Christine Schlonski [0:02]
Hey Gorgeous. This is episode number 196. We have the wonderful Cindy Schulson back on the show today.

Cindy Schulson [0:09]
Hi there, Cindy Schulson and you’re listening to Heart Sells! Podcast with Christine Schlonski. Enjoy!

Christine Schlonski [0:15]
Super excited to have this next conversation with the wonderful Cindy Schulson. Cindy is such a heart-centered coach and mentor for so many other coaches and consultants who really want to stand out in this noisy online world by marketing with their hearts and not with some kind of hype. Cindy brings a decade of marketing experience working for companies such as Coca Cola and Visa. And she combines this with a decade of online marketing to create a paradigm shift in how marketing can be done with integrity and heart and I’m so super pumped that she is back on the show today. So let’s dive right in. I am so excited to have back on the show today, Cindy, welcome.

Cindy Schulson [1:05]
Thanks, Christine.

Christine Schlonski [1:06]
Yeah, I loved our interview, our first one and you talking about being vulnerable, being open, being authentic, connecting your happiness with your heart, and really bringing a message to people that is your brand message. That talks to your ideal client or soulmate client, as I would say, and really, already has that connection for people to kind of feel you and see you in the way you are. When you started with your company about 10 years ago, did you already have that clarity? Did you know exactly who you wanted to serve and what you wanted to do?

Cindy Schulson [1:53]
Absolutely not. I had no clue. What I did have was 10 years of strategic communications and marketing experience. What I did for the first year and a half, actually in 2008, was spinning my wheels, not having any clarity. I finally took a step back and realize that I wanted to leverage all of the strengths and experiences I have in marketing and in messaging, but apply them in a way that I’m passionate about, with people that I’m passionate about helping. Once I was able to connect those dots, things started to really start, gaining momentum. That’s why I’m so passionate about helping people, figure out who is the perfect client for you? What is the solution you’re here to provide? What is the message you want to share? And how can you do it in a way that speaks your truth and also connects with your ideal clients? So that’s, that’s a big stumbling block that lack of clarity. In your focus, in your message, I’d say it’s the number one stumbling block that gets in the way of most entrepreneurs, which is why I’m so passionate about helping people with it because; a.) I went through it myself; and b.) it’s an area of expertise for me.

Christine Schlonski [3:11]
Yeah, totally. I so hear you because I, I’ve been through that. I know so many people have been through it. Like in the beginning, I didn’t even know. Like when I was taught, like, you need to pick your ideal client. I didn’t know where to start. I was frustrated for days or probably even four weeks.

Cindy Schulson [3:29]
Can I give people a tip on that because you’re not alone?

Christine Schlonski [3:33]
Yes, please.

Cindy Schulson [3:34]
Okay. So most people will say, “Choose an ideal client and figure out what they want.” Have you ever heard that before?

Christine Schlonski [3:44]
Yes.

Cindy Schulson [3:44]
What if you did it the opposite way? What if you looked within yourself, at your experiences, at your strengths, at your skills at your passions? And what if you figured out what is the solution you’re here to provide? And get really clear on what that is first. And then you can match it with the right ideal client for your solution and for you. I teach marketing from within, it starts from within you. When you do that, I think you I’ve seen it happen so many times, you build your business from a place of more strength and passion. This outside and approach, it can look great on paper, but maybe your heart is not.

Christine Schlonski [4:33]
It’s great on paper but your heart wasn’t.

Cindy Schulson [4:35]
But your heart wasn’t in it, right?

Christine Schlonski [4:36]
Exactly. Exactly. That was my learning. I figured it out on paper, I put me, what I thought my strengths were and then all of a sudden I did not have one, I had four different ideal clients and then I was totally confused. I picked the one where I thought, “This is gonna help me grow my business the fastest because this looks like people with half the budget to work with me.” It was so wrong because it didn’t feel good. I forced myself and I wanted to make it happen instead of allowing it to grow.

Cindy Schulson [5:17]
Marketing is all about alignment. It’s all about alignment. Everything has to be aligned, starting with your niche. Can I give you a great little vision for people who are struggling with a niche? One of my clients actually came up with this. It was so cool. He said, the word niche comes from the French, “Nishi”, which means to nest. Normally, when we think about a niche, we think about like a hole that you kind of stick yourself in. So I love this. It’s like think about it like a nest that you snuggle into, instead of a hole that you’re stuck in.

Christine Schlonski [5:50]
Yes, I love it.

Cindy Schulson [5:52]
And so when you choose a niche with that from a place of strength and passion and realize you’re just snuggling into this, it doesn’t mean that you can’t help anybody else. It doesn’t mean that you’re stuck in it forever. But you’re just choosing a focus that makes sense. And then you’re going to give yourself the space to let it evolve. I think that feels so much more freeing.

Christine Schlonski [6:15]
Yes, totally, totally. And I love that you said alignment. So, when people are not in their business where they want to be, and they have a difficult time selling, how do you see they can make it easier for them? What could they do right now to get into the place of alignment?

Cindy Schulson [6:38]
I love that question. Okay, so here’s how I like to think about marketing. Marketing is just sharing your message with the right people so they’re inspired to take action. So what I help my clients do is break down each of those pieces. Who are the right people? What is your message? What is the action you want them to take? When you get clarity on all those three pieces, it becomes so much easier to actually succeed with your marketing.

Christine Schlonski [7:10]
Yeah, yeah, totally agree.

Cindy Schulson [7:12]
So if you think about it, like, if you don’t know your message, obviously, you can’t succeed with marketing, because marketing is all about sharing your message, you have to know who are the people you want to share it with. And when it comes to the action you want them to take. Typically, what we want them to do is get on our email list. Because that is how we build that relationship of trust, and how we have permission to make offers. So yes, social media contacts are great, but you don’t own those, can change in five minutes, as we’ve seen many times. Plus, they haven’t raised their hand and said, “Yes, you can mark it to me.” So that’s one of the things I teach people is how to choose the right giveaway or lead magnet and we talked about alignment, it has to be aligned with the solution you offer and with your services. So it’s all about, as my whole thing is all about making strategic decisions that you know really honor you and then that obviously honor the people you’re here to serve.

Christine Schlonski [8:17]
So what do you see are the three biggest mistakes people make in their marketing?

Cindy Schulson [8:24]
Well, actually, it’s really cool because it goes back to what we talked about with marketing. So number one is not having a clear message. That’s the biggest problem people have.

Christine Schlonski [8:34]
Like a confusing message.

Cindy Schulson [8:36]
Yes, not having a clear message, not having a message they can share with confidence. It’s either too broad or it’s what they say and how they say it. So that’s the biggest problem. The second problem is sharing. How they share their message. They try to use all of these tactics that can be too overwhelming and frankly, aren’t necessary. They can be way too complicated. So it all goes back with alignment, again come from a place of strength, what’s one of your greatest strengths. So for a lot of my clients, in order to really build those meaningful connections and add value, they find that speaking is a great way to start sharing their message. And that can take many formats just like what we’re doing here. And then the third mistake that they make is not knowing how to inspire people to take action, whether it’s getting on their email list or whether it’s making an offer because marketing is all about inspiring people. It’s not about manipulating or hyping or any of that. So when we have a really clear offer and we know how to position it, then it’s a natural thing for people to want to take that.

Christine Schlonski [9:50]
Yeah, totally, totally agree. So do you remember in like the very, very first thing that you have ever sold? Not necessarily in your business, like in your life.

Cindy Schulson [10:03]
Oh, in my life.

Christine Schlonski [10:05]
Yes.

Cindy Schulson [10:08]
Oh, my goodness. I did. I was about 17 and my boyfriend and I bought a bunch of clothes from, we had a friend who owned a clothing store. And we took a bunch of clothes and we were selling it like on consignment. And we basically did it a little illegally because we basically did a garage sale and we were selling the new clothes from it. But we raked in quite a bit of money. He was a very, very talented salesman, so I learned some sales skills. It was a long time ago.

Christine Schlonski [10:39]
Yeah. So how did it feel when you sold your first piece?

Cindy Schulson [10:47]
Oh my goodness. I don’t remember I was 17. I honestly don’t remember. But it’s fun. I come from four generations of entrepreneurs. Every single person in my family’s an entrepreneur, and I should have learned sales skills from my brother when I was, like a teeny little kid, he actually gave me a haircut and gave me a bald spot. So I look like my dad and charged me a quarter. I’ve been surrounded by great sales skills for a long time.

Christine Schlonski [11:16]
Oh my goodness. Well, he’s pretty entrepreneurial, that’s for sure.

Cindy Schulson [11:20]
He actually is an entrepreneur as well.

Christine Schlonski [11:24]
Yeah, I just love these stories because sometimes it kind of shows what, how creative you already were as a kid. Often going through school and actually being school to be a good employee, and a good burger or whatever. It’s like, re or undoing what you have learned in school to be an entrepreneur can be a pretty big challenge.

Cindy Schulson [11:52]
Oh, it’s funny because I have two boys. One is in college, studying to be an engineer and the other one is the complete opposite, he’s 15. I already know he’s going to be an entrepreneur. In fact, he said to me just the other day, he said, “You know, I want to take a year off before I start college because I don’t want the school to define who I am. I want to figure out who I want to be.”

Christine Schlonski [12:17]
Wow.

Cindy Schulson [12:18]
Pretty impressive for 15, right? I already told him I’m like, “You and I were going to go into business together.” We already have our first business idea which I can’t tell you. It’s a secret.

Christine Schlonski [12:29]
Okay, well, we’re gonna wait patiently. That’s really wonderful. You were brought up as an entrepreneur basically being surrounded by entrepreneurs. People could guess or think, “Well, okay, so for her, it’s easier because I had to learn everything. I don’t have any entrepreneurs like in my family, and I have to figure it out all by myself.” Have you seen something that could support them on their journey right now to make it easier?

Cindy Schulson [13:02]
Well, first of all, I want to clarify, I actually went the corporate route. I went to do, I got an MBA in marketing, I worked in Strategic Communications for the big companies like Coke, Fiza, consulting firms. Then when I became an entrepreneur, as you said, I had to unlearn a lot. I had to unlearn certain things. But that’s why I’m so passionate about it. Because I spent too much time in corporate where it was like, I didn’t feel like I had my own voice the way that I really wanted to. And so that’s, I just wanted if somebody is coming from a corporate background or something like that, it’s okay. Just figure out how to leverage your strengths and experiences, but apply them in a way you’re passionate about like we said at the beginning.

Christine Schlonski [13:52]
Yes.

Cindy Schulson [13:53]
Because you have. Like one of my clients. She was the VP of finance for a long time, but she thought, “Oh, well, that was then. this is now.” So instead of just checking all of those skills, she’s still passionate about finance. But now we’re taking those skills and applying them to people and in a way that she actually is passionate about helping people with. When I started my business, I never once thought about how to use my background in my business. I did the same thing. It was like, “Oh, that was then. This is now!”

Christine Schlonski [14:27]
Yeah, well, this is how I thought, it took me a whole year to figure it out.

Cindy Schulson [14:33]
Exactly.

Christine Schlonski [14:34]
I thought you by being surrounded, you maybe had different influences, but that’s interesting.

Cindy Schulson [14:40]
I had to unlearn things too and unlearn also, even though I teach messaging, I had to unlearn how I write. There’s a way of writing in corporate. I had to learn how to write copy in a completely different way. And I now teach my clients how to do it. But you know, I had to unlearn that corporate talk.

Christine Schlonski [15:02]
Yes. Wow. So amazing. For me and maybe that’s for you too, like the freedom for me, the personal freedom to do what I wanted to do or how to express myself or who to talk to was just, was the main driver to actually do what I do now.

Cindy Schulson [15:23]
Yeah, I hear you. Yeah, it’s amazing.

Christine Schlonski [15:26]
How was it for you?

Cindy Schulson [15:28]
It was so freeing. It was so freeing.

Christine Schlonski [15:34]
Was it a driver as well, did you go for freedom?

Cindy Schulson [15:38]
Not at first. At first, when I first started it. It was more, I had like, as I said, I had a great career in communications and it was interesting. I got pregnant. I was in my late 30s when I had my first child, and I was earning double what my husband was and I quit my job and I wanted to stay home with my kids. I just wanted to like, because I was an older mom just kind of raising them. So when I started my business, it was more motivated by just being able to raise my kids and be there with them. That was my primary motivation. But as I started learning about what was possible for me and my business and started working with clients and started marketing myself, that’s when that freedom part really clicked in. That’s when things obviously got a lot more fun.

Christine Schlonski [16:36]
Yeah, awesome. To finish this wonderful episode off, and I could keep talking as you might imagine, what is maybe a book that has made a big impression in your life? Is anything coming to mind that you would love to share as a resource?

Cindy Schulson [16:55]
Oh, my goodness. That’s a good one. I’ll give my friend, Milana Leshinsky a plug. And when I first started my business, this is an old book. But it changed my thinking it was called, Coaching Millions. I’m sure it’s still out there. She has a new book now about simplicity. But when I first read that book, I realized that I wasn’t just creating a coaching practice, I was creating a coaching business. I’ll tell you a funny little story. If I have time, I had read that book. And then I went to a conference, I think I was in my first year of business, and she was speaking and I said, “I’m gonna wait for all the pitches because it was one of those pitch fests and I’m gonna invest with her.” I invested $2,000 in a program with her. I was so excited and it helped me create my first leveraged program. That summer she called me up out of the blue and said, “Cindy, you’re my star student. Will you coach my mastermind clients?” I ended up coaching her clients for two years and now we’re dear friends. That book opened a whole new set of doors for me to thinking about my business in a really bigger way. So yes, still grateful to Milana for what she inspired.

Christine Schlonski [18:18]
No, I love it, love it. So you brought us a really great template, the brand message template that people can get on your website http://www.MarketingfromWithin.com obviously, I will have all the links in the show notes as well. So everything is just one click away to connect with you on social as well. So people can reach out. I just wanted to thank you so much for this interview and for sharing your expertise, all the golden nuggets. I’m going to listen back because there was really some stuff I want to take notes on. So thank you so much for spending time with us.

Cindy Schulson [19:01]
Oh, thank you, Christine. Just one other thing I’ll just say is that, if anybody wants to just talk with me directly, reach out on social media, or just go to http://www.talkwithcindy.com/ and we can schedule a chat.

Christine Schlonski [19:14]
Thank you.

Cindy Schulson [19:15]
Thank you.

Christine Schlonski [19:16]
I hope you had some fun, gorgeous was this amazing conversation with Cindy Schulson. Hop on over to https://christineschlonski.com/ find the podcast tab and Cindy’s episodes, 195 and 196 and you will not only find the show notes and the transcript but also all the links to connect with Cindy. It’s just one click away and her amazing free gift, the free brand message template that will help you in really getting that clarity and setting you up with the right brand message. Once you’re over there, subscribe to the empowerment notes. This is empowerment right into your inbox. Special stuff that I do not share on social media or anywhere else, as well as an update to Heart Sells! Podcast. Thank you so much for tuning in. Thank you so much for listening. Have a wonderful day wherever you are in this beautiful world and I’m saying bye for now.