Amanda Webb, Digital and Content Marketing Strategy
Support for Marketers and Business Owners
Amanda Webb works alongside savvy marketers and business owners to build online marketing strategies that deliver their business goals.
Her blog has won awards nationally and internationally, and she just loves to talk about marketing.
When she's not working, she loves watching Dr Who, playing with her cats and going for long cycles in the Irish countryside.
Who do you most admire in business?
I don't know if it was Dolly Parton or someone who works with her that sparked the Dolly Parton challenge, but it's genius. If you haven't seen it, it's a viral meme where you share a photo of yourself as it would appear on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and Tinder. Whether it was her or an employee, it shows she's willing to play with marketing.
It's easy to think that Dolly Parton and other entertainers aren't business people, but she's proved over and over that she is. Her success isn't a fluke, she's orchestrated it. So right now, Dolly is my hero. I hope I'm still smart when I'm her age and still loving my business and my work.
What companies or brands do you like or do you think are getting it right?
I like cheeky brands. Two that always make me smile are Innocent Drinks and Lidl. Both companies use newsjacking and humour without controversy to capture our attention.
Innocent drinks mix it up 'strange' posts with sales posts. One of their Instagram posts is a carousel of an exceptionally long key. It sounds strange, it is strange, but it made me laugh for a full five minutes. Even their sales posts are fun if you want to know how to create an advert people will actually watch, follow them on Instagram.
Lidl is also cheeky, and they're great at tapping into news stories. Here in Ireland, they jumped on a politician's snide comment about housing deposits and avocados but showing how cheap their avocados are (Twitter post).
What is the best advice you have ever received?
As a marketer, I have to write a lot. Ann Handley is one of my heroes. She wrote a book about copywriting which is just full of tips that you can follow.
One of her suggestions was to do a 'Dirty first draft' of whatever it is you need to write. Just sit down and write until you have your first draft done, good bad or otherwise. Don't be tempted to look back and fiddle with it just get it done.
Now you've done that you can go and edit. I'm obsessed with dirty first drafts now. I write faster, and I have more time for real editing.
What drives or motivates you each day?
I love my job because it's a good fit for me. I like the ever-changing nature of digital marketing, I love learning, and I love passing that knowledge on to other people. I love it when clients excel in what they do by following my advice, so I work hard at that. It's those little sparks that make me feel the joy in what I do. On a bad day, I just remember how much I hate having a boss. I imagine myself in a grey office with no control over my work, and everything seems better.
What are your thoughts on the future of social media?
I've recently started using an Occulus, Facebook's virtual reality headset and I can see the potential to build stronger relationships with small groups of people using it. I think the days of us broadcasting our entire life are gone (unless you are an influencer) and more people will want safer, smaller communities to be a part of.
That's where VR comes in. You can set up virtual reality rooms and sit in them with a select group of friends, just like real life but with everyone is sitting on their own couches in their own homes.
As people try to live more carbon-friendly lives, tools like this will help us stay connected and have face to face meetings even when you can't be face to face.
Do you have a mentor or do you mentor anyone?
I don't have a mentor, but I have a Mastermind group which has become an essential part of my business. One of the struggles of working by yourself is that you have no one to bounce ideas off of. My mastermind group is like a board of directors for my business. I'd actually love a mentor!
How do you network?
I'm an introvert, so sometimes I find face to face networking hard, but I still do it whenever I can. It's so important. I've found that meeting someone in real life and having real conversations is by far the best way to get referrals and customers. That's why I'm so keen on VR.
Some ways I've found to get over my introvertedness have been to connect with people in advance of events, and to ask the questions in a conversation to get others talking. It gives me time to compose myself.
How did you get into this line of work and what advice would you have for someone looking to get into the same line of work?
I fell in love with marketing whilst running my first business. I used to sell environmentally friendly corporate gifts. When the recession hit, I lost my big customers, so I decided to do the thing I loved the most, online marketing. It was an easy sell for me as people knew me from marketing my own business.
It's a story that you'll hear from lots of business owners now, but back then, there was less competition in social media marketing, and I was fortunate to pick up clients immediately.
What do you wish you had known when you started out?
Like most businesses, I was terrified of making mistakes when I started out. I soon learned that mistakes are the best way to learn. It's not fun when you make mistakes, but as long as you can see where you went wrong, you can correct it and move on.
What's the most common reason for people failing or giving up?
When you start a business, there has to be a real need for what you do. If you're not solving a problem for people, it makes it hard to sell. Many businesses follow their heart and not their head then struggle to make money.
What are you most proud of in your life?
All the clients that I've worked with when they succeed.
How do you define success?
Success is happiness. Yes, you need money to be happy but not all the money. If you wake up most mornings full of joy you are winning, and I'm getting there.
What do you think your unique skill(s) is that has helped you become successful?
I'm quite stubborn so will persist even if people get in the way. I can also be impulsive, and it's often the things I do on an impulse or come up within the middle of the night that has the most significant effect on my business. A skill I've learned rather than have naturally is organisation and planning. The better I get at this, the easier the business becomes.
What valuable lessons have you learned so far that you could share with our audience?
Work with the people you want to work with. It's tempting when you start out to grab every client you can. But over time I've begun to understand which clients are a good fit for me and I love working with them. It's hard to turn away customers, particularly in the early years of your business, but you'll be glad you did later on.
Is there anything new you are working on that you would like to share?
I'm an MC at Social Media Marketing World this year, so I'm working on my speaker intros.
Where's your favourite place?
I love being at home, fire lit, covered in purring cats reading a book. It's the simple things.
What is your hobby?
I spend almost all of my spare time watching films and reading books. I'm a sucker for a good story, and my excuse is that understanding storytelling is good for marketing.
Best holiday of choice?
Florence in Italy. There's amazing art around every corner, sunshine, history and great food.
What are you not very good at and What are you good at?
I have a terrible sense of direction, and I'm great at denying this. I'll try and convince myself I'm going the right way and it will only be when I'm 10 minutes in the wrong direction I'll admit I was wrong. Before Google Maps, I had to leave hours early for any meeting to make time for getting lost.
Which words do you overuse?
If someone could stop me saying 'So' at the beginning of each sentence, I'd be a happy bunny.
Your social media platform of choice?
For fun Twitter, for work LinkedIn.
When are you happiest?
Sitting on my couch in front of a fire with my cats sitting on my lap.
Your favourite writer, movie, singer and TV show?
There are so many, and they change all the time!
My favourite writer is Margaret Atwood. She's smart, a feminist and funny. I love that she does so much research for her books and that it informs the story. I'm currently reading 'The Testaments' her follow up to the Handmaids Tale. My favourite from her is Oryx and Crake.
I think Magnolia will always be one of my favourite films. There's a scene where the cast sing 'Wise Up' by Aimee Man. It's a cinematic masterpiece. If you see it, you'll know why I love it so much.
My favourite singer has to be Thom Yorke from Radiohead, his voice is so haunting, and the music is transformational.
My favourite TV show is Dr Who. I'm so happy we have a female Dr now. When I was a kid I dreamt of being a Dr Who assistant; now little girls will know they can be Dr Who.
Is there any quote you would like to share?
"It isn't what you have or who you are or where you are or what you are doing that makes you happy or unhappy. It is what you think about it."
― Dale Carnegie, How to Win Friends and Influence People