© 2021 Rattleback and Prudent Pedal
Selling professional services is evolving. What does modern selling look like today?
Selling professional services in a technology-powered, content-marketing-inundated world is evolving. Is your firm adjusting its approach?
Our Leadership Heroes
Leaders have a HUGE impact on our work and lives. A firm’s culture drives its growth and leaders drive the culture. These are the special people who have inspired and taught us to be leaders.
Creating a Culture That Unleashes Your Firm’s Growth Potential
We cover the leadership behaviors that shape growth-oriented cultures and separate the best firms from the mediocre ones.
Leadership Foibles That Limit Firm Growth
Culture enables growth and leaders create culture. Are you creating a culture that enables growth or destroys your potential?
The Fears that Limit Leaders and Firms
What fears do we humans suffer and where do they come from? We discuss the roots of the anxieties that shape our thinking, drive our behaviors, and fashion our firms’ cultures.
How Fear Inhibits Growth in Professional Services
Fear is the elephant in the room of many professional services firms, fear of not knowing an answer, looking stupid, making a mistake, or “failing” in some way. Jeff Munn, a recovering consultant turned leadership coach, tells us how to recognize and address this obstacle so your firm can realize its growth potential.
The Growing List of Our “Biggest” Mistakes
We revisit one of our most popular–and humbling–podcast subjects, “How we’ve screwed things up–and learned–along our careers.”
How to Approach ESG Marketing and Branding Successfully
ESG will strategically impact professional services firms. Here’s how leaders can think about the ramifications to their firm’s positioning, demand generation, and employer brand.
The Risks and Rewards of ESG Positioning
Environmental Social, and Governance (ESG) may not be the simple, straightforward trend you think it is. How you position your firm’s relationship to each area presents rewards and risks to your brand and firm’s performance. Have you defined the risks and rewards for your firm?
How Will ESG Impact Professionals Services Brands?
In the great post-COVID reset, Environmental, Social, and Governance measures are moving front and center when accessing capital, proposing new business, and hiring talent. We discuss the strategic implications of ESG on firms and their brands.
Tips for Building a Base of High-Quality Leads
Every firm wants more leads. Here are some critical tips to get the most out of your lead generation investments of time and money.
Bridging from Intellectual Capital to Lead Generation: An Interview with Tom Hessen, CEO of 9 Lenses
We discuss how to use assessment tools throughout the marketing and sales funnel and the neuroscience behind driving higher quality leads and differentiated sales conversations.
Post-pandemic Lead Flow Research to Drive Your Lead Generation Strategy
What the early-pandemic and late-pandemic data say about leads and sales pipelines. We cover significant changes to lead volume, deal values, and sales cycle times. Is your firm’s performance up to par?
The Strategic Importance of Lead Management
Think you already know how to manage leads, don’t think lead management is important, or don’t know how to manage leads? This episode sheds light on the strategic importance of lead management and how top firms do it.
What is a Lead?
No term is more misunderstood in professional services marketing than the word lead. Learn why the proper definition is important and what it means to revenue generation activities.
Intellectual Capital Hits and Misses: An Interview with Thought Leadership Guru, Bob Buday – Part 2
The thought leadership thought leader, Bob Buday shares lessons learned from a 30-year career helping firms think about and publish thought leadership in Harvard Business Review, Forbes and other prestigious journals.
Intellectual Capital Hits and Misses: An Interview with Thought Leadership Guru, Bob Buday – Part 1
The thought leadership thought leader, Bob Buday shares lessons learned from a 30-year career helping firms think about and publish thought leadership in Harvard Business Review, Forbes and other prestigious journals.
What Firms Do Intellectual Capital Strategy Well?
Looking for a little inspiration to up your intellectual capital efforts from firms that are not McKinsey or Accenture? Jeff and Jason provide great examples of firms with disciplined, cool, differentiated approaches to their thought leadership.
How Intellectual Capital Removes Friction from the Buyer’s Journey
Intellectual capital isn’t just about problem definition and lead generation. IC should focus on removing impediments at each stage of the buying cycle.
How to Create an Effective Intellectual Capital Strategy
Your intellectual capital strategy must transform your core capabilities and knowledge into a compelling POV and real tangible client value.
What is an Intellectual Capital Strategy?
How does IC strategy differ from and relate to all the “strategies” within a firm and why the distinctions are so important.
Why Does Intellectual Capital Matter?
Laying the foundation for a successful intellectual capital strategy that builds brand relevance and drives growth.
We’re Back and Here’s What We’re Seeing for Clients in 2021
After a hiatus, Jason and Jeff talk about what they’re seeing and hearing from the market as we begin a new year, get to know a new administration, and endure the long pandemic slog.
Expanding Existing Client Relationships Through Cross-Selling
If cross-selling is an easy way to drive growth, why is it so hard to actually do? Learn how to be more effective using this strategy to drive growth.
How to Retain Your Client Base: Plugging the Proverbial Leaky Bucket
If a firm wants to grow more quickly, it must retain its prior year’s client base. How it achieves that differs by business model, culture, and economic conditions.
Professional Services Taglines: Critical Asset or Waste of Resources?
Is there a “Just Do It” for the professional services world? Jeff and Jason explore the pros and cons of taglines in B2B marketing.
Inbound Marketing — Vibrant? Dead? Or on Life Support?
Is inbound marketing still a viable tactic for a services firm? Was it ever?
Don’t Squeeze the Charmin! And Other Thoughts on Advertising.
Jason and Jeff share some of their all time favorite ad campaigns and what made them tick — both B2B and beyond.
Is Your Firm Ready to Grow Again?
Much of the economy appears poised for growth over the next 3 quarters — are you prepared to capture it?
Naming. What is it Good For? An Interview with Laurel Sutton of Catchword
With many consumer names facing stark criticism, do professional services firms face naming risk? Jeff and Jason explore the topic with naming consultant, Laurel Sutton.
You Need to Create Time to Think — Now More Than Ever.
Billability and utliization seem important. But, creating time to think is vital to the long-term health of every firm.
Building Confidence in an Insecure Firm
Firm confidence can be built. Jason and Jeff explore how.
Confidence. Does Your Firm Have It?
Just like in life, confidence drives everything a firm does. In this episode, Jason and Jeff discuss what a confident firm looks like.
Brand Relevance. Does it Squash Innovation?
Understanding where your firm is relevant is critical to successful marketing. But, can it stop you from making bold business decisions?
Should You Be Doing Research During the Pandemic? A Conversation With Mike Nash of KS&R
Is it appropriate to talk to customers in this moment? If so, how do you reach them?
Should You Adjust Your Marketing Budget During the Pandemic? If So, How?
If you can afford to do it, now is likely a smart time to market. But, for marketers forced to cut budget, what’s the right way to do it?
Marketing or Communications. What’s the Difference?
Firms often confuse marketing and communications. But, the truth is they’re quite different. And the distinction matters.
Marketing Through COVID-19. Much Needed Advice or Glorified Newsjacking?
Companies of all shapes and sizes have rushed to the table with COVID-19 messages. Is it helpful? Or just noise?
The Critical Marketing Questions You’re Not Prepared to Answer
We jump into the difficult questions that firms can’t answer or just avoid that make or break their success.
Shifting Thought Leadership from Brand Building to Sales Enablement
Why and how firms need to put more focus on activating thought leadership in the sale and inside client relationships.
Why Clients Don’t Choose Your Firm
What takes you from the “short-list” to “hired?” Jason and Jeff wrestle over this critical phase of the client buying process.
Making Thought Leadership Truly Digital for the First Time
Jason and Jeff explore how to flip from a linear, analog publishing process to a multi-directional, digital one.
11 Attributes of Exceptional Marketing Leaders
Jason and Jeff define the characteristics of a great firm marketing leader.
The Importance of Great Design
What constitutes great design? Why does it matter? And, why should professional service firms care?
What Marketing Can Teach a New Practice Leader
Marketers and practice leaders need to learn to get along. In this episode, Jason and Jeff discuss how to make that happen.
Experts Write!
Jason and Jeff finally agree on something. If you want to be seen as an expert, you have to produce intellectual capital. Writing may not be your strength, but professional services experts must write. Here’s why.
Should Marketing Be at the Leadership Table?
As usual Jeff and Jason disagree. This time over if, and when, a marketer should be a member of a firm’s senior leadership team.
Clients are Stupid!?
Have you ever heard something along these lines said in your firm? Jeff and Jason jump into the many reasons why clients make decisions that seem as irrational.
Our 7 Biggest Mistakes
From risk not taken to strategic decisions, Jeff and Jason go back-and-forth sharing their biggest career and marketing mistakes.
Martech Hysteria. Enough Already!
CRM, MAT, ABM. Jason and Jeff agree — for once — the promise that was martech has been underwhelming. Then, they discuss lessons learned from 10+ years with marketing technology.
Do You Need a $100k Website?
Jeff and Jason argue — literally this time — on how firms should think about investing in the web. Custom vs “out-of-the-box.” Internal vs outsourced. The gloves are off.
Video Killed the…Blogger
Cisco tells us that 80% of total Internet traffic is video. Jason and Jeff discuss what’s driving the video explosion and the 7 types of videos firms need to market themselves successfully.
Who Run Bartertown? Google…Google Runs Bartertown (and Everything Else)
As the central node on the world’s information network, Google has literally re-shaped the way we think. In this episode we talk about the role of Google in professional services marketing and how the technology is evolving to be even more useful for marketers yet more powerful for Alphabet.
Marketing Villains—The Fads and Campaigns We Love to Hate
We’ve talked about marketing heroes—now we talk about the villains. In this episode, we share some of the marketing fads and campaigns that have influenced society and our culture and affected marketing in ways that we find frustrating.
Marketing Heroes—Who’s Shaped Your World View? Part 2
Jason and Jeff continue the discussion on the people who have influenced them in their careers and in their thinking on marketing and business.
Productization—Turning Your Service into a SaaS Product
Have you ever considered turning one of your services into a product? In this episode, Jason and Jeff share reasons why you might consider it, how to do it, the challenges associated with it, and recommendations for doing it successfully.
Acquisitions—How to Have a Successful Integration
Whether you’re the marketing leader of a firm that was just acquired or of the firm that did the acquiring, Jason and Jeff share what you should be thinking about to make sure the integration is successful.
How to Kill a Practice
There comes a time when you just have have to put a practice to rest. But how do you know when that time has come? And how can you go about it? Jason and Jeff talk through how a professional services firm can go about killing a practice that’s no longer viable.
How to Develop and Launch a New Service
In the second episode of a three-part series on launching and ending services in professional services firms, Jason and Jeff talk about how practice leaders can take a successful engagement and turn it into a tangible service that a firm can build at scale and get growth opportunity from.
The Typical Mistakes Firms Make When Launching a New Service
Many professional services firms run into mistakes when they try to launch a new service, most of which could be a avoided with a little due diligence. Jason and Jeff discuss what due diligence should look like and how it can help firms avoid a lot of wasted time, energy and money.
Marketing Heroes—Who’s Shaped Your World View?
If you had to name the people who have had the most influence on you in the world of marketing and business, who would be on your list? Jason and Jeff share the people on theirs.
Dissecting the McKinsey Rebrand from the Outside
McKinsey & Company recently underwent a rebrand. While the changes they made may be subtle, the reasons for them are important. Jason and Jeff share their (somewhat opposing) opinions on the choices they made.
Let’s Get Radical – An Interview About POVs with Jody Padar, Author of The Radical CPA
Jody Padar, CPA and author of The Radical CPA, joins Jason and Jeff to talk about her radical point of view and how its changing the CPA profession.
Brands, Frameworks & Models: Oh My!
Brand initiatives in a professional services firm can be a bit complicated. Often times it’s because questions further upstream haven’t been answered. In this episode we’ll talk about what those questions are and what firms should be thinking about when it comes to developing and articulating a brand for their firm.
POV – It’s Time to Get One
A compelling point-of-view. It’s your firm’s central philosophy that can attract clients, and repel others. While the thought of repelling clients doesn’t sound ideal, you can actually drive away business by not having a point-of-view at all. Find out why having a compelling point-of-view so important and how can you go about articulating one for…
Comedy & Tragedy: Leveraging 4 More Story Plots in Your Marketing Activities
This episode continues the conversation on classing storytelling frameworks that can be used in firm marketing. Jason and Jeff pick up where they left off last episode and discuss the last four story types, including The Voyage and Return, Comedy, Tragedy, and Rebirth.
Battling the Monster: Applying 3 Classic Storytelling Frameworks to Firm Marketing
A great story, well told, has the power to leave a lasting impression and even inspire action. And when done right, storytelling can do powerful things for firm marketing. Learn about three classic storytelling frameworks and how to use them to market your firm.
Shaping, Building, Enlightening and Driving: All the Rest We Learned From the Best
The second episode in a two-part series on exceptional thought leadership marketers. Learn about the other four (out of seven) capabilities of the best thought leadership marketers based on Rattleback’s recent research study with Bloom Group.
Patience, Discipline and Truth-Seeking: Critical Capabilities of the Best Thought Leadership Marketers
Part 1 of a two-part series on exceptional thought leadership marketers. In this episode, Jason shares three of the seven capabilities of the best thought leadership marketers based on Rattleback’s recent research study with Bloom Group.
The Battle for Mindshare in Sales Training: CEB (Gartner) vs. RAIN Group
Two different consulting firms, two different views on sales training. So what sales methodology does each firm believe in and is one better than the other? A winner will be declared. Take a listen to find out who.
Are You Enabling Sales or Just Supporting It?
There are a lot of firms who have a sales support function masquerading as marketing. So what are the things marketing should be doing in professional services firm to enable sales, rather than just support it?
You’re Already Serving Me. Now Sell To Me. A Conversation with David Ryan.
David Ryan, founder of Gray Matters Group, joins Jason and Jeff to share his unique approach to growing the business development function of a professional services firm by empowering billable professionals.
Moving from Stupid to Smart
Feel like you’re stuck doing stupid stuff and wondering how to move to the smart list? This episode wraps up the series on stupid and smart things for marketing to do. Jason and Jeff offer advice for becoming a smarter professional services firm marketer.
Smart Sh*t Marketing Should Do
Last week we talked about the stupid things marketing shouldn’t be doing in professional services firms. So what are the smart things marketing should be doing to help their firm grow? Let’s take a look.
Stupid Sh*t Marketing Should Not Do
Pardon our language, but we’ve come across a lot of things that get thrown on marketing’s plate in professional services firms that simply shouldn’t be there. They’re either a waste of resources, they don’t align with a strategy, or they should be owned by partners instead. So what’s on the list?
Coining the Key Speech: A Conversation with CEO Gil Hantzsch of MSA
Gil Hantzsch, CEO of MSA Professional Services, joins Jason Mlicki to talk about the key speech he delivered to his employees to share his vision for the firm while in the midst of a rebrand.
Are You Managing a Brand? Or Minding a Legacy?
When you’re trying to build a legacy you’re focused farther out than meeting this year’s numbers. You’re focused on shaping how the marketplace views what it is you do. In this episode, Jason and Jeff discuss what building a legacy looks like inside a professional services firm.
How to Hire Agencies for Results NOT Deliverables
In this episode, Jason and Jeff discuss different types of agency-client relationships and offer perspective from both sides on how both agencies and the companies who hire them can have a better experience working together and ultimately, reach the desired results of a project.
Do You Really Need Brand Awareness?
Your firm may have brand awareness, but does it have brand relevance? And what’s the difference? In this episode, Jason and Jeff dive into the role of brand awareness versus brand relevance and how they fit together in a firm.
Managing Your HighPos
In the previous episode, Unleashing the Young Turks In Your Firm, Jason and Jeff talked about how to identify high potential employees. But once you find them—or they make themselves known—how should you go about managing them?
Unleashing the Young Turks in Your Firm
What does it mean to be a Young Turk and how can leaders identify and empower these people in their own firm?
Marketing Ruins Everything
Jason and Jeff discuss a list of things marketing has ruined, and on the flip side, what marketing has made better. And they leave marketers with a positive message on how they can differentiate themselves and be better marketers.
How Grant Thornton Punches Above Its Weight: Interview w/ Grant Thornton CEO Mike McGuire
Jeff McKay talks with Grant Thornton CEO Mike McGuire about the firm’s unique structure and culture that embraces disruption and facilitates innovation, creativity and growth.
Aligning Strategy, Leadership, and Culture to Serve the Mid-Market with Andy Bosman of RSM
Jeff McKay talks with Andy Bosman, Chief Marketing Officer at RSM, about the intersection of strategy, leadership and culture—and how when an organization gets those right, growth is the result.
Fixing What’s Broke — Guiding a Firm to Its Full Growth Potential
In Part 2 of our two-part episode, Jeff dives into what professional service firm leaders can to do overcome or avoid dysfunction and help their firm reach its full growth potential.
The BS of PS — The Inherent Dysfunctionalities of Professional Services Firms
Culture is at the heart of whether a company is going to succeed or fail. In Part 1 of this two-part episode, we explore the cultural problems that exist inside the unique environments of professional services firms that keep them from reaching their full growth potential.
Collapsing 7 Years to 2—Accelerating Your Journey to Expert Thought Leadership Marketer
Rattleback’s recent research, conducted with Bloom Group, on thought leadership marketing shows that the best firms have likely been at it for 4-10 years. In this episode, we talk about approaches firms could take to accelerate that journey.
Survey Said! Characteristics of Exceptional Thought Leadership Marketers
We asked over 300 B2B marketers…In this podcast, Jason shares high-level findings from Rattleback’s current and past research with Bloom Group into the characteristics of exceptional thought leadership marketers.
2019 Marketing Planning in 20:19
It’s planning season. What does a growth-driven marketing plan look like? What research should you do? How do you cascade down from marketplace issues to marketing strategies and quarterly tactics? We’ll answer all this, and more, in just 20 minutes and 19 seconds.
Who’s on the Bus? The 6 Critical Roles of Growth Marketing
So, you want to be a growth marketer. You’ve defined the skills and capabilities you need. But, do you have the right roles?
Dissecting the Skills and Capabilities of Modern Marketing
So, you think you’ve aligned the appropriate marketing model to your firm’s needs. But, do you have the skills and capabilities you need to get what you want for your practice? Let’s find out…
Picking the Right Marketing Model
There are two schools of thought on marketing a professional services firm. We explore the mindsets, cultures and structures of each and answer the central questions—”Which one is right for you?” and “Can you switch from one to the other?”
The Other Man Behind the Mic: Introducing Rattle and Pedal Co-host Jeff McKay
Introducing Jeff McKay, co-host of Rattle and Pedal, as he speaks about the meaning behind the name “Prudent Pedal”, his background in marketing, and what he’s learned from his numerous positions as a senior marketing leader within large firms.
One of the Men Behind the Mic: Introducing Rattle and Pedal Co-host Jason Mlicki
Introducing Jason Mlicki, co-host of Rattle and Pedal, who speaks about his role as Principal of Rattleback, how it came to be and what he’s learned as a recognized leader in the professional service marketing industry.
How Much Should You Spend on Marketing?
What do firms typically spend on marketing? 5% of revenue? 10% of revenue? Does it matter? Forget about benchmarks as we talk about how to develop a proper marketing budget.
The 4 Universal Stages of the Client’s Buying Process
There’s a massive disconnect between where clients spend time in their buying process and where firms spend time in the sale. In this episode, we jump right into the void.
Thought Leadership Marketing—What’s Absolutely Changing and What Never Will
Jeff and Jason discuss the things that will never change in thought leadership marketing and 3 big things that are—content consumption habits, trust in corporate publishers, and the role of digital media.
Responding to the Threat of Content Marketing
Jason and Jeff explore 6 potential responses firms can take to compete with the SaaS-driven content marketing freight train barreling down upon them.
The Marketing Trend Devouring Your Core Business
There’s a VC-backed, tentacled monster attacking the heart of your practice. It’s not AI, automation or blockchain. It’s much bigger and more dangerous.
Why Your Marketer Doesn’t Understand Your Firm’s Business
A lot of partners express frustration, either directly or implicitly, that their marketers just “don’t understand the business.” Is this a real problem? Or, just misaligned expectations? In our first episode, we dive head first into the issue. And, explore what it means — both for partners and for marketers.