Finish the Year Strong

[00:09] 2027 is on the horizon. And if you're like me, you want to finish this year strong and set yourself up well for the new year, right? And for a lot of business owners, that naturally means looking at what's working, what isn't, and what needs to change, especially when it comes to marketing. Which brings me to something I hear all the time.

[00:29] "I hate marketing. I just want to take care of my clients. I just want to treat my patients. I just want to do the work I'm actually good at." I get it because when marketing feels like this never-ending list of things you're supposed to be doing, you know, posting more, creating more content, fixing your website, sending emails, figuring out social media, it can start to feel like an entirely separate job on top of all the other things that you're doing.

[00:56] And it's especially frustrating when you're doing all those things and still wondering, why isn't this working better? That's part of what I want to talk about today, because sometimes the answer isn't that you need to do more marketing. Sometimes you need to get clearer about what your marketing is actually trying to communicate.

[01:15] And that matters, especially as we head toward a new year. This is the time that we naturally Start looking at what worked, what didn't, what needs to change, and where we want to invest next. Maybe you're thinking about a new website or a different marketing strategy, a stronger offer, or finally becoming more intentional about your visibility.

[01:37] And I love the energy of a fresh start. That's what a beautiful thing is with a new year. But before you spend another dollar on marketing in 2027, I want you to ask yourself one question.

[01:50] Are you clear enough about what you're trying to amplify? Because marketing is an amplifier. It can amplify clarity and it can also amplify confusion. And if what you're amplifying isn't clear yet, doing more of it won't create the result you're hoping for. That's one reason I think this time of year matters so much.

[02:12] Some business owners already have intentional year-end practices. They review the year, look at the numbers, evaluate what's working, make decisions about priorities, and start shaping the plan for what comes next. But a lot of us do something very different. The calendar gets full. Thanksgiving comes. Christmas is suddenly 3 weeks away.

[02:36] There are family commitments and travel, gifts to buy, parties to attend, end-of-year deadlines to take care of. And before long, we slip into holiday mode and tell ourselves, I'll deal with it in January. I had a client say something to me once that has always stuck with me. She said, my bank account has no idea what month it is or what holidays are happening.

[02:57] And she was right. The business doesn't stop needing direction simply because the calendar got busy. That doesn't mean you need to spend December frantically cramming in more work either. In fact, I'm suggesting almost the opposite. Because I think there's a trap in telling ourselves, I'll deal with it in January.

[03:15] January has a way of arriving with all the same unanswered questions we had in November. And then instead of beginning the year with momentum, we spend the first few weeks trying to figure out what we should be doing.

[03:28] So I want to make a case today for doing something a little different. You don't necessarily have to execute everything before the end of the year. But you can make some important decisions. You can decide what actually needs attention. You can determine what deserves to be a priority.

[03:47] You can identify where your time and money are most likely to create leverage. And you can walk into January already knowing what you're building toward. There's a tremendous amount of relief in that.

[03:59] Imagine going into the holidays knowing, I know what we're doing next. Not because everything is finished, but because the important decisions have been made. You can actually enjoy Christmas dinner, enjoy time with your family, a few days away from your laptop without that little business voice in the back of your head saying, we really need to figure this out in January.

[04:21] That to me is part of finishing the year strong, not frantically doing more, but getting clear enough that you can begin the next year well. Here's the thing about marketing. If your positioning is clear, your value is easy to understand, and your brand accurately represents the work behind it, marketing can help more of the right people see that.

[04:45] That's wonderful. That's what you want it to do. But if the message is muddy, the positioning has become outdated, or your business has evolved beyond the way that you're representing it, Marketing can amplify that too. That's why simply doing more isn't always the answer.

[05:05] Sometimes we assume something isn't working because we haven't created enough content or generated enough traffic or become visible enough. But the real issue may be farther upstream. And when the problem is upstream, adding more activity downstream can become a very expensive way to avoid solving it. And this is where branding and marketing really have to work together.

[05:31] I sometimes say marketing is like asking someone out on a date. Good branding is the reason they say yes. Marketing creates the invitation. It asks someone out on the date. It gets you in front of people. It starts the conversation. It gives them a reason to look. But your brand is what helps them decide whether they want to keep listening.

[05:55] They want answers to some questions like, does this feel relevant to me? Do I understand what makes this different? Do I trust this person or this business?

[06:08] Can I see the value? That's why I don't think of branding as a nice-to-have sitting off to the side of marketing. Branding and marketing are really like BFFs, best friends forever. Marketing may get the attention, but your brand gives that attention somewhere meaningful to land.

[06:27] Oh, I kind of ran— that kind of rhymed. And if the brand underneath that marketing is unclear, it's outdated, or it no longer reflects the level of work you're doing, pouring more money into promotion pouring more money into promotion may simply send more people toward a message that isn't doing you justice.

[06:44] Because here's the thing, your business may have grown faster than your brand. This happens all the time. You get better at what you do. Your experience deepens. Your clients change. You begin to see your work differently. Maybe you become clearer about the kind of work you want to do and the kinds you no longer want to do.

[07:05] Maybe your ambitions grow. Maybe you're writing a book, you're speaking more, you're pursuing media opportunities, raising your prices, or you're just ready to put more of your own thinking into the world.

[07:21] In that case, the person leading the business changes, the business itself changes, but sometimes the brand doesn't. And one day you realize the website that used to feel perfectly fine is introducing a version of you that no longer quite exists.

[07:37] Nothing may be technically broken. The website may work. The logo might still look nice, but that isn't really the question. The question is, does the way you're showing up still tell the truth about the level at which you're operating now? Because if it doesn't, you can spend a huge amount of time and money driving more people towards something that's quietly underrepresenting you.

[08:02] And that's not primarily a marketing problem. It's a clarity problem. We hear so much about being more visible, post more, get in front of more people, build your audience. And those are all good things. Don't get me wrong. But visibility is only useful if people understand what they're seeing. If someone hears you speak, gets referred to you by someone they know, visits your website, or comes across your LinkedIn profile, can they quickly understand what you do and why it matters?

[08:37] Can they recognize whether it's for them? Can they see what makes your perspective or approach worth paying attention to? Can they understand why someone would choose you instead of another capable person who appears to do something similar? Because you don't necessarily need more eyeballs. You may need a clearer reason for the right eyeballs to care.

[09:00] That's why I keep coming back to this: clarity upstream changes everything downstream. When you know what you want to be known for and what deserves to lead, so many other decisions become easier. Your messaging gets easier. Your content becomes more focused. You know what you're your writing and sharing. Your offers make more sense.

[09:24] Your website has a clearer job. It's your 24/7 employee. How is it doing? Your marketing has something specific to amplify, not something vague. And maybe most importantly, you stop trying to represent 5 different versions of yourself at the same time. Ask me how I know.

[09:44] So my advice is to diagnose before you invest in a solution. When it comes to marketing, instead of asking, what tactic do I need? Ask, what problem am I actually trying to solve? That sounds simple, but it changes everything. Let's say your first thought is, I need a new website. Maybe you do, but why? Is the site visually outdated?

[10:11] Has the business changed so much that the messaging no longer fits? Are you attracting the wrong people? Or are the right people visiting but not taking the next step?

[10:22] Does the site make you cringe every time someone asks for your URL because it no longer represents the caliber of your work? It doesn't represent you well. Those are not the same problem and they don't necessarily require the same solution.

[10:37] Or maybe you're thinking you need to become, you know, more active on social media. Again, why? If very few people know you exist, then yes, you, you may need more visibility. But if people already know you exist and still don't understand why your work matters, creating more posts may simply repeat the same unclear message more often.

[11:00] That's why diagnosis matters. We naturally jump to the visible fix because the visible fix feels tangible. You can see the website. You can see the new photo shoot. You can launch the campaign. You can hire someone to run the ads. But if the problem underneath those things hasn't been solved, the new version may simply look better while carrying the same confusion.

[11:23] Again, marketing amplifies. It can amplify clarity and it can amplify confusion. And this is where I want to go back to kind back to the end of the year and caution you not to automatically hand this problem to January, because I know how tempting it is to look at the calendar and think there isn't enough time, we'll just deal with this after the holidays.

[11:47] And sometimes waiting is perfectly reasonable. You don't need to completely reinvent your business between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Please don't hear me saying that.

[11:56] But there is a big difference between postponing all the work and postponing all the thinking. You may not need the new website built before January, but you can know whether a web— new website is actually what you need. You may not launch the new offer before Christmas, but you can decide whether that offer deserves to become a priority.

[12:17] You may not overhaul your brand in December, but you can get honest about whether your current brand still reflects where you're going. That's a very different way to finish a year. Because instead of January beginning with, okay, now what? January begins with, we know where we're headed. The decisions are made.

[12:35] Let's go. And that changes the energy completely. There's something incredibly freeing about closing your laptop before a holiday break, knowing the decision has already been made.

[12:48] The work may still be ahead of you, but the uncertainty isn't. So as you look toward 2027, I'd encourage you to sit with a few bigger questions and get honest.

[13:00] Has your business evolved beyond the way you currently describe it? Is the work you're leading with still the work you most want to be known for? Does your brand reflect the depth of experience you have now?

[13:16] Would the client or opportunity you want next year recognize themselves in the way you're currently showing up? And is there something you already suspect needs clarity, but you've been avoiding it because you know that getting clear may require you to make a decision?

[13:34] Those questions are far more useful than simply asking, should I redo my website next year? Because once you understand what's actually happening, the tactics become much easier to evaluate.

[13:47] Sometimes the smartest investment isn't another marketing tool or tactic. It's an experienced outside perspective, someone who can step back from the business and see the connections you're too close to see. Because when you've been living inside your business for years, everything makes sense to you. You know why your offers fit together.

[14:07] You know why your background matters. You know what makes your approach different. You know the history behind all the decisions. Your prospective client doesn't. And sometimes having someone look across the whole picture— I'm talking your brand, your offers, your messaging, your audience, your goals, the way you're showing up— and having that person ask the right questions can save you from spending thousands of dollars on the wrong solution.

[14:35] That's one of the reasons I've become so passionate about this work, because often the visible problem isn't the real problem, and fixing the wrong problem is expensive. Not only financially, it also costs time and momentum, and eventually it can begin to cost confidence.

[14:55] You try one tactic, then another, then another, and when none of them really changes anything, you start wondering Maybe I'm just bad at marketing. Maybe people don't want what I do.

[15:06] Maybe I need to become louder. Maybe I just need to show up everywhere. When really the issue might be much simpler. The value is there. It just isn't being communicated clearly enough yet.

[15:19] So what should you invest in before 2027? I can't tell you that in a podcast episode, and that's actually the point. There's no universal answer. There's no one-size-fits-all. You may absolutely need a new website. You may need to strengthen your offer or rethink your messaging. You may be ready to invest in your personal brand or become much more visible.

[15:42] Or you may discover that the thing you assumed was broken is actually fine and something completely different deserves your attention. But before you invest, I want you to know why.

[15:54] Know what problem you're solving. Know what outcome you want. Know what deserves to lead. Know what your market needs to understand about you. And then ask whether the thing you're planning to invest in is actually capable of solving that problem. Because a good investment should create leverage. It should move something important.

[16:18] It should make the next stage of your business clearer, stronger or easier to build and more fun to run, not just newer. If this is the season you're in, if you're listening to this and thinking, yes, something about the way I'm showing up no longer reflects the level of work I'm doing, or I know something needs attention, but I'm not completely sure what the real problem is, or I absolutely don't want next year to look like this year.

[16:47] That's the kind of work I help people think through. If you've reached a point where your experience, your expertise, or your business has outgrown the way you're currently representing it, and you're struggling to clearly articulate what makes your work valuable, what deserves to lead, or how all the pieces should fit together, that's the work I do through the Brand with Bravery Intensive.

[17:10] It's designed to help you close that gap so your positioning, messaging, offers, brand, and visibility finally reflect the level of work you're actually doing.

[17:22] If there's one specific decision or question you need to get clear on before you move forward, my clarity session may be all you need. We can focus on that one issue, work through it together, and help you make a more confident decision about what comes next.

[17:37] And if you lead an established business or organization and know something needs attention, but you're not completely sure what the real problem is or where to invest next, that's exactly why I created the Small Business Strategy Session.

[17:52] Before you spend more money fixing the wrong thing, let's figure out what actually needs attention. And if you're not quite ready for a conversation, then start with my free Brand with Bravery Visibility Assessment. It takes just a few minutes and it can help you identify where there may be a disconnect between the value of your work the way that value is being understood in the marketplace.

[18:14] I'll put links to all those resources in the show notes. As we head toward a new year, I don't want you to feel pressure to cram one more massive project into an already full season. I want you to give yourself something better, the gift of clarity.

[18:33] Make the decisions you can make now. Decide what matters. Decide what doesn't. Decide what deserves your attention when January comes, and then give yourself permission to enjoy the people and the moments that matter to you over the holidays without feeling like your business is waiting in the other room demanding an answer.

[18:52] Finishing the year strong doesn't always mean doing more. Sometimes it means getting clear enough that you can stop carrying the uncertainty. So instead of asking, what should I do more of next year? Ask, What needs to become clearer before I do more? Because sometimes the smartest way to prepare for growth isn't to add another tactic.

[19:13] It's to make sure the foundation underneath everything you're planning is strong enough to carry where you're going. Thanks for spending this time with me. I hope this has encouraged you and maybe given you a little extra boost to finish the year strong and head into 2027 with greater clarity and confidence.

[19:31] And the ability to relax and enjoy the time with your loved ones. I'm Terry Podlinski, and this is Brand Potential Unlocked, where who you've become meets how the world sees you. Until next time, believe what's true and be brave enough to let it be seen.

Transcribed with TranscriptX.ai — 19:45 of audio, English.

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