INBOUND 2021 Takeaways Part 3 of 3: Leadership Lessons to Guide You Into 2022
As we get ready to wrap up 2021, we’re also wrapping up our Inbound Takeaways Series.
We’ve been sharing the lessons and best practices we learned at Hubspot’s Inbound virtual conference this year. This is Part 3 in our series that included Part 1: Content Strategy Priorities and Part 2: An Inbound and ABM Lead Gen Comparison. We’re ending the series by sharing some of our favorite leadership lessons and quotes we heard at Inbound.
Here is the best advice from our favorite Inbound speakers and how you can use their lessons to drive more success for both you and your brand in 2022.
Do Your Research
“You have to do the research. If you don't know about something, then you ask the right people who do.” -- Spike Lee
Spike Lee is a director, producer, screenwriter, and actor who has created dozens of iconic movies, documentaries, music videos, and TV shows. He’s the epitome of a creator. At Inbound, he shared what he’s learned along the way, and one of our favorite takeaways was his emphasis on research. Lee reminded the audience of the value of research and pulling in people who know more than you do.
Don’t make decisions without the right research. If you don’t have the right insights to drive your decisions, bring in someone who does.
When it comes to making branding and marketing decisions, spend time in the research and strategy phase. Approach a new brand, project, product, or campaign by starting with:
Audits to see what content you already have
Analytics to see how your existing content is performing
Market research to look at industry trends and competitive positioning
Audience research to uncover what customers want and need
Don’t go blindly into a new project or campaign. Get the right research to drive your ideas, strategy, and planning. Use a gut feeling to get started, and then, get the research and data to back it up.
Related: Want Better Marketing Results? Focus On Your Marketing Strategy
Stay True to Your Mission
“No matter what you experience in the workplace or in life, keep the character you were born with. Don’t let a promotion, a decision or anything cost you your character. Character matters.” -- Cynt Marshall
No one knows more about keeping your eye on the ball than Cynt Marshall. Marshall is chief executive officer of the Dallas Mavericks and the first black female CEO in the history of the National Basketball Association. In her talk at Inbound, she shared some of the values that helped her breakthrough multiple glass ceilings. Her best advice related to staying true to who you are.
Figure out who you are and what you believe in, and stay true to it.
This advice applies to both your brand and you personally. Don’t flip-flop on the things that matter to you. Instead, create a strong vision and mission. It will help you:
Stay on the path to where you want to go and who you want to be
Attract the right people and keep them in your community
Identify opportunities that best align with your purpose and audience
This advice doesn’t mean you can’t change. Even if you have to reposition your brand or pivot to meet market demands, stay true to the mission and values that fueled your brand (and you) from the start.
Related: The Importance of Branding for a Digital Marketing Strategy
Take Time to Reflect on Your Wins
“Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough.” -- Oprah Winfrey
If anyone knows about success, it’s Oprah Winfrey. She built a media empire that began with a daytime television show that turned into magazines, books, and eventually, her own television network. Oprah knows about turning one good thing into another. But, we loved what she had to say about appreciating the wins along the way.
Evolving as a brand and as a person requires us to focus on what we have -- not on what we don’t have.
Many businesses (and people) get so caught up in moving toward the next best thing that they don’t take time to focus on what they have already built. This constant need to find the next big thing can lead to burnout, job dissatisfaction, and even depression in entrepreneurs.
Growth is important, but you will grow stronger and faster if you strengthen your mindset along the way. One of the best ways to do that is by practicing gratitude and reflecting on things you have already accomplished. This thought pattern will help you get the energy, motivation, and insight to continue to evolve and grow.
Make Plans for a More Successful 2022
As we prepare to move into 2022, we hope these leadership lessons can inspire and motivate you. At SpotOn, we will be taking this advice as we head into 2022, and we look forward to using these insights to drive more success for our brand, our team, and our customers.
We’d love to see how we can work with you to inspire and drive more success for your brand in 2022.
If you are ready to improve the effectiveness and results of your marketing in 2022, let’s talk. Contact SpotOn to see how we can help you stop making marketing an afterthought and start planning marketing strategies to help you find more success in 2022 and beyond. Contact us today.