Marketing Mentor

The Brains Behind...

HOW Design Live

I am on the programming team for HOW Design Live and help choose the speakers each year. I am also the host of the Creative Freelancer Summit of www.HowDesignLive.com -- the premier design conference, Sept. 2022. This track began in 2008 as a stand-alone conference where freelancers could learn the business skills they need to run a successful business; it has since evolved to address this question: What does it take to go from designer to creative entrepreneur?

Programming Partner

Bob Bly

Served as "agent" and advisor for well known direct response copywriter

Business Manager, Advisor & Agent

The Maryland Institute College of Art

I taught the Marketing course as part of MICA's MPS in the Business of Art & Design (BAD)

Part-time Faculty

PRATT INSTITUTE

Teaching "Effective Client Communication Strategies for the Creative Professional" as part of a new Business Communication for the Creative Professional Certificate https://www.pratt.edu/academics/continuing-education-and-professional/pro-certificate-programs/business-of-art-and-design/

Visiting Faculty

Hoboken Free Public Library

Trustee

paragraphs LLC

Strategized and developed original content for this Chicago-based design firm. Examples here: http://paragraphs.com/parathink/

Content Marketing Consultant

Bending Design, Inc.

Working with Sharon Bending through both one-on-one consulting and then in the Advanced Marketing Group, she has narrowed in on her target market, positioned herself as an expert in that market and recently won the largest contract of her career to date.

Marketing Consultant

Cleveland Design

Marketing Mentor helped Jonathan Cleveland find his target market, revamp his web site and develop a marketing campaign that keeps his name in front of his best prospects every other month.

Assistant Buyer

If you are ready to leave the feast or famine syndrome behind -- and I mean for good -- and you are serious about growing your creative business -- whether that means getting more/better clients, finding your niche or strengthening your positioning, I can help. I provide practical guidance, accountability, a sounding board and much more. 

I am a national speaker, the founder of Marketing Mentor, a business coaching program for creative business owners and independent professionals, a Programming Partner for HOW Design Live and the Business Coach for the Savannah College of Art & Design. 

I've developed courses for CreativeLive, Domestika, Freelancers Union, AWAI and more.

I work one-on-one with you to find your people, your voice, your style, your rhythm and your place in the market.

We will cover things like: 
- How to Choose Your Niche
- Dealing with Difficult Clients
- How to Position Your Services (so your ideal clients say, "this is exactly who we need")
- Pricing Your Services (and learning to love the money conversation)
- Proposal Review, Critique and Rewrite (what should be in yours?)
- Marketing Plan Development (which tools are most effective?)
- Content Marketing Planning and Implementation

Evidence proves that if you integrate marketing into your day-to-day process, you can get the clients you want, instead of being at the mercy of whoever comes along. But it means putting yourself first. 

How? Commit to working ON your business before you work IN your business --  early in the day and early in the week. Spend your first 30 minutes every day on yourself, before the day and the week gets away from you. (For more, read my #MeFirst blog post. https://www.marketing-mentor.com/blogs/news/we-need-a-mefirst-movement) 

I’ll help you put yourself first. We'll set realistic goals and I'll keep you accountable for them. 

You lead and I guide. That's my mentoring style. 

I'll help you choose a viable market, position yourself as the expert in that market. Then we'll choose the most effective (and least $$) marketing tools to reach your market.

Sound like exactly what you need? Be sure to sign up for my Quick Tips here: 
https://quicktips.marketing-mentor.com/
And, if you are ready, take advantage of my free 30 minute session at www.marketing-mentor.com

Specialties: marketing plans and proposals for creative professionals (designers, writers, illustrators, video producers, photographers) & professional service providers (lawyers, consultants, speaking coaches, personal trainers, computer experts and even other marketing consultants).

Have you started using AI to expand what you can do for clients, yet?

Last week, I attended MAICON (Marketing AI Conference put on by Paul Roetzer’s SmarterX)...

And the idea I was most excited to share with you is this one, from Alex Kantrowitz:

Thanks to AI, we’re entering the Age of The Individual.

Meaning - with AI tools, you can do so much more on your own than you ever could before.

The key is listening to the market. And then listening within yourself.

What problems are your clients having that you could use your creativity and a little AI to help solve? 

That’s where you should be experimenting.

Are you already using AI to solve problems in your market? Share in the comments! 

Want marketing and AI tips in your in-box every two weeks-ish? Sign up for my Quick Tips here: https://bit.ly/liqt 



Photo: Me and my content gal, Bonnie Caton Fanning, having a blast at MAICON.

Ilise Benun

Business Coach & Mentor for Designers, Copywriters & Creative Pros. Let me help you get better clients with bigger budgets.

What do creative professionals fear more than vampires, ghosts, and zombies?


NETWORKING!!! 😱

Would you rather roam a cemetery at midnight than put on a name tag and chat with potential clients?

If so you're in good company!

And yet, in-person networking is one of the surest ways to get clients these days.

Because in a world where AI is making everything sound the same…

Showing up in-person is your best way to stand out.

Do YOU dread in-person networking?

Sign up to get my totally non-scary networking and marketing tips in your in-box every two weeks-ish here: https://bit.ly/liqt

What do you do about what Alex Kantrowitz calls, “the AI Sameness Problem?”


On Oct. 19th, Nathaniel Whittemore’s (whose AI Daily Brief I listen to religiously) shared "5 Prompting Tricks to Make Your AI Less Average." I’ve distilled them below (without AI!) 

Are you using these and/or others? Please share…

Here’s the big idea: By its nature, AI aggregates conventional wisdom, which makes for a generic product that is almost doomed to sameness. If you want to get other than average output, here’s what Nathaniel suggests:

1. Tell the AI what you don’t want, whether an em-dash or certain overused words or phrases. 
2. Force it to take a stand. AI loves to give pros and cons but sometimes you need a decision. After it has made the best argument possible for each option, ask it to “decide and commit to one.”
3. Tell it what you like about any example you include. We all know to include examples for the AI to follow. But it’s even better to go further and tell is why.
4. Tell it to avoid cliches. At the end of each first draft you get, say “What are the most common cliches here, and what would you change to avoid them?”
5. Ask it to do a self critique. Say, “List the top five ways it's not right for (your audience). Then rewrite a V2 that fixes each issue, and explain why you changed what you changed.”

Listen to the whole episode here: 
https://lnkd.in/dKrHQUtp

Where will you be at Noon ET on Halloween? 
Join me?

Better clients are out there, and they’re looking for YOU.

But attracting the right clients and raising your rates? That takes mindset, messaging, and a little marketing magic.

🎙️That’s exactly what you’ll learn from nationally recognized business coach and author, Ilise Benun during this can't-miss Power Lounge.

💡 You’ll walk away knowing:
• How to spot and attract your ideal clients
• Why consistent marketing matters
• How to have “the money talk” with confidence

This is for you if you're a solopreneur, freelancer, or creative ready to stop undercharging and start owning your worth.

🔗 https://lnkd.in/gvc-9jVV

📅 October 31 | ⏰ 12–1PM EDT 

Let’s change the way we talk about, and earn, money. 

#TogetherDigital #PowerLounge #FreelanceLife #CreativeEntrepreneurs #WomenInDigital #AskGiveGrow

[Weekend Listening] If you ever struggle with writer’s block, Episode 537 of the Marketing Mentor Podcast is for you. 

My conversation with tech humanist and author, Kate O'Neill, went from “Should AI write your first draft?” to “Will AI be a good companion?”  https://lnkd.in/dA38G3Vh

It’s a fascinating one! So listen and learn -- then tell me what you think in the comments. 

Thanks to Beth Granger for connecting me with Kate :)

[Weekend Listening] Visual ambassador, Scott Hull, is finishing the year strong and he’s using the Simplest Marketing Plan – outreach, networking and content marketing – to do it. 
In the latest episode of the Marketing Mentor Podcast, he generously shares what’s working. Listen in and tell us what you think in the comments. 
https://lnkd.in/d3T55xc9

[Weekend Listening] The latest on how to use AI to find clients...let us know what you think in the comments.

Okay - if you’re struggling to find clients and wanting to try ALL THE THINGS, and you’re not resistant to using AI to do the grunt work, this episode is for you. 

Our guest is Ilise Benun, who’s a marketing whiz, business coach and mentor - and she takes us through her client-getting prompt system. Because as she says:

✔️ Clients who need what you do are out there
✔️ The trick is knowing how and where to find them
✔️ And AI can speed that process up for you.

You just have ask the right questions, in the right way, to generate a fresh list of potential leads, whenever you like.

We urge you to tune in to this one, download Elise’s pdf via our show notes (which outlines the process in detail) and get your list sorted today. Who knows what it might lead to? Thanks Ilise for sharing your knowledge with us 😊

Listen here and grab the show notes >> https://lnkd.in/gnDEtpuX

And thanks Rounded for supporting the podcast, too!

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