#ContentWritingChat, leadership and marketing
Rachel Moffett

#ContentWritingChat Recap: Leadership & the Future of Marketing with Gene Petrov

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For this round of #ContentWritingChat, it’s all about leadership and marketing!

It doesn’t matter if you’re building (or working for) a large or small company… Leadership is still crucial for keeping a team together and ensuring you’re able to experience big results. And of course, you have to get smart with your marketing strategies if you want to be seen online!

So, how exactly do these two things overlap? And what does it mean for you? That’s what you’re going to learn in this recap.

#ContentWritingChat Recap: Leadership & the Future of Marketing with Gene Petrov

Our guest host for this month’s chat was Gene Petrov. Gene is an active member of the #ContentWritingChat community and this was his second time stepping in as our guest host. As a leadership coach for marketers, he had tons of valuable advice to share with us, so let’s dive into all the tips!

Q1: What role do you think leadership plays in marketing?

To kick off the chat, we wanted to get everyone to share their thoughts on leadership and its role in marketing overall. How important is it? What does it actually mean for all of us? Well, here’s what you need to know:

Gene knows leadership is critical when it comes to marketing. As he pointed out, many bigger companies will have a position specifically dedicated to this to keep things in line when it comes to marketing, sales, and operations.

But even if you’re running or working at a smaller company, leadership is still fundamental. It’s an investment that’s going to impact your organization overall and really keep things running smoothly.

You also have to think outside of leadership within your team, and think about your audience as well. As Gene said, you need to consider how your marketing efforts are working. Are they helping you to create a connection with your audience, develop relationships with them, and nurture your community?

Whether you’re managing a team or it’s just you, being able to lead is still an essential skill. Marketers need to be able to share information, communicate constantly, and effectively represent brands and people.

Sarah was spot-on with her answer. As she said, good leaders educate, help, and encourage others, while also leading by example.

With proper leadership, Tamara said it will ensure everyone on the team is being heard and that everything is going to be organized and executed correctly.

Q2: What are the basics of leadership?

If you want to be a great leader yourself, you have to know the basics! These tips are going to help you out with that:

Gene feels communication is one of the basics of leadership. He also mentioned some other skills he feels are important, such as coaching, mentoring, and team building. Not only that, but he thinks a leader should create an atmosphere in which a team feels safe.

A great leader will listen, provide guidance, and be ethical.

In order to be a great leader, you need to know your goals, guide others, communicate the purpose, and listen to and weigh in on varying opinions.

Leaders should be able to hold their team accountability and trust them to get the job done without micro-managing. This is why it’s important to give your team the confidence they need to get the job done.

Other basic elements of great leadership include being able to take action, knowing when to delegate, and putting people first.

Ken feels there are a few key things successful leaders must have. They need to be able to establish goals, make sure the team knows their role in reaching those goals, and cutting out the drama so people can get the job done.

Leaders need to be willing to take responsibility for their actions and for their team.

Gaby’s basics include vision, communication, authenticity, accessibility, and innovation among others. These are all great answers!

Q3: How have things changed in leadership?

We know that the world of marketing changes often, but the same goes for leadership. Here’s how things have changed recently so you can stay up to speed:

Gene feels leadership has evolved from authoritarian to being more open to hearing alternate views. After all, the best leaders are going to involve their team in the decision making process.

Andrea said there’s been a shift to a more empathetic approach.

Leadership isn’t all about the boss anymore! Instead, Caitlin thinks it’s about fostering the growth of others and helping them to step into their own roles as leaders as well.

Being a leader isn’t a title you’ll necessarily be assigned. It’s something you truly have to earn.

As Colton pointed out, hierarchy doesn’t imply authority. You have to focus on building a strong bond with your team in order to become a great leader.

Leadership is a mentality of ownership and making positive change.

Q4: Where do you see the overlap of leadership and marketing?

Now the question is, how are these two overlapping? In what ways does leadership impact marketing and vice versa? Here are some responses from the chat:

Gene said leaders focus on how to serve their team (internal), while marketers are geared towards their audience (external). While leaders are guiding those on their team, marketers are guiding the community. Both are important roles, and as he pointed out… Effective leaders are effective marketers and vice versa. Each skill is crucial to your success!

A leader will provide a compelling vision and path toward your goal. In turn, Colton feels this provides the marketing team with the tools to shape the brand and the content that brings that vision to life.

You need leadership to create voice, strategy, a message, a mission, a product, and a goal. From there, you use all of that information to strengthen your marketing and make it more effective.

Good leaders and good marketers make the needs of others the top priority. They’re both responsible for building trust in order to inspire others to take action.

Both leaders and marketers can influence people to change when they do well at their jobs.

Q5: Why do you see leadership as vital to the future of marketing?

To help you understand why leadership is so important (and why you need to take it seriously), check out this advice:

Gene feels leadership is vital to the future of marketing because technology is quickly evolving. While he sees how beneficial tools can be to the job, he knows that building a community and nurturing relationships will take time.

Just like Gene said… Marketing that connects to and serves people is a differentiator these days!

With changes happening all the time, Sarah feels it’s important to have a leader that’s flexible and open to new ideas. And you also want to be able to admit when you’re wrong and try again.

If you don’t have leadership, your marketing might not have the cohesion or connection it needs to deliver results.

Markters needs to evolve and innovate and a great leader can help foster that and encourage all of the creatives and big thinkers.

Tamara said leadership aids in organization efforts while also being fundamental to growth and development within individuals and a team overall.

The online space is only going to get noisier and you have to stand out in order to grab attention. You need powerful marketing in order to cut through the noise and reach your target audience.

Q6: How do we sharpen the saw when it comes to leadership?

Gene said it’s not about having a fancy title. You can strengthen your leadership skills within your daily life. For example, Gene knows that being a father has helped him become a better leader, as well las building a business and serving others.

Another option is to educate yourself through books, blogs, podcasts, webinars, conferences, etc. Consider how you do your best learning!

Lexie mentioned the importance of communication and asking questions. It’s all about improving yourself and taking constructive feedback as an opportunity to do better next time.

Don’t be afraid to ask for feedback because it’s really the best way for you to grow!

This is great advice about taking every opportunity you have and using it as a learning lesson. Embrace your wins and failures and learn how you can continue to grow and strive to do better every time.

It can also be beneficial to spend some time around the leaders you look up to. Kathryn suggests learning from them and putting their tips to use. Figure out what works for you!

And of course, you have to be willing to try new things and be adventurous.

Sarah agrees that it’s just about getting out there and giving it a go.

And make sure you’re staying updated with any changes going on in the industry. You don’t want to fall behind!

Zachary’s advice is perfect. Never stop asking questions. It’s okay to be curious and to want to learn. Just make sure you’re always evolving and getting better at what you do.

Q7: How do we elevate the marketing industry?

Ready to do your part in elevating the marketing industry in 2019? It may sound like an impossible task, but together we can make amazing things happen! Here are some tips:

Gene feels it’s time to change people’s ideas about what a marketer is. It won’t be easy, but it would be worth it.

This idea of talking with your neighbors is a great way to look at things!

Remember: marketers are ultimately supporting the customers by delivering what they need.

You have to move away from self-promotion and focus on the people in your audience and their experience with you and your brand.

Leaders need to listen to what customers are saying and then cater content and offerings to their needs and desires.

Gaby said we can elevate the marketing industry through authenticity, innovation, fluid communication, creativity, collaboration, and more. All of these are essential!

Q8: Who are some leaders you admire and why?

For Gene, he really admires his parents and the work ethic they instilled in him. He also looks up to others such as Zig Ziglar, Simon Sinek, and more.

There’s no denying that Gary Vaynerchuk is one entrepreneur that truly stands out in this space.

Jade has been lucky to have some amazing leaders in his life, which is even more reason to surround yourself with incredible people on a daily basis.

Tim looks up to Mark Schaefer and others when it comes to inspiring leaders.

Are you wanting to join us for the next #ContentWritingChat? It happens on Twitter on the first Tuesday of every month at 10 AM Central! Follow @ExpWriters and @writingchat so you don’t miss anything!

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