Brainz Magazine Exclusive Interview
International, Multi-Award-Winning Business Strategist & Coach, Lori McNeil helps entrepreneurs and organizations focus on the foundational tools needed for sustained success in life and business, greater than they ever thought possible. Lori was selected as an official speaker for the Think & Grow Rich World Legacy Tour. As a retired Business Professor and expert in curriculum design and educational technology,
Lori has helped grow hundreds of organizations organically (including her own company that includes Legacy Builders, Media Secrets, and Driven Mastery) brands that help Entrepreneurs build a true, long-lasting purpose. Lori has been featured on ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, & over 500 media platforms per year. She has authored several books and was awarded the Lifetime Presidential Service Award for her work. Most recently, she was awarded the Global Visionary Leader Award.
First of all, who is the woman behind this empire? Please introduce yourself to our audience!
As a passionate, hardworking International Business Strategist and Branding Expert I consider myself to be goal oriented and a lover of life! I am driven to help others unlock their talents and cultivate what they need to reach higher levels of success and serve more people in the process! I feel fortunate that I get to jump out of bed every morning and do what I love; helping people accomplish their goals to create the life and business they want!
I am the outdoorsy type. Primarily hiking, and camping, however, you can often catch me doing most outdoor activities. I also love to travel, enjoy fine dining, and play Battleship! I will try almost anything once and I really enjoy meeting new people and learning new things. I truly believe that the world is my classroom and I encourage my son and all those around me to experience as much as possible with what life has to offer.
I am a linear and lateral thinker. I can solve many problems at once, with ease, and in a short period of time. I have been playfully teased by many colleagues over the years about this being my superpower. I am grateful for the unique gifts I have been giving to help other people. Everyone has a unique skill set. Inside business, I thoroughly enjoy helping entrepreneurs discover their unique skill sets, while simultaneously unlocking new ideas that help them live a better life and build stronger businesses.
As a business coach and consultant, what are the best tips for someone who is about to build and grow their business?
Start where you are and with what you have. Take steps every single day that move you close to your goals. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the long list of things that need to be done. The truth is that taking the time to devise a plan, then following that plan will lead to faster results. Why? Because most entrepreneurs do not take the time to build the strong foundation needed for long-term success. They tend to make a myriad of decisions that are not aligned with the right messaging, the right strategies, or even their ideal client.
I use the analogy of the tortoise and the hare a lot when explaining how business growth works. When an entrepreneur is focused and consistent, they will often reach higher levels of success that an entrepreneur who is not focused and not consistent. Even when someone seems successful on the outside, many times they are not as successful as they appear to be, often trying to convince everyone they are. Don’t be fooled by perceived success. Don’t compare yourself to others. Stay focused. Consistency is the key to getting people to buy from you. People buy from those whom they like, know, and trust.
In your book "Media Secrets Revealed", anyone who is interested can learn more about how to navigate in a world full of media opportunities. Can you share a media secret that is covered in the book?
Being a retired business professor and curriculum designer has given me a unique perspective and skill set when it comes to teaching how the world of media works. I wrote and designed this book to offer very practical steps that yield immediate results. The book also offers specific Action Sheets to use to create your own Media Plan for ongoing success. Although the booked is packed with many great ideas that have been proven successful, there is one that I use with my clients on a regular basis. That strategy is to align your business goals with a National Campaign Calendar. There are always national campaigns taking place every single day throughout the year. When you attach your business and your mission to a larger cause or awareness campaign that already exists, you will increase your reach all over the world. You position yourself for better traction and alert those to the synergy existing between your mission and those larger causes and efforts throughout the world. This automatically gives you credibility and helps attract the right client in alignment with who you are and what you do.
How does a business owner use media to increase their credibility and impact more people?
Media can be used in so many ways when building a business. Understanding how the media works are vital to the success of your business. When I hear people say "I have been successful for years, without using media", I say to them, “how much more successful could you be if you used it?” Understanding and implementing the right media strategies that support your overall brand and business goals can literally catapult your business faster.
The problem is when people do not understand the importance of using media or the strategies specifically needed. A media plan is not something that you do when you have extra time and money, it is something that is created and implemented very strategically as an integral part of your overall business plan. You are not throwing spaghetti at a wall hoping something will stick! I see so many entrepreneurs wasting time and money because they either do not know what to do or think they are doing it right and are not.
Most business leaders do not understand that your Media Plan, Branding, and your Business Plan, are not three separate components. They must be crafted and utilized as one cohesive plan. The sooner you learn how to do this, the stronger you will be in building the foundation for your business which will lead to unbelievable business growth and success.
You talk a lot about "How to Build a Brand" and why it’s so important, for those in our audience who are unfamiliar with this, can you tell us briefly about it?
Building a brand is more than just having a logo. It is understanding the power of Brand Essence and how to maximize its uniqueness. We all have unique tools in our toolbox. We use those unique tools in business and in life every single day. Nobody can be you no matter how hard they try to. Understanding this and believing it will help combat any thoughts and feelings of fear and competition. The only person you should be in competition with is the person you were yesterday. Stay focused on what you want and go after it!
Part of building a strong brand identity is understanding the psychology of color in branding and marketing. Identity involves a combination of research, understanding, and important branding elements such as typography, color palette, forms & shapes, and composition.
The principles of marketing psychology influence the choices you should make when building your brand identity. Your brand colors are one of the most influential choices you’ll make.
Let’s take the three basic colors to demonstrate this: red, blue, and yellow:
Red – Bold, strong emotional connection, increases intensity and passion.
Blue – Cool, peaceful emotions, consistency, increases security and trust.
Yellow – Warm, cheerful emotions, nurtures cognitive thought, and increases communication.
Remember, people buy from people they like, know, and trust. When building a brand, it is important that everything you do, creates a space for your ideal client to get to know you and who you are as a person so that they can create a relationship that allows for them to like you and ultimately trust you.
Putting color to work for us is two-fold. First, the colors we chose must also represent how we see ourselves and our businesses. When we chose a color that best represents that, we will stand stronger, bolder, and more confident in our approach; all which builds that ‘know, like, trust’ factor and draws others to us.
Secondly, the colors we chose should represent our ideal client, customer, and advocate. When we position our business in that manner it stimulates the subliminal thought in others that “this person gets me” and because of that, people will be drawn to you.
Launching your business forward requires a dedication to understanding how your clients and customers see you, and ultimately how they see themselves. Armed with this knowledge you have the ultimate tool to understand and implement effective marketing techniques and cultivate your brand to position you for greater growth and sustainable success.
What is the difference between Branding and Marketing?
Branding is about defining who you are as a company. It’s your mission, your values, and what makes you special and unique. It’s your key brand elements, like your logo, website, and your brand style guidelines. Marketing is what gets people to engage with your company for the first time, branding is what keeps them coming back for years to come.
Marketing is a set of tools, processes, and strategies you use to actively promote your product, service, and company. Think of marketing as the actions you take to connect with your customers and get them to buy your products or services.
While marketing is used to promote your product or service, branding is used to shape your brand and who you are. You need strategies for both, and they have different goals and different results.
It is vital to understand the differences and how they fit together to maximize implementation efforts, resources, and results.
What are the biggest mistakes you see entrepreneurs make in their businesses?
In my 25-plus years of helping businesses, I have seen a lot of mistakes that entrepreneurs make. One of the top mistakes I see is not understanding who your client or customer really is. I know that may sound trite; however, most entrepreneurs don’t really know who their client is, let alone how to attract them. I hear many entrepreneurs frustrated because they are putting so much effort into their businesses and not making the money or seeing the results they want. Many times, it is because they do not fully understand the connection and alignment needed with understanding who they are attracting and how to make cages to attract their ideal client or customer.
Messaging is part of solving this equation. When understanding your ideal client or customer, you must know what problems they need solving. It is not what you think their problem is, but what they think their problem is. You need to reach them on an emotional level. Once you get them to like, know, and trust you, and ultimately buy from you, then you can delve deeper into the nuances of how to solve their problem whether it is real or perceived. You can guide them to the correct process of solving the actual issues. Until then, it’s what they think their problem is. What do they think they need? Focus on the right messaging that will attract the right clients.
What does the future look like for you, do you have any big plans or goals going forward? And how can someone get in contact with you?
I like to keep busy, so with that said, I have so many projects I am creating and implementing at any given time. I am in the final stages of co-authoring a book with my business partner on the proven C4 Sales Strategy process that we use to help our clients all over the world. For the past year, we have been traveling and teaching this process internationally and we are getting ready to launch an amazing book that will drive home these strategies.
On the Humanitarian side, I created five specific Literacy Strategies that I have used to help increase reading and literacy skills among those of all ages. I have used these strategies all over the world and have been featured in media as a Literacy Expert using my book series designed to focus on these strategies. I will be releasing my third book in my 10-book series supporting these strategies in the coming year. When this book is released, I plan on traveling to schools and teaching students (and teachers) how to implement them as part of their curricula. I was honored to be invited by the Bush family a few years to help raise over 3 Millon dollars for Literacy efforts Nationwide. As a lifelong learner and educator, my passion for building and supporting Literacy skills globally hails as one of my top priorities.
The best way to get a hold of me is simply through my email, lori@lorimcneil.com.
Also, check out my website and connect with me on social media: such as Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, or Twitter.
