visuals will drive your newsletter. If working for a B2B or PR agency, your message is your copy. The visuals will need to support the copy and en

Cannabis, hemp, and CBD are misunderstood by the general public, but not only. Mainstream media lacks knowledge of the industry and perpetuates misinformation. But PR professionals can help. In this episode, Mitchell Colbert breaks down the most common misconceptions about cannabinoids, explains how PR pros should talk about cannabis and CBD, and gives tips to journalists. 
In this episode of the Social PR Secrets Podcast, host Lisa Buyer sits down with Mitchell Colbert, Executive Director of the Ethical Data Alliance (EDA), journalist, and cannabis researcher. From trusted sources to best pitches, Mitchell shares his top tips for PR professionals with clients in the cannabis, CBD, or Hemp Industry. 
What Does a Career in Cannabis Look Like?
Mitchell grew up in California, very much surrounded by cannabis. He started to medicate manic depression with cannabis when he was younger and still uses it to fight stress and injuries. Fast forward to now, Mitchell is the Executive Director of the Ethical Data Alliance (EDA), a new project of Ed Rosenthal's 501c3 non-profit, Green Aid, focused on improving data privacy and supporting the cannabis industry through the use of blockchain technology and smart contracts. 
Before he ran his own lobbying firm, Full Spectrum Strategy, where he advocated in California, Colorado, and Canada for cannabis waste (specifically vape waste) to be easier to recycle. His efforts resulted in regulatory and statutory changes in Colorado which allow for legal “marijuana consumer waste” recycling for the first time since legalization. He started out in the industry working for the world-famous Harborside dispensary and for two campaigns to legalize cannabis in California. He is a prolific journalist with over a hundred articles in over a dozen outlets and is a published cannabis researcher. Needless to say, you can trust him on all things cannabis-related.
The Cannabis Basics
If you’re well-versed in cannabis terminology, skip to the next paragraph. But because so many different words are thrown around, Mitchell clarified it all for us.
Cannabis is the species name, also known as marijuana. However, Mitchell recommends using cannabis, as the word marijuana carries a lot of weight. Cannabis is high in THC and has euphoric qualities.
Hemp is a type of cannabis plant that has always grown and is found in many variations. It’s lower in THC.
CBD is a cannabinoid, one of the two most common ones, with THC. Both start from CBG but become their own cannabinoids when combined with the right synthase. CBD provides no euphoric effect.
Top PR Tips for Cannabis Clients
If you are a PR professional representing a CBD or cannabis brand, you need to recognize you are both an educator and mediator, says Mitchell. So what should you keep in mind?
#1. Educate the public and the media
The media is an intermediary to reaching the public, and they need to be educated too. They often have no clue what follow-up questions to ask or even miss the bigger picture story when reporting on the industry.
#2. Do. Your. Research.
As a PR pro, you have a responsibility to only disseminate researched-backed information. The best sources on the topic are NC

Being on camera is scary. Yet, most small businesses would benefit from strong video content. But where do you start? Is there necessary equipment? As a business owner, do you need to be filmed? Former producer, editor, and camera operator Holly Gillen understands the struggle - and is here to help.  
In this episode of the Social PR Secrets Podcast, host Lisa Buyer listens to Holly Gillen’s top tips for creating business videos. Holly runs Holly G Studios, where she helps with strategic video content development to increase her customers’ impact and income. If you’re making videos but want to do better, or have never touched a camera in your life, this episode is for you! As Holly says, “videos that are fun, fast, and easy to make increase your impact and income.”
You Need Good Videos
Holly started her career in New York City, as a professional videographer. She worked on important projects with big-name celebrities. But after a while in the industry, she realized she didn’t want to work for huge corporations anymore. She knew video could be a game-changer for small businesses, so she set herself to help them. She started a company to work with business owners and entrepreneurs and make videos for them.
But quickly, she found out they all had the same questions. What should my strategy be? Do I really have to be on camera? Do I have to spend that much money on a video? So she started Holly G Studios to prepare business owners so they could make their videos themselves. Holly leads live video challenges tailored to each business owner. 
The Professional Triangle
According to Holly, when it comes to videos, it’s all about the professional triangle: light, audio, and graphics.