The USA Edition of the Strategy Sessions.

This episode was supposed to celebrate some of the great stuff in the US marketing world. Then George Floyd was murdered.

I nearly binned the whole episode but thought it would be more useful to use the platform to say something about his murder. And also discuss what it’s like being black in the UK.

Along with that discussion, we also feature two of the country’s best marketers and nicest guys – Rand Fishkin and Greg Gifford.

Rand is the cofounder and CEO of SparkToro, a new tool for audience intelligence and market research. He previously cofounded and led Moz, the SEO software company, and is the author of Lost & Founder: a Painfully Honest Field Guide to the Startup World.

Rand talks about what it’s like in the US during COVID, the launch of SparkToro and the marketing lessons he picked up along the way at Moz. He also talks about his future predictions for Google and what that might mean for the rest of us.

Greg Gifford is the Vice President of Search at SearchLab and has over 17 years of online marketing and web design experience. He’s an in-demand (and hilarious) conference speaker who lives for an obscure movie quote. Watch his T.O.P.T.I.P if you want to know how you can use Google My Business to help your local rankings.

Win Lost & Founder – Rand’s Best Selling Book

I’m giving away a copy of Rand’s book Lost & Founder.

All you have to do to win the book is answer the following question:

Question: What is the name of the football (soccer) team in Rand’s home city of Seattle?

Answer: Seattle Sounders

Winner: Jane

Listen / Stream / Download

Watch on YouTube

Show Notes

You can find Rand on Twitter and please do check out his new venture SparkToro, a seriously impressive tool.

Rand’s book recommendations are:

Obviously Awesome: How to Nail Product Positioning so Customers Get It, Buy It, Love It by April Dunford

No Hard Feelings: Emotions at Work and How They Help Us Succeed by Liz Fosslien and Mollie West Duffy

Great By Choice: Uncertainty, Chaos and Luck – Why Some Thrive Despite Them All by Jim Collins

And Rand’s own book, which I’m recommending not him! Lost and Founder A Painfully Honest Field Guide to the Startup World

T.O.P.T.I.P from Greg Gifford

Greg is Vice President of Search at SearchLab Digital a boutique marketing agency that provides Local SEO and PPC to SMBs all over the US and Canada.

Greg is on Twitter and LinkedIn and his Local Search Tuesdays is well worth checking out.

And My Bit

I’d love to hear what you think of the show and if you’d like to discuss any of the issues raised today.

Want to see examples of the different approach the media takes with the Royals.

See Noel Clarke’s tweet about his movie and read my post about being black in Northern Ireland and my experience of being cropped out of a press photo.

Not sounding white on your CV / resume – press report covering all the studies.

“The Windrush scandal was not an accident” read more here.

The stats for Black and Ethnic Minorities being fined more for COVID related violations.

 

Andi Jarvis, Eximo Marketing.

PS The best place to get me is on Twitter or LinkedIn – I’d love to hear what you think of the show.

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