#109 Building a World-Class Business: Insights and Marketing Strategies with Sandy Domingos-Shipley
Welcome to another inspiring episode of The Jonny Ross Fractional CMO podcast! In this episode, Jonny Ross sits down with Sandy Domingos-Shipley, a renowned business strategist and author of the enlightening book "How to Build a World-Class Business One Brick at a Time."
With over 20 years of experience, Sandy shares her journey from Canada to the UK, her career development, and the valuable insights she has gathered along the way. Discover actionable strategies on customer focus, leadership, efficient business processes, and effective marketing that you can implement to elevate your business.
In This Episode, You Will Learn:
- Customer Focus:
- Why aligning your business strategy with customer needs is crucial.
- Practical steps to embed a customer-centric culture in your business.
- Leadership:
- Strategies for creating effective leadership within an organization.
- The importance of setting realistic and measurable goals.
- Marketing Strategy:
- Key elements of an effective marketing strategy.
- The role of market research and SMART goals in targeting the right audience.
- Building Strategic Partnerships:
- How to form and nurture partnerships that enhance your business reach.
- Real-life examples of successful collaborations.
- Technology and Automation:
- Leveraging technology to streamline operations.
- The benefits and challenges of implementing marketing automation.
Quotes from the Episode:
- "Aligning your business strategies with customer needs is crucial for sustainable growth." – Sandy Domingos-Shipley
- "Effective leadership sets the direction and inspires the entire team to achieve business goals." – Sandy Domingos-Shipley
Listen and Be Inspired:
- Learn how Sandy's innovative use of Post-it notes evolved into the structure of her book.
- Understand the importance of storytelling in change management and marketing.
- Hear about Sandy’s dyslexia diagnosis and how it influenced her career and parenting approach.
Key Takeaways:
- Focus on Top Priorities: Identify and concentrate on the top three areas that need attention in your business.
- Employee Engagement: Collaborate with your staff and bring them along in the journey.
- Self-Reflection: Regularly assess your leadership style and its impact on your team.
- Effective Communication: Understand the diverse ways people process information and adapt your communication accordingly.
Upcoming Projects:
Sandy is planning to offer workshops to help businesses implement the principles from her book. These hands-on sessions will provide personalised guidance and practical solutions.
Where to Find the Book:
- Purchase on any Amazon platform.
- For a signed copy, visit Sandy's website. https://www.thesystemslink.com/
Links and Resources:
- Sandy Domingos-Shipley's Book: How to Build a World-Class Business One Brick at a Time
- Jonny Ross’s Website: https://jonnyross.com
- Connect with Jonny on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonnyross/
- Follow Jonny on Twitter: https://twitter.com/jonnyross
- Fleek Marketing: https://fleek.marketing
Subscribe, Rate, and Review:
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Join Us:
Don't miss our next episode, where we continue to bring you stories, tips, and strategies from inspirational business leaders.
Chapters:
Introduction and Guest Introduction
Introduction to the podcast and introduction of the guest, Sandy Dominguez Shipley. Remembering Rob Burrow - A moment of acknowledgment for the passing of Rob Burrow, a rugby league legend, and the impact on the rugby community. Sandy's Inspiration from Rob Burrow - Sandy shares her admiration for Rob Burrow's fighting spirit and determination to make a difference despite his illness. Sandy's Journey and Book Introduction - Introduction to Sandy's background, her bold move to the UK, and the discussion about her new book, 'How to Build a World Class Business 1 Brick at a Time.'
Sandy's Career Journey and Struggles
Sandy shares her career journey, struggles with dyslexia, and her determination to succeed despite challenges. Starting a Business and Networking - Sandy talks about starting her business, the importance of networking, and the power of personal connections in business growth. Implementing Quality Management System - Sandy discusses her experience with ISO 9001 quality management system and its impact on building a world-class business. Using Lego as a Framework - Sandy explains the concept of using Lego as a metaphor for implementing business frameworks and the importance of purpose-driven business practices. Discovering the Power of Purpose - Sandy shares her realization of the power of purpose in business and the impact of having a clear vision, values, and mission. The Importance of People in Business - Sandy emphasizes the significance of people in business, the value of showing personality, and the need for purpose-driven work environments. Writing the Book and Using Post-it Notes - Sandy shares her journey of writing the book, using post-it notes as a tool for organizing ideas, and the influence on the book's structure.
Customer Focus and Business Strategy
Sandy discusses the importance of aligning business strategy with customer needs and practical steps for achieving customer-centric business culture. Creating Effective Leadership - Sandy shares strategies for creating effective leadership within an organization, including communication, goal setting, and training for newly promoted managers. Key Elements of an Effective Marketing Strategy - Sandy outlines key elements of an effective marketing strategy, including market research, smart goals, and strategic partnerships. Impact of Leadership Chapter - Reflections from MDs on the leadership chapter, highlighting the importance of focusing on people and culture in addition to business growth. Leadership and Self-Reflection - Discussion on the importance of self-awareness and reflection for effective leadership. The Power of Storytelling in Change Management - Exploring the role of storytelling in facilitating change and overcoming resistance to change. Key Takeaways and Future Plans - Key takeaways from the book and the author's plans for guiding businesses through the principles discussed in the book.
Transcript
Hello and welcome. We are live on
Speaker:LinkedIn. We're live on Instagram and we
Speaker:are live on YouTube. This is the Johnny
Speaker:Ross Fractional CMO podcast. I'm your
Speaker:host, Johnny Ross. And today we have a
Speaker:truly inspiring guest, Sandy Dominguez
Speaker:Shipley. You're right, Sandy.
Speaker:I am, how are you?
Speaker:How's everyone? Yeah, really good, thank
Speaker:you. Really excited to be talking about
Speaker:your story and the book that you've just
Speaker:written. But before we dive into our
Speaker:discussion, I just wanted to take a
Speaker:moment to acknowledge the passing of Rob
Speaker:Burrow, a rugby league legend and true
Speaker:inspiration to many, His courage and
Speaker:spirit have touched countless lives and
Speaker:he'll be deeply missed. Sandy, I know
Speaker:you're a massive rugby fan. I don't even
Speaker:think the word massive explains it, but a
Speaker:huge rugby fan. This must be a
Speaker:significant moment for you as well. And I
Speaker:just wanted to see if you want to share a
Speaker:few words about Rob and his impact on the
Speaker:rugby community.
Speaker:Yeah so I mean I started following rugby
Speaker:league after he had retired but a lot of
Speaker:people who were trying to teach me about
Speaker:rugby league always spoke about Rob but
Speaker:for me what got me was his fighting
Speaker:spirit, you know, and knowing that there
Speaker:is no cure for me, but I want to do
Speaker:something for the future generations who
Speaker:might, you know, get this disease, etc.
Speaker:And having that determination and from in
Speaker:Canada, we've got someone called Terry
Speaker:Fox, who in his early 20s was trying to
Speaker:come up with fundraising for a cure for
Speaker:cancer, et cetera. And there was so many
Speaker:similarities to Rob's character with
Speaker:Terry that it just attracted me to him
Speaker:and his story. And, you know, what he's
Speaker:done is going to change how things are
Speaker:received for the illness with a new
Speaker:medical centre coming at me. I mean, what
Speaker:he's done is going to be life changing,
Speaker:definitely.
Speaker:Yeah, yeah. Certainly leave a very large
Speaker:legacy and very fond memories. Listen,
Speaker:let's focus on today's show. Sandy is a
Speaker:renowned business strategist and the
Speaker:author of The new book, How to Build a
Speaker:World Class Business 1 Brick at a Time,
Speaker:with over 20 years of experience in
Speaker:helping businesses streamline their
Speaker:operations and focus on quality, Sandy
Speaker:has a unique talent for turning complex
Speaker:concepts into actionable insights. Just
Speaker:wanted to share a tiny bit of Sandy's
Speaker:journey which is fascinating as it is
Speaker:motivating. So you're originally from
Speaker:Canada, you made a bold move to the UK
Speaker:with just 2 suitcases and a dream. Over
Speaker:the years you've not only built a
Speaker:successful career but also a thriving
Speaker:business. Your book is a culmination of
Speaker:your extensive experience providing
Speaker:valuable insights into customer focus,
Speaker:leadership and efficient business
Speaker:processes. You're passionate about
Speaker:helping SMEs grow sustainably and
Speaker:efficiently, and your approach is
Speaker:practical, down to earth and incredibly
Speaker:effective. Certainly I was just talking
Speaker:about in the green room about when I've
Speaker:read the book, I find it so actionable
Speaker:and so easy to read, so easy to
Speaker:understand. Listen, I'm thrilled to have
Speaker:you on the show and to share your journey
Speaker:and talk about the new book and provide
Speaker:some actionable tips for building a
Speaker:world-class business. So welcome again,
Speaker:Sandy.
Speaker:Thanks for the invite and thanks for
Speaker:giving me a chance to talk about the
Speaker:book. It definitely was the hardest thing
Speaker:I did. Moving to the UK and raising 3
Speaker:kids was so much easier. So much easier.
Speaker:But yes, thanks a lot, Johnny.
Speaker:That says a lot. So tell us about your
Speaker:career journey and how you ended up
Speaker:writing the book.
Speaker:So I'll just kind of explain my
Speaker:background. I'm obviously I'm from
Speaker:Toronto, Canada, for those who don't
Speaker:know. And at the age of 21, I woke up on
Speaker:my birthday and decided I'm leaving
Speaker:Canada and left with 2 suitcases and a
Speaker:thousand pounds. Now at the age of 21, I
Speaker:was a translator interpreter for
Speaker:Portuguese. So I did a lot of work in
Speaker:there and worked in legal in real estate.
Speaker:So when I moved over, I thought, you
Speaker:know, I'll go to a country where they
Speaker:speak English. Why not? And I did lots of
Speaker:things. I've did graphic designing,
Speaker:office management, you know,
Speaker:partnerships. But the 1 thing I did
Speaker:struggle is that everyone judged me for
Speaker:not having an academic background
Speaker:throughout my career because I didn't
Speaker:have a degree. So I kind of finished high
Speaker:school, that's a long story in itself,
Speaker:and I dropped out of college. And I
Speaker:really struggled when it comes to
Speaker:academic formatting of teaching, but I
Speaker:never knew why. And I kind of knew that
Speaker:there was always something wrong with me.
Speaker:I don't mean it in a negative way, but I
Speaker:just thought, how can I learn 5 languages
Speaker:by the age of 18 on my own, but I
Speaker:couldn't read a page on a newspaper or
Speaker:whatever? It just didn't make any sense.
Speaker:But throughout my career, I always worked
Speaker:hard and I always found innovative ways
Speaker:to do something better. And then that led
Speaker:to another promotion. So I kind of had 1
Speaker:job that led to so many promotions within
Speaker:the same organization because of the way
Speaker:I would work. And so when my son, my
Speaker:eldest was diagnosed with dyslexia in
Speaker:year 4, I got assessed at the same time.
Speaker:So I thought, you know what, I'm going to
Speaker:check, you know, why not? The day she
Speaker:told me that I had dyslexia was probably
Speaker:the happiest day of 1 of my top 5 because
Speaker:it was an answer to what I couldn't
Speaker:understand. But then I didn't know what
Speaker:that meant in terms of, you know, my son
Speaker:got really upset because he thought it
Speaker:was a disability. He saw it as a
Speaker:disability that it was going to stop him
Speaker:from getting anywhere. And he was really
Speaker:struggling. What am I going to do with my
Speaker:life? So you know, When I was trying to
Speaker:tell Louis what I've achieved, despite
Speaker:not knowing I had dyslexia, despite the
Speaker:challenges, moving to another country,
Speaker:having, he wasn't taking that. He said,
Speaker:mom, you're just saying that because
Speaker:you're my mom, which as a parent is the
Speaker:hardest thing to hear because you're
Speaker:pouring your heart out with truth. And he
Speaker:just wasn't listening. He really did
Speaker:think that he was going to get nowhere
Speaker:because people around him were very
Speaker:academic, doing lots of things. And
Speaker:schools were very pressured on the grades
Speaker:and so on. So I said to my husband, I
Speaker:need to do something because I can't just
Speaker:sit here seeing Louis think that he's not
Speaker:gonna get somewhere. So I just said, I'm
Speaker:gonna start a business. He's like, I
Speaker:don't know, I'll figure it out. So I came
Speaker:up with a company name, you know, just
Speaker:made 1 up. And I for the first year just
Speaker:that worked. And all I did in that first
Speaker:year was talk to people. I didn't tell
Speaker:them what I did. I just want to talk to
Speaker:people. And I early I realized early on
Speaker:that people didn't want to know me
Speaker:because I didn't have a big organization
Speaker:behind me like I did before. And that was
Speaker:a big learning curve when you go from the
Speaker:public sector to private sector, like
Speaker:you're starting from ground 0. And So
Speaker:yeah, so I gave myself time to just not
Speaker:put pressure on me just talk to people
Speaker:meet people Because guess what you grow
Speaker:your business by people. It's not
Speaker:necessarily what you do or not So what
Speaker:who you know, it's who you are. It's who
Speaker:you are as an individual that will get
Speaker:you far. And then I met somebody, again,
Speaker:at this point, I had no idea what I was
Speaker:gonna do. And I met somebody at a
Speaker:networking event And he's like, Oh, what
Speaker:did you do before, you know, before you
Speaker:were on your own? And I said, Well, I did
Speaker:this and did that. I says, Oh, so have
Speaker:you heard of ISO? I said, Sorry, was ISO.
Speaker:This? Are you sure? Because everything
Speaker:you've literally just explained to me,
Speaker:aligns with 9001 quality management
Speaker:system, like really? So he said, do look
Speaker:into that. So I did that, did the Lead
Speaker:Auditor's course. And I sat there going,
Speaker:so this 5 day really intensive course,
Speaker:and I did that. And I'm like, does
Speaker:everyone think this way? So I found that
Speaker:whole week was nothing new, apart from
Speaker:clause numbers, which for me was
Speaker:horrendous. The principles of best
Speaker:practice within the framework is how I've
Speaker:been operating in the first place since
Speaker:I've been working. So I found it
Speaker:naturally easy to grasp because there was
Speaker:nothing new. And that's how it all
Speaker:started.
Speaker:And you've taken down 9001 and used the
Speaker:framework and the principles and sort of
Speaker:taking away some of the technical aspects
Speaker:of it to ultimately bring those best
Speaker:practices for a world class business.
Speaker:That's what you've done, isn't it?
Speaker:Yeah. So I've tried to implement it with
Speaker:a very business centric approach, not a
Speaker:compliance or standard approach, because
Speaker:I think that just makes people worry and
Speaker:they find the whole implementation very
Speaker:difficult because it's like you're
Speaker:interpreting a new language. But what I
Speaker:did during COVID, because that's where
Speaker:obviously we met, is I was trying to
Speaker:figure out a way to explain to people
Speaker:what is a standard, what is it? And Lego
Speaker:came about and I remembered being growing
Speaker:up being an only child. I used to use
Speaker:Lego to break things down in my head when
Speaker:it was too complicated, whether it was a
Speaker:personal problem, I used to kind of do
Speaker:that to kind of make it more manageable.
Speaker:And I remember doing a conversation with
Speaker:somebody and he couldn't understand what
Speaker:we were doing. And my son was playing
Speaker:Lego on the floor and I thought, oh, let
Speaker:me try this. So what I was saying to him
Speaker:is that the standard is like the Lego
Speaker:manual. It's a guide to tell you how to
Speaker:get from, you know, the starting point to
Speaker:the end result of what you want. And
Speaker:every business in the world, whether you
Speaker:are Google, my business, or a printing
Speaker:agency, we all have the same core
Speaker:foundations. Like LEGO, every set in the
Speaker:world has got the core. The difference is
Speaker:how it's being used. So HR, finance, they
Speaker:all have the same customer service. The
Speaker:difference is how we use it. And so if we
Speaker:implement the framework like a Lego
Speaker:manual with purpose, with focus, with the
Speaker:end objective, then it becomes just the
Speaker:way of working as opposed to doing
Speaker:something because the standard says you
Speaker:have to do it. And that's the thing is
Speaker:you have to give everything purpose or in
Speaker:this day and age when businesses are so
Speaker:busy, if there is no purpose, people
Speaker:won't follow through. And that's what I
Speaker:tried to
Speaker:do. And it's amazing how many businesses
Speaker:start and don't even know their purpose
Speaker:or don't realize the power of having a
Speaker:purpose. And it took me, it must have
Speaker:taken me a good 5 years within my own
Speaker:business to realize that there actually
Speaker:was a point to visions, values, missions,
Speaker:purpose. Because in those first 5 years,
Speaker:I thought, well, this is all a waste of
Speaker:time. And it's just a waste of my time
Speaker:putting words on paper. But actually, the
Speaker:difference that that can make is
Speaker:powerful. You also talked about people
Speaker:and you're absolutely right, people buy
Speaker:from people. It's about showing
Speaker:personality. People buy from people they
Speaker:like and so I love that you just
Speaker:naturally went into that networking
Speaker:environment in that first year of your
Speaker:own business because you totally nailed
Speaker:it. It's about, it is about people.
Speaker:It is. And it's the same with it, with
Speaker:your staff, you know, treat them like
Speaker:that. You know, people spend more time at
Speaker:work than they do with their own family.
Speaker:So if you don't give them purpose and
Speaker:bring them along the journey, they're
Speaker:just going to think that they're just
Speaker:there 9 to 5 and they go. Also, there are
Speaker:some people that are happy with that. And
Speaker:as long as you accept that and
Speaker:acknowledge that, focus on the ones that
Speaker:do want that purpose. And there's been a
Speaker:lot of research about the new generation
Speaker:of staff coming through, you know, that
Speaker:actually will put things, will spend time
Speaker:with purpose, they want to work with
Speaker:organizations that have purpose that
Speaker:makes them feel part of that purpose. You
Speaker:know, when companies have all these
Speaker:ambitions and everything else, they don't
Speaker:really tell staff how far along they are.
Speaker:They don't tell them how they've
Speaker:contributed to them. And therefore they
Speaker:just feel like they're turning work
Speaker:without anything. They don't understand
Speaker:how they feel part of it. Yeah.
Speaker:I was honored to have been invited to
Speaker:your book launch, which was fantastic.
Speaker:Thank you very much indeed. And
Speaker:particularly interesting the interview
Speaker:that you did And you talked about how
Speaker:when you were putting the idea of the
Speaker:book together, I mean, this was over a
Speaker:number of years as well. It was a lot of
Speaker:it was around using hundreds of post-it
Speaker:notes. And I was just wondering how just
Speaker:how that evolved into a book and whether
Speaker:that had an influence on the structure of
Speaker:the book at all?
Speaker:Yeah, so the reason I did post-it notes
Speaker:initially, I never wanted to write a
Speaker:book, never thought I could because
Speaker:obviously with being dyslexic and words
Speaker:is not my... I'm good at speaking but not
Speaker:necessarily writing. My problem is I
Speaker:forget what I've decided or I forget
Speaker:solutions I've come up with before
Speaker:because of how my brain, I just know how
Speaker:it works now. And at this time I thought,
Speaker:you know what, every time I come up with
Speaker:a solution, unique to this client, I'll
Speaker:just write it down. I'll just write it
Speaker:down. And just in case it comes up again
Speaker:or there's something similar because when
Speaker:I problem solve for clients, I never use
Speaker:the same solution to somebody else
Speaker:because there's a lot of things that are
Speaker:different, but I will use it as a
Speaker:foundation to start building something
Speaker:unique for them. And so I just started
Speaker:writing them as a reminder to myself what
Speaker:I've done when I was on site or something
Speaker:came up as an audit idea or whatever. And
Speaker:I just had this build up, build up, build
Speaker:up. And 1 day my business mentor was like
Speaker:what are you going to do with them? I'm
Speaker:like I've got no idea so I've got them
Speaker:but I don't know what to do and I'm
Speaker:surprised I kept them because I hate
Speaker:clutter and it was this big folder full
Speaker:of just Post-it notes, random Post-it
Speaker:notes. And then I was speaking to my
Speaker:copywriter who, and she said, your ebooks
Speaker:been so popular that I created during
Speaker:COVID. And a lot of people have been
Speaker:asking for more of it. That she said, why
Speaker:don't you use those Post-it notes? So I
Speaker:said, well, I don't even know what I've
Speaker:gotten them. Because I was just doing
Speaker:them as they were coming. There was no
Speaker:structure. It was just whenever something
Speaker:came through, I'd put it in there. And
Speaker:then I was starting to distribute them in
Speaker:terms of categories. And I realized,
Speaker:actually, I've got enough here to start
Speaker:something and so with my copywriter she
Speaker:did the the framework finding somebody
Speaker:that understands your brain like my
Speaker:copywriter does it helps because she
Speaker:gives me calm when I might not be. And so
Speaker:she can kind of see, you know, where I
Speaker:should go. And that's what we did. We
Speaker:worked together on the framework and then
Speaker:that's how I started putting more content
Speaker:into it. But yeah, like I said, moving to
Speaker:this country, 3 kids was so much easier.
Speaker:I like the idea how you use the Post-it
Speaker:notes to create categories and that I
Speaker:think led into the chapters and 1 of the
Speaker:chapters I want to focus on is marketing
Speaker:but I'm going to come onto that shortly
Speaker:because I'm going to start with 1 of the
Speaker:early chapters, which is around customer
Speaker:focus. So I think chapter 1 customer
Speaker:focus, you emphasize the importance of
Speaker:aligning business strategy with customer
Speaker:needs. Why is that crucial and what are
Speaker:some of the practical steps a business
Speaker:can do to achieve that?
Speaker:Yeah, it's what I've noticed with a lot
Speaker:of businesses, you know, no matter what
Speaker:size it's been is that people forget
Speaker:sometimes who they're selling to. They're
Speaker:so eager to either copy a competitor
Speaker:because they're doing really well, or
Speaker:they're so chasing the money that
Speaker:sometimes they forget who they're
Speaker:actually selling to. And, you know, and
Speaker:so trying to really embed a customer
Speaker:centric culture, where it is very
Speaker:obvious, and you know, continuous
Speaker:research, you know, always looking at
Speaker:that, you know, embedding a customer
Speaker:journey mapping is very important because
Speaker:it really tells you that you really do
Speaker:understand because customers are very
Speaker:fickle these days. And if we don't, you
Speaker:know, the way we were as a cut because
Speaker:you and our customers, but if you forget
Speaker:that we ourselves are customers. So when
Speaker:we look at customers, we don't actually
Speaker:reflect on what would we be like, are we
Speaker:a customer to our product or service that
Speaker:we're selling to. If we don't have a map
Speaker:and reflect that map and how we were 10
Speaker:years ago is not how we are now in terms
Speaker:of buying powers and so on, guess what?
Speaker:These things make us more powerful than
Speaker:we've ever been. If we don't really
Speaker:understand and put that at the core of
Speaker:everything we do, then the strategy will
Speaker:be a waste of time. You know, and the
Speaker:other thing is measuring. I am and you'll
Speaker:tell me the book, monitoring and
Speaker:measuring is the key to anything. First
Speaker:of all, asking the right questions is the
Speaker:first thing, but having the right tools
Speaker:to measure what we are doing with the
Speaker:right objectives, whether strategy,
Speaker:whether it's smart. If we don't have
Speaker:that, you're not going to know if it's
Speaker:good or not. And that's what I see all
Speaker:the time. So we've got all these great
Speaker:ideas. But if we don't put the customer
Speaker:first in understanding what they want and
Speaker:actually have a way of measuring based on
Speaker:what we want out of it, then we're just
Speaker:gonna go around in circles. So I try to
Speaker:implement a framework around that so that
Speaker:every time they want to add a new product
Speaker:or change the services, we always put
Speaker:those questions first before we even move
Speaker:forward.
Speaker:You talked about, well, in fact, actually
Speaker:people that are listening right now, you
Speaker:might be on the podcast. Welcome, by the
Speaker:way. Sandy was holding up an iPhone if
Speaker:you were curious as to what you thought
Speaker:you'd give up at 1 point.
Speaker:I always forget.
Speaker:But I'm very, very grateful for our
Speaker:listeners. You talked about ensuring that
Speaker:you understand the customer and know the
Speaker:customer. And what's really interesting,
Speaker:I'm currently reading a book Rory
Speaker:Sutherland who wrote Alchemy. And What's
Speaker:fascinating is even the customer doesn't
Speaker:actually know what they want or certainly
Speaker:they can't explain it because a lot of it
Speaker:is psychological. So it's so important
Speaker:for a business to understand the
Speaker:customer, but it's also so important for
Speaker:a business to understand and recognize
Speaker:that the customer doesn't always know
Speaker:exactly why or what they want either.
Speaker:Well, Apple are a great example. Apple
Speaker:is, you know, in my book, I don't use a
Speaker:lot of big corporates, for example,
Speaker:because I try to make the book more
Speaker:relatable to an SMA. But occasionally, I
Speaker:did. And Apple is the perfect example of
Speaker:that. The whole iPhone thing, having a
Speaker:computer on a phone, they created that
Speaker:need. They created that want. We didn't
Speaker:know that we wanted that. And if you can
Speaker:do that, but you can do that by
Speaker:understanding who you're trying to sell
Speaker:to and create that vision. We were
Speaker:talking before we were on the show about
Speaker:the power of storytelling and creating an
Speaker:idea, a vision of what people might want.
Speaker:You know, We get influenced by people and
Speaker:stories and, oh, how can I have a bit of
Speaker:that? And if you can create that, that
Speaker:makes you unique. Because if you can
Speaker:create that ideal situation that the
Speaker:client might want, that will set you
Speaker:apart as opposed to trying to fit in with
Speaker:what is currently the trend, you're going
Speaker:to go ahead, but that takes skill and
Speaker:time to do that. But if you can do that,
Speaker:that will set you apart from everybody
Speaker:else. But Apple is a great example of
Speaker:that.
Speaker:Yeah, for sure. In in chapter 2
Speaker:leadership, you talk about the role of
Speaker:strong leadership in driving business
Speaker:success. Can you share some of the
Speaker:strategies for creating effective
Speaker:leadership within an organization?
Speaker:So obviously there's quite a few, but for
Speaker:me, my top 3 would be communicating
Speaker:company goals and keeping them updated
Speaker:you know but don't over communicate too
Speaker:many people either over communicate and
Speaker:people will switch off or they don't
Speaker:communicate enough it's trying to find
Speaker:the right balance to suit your
Speaker:organizations but keep them on board
Speaker:about what's going on. You know, the
Speaker:companies, like I said before, will have
Speaker:targets, ambitions, you know, we want to
Speaker:get this amount of growth, you want this
Speaker:sector or whatever it is, but don't keep
Speaker:the staff involved in where progress is
Speaker:going or where they're not going and get
Speaker:them to come up with solutions. So if
Speaker:you're not meeting your targets, get the
Speaker:staff to come up with, you know, why do
Speaker:you think we're not getting there? You
Speaker:know, you guys are the ones who are doing
Speaker:the work, are we not resourcing it? Or we
Speaker:make was this target impossible? You
Speaker:know, that is 1 thing Setting measurable
Speaker:goals and making them realistic the
Speaker:amount of times I've seen people have
Speaker:like Okr's or you know really hard ones
Speaker:and and not demonstrating that they don't
Speaker:understand what the staff go through. If
Speaker:you're going to set goals, personal
Speaker:objectives, company objectives, make them
Speaker:realistic. Don't make them too easy
Speaker:because then people won't put in the
Speaker:effort, but make them a little bit
Speaker:challenging, but not too much. When it's
Speaker:too impossible, and I've seen some of
Speaker:them going, you really thought you're
Speaker:gonna be able to do that? It's gonna
Speaker:cause a lot of negative reaction from the
Speaker:staff. Staff are not gonna react to it.
Speaker:So make it realistic because it'll
Speaker:demonstrate you understand their role and
Speaker:what the complexity of what they've got
Speaker:to do. And the last 1 I would say,
Speaker:because like I said, there's a few things
Speaker:is provide training for newly promoted
Speaker:managers. Oh, I see a lot of people who
Speaker:get promoted because they're good at a
Speaker:job, but doesn't mean they're good at
Speaker:managing people. It's 2 separate skill
Speaker:sets. And unfortunately, I've seen over
Speaker:the years that people get promoted for
Speaker:doing a good job, but don't get the
Speaker:support they need, whether it's
Speaker:mentorship, training, whatever it is,
Speaker:supporting them in that transition,
Speaker:because they're not going to be doing
Speaker:that job anymore. They're going to be
Speaker:focusing on supporting that. For me, it's
Speaker:a great sign of leadership, because it
Speaker:means that you understand their
Speaker:weaknesses. And again, not everybody.
Speaker:Some of us might say, but I was good. I
Speaker:know there's always a small percentage
Speaker:that naturally fall into the manager
Speaker:role, but there's a lot that don't and if
Speaker:you can support them in that transition
Speaker:for me is a good sign for all the staff
Speaker:that you are always there to support them
Speaker:in their personal growth because it is
Speaker:all part of the personal growth.
Speaker:Yeah. And for anyone watching or
Speaker:listening right now, I mean, if you can't
Speaker:argue with that, can you? There's some
Speaker:very simple practical steps here, but the
Speaker:question is, are you implementing that
Speaker:within your business and how well are you
Speaker:implementing that? And Sandy has
Speaker:ultimately got a bit of a roadmap here
Speaker:for you making it very simple on all the
Speaker:things that you need to be considering. I
Speaker:want to get into the marketing strategy.
Speaker:And so you talk about marketing strategy,
Speaker:you also talk about building strategic
Speaker:partnerships. Let's focus on some of the
Speaker:key elements of an effective marketing
Speaker:strategy that you outline in the book and
Speaker:how businesses ensure that they're
Speaker:targeting the right audience?
Speaker:So again, and there's various things I'll
Speaker:talk about 2 or 3 that I think are easy
Speaker:ones to do is first of all market
Speaker:research and that analysis you know, you
Speaker:need to do some market research, but the
Speaker:things you're looking at is, you know,
Speaker:competitive strengths, weaknesses and
Speaker:threats. You know, those are things that
Speaker:are sometimes obvious through, you know,
Speaker:word of mouth kind of research,
Speaker:Identifying what people are good at, you
Speaker:know, like if you look at basketball
Speaker:players, Jordan and Shaquille O'Neal,
Speaker:they knew each other's weaknesses and
Speaker:strengths and they pushed themselves. If
Speaker:we know what our compa- you know, don't
Speaker:look at competitors as a negative, look
Speaker:them as a positive, because there are
Speaker:things that you're gonna be stronger at
Speaker:and things that you're not. So work on
Speaker:the nots so you can go above. Because
Speaker:what I see a lot of people do, a lot of
Speaker:businesses do is that they can
Speaker:complacent, they know they're really good
Speaker:at something, but they stay there. Your
Speaker:role is if you want to get above is
Speaker:actually how can you go above that. So
Speaker:doing market research is important.
Speaker:Finding the right people with the right
Speaker:skills to do it. That's the thing is you
Speaker:have to find someone who's good at it.
Speaker:You know don't just I couldn't do it to
Speaker:the level that it needs to be, but if you
Speaker:find the right person, they know how to
Speaker:do that. Smart goals, set measurable.
Speaker:Again, it's always about what is it that
Speaker:you want from it? And so many people do
Speaker:not know what they want from it. They'll
Speaker:say, Oh, we want to make more money.
Speaker:Well, that's not enough. You have to put
Speaker:it more practical. Again, get the Lego
Speaker:pieces, write them down and focus on what
Speaker:they are. And if you cannot measure what
Speaker:you're trying to do, then don't do it.
Speaker:Just don't because you're not going to,
Speaker:you're not going to learn from it. So
Speaker:whatever thing you do when it comes to
Speaker:marketing, make sure you can measure it
Speaker:with a report, with numbers, with
Speaker:something, so that you can look back and
Speaker:go, OK, did it work or did it not work?
Speaker:Why didn't it work? If it doesn't work,
Speaker:it's great that it didn't work because
Speaker:you'll learn from it. We only learn from
Speaker:our mistakes. So for me, mistakes are a
Speaker:good thing. Don't look at it as a
Speaker:negative. So for me, if you can't measure
Speaker:it, don't do it. And the last 1 I would
Speaker:say is partnerships and collaboration. I
Speaker:think too many people look at
Speaker:partnerships as a negative, as in, you
Speaker:know, what if they're going to take my
Speaker:client away or what, you know, that kind
Speaker:of worry of the, but actually what
Speaker:positives can you get from it? You know,
Speaker:when we are absolutely inundated with,
Speaker:marketing and posts and all that, if we
Speaker:partner with the right person or they are
Speaker:organization, you're going to have such a
Speaker:broader reach with hardly any effort if
Speaker:that makes any sense. And it's your
Speaker:opportunity to enter the room and show
Speaker:what you're good at. And There's so many,
Speaker:you know, big corporates do partnerships
Speaker:all the time because they see the
Speaker:benefit. They don't see the negative. So
Speaker:if you do partnerships and obviously
Speaker:small businesses, they really struggle to
Speaker:figure out how to do that. And it's
Speaker:really looking at What are you weak at?
Speaker:And is there anybody next, you know,
Speaker:around that you trust who might be, you
Speaker:know, for example, I might be a company
Speaker:that manufactures product and our
Speaker:warehouse system just doesn't work or
Speaker:really, you know, delay. But if I partner
Speaker:with a dispatch center who does this for
Speaker:loads of companies, that works. And it
Speaker:helps both ways. So for me, focusing on
Speaker:partnerships in a practical way, you
Speaker:know, in small doing small steps, because
Speaker:it is quite a big in small steps. You
Speaker:know, it does work. And there's examples
Speaker:in the book that talks about that.
Speaker:Yeah, I mean, you just mentioned some big
Speaker:brands do it. Walkers and Pepsi are doing
Speaker:it right now for the Euros, you know, 2
Speaker:huge brands, but doing that partnership.
Speaker:And what I found with a lot of small
Speaker:businesses is there's so many
Speaker:opportunities out there, but some of them
Speaker:just either haven't thought about
Speaker:partnerships or don't have the
Speaker:confidence, feel that they're not going
Speaker:to add enough value to form a
Speaker:partnership. And I challenge you, just
Speaker:like Sandy is right now, in terms of the
Speaker:power of a partnership and the actually
Speaker:the amount of value that you can bring if
Speaker:you choose and find the right
Speaker:partnership. And I was laughing at smart
Speaker:goals, by the way, because a lot of the
Speaker:marketing strategy that I do and the
Speaker:workshops that I do, I do a LinkedIn
Speaker:workshop. And 1 of the first things that
Speaker:I say is, you know, actually, what is it
Speaker:you're wanting to achieve from LinkedIn?
Speaker:And they all say the same thing, you
Speaker:know, more money, more contacts, more,
Speaker:more clients. But if you go in to
Speaker:LinkedIn as a, with a marketing strategy
Speaker:of, I just want more business, it's never
Speaker:going to work. So you've got to have
Speaker:something very specific, measurable, easy
Speaker:to achieve, attainable, that smart
Speaker:objective. Have some, and so focused and
Speaker:targeted.
Speaker:Yeah. And thing is like for me, I mean, I
Speaker:don't go LinkedIn saying I want more
Speaker:business. What I use LinkedIn is, is to
Speaker:educate. That is my sole purpose is to
Speaker:educate. And as long as people come back
Speaker:to me and say, I love that post, I love
Speaker:that blog, I know that my purpose for
Speaker:LinkedIn is educating. It's not selling.
Speaker:I never sell on LinkedIn because it's not
Speaker:for me, but some people do. Like I said,
Speaker:it's something simple, measure, measure,
Speaker:measure. You know, it's boring, but it's
Speaker:the data, you can't lie with data.
Speaker:I think 1 of the chapters you talk about
Speaker:leadership And I know we talked about
Speaker:earlier But 1 of the things that
Speaker:interested me was that some of the
Speaker:feedback that you've had is that that's
Speaker:actually 1 of the big biggest chapters
Speaker:that gets people to reflect just tell me
Speaker:some of the stories that you've heard
Speaker:already about what some of the MDs that
Speaker:have been reading this have said about
Speaker:that leadership section?
Speaker:Yeah, so what they've said is they didn't
Speaker:realize that because they're so busy
Speaker:trying to grow the business, you know,
Speaker:more money, you know, bigger turnover,
Speaker:that actually they've not focused on the
Speaker:stuff that has to be done before, which
Speaker:is the foundations of the people and the
Speaker:culture, because they're so busy chasing
Speaker:the next contract or the next tender or
Speaker:whatever. And what it's done, it's made
Speaker:them reflect on how they are as a leader
Speaker:in an MD, because obviously anyone can be
Speaker:an MD, but doesn't mean you're a leader.
Speaker:It's 2 separate things. And to be a
Speaker:leader means you have self-awareness of
Speaker:your role as part of the team. You know,
Speaker:you are there giving the vision and the
Speaker:drive to the people within your team. You
Speaker:know, they're not going to put as much
Speaker:energy in your business if you do not
Speaker:acknowledge their role in all that. And
Speaker:so, you know, 1 guy said to me, I saw
Speaker:myself as a leader because I was the MD,
Speaker:but actually reading the book, I've done
Speaker:none of that. Yes, they've all got good
Speaker:pay. But as a leader for what it's meant
Speaker:to be I've not done that so he's now
Speaker:gonna go through the the workbook area to
Speaker:Change, you know at the mission statement
Speaker:that actually means something, you know
Speaker:in the book I talk about mission vision
Speaker:and so on A lot of these are fluffy words
Speaker:for a lot of people. But actually, it's
Speaker:it's a statement that says this is how we
Speaker:are. But the empty does not behave in
Speaker:that way or does not demonstrate through
Speaker:their actions. No one's going to buy into
Speaker:it. So their actions actually say a lot.
Speaker:And so yeah, that was kind of an
Speaker:interesting, I wasn't expecting that 1 to
Speaker:be so brought up is the leadership, it is
Speaker:about self reflection. I was saying to
Speaker:before I self reflect how I was last year
Speaker:the year before, because if we don't,
Speaker:we're never going to learn anything from
Speaker:how to be a better version of ourselves
Speaker:for next time, for the next year. We need
Speaker:to give ourselves purpose, even as a
Speaker:leader. So yeah, that was an interesting
Speaker:reaction to the book, is a leadership
Speaker:bit.
Speaker:Yeah, it's interesting, isn't it? How
Speaker:it's only until you start reading
Speaker:something or listening to something that
Speaker:you actually start reflecting and
Speaker:reflection is so important. You believe
Speaker:strongly in storytelling, which in
Speaker:marketing, I think, actually a lot of it
Speaker:is around storytelling. What's your,
Speaker:what's your thoughts on storytelling and
Speaker:how important that is?
Speaker:So for me, the biggest challenge in the
Speaker:business is change management without a
Speaker:shadow of a doubt is when you're
Speaker:introducing change to people, people
Speaker:don't like that they see it as a negative
Speaker:because that's you know I'm familiar with
Speaker:something whether it's a process or a
Speaker:procedure that is how I know and when you
Speaker:change something people are like oh my
Speaker:god what does that mean they really go
Speaker:into the negative they don't see change
Speaker:as a positive and as a whole storytelling
Speaker:is the easiest way to get people to buy
Speaker:in because you're bringing them along.
Speaker:You're putting purpose into what you're
Speaker:doing. And, you know, it's So key to, you
Speaker:know, everyone talks about storytelling
Speaker:when it comes to marketing, which is
Speaker:obviously, you know, narrative marketing,
Speaker:etc. But if you use stories to
Speaker:communicate why you're changing
Speaker:something, you're naturally bringing
Speaker:people into your world as to why you're
Speaker:doing it. You're not doing it because the
Speaker:MD decided we're going to do something or
Speaker:the office manager decided on a whim, but
Speaker:too many people make changes without
Speaker:really communicating it. And just telling
Speaker:people why you're changing it doesn't
Speaker:work. But bringing a story element does.
Speaker:And unfortunately, when I use the word
Speaker:storytelling, people think it's a fluff
Speaker:term because it's very soft. But like the
Speaker:frame, the ISO, it's just a framework of
Speaker:communication. And 1 book that I tell a
Speaker:lot of my clients to read is Build a
Speaker:story brand book by Donald Miller
Speaker:great book great
Speaker:It it I mean he plus the research that
Speaker:he's done with and Dr. JJ Peterson about
Speaker:storytelling and the framework, it is
Speaker:perfect for SMEs. It really is. And it's
Speaker:not just a corporate thing, storytelling.
Speaker:And so I try to help my clients use that
Speaker:framework to communicate change. And it
Speaker:does take time and practice. The first
Speaker:time it may not work, but as you go and
Speaker:get used to it, it does actually work
Speaker:because people understand and they will
Speaker:buy into it. Sandy,
Speaker:we're coming to the end here. There's so
Speaker:much if we had to, if you had to
Speaker:summarize the book, what would you think
Speaker:of the top 3 takeaways that you really
Speaker:hope readers are going to get and take
Speaker:away from this? What would be your top 3
Speaker:takeaways?
Speaker:I would say the first 1 is think of your
Speaker:top 3 areas that you want to focus on.
Speaker:Our brain cannot cope with more. I mean,
Speaker:the book has a lot of topics, but
Speaker:prioritize the top 3 and focus on those
Speaker:top 3 because don't get distracted by
Speaker:everything else. Again, use Lego to
Speaker:visualize those 3 things. So whether you
Speaker:put a word in each Lego block just to
Speaker:kind of focus it right. I'm going to
Speaker:focus on this 1. The other 1 is bring
Speaker:people along, talk to your staff. They
Speaker:are the ones who do the work. Guess what?
Speaker:They'll have great ideas. So
Speaker:collaborating with your staff, with your
Speaker:teams, bringing them along just makes
Speaker:things better. It really does. And the
Speaker:last 1 is self reflection. I really, I
Speaker:can't say how self reflection, whether
Speaker:you're the manager or the MD or the
Speaker:leader, self reflection of where you are
Speaker:versus what you're doing with your team
Speaker:does actually have a big impact. So for
Speaker:me, those 3, 0, can I add another 1,
Speaker:sorry? Is communication, Understanding
Speaker:how to communicate with your staff
Speaker:because unfortunately there's a lot of
Speaker:different types of people who process
Speaker:information differently. So understanding
Speaker:the intricacies of different people with
Speaker:whether they have ADHD, dyslexia. There's
Speaker:a lot of ways people learn and knowing
Speaker:what works for each member of staff as a
Speaker:whole does help you ensure that whatever
Speaker:you do moving forward does get through to
Speaker:people. Sorry, I had to add that.
Speaker:Well, we can have 4 takeaways. I'm just
Speaker:wondering if you've got what the next
Speaker:exciting thing you've got coming up,
Speaker:because you've spent so long on this
Speaker:book. I'm just wondering what the next
Speaker:thing for you is if you've already set
Speaker:your own Smart objective or if it's back
Speaker:to focusing on the business What's next
Speaker:1 thing? I'd love to do and I've and I'm
Speaker:planning it for the next 12 months is I
Speaker:want to go into businesses and put some
Speaker:and guide them through some of these
Speaker:principles because even though you know
Speaker:it is very practical sometimes people do
Speaker:struggle to interpret that into their own
Speaker:business because guess what they're busy
Speaker:doing stuff so I've targeted myself to to
Speaker:to work with businesses do workshops and
Speaker:actually go through some of these and
Speaker:make it where they can ask questions,
Speaker:because we learn by asking questions. And
Speaker:so that's kind of what I'm focusing on,
Speaker:because I really do believe in my book.
Speaker:It is what I do, and I have done in the
Speaker:last 8 years, and I know it's worked. So
Speaker:I kind of want to expand it to actually
Speaker:make it into a workshop with people so
Speaker:they can air out their worries and their
Speaker:struggles and use my dyslexic
Speaker:problem-solving skills to help them
Speaker:through that process.
Speaker:I love this. The listeners and viewers
Speaker:right now wanting to grab the book, where
Speaker:should they be going?
Speaker:So they can get it on any Amazon platform
Speaker:or, my kids think this is funny, if you
Speaker:want to sign copy you can buy directly
Speaker:from my website because apparently that's
Speaker:very popular. So, yeah, if you want to
Speaker:sign copy, you get it from myself on my
Speaker:website and you'll get a signed copy. So
Speaker:we'll put we'll put the links in the show
Speaker:notes. I highly, highly recommend you buy
Speaker:this book and read it and start
Speaker:implementing some of these practical tips
Speaker:into your business. They're so
Speaker:actionable. I like the word how you
Speaker:called it a workbook because it is a book
Speaker:that you can literally work through. And
Speaker:then I think it's about thinking about
Speaker:whether you should be engaging with
Speaker:somebody to help you actually through
Speaker:this and start focusing on your business.
Speaker:And, Sandy, thank you so much for joining
Speaker:the podcast. It's, it's been an absolute
Speaker:pleasure. We could have talked for much
Speaker:more. We've not even, you know, there's
Speaker:so much we've not covered away from the
Speaker:book as well. But I am really thankful.
Speaker:I'm thankful for you listening and
Speaker:watching as well. So thanks for joining
Speaker:us. Please do subscribe, let us know what
Speaker:you think, give us feedback. And I'm sure
Speaker:that Sandy is up for answering questions
Speaker:as well afterwards. Best place to find
Speaker:you online, is it LinkedIn or?
Speaker:LinkedIn is where I'm always at, but my
Speaker:website does have a contact sheet. But
Speaker:yeah, I'm happy to give my email address
Speaker:on the notes afterwards if anyone wants
Speaker:to get in touch directly.
Speaker:Fantastic. Listen, this has been Jonny
Speaker:Ross, Fractional CMO with Sandi
Speaker:Dominguez-Shippley with her new book,
Speaker:Building a World Class Business. Go out
Speaker:there, buy it and start changing your
Speaker:business today. Thank you so much, Sandy.
Speaker:We'll see you all soon. Take care.
Speaker:Thanks a lot, Johnny.
