Differentiate Your Personal and Professional Brand in a Saturated Marketplace with Mary Southern: An EOFire Classic from 2022

0:01John Lee Dumas:Boom! Shake the room, Fire Nation, JLD here and welcome to Entrepreneurs on Fire, brought to you by HighLevel, the all-in-one sales and marketing platform. And on today's classic episode, we'll be breaking down how to differentiate your personal and professional brands in a saturated market. So drop these via bonds, I brought to Mary Southern and the EO Fire Studios. Mary is the founder of Resume Assassin, an entrepreneur and resume writer, helping clients land high-paying jobs and win premium clients at top companies. And today we'll talk about how to satisfy clients by making them feel valued and helping them achieve their goals with the right tools, how strong customer relationships value in a smooth journey, turn customers into advocates and build brand awareness cost effectively and oh, so much more.

0:40John Lee Dumas:And a big thank you for sponsoring today's episode goes to Mary and our sponsors. Fire Nation, is your business stuck? Join Eric Trump and Clay Clark's life-changing business conference, November 5th and 6th in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Learn the specific proven systems Clay Clark has used to create thousands of success stories today at thrivetimeshow.com slash EO fire. Again, request tickets today at thrivetimeshow.com slash EO fire. If you are building a real business, you need real infrastructure. High level gives you website hosting, funnels, email marketing, automation, calendar booking, payments, and course hosting all on one platform.

1:15John Lee Dumas:Plus award-winning 24 seven support, get a 30 day free trial and my full bonus stack that includes a 15-minute private call with me and much more at highlevelfire.com, highlevelfire.com. Mary, say what's up to Fire Nation and share something that you believe about becoming successful that most people disagree with. What's up, Fire Nation? This is such a great day and I'm so excited to be here. One thing that I believe about becoming successful that most people disagree with. And I love this question. For many entrepreneurs, a large part of their success, or maybe even most of their original success, stemmed from one decision or one relationship.

2:02And you know what? I heard a quote recently that I really loved. The distance between where people are and where they want to be is often a lot smaller than we think in our mind. And you're really only one decision away from trying to close that gap. So the decision to try is such a powerful one. So if you're in a position of, you know, starting a business or growing your existing business, keep pushing forward because your next decision may be the one that takes your company to the next level.

2:33John Lee Dumas:Think about that, Fire Nation, one decision away. I just love that concept. I love that idea because it just feels so attainable. And as I mentioned in the intro, we're sharing how to differentiate your personal and professional brand in a saturated marketplace. So I want to dive, Mary, into the meat and potatoes here. How can entrepreneurs create a brand that stands out in a saturated marketplace? Yes. Well, great. And I want to start here. So if you're listening to this right now, Fire Nation, and you're someone that wants to become an entrepreneur, but you don't think that you have any skills, let me tell you, I've been there.

3:13Let me also tell you, this is not true. You have a skill that you can get really good at or a passion that could bring significant value to a lot of people. You just truly need to find it. There are people out there who started companies to pick up dog poop. So, I mean, come on, that's awesome. And I can't say that I haven't considered starting a dog poop, picking up company myself. But so after I nailed down one of my passions and seemingly one of the few marketable skills that I thought I had, I conducted market research to discover how many resume writing companies existed overall in my area.

3:50There were tons. And one thing that I noticed was that other companies were boring, super generic, really no brand and no edge at all. So it was like they were either trying to be overly professional, but there really was just no brand voice. So I wanted to be unique, create a memorable logo, a theme, and identity. And the world of resume writing can be incredibly formal. So my brand identity, Resume Assassin, definitely creates a sense of curiosity. And I came up with a vision of a ninja with tattoos. So it's definitely out of the ordinary. In fact, several years ago, I was featured in a hometown newspaper.

4:32And I actually got some hate because of the name. But it also encouraged people to reach out, to ask questions. And I picked up some new clients that way as well. So in the end, I ended up creating a brand to actually thrive and stand out because of a saturated marketplace. And one thing that's important to think about, no matter what stage your business is in, is how you can best appeal to your clients or your prospective clients. and so you know to quote a famous copywriter the vast majority of products are sold because of the need for love the fear of shame the pride of achievement the drive for recognition the yearning to feel important the urge to be attractive the lust for power the longing for romance the need to feel secure and the terror of facing the unknown so emotions are the fire of human motivation and And so this made me think even more about my goals and how I could differentiate my brand messaging based on the unique goals of my clients.

5:36So I want to satisfy my client's yearning to feel important and proud of their achievements by equipping them with the tools to land their dream jobs or for entrepreneurs to land their dream clients.

5:48John Lee Dumas:Emotions are the fire of human motivation. I just love that phrase. and there's something else, Mary, that I was thinking about when you were talking about that longish quote that you shared. This is a shorter one, but I think it encompasses similar things, which is love me or hate me, there's no money in the middle. And so many people try to play that middle game. They try to resonate with everybody and they, in the end, just resonate with nobody. So I want to niche down a little bit and just speak specifically to the female demographic. How can a one woman service-based company gain traction in today's world?

6:24Yes, absolutely. And it's so tough. I mean, whether you're a man or a woman, if you run a service-based business, it's so tough to gain traction. And so that's a great question. And I want to talk about four ways to help your business gain traction based on my own experience. So after creating my brand, of course, my identity and my mission, it was time to find my ideal customer. But even more importantly, from the beginning, I wanted to do everything in my power to make sure that my customers had a good experience and the best ROI. So your brand truly means nothing if you can't find customers or if you can't satisfy your customers' needs.

7:08So I quickly learned that for me, it was simply a waste of resources to spend money on pay-per-click advertising for a small service-based business. So the first way to help your business gain traction and truly one of the best things I did to build my brand in the early stages of my business was to create customers that were brand ambassadors and advocates. I did and I still do everything that it takes to make sure that my clients are happy, you know, and even more importantly, that they have success. My clients' reviews, testimonials and referrals are truly the gas that keeps my business running every single day.

7:48And I began asking for reviews with my very first client. Secondly, it's incredibly important to build a strong network and forge mutually beneficial partnerships. So, you know, in addition to creating brand advocates through my clients, I rolled out an alliance partnership program, which is another great way to spread brand awareness. And as a small business owner, word of mouth referrals are literally everything. And an alliance partner can truly advocate for you and your brand. And it can also help you tap into new markets, opportunities and communities. The third way to gain traction is through social responsibility.

8:27So contributing to a social or an environmental issue that you truly care about will help you build stronger and more personal relationships with your customers. And finally, pricing is another way to help your brand stand out. And I've restructured my pricing a lot since I first launched. And in fact, I basically gave my services away in the beginning. But this was such a great way to build my initial client base. And to this day, I'm still searching for that sweet spot where I can provide the most bang for my client's buck.

8:59John Lee Dumas:One thing that I've realized over the years is that so many people start with one single client, with one single customer, and then they struggle to grow from that point. Like they have that individual, that person, that avatar, and they serve them so well. But what we need to talk about right now is some strategies to go from that one client, that one customer, to a diversified and thriving business. How do we do that? I love this. And, you know, there are, of course, there are so many ways that you can do this. But today I want to talk about three different ways. So according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, you know, I'd say about 20 % of new businesses fail during the first two years and about 65 % during the first 10 years.

9:45So my company's been around for almost 10 years now. So my number one goal, of course, was to create an authentic customer experience and a journey while always under-promising and over-delivering. So the underlying theme for me has always been quality and consistency. And that's so important. So that's number one. If my clients had a terrible experience and zero results, I guarantee my business would be in a much different place today. And another thing I've intentionally done is keep my business relatively small to provide the personalized attention while building truly trusting relationships and, again, ensuring my clients achieve their goals.

10:27So, of course, if your clients achieve their goals, they'll be more likely to write reviews and provide referrals in the future. The second way is through social media. or for me more specifically finding your niche within social media and I know you know it's an incredibly powerful tool but I don't spend a lot of time creating social media content for every single platform out there because I believe in putting a lot of your time and energy and a one platform that truly works for you and your business and for me that platform is LinkedIn and I've been able to leverage LinkedIn to do a lot of really exciting things.

11:05You know, of course, as your business grows and scales, likely your social media strategy will as well. And finally, stepping out of your comfort zone. And I resisted this for so long and I still resist stepping out of my comfort zone all the time. And I'm sure many of you do as well. And let me tell you, though, from personal experience, growing your brand and differentiating yourself definitely means you'll need to step out of your comfort zone at least every once in a while. So I've turned down so many opportunities out of fear in the past. And so truly going on this podcast is very much stepping out of my comfort zone.

11:44So yes, that would be the final thing.

11:47John Lee Dumas:Well, I love all those things and Fire Nation going back over them. It's one quality consistency, like make sure that's part of your ingredients for success, finding your niche within social media and then stepping out of your comfort zone. And I like to say all the magic, not some of it, all of the magic happens outside of your comfort zone. So if you want any magic in your life, in your business, Fire Nation, you will step out of your comfort zone. And Mary, I want to commend you for stepping out of your comfort zone and being on Entrepreneurs on Fire here today. I know you've been a listener for a really long time and I so appreciate that being part of Fire Nation.

12:24John Lee Dumas:And now you're on the other side of the mic and now you're going to be impacting Fire Nation, giving value bombs to Fire Nation, impacting their lives, potentially, seriously, changing somebody or somebody's multiple people's lives with this single episode has happened before and will definitely happen again. So I commend you for that. And Fire Nation, we have some really important things to talk about when we get back from thanking our sponsors. Fire Nation, is your business stuck? Join Eric Trump and Clay Clark's life-changing business conference, November 5th and 6th in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Learn the specific proven systems Clay Clark has used to create thousands of millionaire success stories.

13:01John Lee Dumas:See thousands of success stories and testimonials from real people just like you who Clay Clark has mentored and coached into prosperity at thrivetimeshow.com slash EOFire. Clay's proven business coaching program is month-to-month and it costs less money than hiring a minimum wage employee. Yes, it's month-to-month and costs less money than hiring a minimum wage employee. Schedule your free personal 13-point assessment with Clay Clark himself today at thrivetimeshow.com slash eofire. Because Clay only takes on 160 clients and only allows 300 attendees to each business conference, you will interact with Clay directly.

13:33John Lee Dumas:See thousands of real success stories and learn about attending the Thrive Time Show two-day in-person workshops featuring football star and entrepreneur Tim Tebow and President Trump's son, Eric Trump, today at thrivetimeshow.com slash eofire. become the next success story. Schedule a free consultation and request tickets to join football star and entrepreneur Tim Tebow and President Trump's son, Eric Trump, at Clay Clark's next business conference today at thrivetimeshow.com slash EO Fire. Fire Nation, if you are building a real business, you need real infrastructure. That is why High Level is Entrepreneur on Fire's featured partner.

14:06John Lee Dumas:High Level gives you a website builder and hosting, funnels and landing pages, email marketing, appointment scheduling, payment processing, course and membership hosting, and so much more. Everything you need to succeed, all under one roof. No duct tape, no juggling five platforms, just one clean system for your business and their award-winning 24-7 support has your back when you need it most. When you sign up at highlevelfire.com, you also get my exclusive bonus stack, a 30-day free trial, a private 15-minute call with me, JLD, access to my weekly live office hours, a digital copy of my book, The Common Path to Uncommon Success, my 50 Days to Something execution roadmap, and more.

14:45John Lee Dumas:Visit highlevelfire.com and start building your something today. Mary, we're back and I want to talk strategies. What are your top strategies to get new business? One strategy that any entrepreneur can use to get new business, and I create brands for my own clients, I mean, day in and day out through resume writing. So when you think about it, really it's not that different from creating a brand for a business. So, of course, in business, you want to create a brand that resonates with your clients. And as a job seeker, you want to create a brand that resonates with your potential employer. So as an entrepreneur, you're always looking for creative ways to win new business.

15:32And many entrepreneurs look past a resume and the value it brings. But let me tell you, I've created resumes for entrepreneurs to help them win seven and eight figure clients. In many cases, these prospective business opportunities or clients aren't familiar with their background, their past clients, their previous projects or other major wins that they've had. So presenting a resume as a tool with their other marketing material has proven to be incredibly effective. So I've worked with solo entrepreneurs and CEOs of startups through large companies that want to acquire new clients, get a board position, or even potentially have a one-page networking resume to bring to networking events.

16:19I've also worked with small companies, like a team of eight who wants to show the client who they are, where they've been, and what each individual offers. So writing individual resumes for each member of the team has also proven to be incredibly effective. And best of all, resumes are tax deductible. And so like John said, I always listen to his podcast when he brings on small business tax experts because they bring so many value bombs. One of the best decisions I made in my own business was hiring a tax professional that specializes in small businesses.

16:55John Lee Dumas:I love that. And Fire Nation, that's actually why every income report, which we actually recorded one today, has our tax professional, Mr. CPA on Fire himself, Ron, give an amazing tax tip. And this one's actually about the Inflation Reduction Act, which impacts all of us as entrepreneurs. So I love that share, Mary, for sure. Give us one unique keyword here, unique strategy that we can use marketing our business. Creating a resume. as an entrepreneur. And I also want to talk a little bit about why it's important to create a personal brand for job seekers in a saturated marketplace. Because the reality is that as an entrepreneur, you're going against so many incredibly talented individuals.

17:48And as a job seeker, the job market is incredibly saturated in most industries. and so many of my job-seeking clients are competing for you know sought-after positions at some of the world's leading companies so you know it's my job to create to help them create a brand and a story that highlights their unique value through their achievements and their impact so there's a bit of strategy that goes you know behind this and it's also my job to maintain that up-to-date expertise on you know current human resources processes and and systems to give them that leg up in the market. And it also means that their brand needs to be carefully written so that they don't deter themselves from getting past those automated screeners or the applicant tracking systems that many companies have put into place today.

18:36And then it also needs to be compelling enough to stand out to a human reader. So, you know, for them, copying and pasting the job description into the resume just won't cut it. And so another way that, you know, a job seeker can differentiate their brand is by creating compelling cover letters and optimized LinkedIn profiles. And, you know, again, I've been incredibly blessed to work with a lot of highly successful clients who've, you know, gone on to land super high paying jobs, you know, at some of the world's leading companies like Google, Amazon, Tesla, SpaceX, Apple, Microsoft, Meta, Pfizer, Johns Hopkins, and so many more.

19:13John Lee Dumas:What I love about Mary amongst many things, But the one thing I want to talk about is she is committed to the niche of all the things you can take away. I mean, the unique strategy, the top strategy, all these different things we're talking about here today. She's committed to a niche and she's winning as a result because she's going above and beyond in that specific area. As I like to say, she's becoming the number one solution to a real problem in this world, Fire Nation. Are you doing the same? I want to tie this up with a bow and come full circle, Mary. Why is a personal brand important in a saturated market?

19:49It's so incredibly important. As a small business, brand awareness and recognition, it can take time to build. Connecting with your customers, taking care of them, driving true value, streamlining their journey and nurturing the relationship. And then, you know, finally building customers as advocates and brand ambassadors are truly the best and, you know, and the most cost effective ways to build brand awareness, you know, increase your value and achieve that growth as a small business owner, especially, you know, in the services space.

20:28John Lee Dumas:So, Mira, you've shared so many value bombs in today's episode. I want you to take a step back here. Take the mic. Take a deep breath. What is the one key takeaway out of everything we talked about, everything we shared, that you want to make sure Fire Nation really gets from our conversation? You know, as an entrepreneur, a resume can serve as a marketing tool to strengthen your brand, to win new customers, to land a board position or help you achieve your goals. You know, so again, I've written resumes for solo entrepreneurs, CEOs and small companies to showcase their value proposition in a really unique way and ultimately capture some six figure and seven figure clients.

21:14John Lee Dumas:So if Fire Nation wanted to connect with you to learn more about what you have going on, what is your call to action for us? How can we do that? Sure. So I actually created a step-by-step guide specifically for entrepreneurs, how to write resumes to win seven and eight figure clients. And you can pick that up on my website. So it's www.resumeassassin.com slash entrepreneur. And of course, you can And also schedule a free 15-minute consultation with me if you'd like to learn what type of resume brings a value bomb to your business. And feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn as well. You're the average of the five people you spend the most time with.

21:57John Lee Dumas:You've been hanging out with MS and JLD today. So keep up the heat. Head over to eofire.com. Type Mary, M-A-R-Y in the search bar. Her show notes page will pop up with everything that we've talked about here today. resumeassassin.com slash entrepreneur. Get over to that URL to get that amazing giveaway that she has provided for you. And Mary, you did mention something about jumping on a call. What was the details there? So you can schedule a free 15 minute consultation with me. If you jump on my website, resumeassassin.com, you can set up a phone call there. And I'd love to learn a little bit more about your goals and what type of a resume could bring value to your business.

22:43John Lee Dumas:Fire Nation, for an entrepreneur like Mary, nothing is more valuable than time. And she's willing to give you 15 minutes of her time. So please, if anything that she said connected with you, jump on that call, have a conversation with her. I can promise you, you will be better off for it in those 15 minutes. And some people will be way better off for it. So Mary, thank you for sharing your truth, your knowledge, your value with Fire Nation today. For that, we salute you and we'll catch you on the flip side. Hey, Fire Nation, a huge thank you to Mary for dropping value bombs and sponsoring today's episode.

23:20John Lee Dumas:Fire Nation's successful entrepreneurs are great at three things, productivity, discipline, and focus. That's why I created the Mastery Journal, the Mastery Journal, so that you can master productivity, discipline, and focus in 100 days. and we're talking step-by-step, visit themasteryjournal.com. I'll catch you there or on the flip side. Fire Nation, is your business stuck? Join Eric Trump and Clay Clark's life-changing business conference, November 5th and 6th in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Learn the specific proven systems Clay Clark has used to create thousands of success stories today at thrivetimeshow.com slash EOFire.

23:58John Lee Dumas:Again, request tickets today at thrivetimeshow.com slash EOFire. If you are building a real business, you need real infrastructure. High Level gives you website hosting, funnels, email marketing, automation, calendar booking, payments, and course hosting all on one platform, plus award-winning 24-7 support. Get a 30-day free trial and my full bonus stack that includes a 15-minute private call with me and much more at highlevelfire.com. Highlevelfire.com.