Hey hey! Welcome back to another episode of The Bullpen Sessions! I’ve got a fascinating topic for you guys today, and trust me when I say I learned something from this episode too. This conversation with my friend Joey Speers actually convinced me to reevaluate some things about the way I’ve been presenting my business and make some changes that I think are going to better serve both my clients and me.

Today, we’re talking all about branding. What is branding? How do you do it as an entrepreneur? What are the most important things you need to consider when you’re building a brand for your business?

My guest today is an expert on this topic. Joey owns the digital marketing company JSmedia, which, to quote their website, “build[s] brands the world understands and falls in love with resulting in increased revenue and fulfillment.” The team at JSmedia knows how to create extremely clear brand messaging so their clients can generate loyalty and keep their customers coming back for more.

“Business forever has been about the more money you spend, the more money you’re going to get back … and what we’re seeing now is that’s just not true. There is too much content in the market. … And so the businesses that are going to thrive in the next ten years, 15 years, are going to be the [ones] that simply can do three things: Clarify who they are, clarify what they do, and clarify how they’re experienced.” – Joey Speers

If you’re in business, you do not want to miss this episode. Joey Speers is an incredible wealth of wisdom and information, and I guarantee you will not get to the end of this episode without learning something new and helpful. So grab a pen and some paper, get ready to take notes, and let’s dive in!

Who Is Joey Speers?

Joey Speers is the founder of the Ontario-based company JSmedia. It’s a digital marketing company that works primarily with outdoor brands. He’s worked with companies like Ford, Yeti, and Uber to create clear and recognizable branding. Joey fundamentally believes that clarity is key. If customers are confused, the answer will always be “no.” That’s why JSmedia is committed to helping companies create a clear and non-confusing brand image — but we’ll talk more about that in a minute!

By the way, Joey isn’t just a brilliant creative marketer! He’s also the host of the Walls to Hurdles podcast, which he describes as “a joyful podcast.” On the show, Joey shares his own stories of overcoming challenges in his business career and allows a wide range of fascinating guests to share their stories as well. It’s well worth checking out!

And as if that weren’t enough, Joey is also the founder of the Creative Rise Mastermind, a coaching program geared specifically toward helping creative people reach their full potential and receive creative abundance. It’s a fantastic community-based program for anyone launching a creative career.

So, Joey’s a full-time creative entrepreneur, podcaster, and business coach, but are you ready for the most impressive thing about him? He’s only 21 years old! That’s right, at just 21 years old, this guy is running a business and making six figures a month. Pretty incredible, right?

Growing up, Joey knew there was something different about himself. He started feeling like he didn’t fit into the formal education system as early as middle school. At 14 years old, he officially launched his own path and created JSmedia, and I’d say that decision paid off big time!

Joey Speers may be a young guy, but make no mistake — he’s incredibly talented, and his business savvy is unparalleled. He’s got some incredible stuff to share today, so without any further ado, let’s dive in!

Joey’s Story: From Walls to Hurdles

Before I get into the details of Joey’s business strategies, I wanted to give you a little bit more background on him. Joey has an incredible story, and I think we can all take a little wisdom from it.

So as I said before, Joey didn’t seem to fit into the education system as a child. He was always a creative problem-solver and a smart kid, but his teachers considered him rowdy and hard to contain, and he was diagnosed with ADHD. He even had an IEP — Individual Education Plan — with a long list of disorders and problems.

“From a very young age, I just remember [these labels being cast] on myself from teachers, from doctors, … family, friends, [and] different people [who] I went to school with, [saying], ‘He’s not going to do this. He’s not going to do that.’ … I felt incredibly misidentified.” – Joey Speers

Joey had a rough time of it for most of his childhood, but everything changed when he got to eighth grade. One day, several kids — mostly the more rambunctious, challenging students — were pulled from their classroom and moved to a mobile classroom outside. There, a new teacher — a man named Mr. Norris — introduced himself and began, one by one, to speak to each kid and get to know his new students.

When Mr. Norris got to Joey, everything changed. Mr. Norris wasn’t concerned with trying to force Joey to read books and learn math — he was more interested in helping Joey overcome his struggles and learn how to teach himself.

“[Mr. Norris said], ‘Everyone was telling me what to expect because they knew that I had you.’ … And he said, ‘Hey, look, I’m brand new. And I just want to let you know that everything in [Joey’s IEP], none of this is a wall. These are just hurdles. And I’m going to teach you how to run and jump.’” – Joey Speers

Joey spent the rest of that year looking inward. He took a look at himself, studied the way his mind seemed to work, and learned how to leverage his unique abilities to teach himself. At that point, he started performing better in school, and when he was just 14 years old, he founded JSmedia.

Here’s the takeaway: Your obstacles are not walls; they’re hurdles. Think about the challenges you’re struggling to overcome — in your business and in life. I promise they don’t have to defeat you or keep you from reaching your potential. You just need to take some time to look inward, discover who you are, and find a creative way to use your skills to overcome those hurdles. You can learn to run and jump, just like Joey did, and you can be more successful than you ever thought possible.

Clarity Creates Action

If Joey has one major point that he strives to drive home with his business and messaging, it’s this: “Clarity creates action.”

“Gary [Vanyerchuk] talks about this all the time. He says, ‘brand over everything.’ The best companies in the world do not sell … because selling creates a hamster wheel of routine. … The second you turn off the sales, it stops. [But] brand creates loyalty, right? And loyalty will sell forever. So I think … people just need to focus more on that.” – Joey Speers

That point is essential. If your audience members do not have a clear idea of who you are and what you do, they will not give you their business. That’s why the title of this episode is “if you confuse, you lose!”

Joey hit me with some surprising statistics. Think about this: Research shows us that we will see something like 30,000 pieces of marketing on an average day. And how many of those do we remember? Maybe two or three, right? Now, why do we remember those? Because those are the businesses with the strongest brands. They’ve crafted everything from their copy to their images to clearly and quickly communicate to you what it is that they do. And because you were able to understand their message that fast, you remember them.

“Branding is not marketing, and marketing is not branding. However, they go hand in hand perfectly. [That’s] something that I think a lot of people confuse, and when you confuse … the answer to confusion is always ‘no’ for yourself and for your customers, right? So clarity creates action.” – Joey Speers

Clarity creates action — when your audience has clarity, they invest in your products and services. It’s as simple as that! That’s why a consistent brand voice is essential, especially for new businesses. You want to start building brand loyalty as quickly as possible.

So how can you create that kind of clarity around your brand and your voice? Joey has three key questions you need to ask yourself to create a consistent and strong brand message:

The Top Three Questions You Need to Ask

When you’re considering whether you have a strong brand voice, there are three major things to consider:

#1: What am I counterattacking?

The first thing you need to establish is the problem you will solve for your clients.

“As humans, we do not remember brands unless we can associate them with a problem.” – Joey Speers

Joey asked me to throw out a random company as an example, and I picked Uber. Why does Uber have a strong brand? Because they clearly identify the problem they solve for you. You don’t want to use a cab company — they’re a pain to deal with. Uber presents a much simpler solution to a common transportation problem.

Think about your business — what problem do you solve? Do you help your clients raise their revenue? Do you help them lose weight? Do you have a product that serves a specific purpose? Now, is that purpose communicated clearly to your audience? Make sure that your branding clearly identifies the specific thing you are counterattacking with your business.

#2: What is my methodology?

Once you’ve clearly named the problem you solve, the next step is communicating how you solve it. You want to explain to your audience as efficiently as possible what you do to help them solve that problem.

Say you have a coaching business, and you help your clients actually launch their businesses. What are the specific things you do to accomplish that goal? Do you host group coaching sessions weekly or monthly? Do you offer online resources that give your clients helpful tips? Do you host in-person networking events? What product or service does your business offer that can help your clients overcome that problem?

#3: What results am I going to get?

Finally, the last thing you want to make sure you’ve identified in your branding is the results you’re going to get for your clients. This final component is essential. If your audience is unclear about the return they’re going to get on their investment in you, they’re not going to spend money on your products. 

Think about the content on your website, Instagram, LinkedIn, or any other platform you use to get your message out there and find new business. Do you clearly communicate your answers to all three of those questions? Do you create a narrative in which your audience has a problem, you use specific methods to solve it, and together you achieve particular results? 

Why You Should Listen to This Joey Speers Podcast Episode Right Now…

I learned so much from my conversation with Joey Speers! I’ll be honest — when he talked through those three questions, I felt the need to go back and check on my own branding on my website. I want to make sure I have the strongest branding possible, and I want to be able to help my clients do the same.

If you’re interested in learning more from Joey, I’d encourage you to check out his website for more resources. And if you’re a creative person — if you want to create a career out of making art — definitely check out his Creative Rise Mastermind. This is a community-based coaching platform Joey uses to help aspiring creatives build their brands and create sustainable careers. It’s an incredible opportunity!

Thanks for joining me today, guys! If you learned something from this episode, please share it on Instagram along with your biggest takeaways and tag Joey, @joeyspeers, and me, @andy_neary. And if you have a minute, please subscribe and give me a five-star rating on Apple Podcasts. Your reviews really help this podcast find new listeners!

By the way, a great way to surround yourself with good people is to join my Complete Game Mastermind. This is my coaching program, and it starts soon! Masterminds are a great way to get coaching and put yourself in rooms with other entrepreneurs just like you. You can start building your community and gathering people around you who will support you and your growth.

You can also join my FREE text community! Just text the word “Mindset” to 414-622-1462, and I’ll give you access to a TON of free weekly coaching. If you’re not quite ready to take the plunge and join the Complete Game Mastermind, this text community is a great way to see if my coaching might be right for you.

Until next time, keep strengthening your brand voice. When your customers are clear on who you are and what you do, they’ll just keep coming back for more!

Andy Neary Signature

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