Death to Vanilla Podcast | RECAP | FT. Steven Burkhart and Rylynn Trader

Steven Burkhart: Well, Hey, everybody, welcome to the death to vanilla podcast. This is a little bit different than our normal episode we do not have, we do not have a guest this week. And so we decided that it'd be super fun for us to do a recap of the different podcast episodes and guests, we have to share a little bit about what we've learned. And so I am the host, Steven Burkhart, of Burkhart creative agency. And the reason we have her here is because she actually edits like 99% of everything you guys see. And so she actually gets to learn alongside of me as we listen to the podcast. So go ahead and introduce yourself really quick to the audience.

Rylynn Trader: I'm Rylynn Trader, I do a lot of the post production of the videos. And that's pretty much it.

Steven: Cool. Yeah. say like, it's not like the reason we're able to do everything we do. So I appreciate it. Okay, cool. So our very first episode was Ryan Solomon of entre, which I used to call entre, but it is, that's not how you pronounce it. And so that was really embarrassing for me. But we worked through that. And so it's Ryan of entre, entre entre. And so, here is what I learned from his podcast. So just for a little context, they, he does content production for them, because like the Content Manager, and they focus a lot on the fundraising space in the VC space, and especially in like the tech industry. So not all of it was stuff we like, necessarily dabble in all the time. 

Steven: But it was really helpful. And so in talking to him, I learned that he had done magic, like, performed on the street, doing magic. And so that was really fun. And so I was like, hey, how have you really found that to move into business? Like, how is it really effective, because it's kind of unrelated thing. And so, for me, I was like, okay, maybe he liked magic, because he was able to, like, grab people's attention. But what he actually said was, it was really good for him connecting with people, because of the fact that magic is such like an interactive thing. It was really good, because he actually learned the art of interacting with people really well. And that's really helped him build relationships, especially pre COVID, when they actually had, like meetings that they have a go to. So that's my first one. We'll jump to your first one.

Rylynn: Well, a lot through when Ryan was talking, he was talking a lot about how his company uses a lot of person to person interaction for their reach. So it's organic reach, because it's not the company paying people or to advertise for them. They're just putting stuff out there and then having their customers talk to other people. So that way, they're kind of reaching and getting that kind of spread of Yeah, company

Steven: Sucks, that is COVID. Now, they're like, don't get to do much of that. So you can only do so many zoom meetings before you jump off a cliff. Second thing I learned was doubling down on a niche. And so one of like, the niche content pieces that he mentioned was memes. That was that was like really popular in the tech space. People were getting like a little savage about it. And so there's like some playful banter and stuff happening with that. And so that was really funny to hear, because I definitely hadn't seen any of it. But that totally reminds me of like, what happens with the Wendy's, like Twitter account. They're always like, bagging on her. Yeah. Burger King. And so are McDonald's, which is usually Burger King.

Rylynn: I think both like just people in general like anyone else. Anyone? Yeah.

Steven: And they're so clever. Uh, huh. They're so good. I don't know. I don't know if it's kind hearted, but it is hilarious. So what's your second one?

Rylynn: Oh, well, Ryan talked a lot about accessibility platforms. So a lot of people are going to be on platforms like Tic Tok and Facebook and Instagram, and triller just because they're going to be on there, like it's on their phone, they're bored, they're going to pick it up. So why not advertise on those platforms? So he talked a lot about that. And I feel like that's kind of, for us. That's general. But for some people, it may not be as as much of an option like some people choose radio or TV, but definitely look into those easy to get to platforms.

Steven: Well, and the reality is, is like a CEO is going to be on there. Like what are the chances that like, Jeff Bezos is actually using Twitter like, possibly, I mean, I don't know if he's doing all his own tweets, but that's true. You might be able to actually connect with him. You just never know. Elon Musk does i mean i'm pretty sure those he says some goofy things. I'm guessing it's actually him as like a weirdo running his account. But I kind of hope he calls me out because we'll get all this traffic from. Burn us so good. Cool. So that was it for Ryan. So next was Dennis Gable with brnd prdcr with no consonants. You know how hard that is spelled right all the time. Yeah. br nd Anyways, what was your What was your big takeaway from him?

Rylynn: He talked a lot about companies getting outside of their comfort zone because a lot of times they like to stay in this safe area. And his personal brand is getting out of there and kind of going on the more dangerous more edgy more. Maybe I shouldn't say that side. And so I thought that was really interesting how he's like, guiding them through this process of getting outside their comfort zone and finding their brands like uniqueness and stuff.

Steven: Yeah. Well, and it's just the idea of risk taking, right, which was one thing that I thought really stood out to me that he mentioned was just like the fear of taking a risk. And it's this idea that sometimes you play things up in your mind that it's going to be a bigger deal than it really is. And then you try it and it actually works out really good. Case in point the one company he did work for I want to say there were realtors correct me if I'm wrong, but yeah, they he ended up using like the color pink in one of their bus stop advertisement locations. And they were like, Nah, like, Pink's not professional enough. 

Steven: And he's like, dude, you're gonna get seen? Yeah. And so on the client part, there's a fear that like, Hey, we're not gonna be taken seriously. But then kind of, oddly enough, there's almost like a fear on Dennis's part where he's like, if I do this ad, and it doesn't stand out. Yeah. So it's worked out really good for them. But just taking that chance is huge. Because there are things that you can do the can wreck, your marketing. Yeah. But most of the time, those are pretty far and few between, and maybe bouncing ideas off of people as a way to kind of navigate some of that. So it's not just one person's opinion about whether or not they should post something that's horribly inappropriate.

Rylynn: Yeah. And there's a good risk like risk to it too, because your brand can get a lot of traction from one risk that you took, even though you can have that like, small chance of flopping. But right, there's an even bigger chance that you'll do really, really well. Well,

Steven: If you do something boring, there's like 100% chance Oh,

Rylynn: Yeah. So why not take the risk?

Steven: What else did you like from him?

Rylynn: He was really authentic to himself. So he talked about how one of his first meetings he ever had, he wore a suit and a tie and a tux. And he said, I will never ever do that again. Because that's not me. That's not my brand. That's not how I want this brand to be. And if someone's not comfortable with him showing up and a shirt, and shorts and flip flops, then he doesn't want to work with them. Right? So I thought that was really interesting.

Steven: He needs to like, move to like California, and just be like surf brands, if you're gonna rock flip flops. That's true. But yeah, that was kind of like piggybacking off of that, just the idea that people are looking for brands that are authentic, and then the same way that he needs to make sure he is authentic, in his own way. Your brand has to be authentic in their own way because he is actually doing a better job being less formal, because of the fact that people connect better with him. And when your brand is putting their image out there if it's something vanilla, oh, dropping that AIO then you know, there's nothing to connect with. You know, if if the business doesn't know where it stands, and people don't know how they stand with that business and so don't be afraid to tweet that. I actually can't remember what it was it was that was totally off the cuff. So for brand doesn't know who they are. what they stand for, if a brand doesn't know what they stand for, then a customer doesn't know where they stand with them. Boom. That's tweetable dropping bombs.

Steven: All right, next up we have Caroline, and she was super funny because she saw like Dennis had his own business. She does not have her own business per se. She works for someone but she's had experience with just like so many auto dealerships. car dealerships, what what was what stood out to you about what she does.

Rylynn: So before she does anything for a client before she picks, or before they pick what they're going to do, she really digs into like her research and finds out what that client wants and how that was interesting because Dennis does the complete opposite. He doesn't find out what the client wants, because he wants to find out what that person is like in person and then builds off that. But Caroline, what she does is she goes and does all this research and finds out what the best plan of action is going to be. Whether it be luxury or a family type feel or humor. She really wants to feel out what it's going to be before she creates that ad or commercial for them.

Steven: We have because a lot of what she does is with luxury brands, there's obviously like some protection that that brand wants to have around the name and Lamborghini or Ferrari or whatever else just can't have anyone just saying whatever they want about their brand, because

Rylynn: It's just not gonna work out.

Steven: No, not at all. For me, what I really enjoyed is just hearing about people who are really embracing, like doing whatever they can to get noticed, right. And so, like, for me, the guy that I think of when I think about doing anything to get noticed is like Grant Cardone. And so it's been fun to watch him on like undercover billionaire and stuff, just be obnoxious. But he's one of those guys. It's like, he's not confused about what works. people's attention is needed so that you can sell them. And so like with Caroline, she was talking about how one of the guys that does that owns an auto dealership wears a pickle suit in his videos, because how can you look away from that? Yeah, right. It's like a plane crash. You want you? You don't want to watch him?

Rylynn: Watch it.

Steven: I don't know. I don't even know how I can say the words right to talk about what I'm talking about. But all I know is he wore a pink suit. And it gets people's attention. And that's pretty well. So that was like my big thing from her.

Rylynn:  

So next we're gonna dive into Sean Castrina I think I'm saying that right. And he is he does 10 minute is it? Business 10 minute little segments on the radio, I believe 10 minute entrepreneur, 10 minute entrepreneur. And he just talks about entrepreneur. He's a serial entrepreneur. So he does a lot of and he's written books. And so he's really credited. And he was a really awesome guy. And I feel like he talks a lot about planting your feet and your business and really getting in front of the right audiences. Because if you're not in front of the right audiences, he's not going to make money and you're not going to make money. So why would he go in front of people that's that aren't going to buy what you're selling?

Steven: Yeah, I think I know, he really challenged me to make sure that we had like a claim to fame, right? That was like the there's two big takeaways, but that was first one, it was like having a claim to fame. And so that was definitely challenging for us. Because I believe we we were clear about what we were offering. And we were clearing clear and how we were explaining it, but we didn't have a claim. And so we were having a conversation, like a week ago about how annoyed I am that claims work. Because it's like, it kind of seems like corny, like, oh, like we're the best like says who, you know, like I said, it reminds me of elf when he's like world's best cup of coffee, congratulations. Like literally bought a sign that said world's best cup of coffee, like no one validated that claim.

Steven:  And so that was that's been really challenged. That's a big challenge for me, because I always want to make sure whatever claim I make is true. Authentic, right. And so and I'm a enneagram, five. And so I'm not necessarily just going out there and ringing the bell for myself all the time, which is whatever. So all that to say is that it really challenged me to make sure that we are ringing the bell for ourselves, we're making a claim. And then we're living up to that claim. And so that's when we came up with where your number one choice for amplifying your advertising, because that is what we do. And that's what we believe we do. And that's what we deliver on. And we offer services that make that happen. And so that felt authentic to us. But it was also a claim. And so thank you, Sean, for that helpful tip. Because we actually used it. So that was my first thing. What was it? What else did you like?

Rylynn: So he does layered marketing, which I thought was super interesting, because I've never heard of that before. But he does. Like he said he's retired from radio, but he used to do radio and commercials and TV. And he kind of talks about and I already kind of mentioned this, but how it's important to plant your feet in one project, because a lot of companies will start and try to do all these things. And then that's a lot of the reasons why a company will fail or crash because they're not focusing on one area and building on it and making sure it's firm and then moving on to that next area of growing the business.

Steven: So what do you mean by planting your feet,

Rylynn: Like really digging into whatever project you're doing? Whether it be okay, I really want to focus on advertising. So I'm gonna go out and I'm gonna post all these things, and I'm gonna have these certain days where I do this and this rather than, okay, I'm going to do advertising and I'm also going to go to person to person and then I'm going to go do this, I'm going to go do that. So really focusing on one area of your business and making sure it's good before moving on to that next area,

Steven: Making sure you can see results. Yeah, I agree. I think the other thing that I loved about him is you know, we're in the digital marketing space specifically, you know, that's kind of our our home base, but he was always So very much like what you talked about first, like understanding your audience, like, if your audience responds well to mailers, like physical mail going to a mailbox, wild idea, so old and yet works, right? We've built businesses doing that. And so just making sure that you're not just looking at, Oh, do I use Facebook or Google? Do I use YouTube? or Vimeo? Do I use this or that? Like, I'm really going to actually discover what my audience responds well to and go from there. And thankfully, by now, there's a lot of research on that. But that's also part of like what you were saying that he mentioned, which was spending enough time trying something that you can see results, whether good or bad, and then move on to the next thing, rather than just like, like leapfrogging between things before you actually have a chance to like see how they work out

Rylynn: Before seeing any results at all.

Steven: So that was good stuff. Yeah. Unsurprisingly, the guy who started gazillion businesses brought a ton of value. So all right, who we got up next. Shondell

Rylynn: Varcianna. Am I saying that? Right?

Steven: I believe you are. That's a beautiful last name.

Rylynn: It is a beautiful last name. And a beautiful first name, Shondell. I know right? Shondell, what's your name is Shondell? Right?

Steven: They're not vanilla. Nah.

Rylynn: I thought it was interesting that she talked about. So she does. I believe it's bank marketing.

Steven: She works in finance.

Rylynn: She works in the finance industry. And so she does marketing for that. And she was talking about how I think you guys kind of talked to both about this, but how most banks offer like pretty much the same thing. And then she talks about building relationships with your clients. So that way, when another bank is offering something cheaper, that they're not just going to leave you at, honestly, do you even want a customer that's going to leave you because then it's a short time customer and you're not ever going to see like a profit off of that, or that relationship. So building those relationships, they're going to last a long time and profit that person and your business.

Steven: Right. And that was really, like the funny thing we got into with that was this idea of making the content that isn't like a direct sale, right? So there's direct sale content, like, you know, you post an ad and it says buy this T shirt, right? That's like, you know, you spend so many dollars, you get so many back, there's a clear return on that investment. But then there's also like the post that you either spend money blogging, or maybe you promote it with advertisements of some sort where it's like, three things you need to buy for your new house. Well, like that doesn't do a bank any good. Like, no one's gonna click a Buy button on that. But it's that relationship building where someone can say like, hey, this, this person is actually giving me information. That's helpful for the phase of life that I'm in right now. Yeah. And because of that, I'm gonna trust them just a little bit more than I did before I saw this. And then that cycle continues, and all sudden you have someone like you said, Who's faithful, who is a loyal customer that is not going to be pulled away by price alone.

Rylynn: Yeah. That's super important. She also, she went into during the beginning of the podcast, she mentioned that she wasn't even looking to get into anything like that, like blogging or any of that stuff where her husband's like, Hey, why don't you try this out. And now she she met this lady and I forget her name, but they both ended up profiting off of each other, just really like building a big audience. And they can reach out to which I thought was super crazy.

Steven: Well, and what she ended up diving into is like the her superpower was seeing both sides of the coin, right? She was in the finance industry for years and years and years. She understood it very well. But also the fact that she was just a human being that needed to bank as well means that she understood things from the client side as well. So then when she when she made content through blogging, or some sort of strategy, that the suggestions that she made were balanced between what the bank wanted and what the client wanted. So that way, it wasn't just a one sided perspective of someone who's just living inside of the financial institution trying to figure out how they're going to reach someone. She was able to bridge that gap, which is huge. If you want to get money. Last one, yo, Gabriella. She was super fun.

Rylynn: She was she's really fun.

Steven: So Gabriella was actually in Spain. So that was wild. It's so cool. I mean, like, I know, I hate zoom. And I hate that. That's like a thing we use now. But at the same time, pretty cool that we can talk to someone in Spain.

Rylynn: I think it was like 9pm her time. Oh, my goodness. 9pm her time and then yeah, I don't know what it was like to in the afternoon or something like that.

Steven: Yeah, one. Yeah. I was like it was after lunch for me and just before bed for her. Yeah, that was kind of fun. What was your takeaways on her?

Rylynn: I thought she was just super interesting because she brought a lot to the table. And she talked about a lot of really interesting thing. And I'd really encourage anyone listening to this podcast, definitely go listen to that one, because she provided this like outside look on the American marketing industry, because she was like, here in Spain, it's very traditional, they don't really go outside that comfort zone. So they don't really have workplace equality quite yet there, which I thought was super crazy. So she kind of talks about how they have to market more towards certain people, because that's what works in Spain. But in America, there's a lot more broader people that market to because we have a lot more people to market to strip.

Steven: Yeah. Because it's like, yeah, cuz the variety of cultures that are here, you know, it's always surprising to me like, it's not that there's not a mix, but like the mix of cultures and other countries is not nearly as much. Yeah. And so, you know, sometimes we throw around the word minority here, which is not inaccurate, there are minorities, but when you go to a number of other countries, it's like, it's pretty much just them. Yeah. And unless you go to like a really isolated location, which I think is really fascinating, because it does provide a unique challenge for people marketing in the United States, that if you're marketing, say, in Arizona, where we live, there is a huge Hispanic population, there's also huge white population, there's also a huge California population, not they're not a race, but are they? But the point is, they have a different value system. Yeah, certainly, you know, California is very, very blue, very liberal. So like, there's certain things that can appeal to them. 

Steven: That won't appeal to other states. And so just add to say, is that there's a challenge in trying to reach everyone somewhere. And so her perspective was definitely from like, a global perspective, which I thought was really cool, which is like, Hey, I do marketing in the United States, a new marketing in Spain, a new marketing in, you know, Latin America, and everyone has a different approach to things, I need to make sure that when I walk into a meeting, that I'm asking the right questions to discover what platforms they use, what kind of what's what's crazy, what's boring in this culture? Like, how do I speak to the people in this specific culture, the best thing that will really last point in general. But the last point with Gabrielle, it was just this idea of treating brands as people so that when you walk through and you're talking about your brand, that as silly as it sounds going through, like, oh, like, what is your brand listened to? What kind of clothing does it wear? 

Steven: What kind of perfume? Does it where like, where does it go to hang out? Like, those things are kind of an odd way to describe a business, but at the same time, it humanizes it. And because of the fact that humans are interacting with it, it kind of makes sense. And so you, you get a chance to think about, okay, what does my brand stand for? And what does the audience have reaching for? Maybe you know, what the audience is, maybe you don't, but then you end up getting to do a little bit of comparison. 

Steven: Right? So like, you have to listen to the podcast, but like, if you know, your, your brand is like a punk rocker. And your ideal client is actually purchasing, you know, listens to classical music and talks about how the book was better than the movie, you're going to have a real hard problem connecting those two people together, there's a disconnect between your brain and your audience. And if the distance is that, that big guessing you're not selling anything, but it gives you a chance to reevaluate and humanize your brand a little bit, especially in a way that people who are less in like a artistic medium all the time can actually really get their mind around what this is like so. So I think that's, that'll do for now, that's a recap of our first several guests. And certainly, we want to say thank you to all the people who listened so far, our audience is growing. 

Steven: And that's really exciting. And thank you, obviously, to all the guests that jumped on thank you to Rylynn, who edited all the goodies, as well as will the podcast and all the shorts that we'll be putting out as well. So you guys can get a little bite sized pieces of the podcast without having to watch or listen to all 45 minutes. But I don't know I enjoy that on a good ride. Yeah, just so you know, if you're listening, we have a video podcast. If you're watching, we have an audio podcast. That way when you're driving to work, you can listen to it and not feel like you have to sit in front of a couch and watch something because sometimes that's that gets a little old, I get distracted. I pick up my phone and then I miss something and I'm sad. Yeah. Cool. So thank you guys for watching and hope you enjoyed another episode of the Death to Vanilla Podcast .