Stephen White’s Post

I’m forever grateful to anyone who contributes to my business. You can view work as purely transactional: Bossman pays, employees work. But to me, it’s so much more. As a small business owner, each new hire is special. They shape the business in some way, leaving a lasting mark. They could work anywhere, but they chose your company. Believing in and working towards your vision. That's something I never take for granted. So a big thank you to everyone who has helped over the years. I can't thank you enough!

Sick of seeing selfies and the same old advice of "post more on LinkedIn"? I have the perfect marketing event for you... On July 17th, I'm hosting a Q&A panel discussion in Manchester: B2B Marketing That Converts: Tactics Beyond “Post More On LinkedIn”. The panel's made up of four fantastic marketers, worthy of a chef's kiss 🤌 ➡️  Joe S. ➡️  Kyle Daniels ➡️  Emily Newstead ➡️  Emma Raftery-Kenworthy Kyle and Emma are both in-house, Heads of Marketing, and have a combined experience of 30+ years. They’ll be dishing up some amazing insights on what’s actually working at their companies. Joe and Emily both run their own marketing companies with a range of B2B clients and years of experience. Sharing with us what's working for their clients across different sectors. We'll be covering topics such as: ➡️  Podcasting ➡️  Video content ➡️  YouTube Shorts ➡️  Corporate Gifts ➡️  Branded Merchandise ➡️  Pre-conference events ➡️  Account-based marketing ➡️  And I'll chime in with some website-related tips You don't want to miss this! So, how can you secure your ticket? Google "Bitesize B2B" or check down below for more info. I can't wait to see you there! Ps. Stick around to the end of the video for the best reason to come down! 😄 Pss. Thank you so much to Rosemary Jones for hosting us at Department

Our latest website redesign project launched last week 🥳 TripAdvisor acquired Bókun, but the site felt dated and didn't reflect this big change. We ran an in-person workshop alongside stakeholder and customer interviews to understand the brand and the users. Two key points came from this: 1️⃣  Bókun's Icelandic heritage One phrase featured in various sales and marketing materials was: "Made in Iceland, raised by Tripadvisor, built for the world." We wanted to ensure the new website reflected this. The design features nods to Bókun's Icelandic roots. Using a pattern throughout seen on traditional Icelandic sweaters - lopapeysa. As well as the slightly more obvious aurora borealis. Whilst still having the class you'd expect from a TripAdvisor owned product. 2️⃣  A lack of benefits and features The old website didn't convey just how great the software is and all the different ways it can be used. When it did, it didn't speak directly to the user. Highlighting the benefits. We broke down the pages into three key areas: Manage, Sell, Grow. With a range of subpages off of these to explain the product in more detail. Showing how Bókun can help the end user in multiple ways. Backed up by social proof throughout the site in the form of case studies. 📌  I love the end result but check it out for yourself in the comments. Couldn't be prouder of our team for all the hard work on this! Thank you.

3 is the magic number! A big congrats to Fay on 3 years at Spaced. It's been a pleasure to see her grow, going from strength to strength. She always gets stuck in and gets the work done. But has a laugh at the same time and makes the office a better place. I’m thankful for anyone that I work with at Spaced. But 3 years?! Madness. Thank you so much, Fay! I appreciate all the hard work and effort you’ve given since joining.

Here's a quick check to ensure your website resonates with ideal customers. The best thing is, every B2B company has this resource already. Open up your sales deck. Now compare it to your website. “But what exactly am I looking for?” You’re looking for a gap. A gap between how your sales team is positioning your solution. The language they are using in their sales deck. And how this is (or isn’t) reflected on your website. More often than not, the sales deck is regularly updated with feedback directly from the customer, while the website lags behind this. Bridge this gap to ensure your website resonates with your target audience.

No mouse detector or activity tracker will fix bad management. Motivated teams are built on trust and empowerment. As a business owner, I’m passionate about this. I still can’t believe companies resort to this type of remote monitoring. It reminds me of the first thing you get taught in GCSE Business 😅 Douglas McGregor's Theory X and Theory Y: Theory X managers believe employees are lazy and need constant supervision. They rely on strict controls and micromanagement. But Theory Y managers trust their employees. Empowering them to take ownership and responsibility. Which do you think provides a better outcome? Times aren’t changing. They HAVE changed. Employees are sick of feeling like a cog in the machine. Stop treating them like one.

It's been a tough period for both employees and employers. Uncertainty in the air, the cost of living of crisis... There's a lot going on! So I just wanted to say a big thank you to the team. It's not been easy for any of us but they've been amazing recently. We ventured out this week for some food and drinks after work and made the most of the British summer. Which, after those 3 sunny days, is safe to say it's over! 😅 Spaced turns 6 next month and I couldn't be prouder of what we've achieved. We're continuing to grow and learn, and that's all I could ask for. Thank you, guys and girls! 🖤 Ps. I must get better at taking photos! This is the first time we've had the full team in the office in a while and I didn't get a group photo 🙃

B2B marketers... We're running an event in Manchester for you! 🥳 A jam-packed panel sharing marketing insights that go beyond "post more on LinkedIn". No soft-touch presentations, vaguely disguised as sales pitches here. You'll walk away with new ideas to help improve your marketing. The panel is a mix of in-house marketers and agency-side experts. To provide balance and hear different perspectives. They include: —  Emma Raftery-Kenworthy, Head of Marketing at Aire Logic —  Kyle Daniels, Head of Marketing at Bundle and assimil8 —  Emily Newstead, CEO and Founder at BOW Gifts —  Joe S., Director at Solvi Digital I'll be your host for the morning! Grilling the panel and keeping things ticking along. Sound like a good way to kick-start your Wednesday? Click on the "View event" button below and follow that through to Eventbrite to get your ticket now. Or, send me a DM if you have any questions! Don't miss out on your chance to network with like-minded B2B marketers and come away with new ideas. 👇👇👇

Micromanaging is underrated. To get the best out of your team, do the work for them...

Want to rank higher on Google? You NEED to be building links. But it's the hardest part of SEO! So how can you do this? It all boils down to an exchange of value 👇 You need to give value to that other website you want a link from. Something worthwhile for them to talk about. This can be: —  Market-leading content so they link to you as a source —  If you have a one-of-a-kind product (or a new feature) —  Unique industry data or insights you created —  Access to thought leaders on your team —  Case studies or unique success stories —  Co-hosting a webinar or event —  Being a podcast guest Without this value, you’ll struggle to build good links. And you’ll have to resort to paying a website for a link. Which, can work... But isn't sustainable in the long run. So give other websites something to talk about, something of value. And link building becomes a lot easier!