Dev Glover With Doing Your Dream

Intro: Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX studio in Atlanta, Georgia. It’s time for Atlanta Business Radio, brought to you by Kennesaw State University’s Executive MBA program, the accelerated degree program for working professionals looking to advance their career and enhance their leadership skills. And now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: Lee Kantor here, another episode of Atlanta Business Radio. And this is going to be a good one. But before we get started, it’s important to recognize our sponsor, CSU’s executive MBA program. Without them, we could not be sharing these important stories. Today on Atlanta Business Radio, we have Dev Glover and he is with Doing Your Dream. Welcome.

Dev Glover: Oh good morning Lee. Thank you very much for having me. I’m big fan of you and Stone’s work for the past decade and a listener, so to be invited to join you today is a real honor, and I’m excited to join you and create some great value for your listeners.

Lee Kantor: Well, I’m excited to learn what you’re up to. Tell us about your dream. How are you serving folks?

Dev Glover: Well, that’s a good question. Doing your dream is really a complete brand site for the empowerment of today’s hard working entrepreneurs, CEOs and founders and really three major areas mindset, money and marketing. So understand today we’re going to be doing a deep dive on marketing. So I’m very, very excited. And actually what I do personally is to really coach founders, CEOs and entrepreneurs to really reconnect them with their passion, clarify their strategic vision, and most importantly, come up with a consistent marketing strategy that targets the ideal core customer, the ideal customer.

Lee Kantor: Now, is that a mistake that entrepreneurs make, that they don’t really hone in on who that ideal client is, that they just kind of take a scattershot approach and saying anybody that basically can fog a mirror is somebody I’m going to talk to, and they waste a lot of time and resources going after the wrong people.

Dev Glover: Absolutely. The old throw the pen against the wall methodology really doesn’t work. And early in my entrepreneurial journey, I was completely doing the same thing. But one of the things that we do know is that it takes a lot of work and research, quite frankly, to identify the core customer. Nowadays, with the way that our population is changing, the way that social media is empowering everyone, it’s really, really critical to really identify the core customer. I like to say everybody wants to go wide when we should be going narrow. We should be finding that core group, that core customer base. Identify them, serve them, and retain them for the long term.

Lee Kantor: So any advice or strategies on helping a person kind of hone in on who this person or people are in order to be more effective in their marketing? Like is there some like what are some of the questions you ask your clients early on to kind of get an idea of who that optimal person is, because it may not be who they think it is, right? Sometimes you have to go layers deep to really get the right person or the right fit.

Dev Glover: And and Lee, you were exactly right. You mentioned the notion of the layers and going deep. And that is a lot of times the work that either we don’t want to do or we don’t know how to do. I would recommend a couple of things. One is when you look at your strategic vision for your company originally, who were the people that you thought you might serve? Who were the people that you thought would be best served by your product or service? A lot of times we get so busy and so overwhelmed that we actually forget to target, to be strategic with the clients that I work with, I really go deep on two things. Of course, demographics. We know a person’s age range, location or geography, income, ethnicity, etc.. But I say that in our current marketplace, psychographics is much more important. How does the person think? What are their societal opinions? What are their aspirations? What are their emotional feelings as it relates to your potential product or service? And then how do you, on a consistent basis, actually communicate that in a way that’s educational and that creates value? So as you mentioned, going deep really involves asking those questions and doing that research to really go deep on the layers like you mentioned.

Lee Kantor: So now in your business, have you identified who that optimal client is.

Dev Glover: Uh, you mean for myself?

Lee Kantor: Yeah. So because you’re helping entrepreneurs and marketers. But that could be a wide list. Or have you narrowed down, like, to an ideal customer for yourself and your firm?

Dev Glover: Um, for for my services, an ideal or a core customer is going to probably be someone who has definitely been in business for at least five years and someone who is the actual CEO or founder of the company. Lots of people are entrepreneurs, but everybody isn’t necessarily a CEO or a founder. So those persons who have written out a strategic vision for their company five years down the road, ten years down the road, who are really looking to actually get some traction. Those are the people that are really going to be my particular customer base, if you will.

Lee Kantor: So you want them to have some scar tissue that they’ve tried some things and they’ve attained a certain level of success, but maybe they’ve hit a plateau or they’re had a setback that you can help them overcome.

Dev Glover: Yes. That’s really what we see most often. The person does have some scar tissue. They have had some skin in the game. Sometimes there may be sort of a stalling if you will. Not always a setback. The way that we would think in terms of economics or income or revenue. But sometimes the person wants to be or needs to be reengaged with their original vision. I’ve worked in the past with a lot of entrepreneurs who are no longer enthused about their business, they’re no longer fulfilled by the work of their business, and in many cases, that has to do with overwhelm. Attempting to do too many things, attempting to be too many things to different types of people. And a lot of what I do is to help people sort of not sort of, but to formally refocus. One of the biggest refocus areas that I work on with clients is the notion of time blocking your revenue generating activity, time blocking your marketing. I advise clients and encourage them. The first two hours of your day should be time blocked with regards to marketing, that can be marketing strategy, social media outreach, community organizations, that kind of thing. But the first two hours of your day should be devoted to revenue generating activity, because entrepreneurs and founders and CEOs are responsible for revenue generation. I think my famous tagline for clients is marketing is not another thing to do. It is the thing. It is the thing that drives revenue. It is the thing that drives attention. And whatever gets you attention gets you paid and drives your revenue.

Lee Kantor: Now, you mentioned the term time blocking. Can you share a little bit for folks who aren’t familiar, um, about time blocking? Because a lot of times entrepreneurs are just going to triage one crisis after another, and they don’t really take control of their calendar. And in order to be successful, I think that you have to control your calendar. And time blocking is a great tool and technique to use to kind of get your calendar in order. So can you explain time blocking a little bit, and how to maybe take some baby steps to implement that and to take hold of your calendar?

Dev Glover: Oh, absolutely. I think one of the things, um, that I encourage clients to do is to look at each week as a unit of time. One week is a key unit of time. And, you know, a lot of times when we get to the end of the week, we’re exhausted. So we know that we’ve been busy. But the question really is, have we been productive? Have we really been strategic? And so to answer your question, to take some baby steps as it relates to time blocking. I guess we should initially define what time blocking is and in in my estimation, time blocking is the planning of and the setting aside. Of two hours of deep work where you focus on one key task for two hours. Now, some people may choose 90 minutes. That is a perfectly fine, fine time frame, but it’s a time block where you turn off notifications. You do not answer the phone. You’re not checking email. You are focused on one task. So for our conversation today as it relates to marketing marketing strategy, you may take those two hours and really focus on marketing strategy, social media interaction and engagement, focusing on this week what is going to move the needle this week in terms of my core marketing tactics? Who are the people that I need to reach out to again? Building relationships. Is my content really engaging and am I simply posting for the sake of posting? Or better optimally, am I posting to communicate and to give value to the customer? So you want to one look at our weekly strategy.

Dev Glover: Then number two, within that strategy, preferably at the very top of your day, I always use the analogy. For example, if you have a storefront, of course it can be any kind of business. But let’s say, for example, your doors open at 10:00. I always advise that the marketing of your business and revenue generating activity on a daily basis should be from eight until ten, two hour blocks. You focus on marketing, social media, outreach, posting for two hours every day and something really interesting happens. Lee, is that not only do people see increases in their revenue because they are consistent. Every client I have ever had says that one of the key benefits of this process is that they begin to feel that they’re in control of the business. They’re not overwhelmed and exhausted at the end of the week. They really feel like they own the business and own the marketing. And once you start doing that, it allows you not to be overwhelmed and not just to be chasing any activity that comes across your desk. It allows you to be one strategic and to get great results, which is increased revenue.

Lee Kantor: Now, when you’re working with your clients, um, what kind of is your role in this relationship? Are you just kind of sharing kind of general ideas of, these are things that could work, or are you rolling up your sleeves and saying, okay, we’re going to run some Facebook or LinkedIn campaigns, and I’m going to help you, you know, write the copy and, and put them out there. And then also, I’m going to help you decide which one of these headlines is generating more results. Like where? Where do you go between coaching and consulting and actually, you know, kind of helping the work get done and not just, you know, telling the person you should do this and then, you know, go forth and prosper.

Dev Glover: I think in most cases people want a little bit of both, but they do want some context for their coaching. So what I normally do is to really find out what is the strategic vision for the entrepreneur. And then let’s really look at what quarter are we in and what can we do over the next 90 days, for example, to really strategize where you originally wanted to be? So it really is the coaching model Varies by owner and by company. But I would say in 80% of cases it is going to be some coaching, but also some tactics helping the entrepreneur come up with tactics, in some cases helping them do the tactics, helping them do better, Facebook ads, helping them actually perhaps be more visible in social media, on the digital media, on the regular media, if you will, but to really also help with accountability. Now, accountability sometimes gets a bad word because people think that it’s a negative, but accountability is really just helping the people, helping someone understand that they own this. This, you own this business, and therefore you must gradually begin to feel that you own the marketing and communications of the business. This does not mean in every case that the person has to do it.

Dev Glover: They may have a team. 1 or 2 people could be even, it would be more. But I always want to encourage entrepreneurs, CEOs, founders that revenue generating activity is your number one priority, and whether you have a team or whether you’re doing it yourself, ultimately, you own that particular function and do not feel bad about the notion that you don’t know how to do it or any part of it. Because quite frankly, marketing is hard work. I’ve been doing it for 20 years, and sometimes a campaign will come across my desk and I think to myself, where do I even start conceiving this? So it cannot be the expectation for someone running a business, even if it is a one person business, that you come out of the gate, or even five or more years down the road, that you are a marketing master. But those persons who ultimately are successful are the people that understand and really sort of do the work that the marketing of your business is the thing that is going to ensure long term success and long term results, quite frankly.

Lee Kantor: Now, um, a lot of times entrepreneurs especially get this shiny object syndrome where everything new is something they have to try. And you know, kind of get their feet wet in, when a lot of times entrepreneurs would be better served just focusing in on existing customers or previous customers and just interacting and engaging with them in a productive manner. Because a lot of times for especially small businesses, their customers are really the key to success. The more you can deliver value to them and the better you can serve them, the more referrals you’ll get. And you can build from that base that of people who already know, like, and trust you rather than some stranger that doesn’t know who you are.

Dev Glover: Exactly. I think that’s that’s a really pivotal, pivotal point because you mentioned the shiny object syndrome. And of course, we as entrepreneurs, we sometimes we’re too attached to busyness and not not productivity necessarily. Um, so the notion of Reengaging your primary customer base. Really rebuilding relationships, reaching back out to people that you maybe have not been engaged in in a while. And, you know, a lot of times, um, this is particularly important for B2B or business to business. A lot of times, the business to business framework, if you will, is really in many cases about more personal relationships than relationships that are digital. Digital in nature. So have you reengaged former customers or clients? Not just through email, not just through an email program, not just through posting, but when is the last time you actually picked up the phone to a former customer to find out how they are? How is their family? How is the business? We hear a lot about in the marketplace today. We talk about things like authenticity and authentic connection. I think one of the most powerful forms of connection, of course, is personal engagement, which means that optimal engagement has really less to do with just something that is digital in nature, but is something that is human in nature, one human being talking to another human being, especially if you’re only know that person, and then finding what ways to continue to serve them, or finding what ways to serve them better.

Dev Glover: Um, for business to consumer or B2C. Um, when is the last time that we did a survey of our current customers? What would they like to see more of? What would they like to see less of? Are we really giving value? Are we educating the consumer? And depending upon the consumer base, are we even entertaining them while educating them? Some of the newer, um, data shows that about 25% of the US population is generation Z. Those folks up to about 27, 28 years of age. Um, and their buying power is running about 390 90 billion with a B dollars. And so while it seems as if they’re just buying things like tech and that kind of thing, they’re actually because of their social media savvy. They’re influencing their parents on purchases like homes, cars, appliances inside the home. So that particular consumer base wants entertainment and education. So depending upon who the consumer base is, there are a lot of things to think about in terms of creating value and in some cases, reigniting relationships.

Lee Kantor: Now, if somebody wants to learn more about your services and have more substantive conversation about your work, is there any resources that they can get in order to get kind of an idea of what to expect when engaging with you.

Dev Glover: Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. Um, anyone who might be interested in just connecting with me on whatever level, uh, can go to dev, dev, David Edward Gentry, Dev Glover. Uh, I’m sorry. Dev at Dev Glover comm. That’s at dev at Dev comm. And there are a couple of really powerful resources that that are already there in place for your listeners. One is something that is called the Target Marketing Mastery PDF, and it is a five step process. And some of the things that we talked about today, identifying your core target customer. And there is another, um, another document that I developed, uh, I call it, um, with humor, the O factor. And then it lists out the difference between demographics and Psychographics, and it gives you some sort of a step by step play in terms of how to use both for your core customer and me, because we are early on in the fourth quarter of the year, I want everyone to really finish strong. And so there is another document called Be More in 2024. And while it was developed for sort of early year strategy, because we are in the final quarter, some of those strategies and tactics are even more important than ever so that people can win big at the end of the year.

Lee Kantor: And any books you’d like to share? I know you have a couple of books that, uh, for entrepreneurs.

Dev Glover: Well, I do, I do actually, uh, thank you very much. Um, at Amazon, there are two of my books for the empowerment of entrepreneurs. The first book is called Doing Your Dream The Power Quotes, Doing Your Dream, the Power Quotes, and the other book is called Doing Your Dream Seven Steps to Creativity, Entrepreneurship and Wealth. And both of those can be found in digital format at Amazon.

Lee Kantor: Well, Deb, um, thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing such important work and we appreciate you.

Dev Glover: Oh, thank you very much, Liz. It’s been a real treat and a real pleasure to connect with you today.

Lee Kantor: All right. This is Lee Kantor. We’ll see you all next time on Atlanta Business Radio.