Death Of Ads: Kiwi SMEs Grappling With How To Front Their Own Marketing

The demise of flashy advertising and catchy jingles has created new and uncomfortable pressure for mom-and-pop business owners who now have to front their own interactive marketing media, and it's a reality that's leaving many cold.

Presentation coach and former NZME broadcaster John Maybury said customers expect the people they are buying from to interact with them, but it's a level of personal engagement that few business leaders feel equipped and confident enough to handle.

"For most Kiwi SMEs, fronting a camera – even if it's your phone – for a LinkedIn Live or YouTube video is a daunting experience, but doing it well is now critical for business success.

"The businesses of 2022 – especially small and mid-market companies – are having to front their marketing with a level of sophistication and vulnerability which few feel prepared and skilled enough to accomplish."

The realisation prompted Maybury to team up with ex-journalists turned marketers like Colin Kennedy to launch Media Influence. This service teams business owners with journalists to create interactive media, particularly livestreamed videos, video cut-downs, and articles. Like consulting editor Luis Portillo, working journalists have also joined the team.

Maybury, Kennedy, Portillo, and some broadcasting celebrities from Essential Talent will interview paying business owners who want to create professional, engaging media to promote their business.

"Media influence helps personal brands and business leaders share their stories via a live-streamed interview with an expert or celebrity interviewer. Our technical team packages snippets from that interview and one of those snippets accompanies a press release to media outlets.

"We're taking Kiwi owners by the hand and leading them into this brave new interactive world of digital media."

He has advice for Kiwi mom-and-pop business owners and mid-market business leaders.

1. Be vulnerable

"Be emotive, be vulnerable. People are moved by emotion, vulnerability, and authentic conversation, but you must be truthful and honourable with yourself."

2. Share your story

"I told my HIV+ story, and I was terrified. I was questioning myself about 'what does this have to do with business or life?' The reaction was overwhelmingly positive. It netted me two speaking engagements – everybody has got a story”.

3. Don't get hung up on quality

Maybury said people would listen to you in a dark echoey room if you have a good story.

"The ability to tell the story is where the gap is, one that is almost unbridgeable without some help. Getting attention, even media exposure isn't about who you know – it's all about the story. One thing that hasn't changed is that you need a journalist to help you tell that story."

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