Episode 29 - LEADERS ON THE VIRTUAL STAGE: Discussion on Authenticity and Brand Standards with Kelli Schutrop
IT’S THE NEW AGE OF BRANDING In this episode of The Business Conversation, Garrio welcomes Kelli Schutrop, the VP for Sales and Marketing at Madecraft. She discusses the importance of leadership teams becoming more visible and active online. She explains that this became more of a necessity due to the COVID pandemic, as video connection was a way to better build relationships faster. She also explains that it is important for businesses to have a brand that resonates with their audience, as this is a key part of promoting their message and brand. She emphasizes that it is critical for businesses to have a strong presence online in order to be successful. HIGHLIGHTS KELLI: LEADERS ON SHOWING UP ONLINE “I think what has evolved is just this realization that in a sales capacity in a leadership capacity, even in your own career search, if you put yourself out there online, let's say on LinkedIn or another social platform, people are able to see more of who you are as a personal brand. And that can drive immense opportunity for your business for networking connections for career connections in the future.” KELLI: DEFINITION OF AUTHENTICITY “To me, authenticity is really, whether you're hitting the record button, or you're posting something on LinkedIn, even if it's a poll, just the way that you were actually forming your sentences can drive who you are as a person, right? Is it warm and welcoming? Is it more informative and structured? And so part of it is just about continuity and making sure that whatever it is you're providing, is going to be the same experience for someone no matter what environment they see you in.” KELLI: THINKING ABOUT YOUR AUDIENCE “Part of it is saying who can I help? So addressing? Who is your audience? Ultimately, who are you trying to impress? What is the industry? What are the company types? What are their levels? Right? And then what is important to them? So what are the key topics, they think about? What is thought leadership trends in your industry? Because this can kind of help break down to distill that. Man, I want to, I want to be more visible, but I have no idea. I don't know, how do I how do I approach that? So those are some of those questions.” KURT: GETTING CONNECTED HELPS WITH YOUR SKILLS “if a prospective employer, if someone you're networking with a prospective client, whatever that person may be if they go to your LinkedIn, we all see that activity feed. And they can see like, wow, this is cool. Like they've been posting content that's really intriguing. And you can even feature you know, as LinkedIn is current user experience stands, you can feature posts, so you can kind of control that narrative. It's really your own website, and you don't have to pay to host it, you get to make it what you want. And so the more that you can pour into it, the more it's going to create opportunities for you, but also benefit others, specifically, you know, within that, that stream of that audience, you're looking to support.” Follow the link below to learn more about Kelli Schutrop: Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellischutrop/ Madecraft Website: https://onlymadecraft.com/ This series is being put together in collaboration with AIGA Minnesota - one of the largest chapters of AIGA, that works to enhance the value and deepen the impact of design across all disciplines of business, society, and our collective future. & Curious, a group of B2B marketers helping their clients define a conversation that is unique, relevant, and honest with their ideal customers. They then help their clients find their ideal audience to start the conversation by pushing content through the most efficient channels, whether that be traditional or digital.
