UNDERESTIMATED: The Small Business Advantage Podcast
Temporada 1
How Do I Make My Small Business Stand Out in a Crowded Market?
How Can I Get My Business to Run Without Me Doing Everything?
por Shawna Suckow
If your website says you have great customer service, quality work, years of experience, friendly people, or that you're family-owned, you may sound exactly like everybody else. In this solo episode of Underestimated, I'm tackling one of the biggest marketing problems small businesses have: differentiation. I call the sea of generic claims the Blandscape™, and escaping it doesn't mean getting louder, weirder, or slapping a new logo on the same old message. It means giving your Exact Right Customer™ a meaningful reason to notice you, trust you, remember you, and choose you. You'll learn how to look at your business through your customer's eyes, uncover what actually makes you different, and turn those differences into marketing that matters. I talk about why “anybody with money” is not your ideal customer, why your customers may explain your value better than you do, how to find the hill you're willing to die on, and how to use micro-stories to prove your claims instead of simply making them. I also share a simple competitor test you can use today: write down the top five claims you make in your marketing. If your competitors can honestly say the same thing, cross it out and find a more specific, meaningful way to communicate it. Resources: Find Your Exact Right Customer™ worksheet: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/downloads/exact-right-customer-finder.pdf How to Differentiate Your Business from The Blandscape™: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/differentiate-your-business Blog: “Our People Make the Difference” Is a Statement That's Hurting Your Business: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/blog/our-people-make-the-difference-is-a-statement-that-s-hurting-your-business Episode page: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/podcast/episode-34 Connect With Shawna: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ShawnaSuckow Website: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com Non-Snoozeletter: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/newsletter Free Small Business Marketing Resources: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/vault If this episode makes you realize your marketing has wandered into the Blandscape™, subscribe to Underestimated and share it with another small business owner whose “great customer service” deserves a much better story.
You started a business for more freedom, and somehow became the person who has to touch every task, answer every question, approve every decision, and keep the whole darn thing moving. In this episode of Underestimated, I talk with Lauren Glynn about what happens when the business owner becomes the bottleneck—and how to get yourself out of that role. We talk about delegation, systems, contractors, client boundaries, and why your VA may not actually be the problem. Sometimes the problem is the photo of a sticky note you sent her and called “instructions.” Ouch. You’ll learn how to look at your entire business from 10,000 feet before trying to fix individual problems, including what can be handed off, standardized, automated, and what still needs your very human brain. This episode is especially useful if you’re an established small business owner working with a handful of contractors and you don’t necessarily want a giant company. Maybe you want more clients. Maybe you want to start another business. Maybe you’d simply like to take Thursday afternoon off without wondering whether the building will catch fire while you’re gone. Lauren also talks about setting boundaries when clients start treating you like their highly paid employee, choosing business tools that work with your brain instead of forcing your brain to work with the tool, and where AI actually makes sense in your operations. EPISODE PAGE https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/podcast/episode-33 CONNECT WITH LAUREN GLYNN Website: https://www.laurenglynn.com Free Level One Diagnostic: https://www.laurenglynn.com/level-one The Ready Room: https://www.laurenglynn.com/ready-room Threads: @LaurenGConsulting Lauren is offering Underestimated listeners $50 off a Make It So Intensive and $200 off the Ready Room with code UNDERESTIMATED. CONNECT WITH SHAWNA YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ShawnaSuckow Website: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com Non-Snoozeletter: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/newsletter Free Small Business Marketing Resources: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/vault TIMESTAMPS 00:00 Why Small Business Owners Become the Bottleneck 02:29 Who Lauren Glynn Helps 03:24 Growing Your Business Without Growing a Huge Team 05:04 Finding Your Exact Right Customer 07:58 Why Staying Small Can Be a Business Advantage 09:54 Getting Yourself Out of Every Little Decision 11:02 Finding the Bottlenecks in Your Business 13:02 Inside Lauren’s Ready Room 15:05 When Your VA Might Not Be the Problem 18:45 Where AI and Automation Actually Help 20:17 Why All-in-One Business Tools Don’t Work for Everyone 21:03 Building Systems Around the Way Your Brain Works 22:47 Do You Have Too Many Business Tools? 24:16 When Clients Treat You Like Their Employee 25:45 Final Takeaways and Listener Offer #SmallBusiness #BusinessSystems #Delegation #BusinessOperations #UnderestimatedPodcast
Prospect ghosting feels personal. Usually, it isn’t. In this solo episode, Shawna breaks down nine reasons promising buyers go silent—from decision overload and unclear next steps to missing trust signals and follow-up that accidentally raises the pressure. You’ll learn how to spot what is really happening, reduce buyer friction, and follow up without sounding desperate. In this episode: • Why silence is often uncertainty, not rejection • How too many choices and vague proposals stall decisions • The trust gaps prospects rarely explain • What to say in a follow-up—and when to stop chasing • How to make the next step easier to take Free tools and practical small-business resources: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/vault More episodes: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/podcast Hosted by Shawna Suckow, CSP—consumer behavior expert, former million-dollar corporate buyer, and small-business advocate.
LinkedIn can be a fantastic prospecting tool for a small business, right up until you start trying to follow every expert, algorithm update, posting rule, and trick somebody swears is working this week. Guest Jennifer Darling has a much saner approach. Instead of chasing LinkedIn, she pays attention to human behavior. We talk about the 4.5 types of LinkedIn posts that consistently get attention, why your profile matters before you start posting more, what belongs in a newsletter, when personal posts work, and why you absolutely do not need to live on LinkedIn all day to get business from it. If you’re struggling with LinkedIn because you don’t know what to post, how often to post, whether video matters, or which piece of advice you’re supposed to believe this week, this conversation is for you. Jennifer has spent years watching what people actually respond to on LinkedIn, and her approach is refreshingly practical for those of us who have businesses to run and cannot spend 40 hours a week studying social media. You’ll learn what Jennifer thinks of LinkedIn newsletters, documents, carousels, personal posts, video, and photos. Shawna shares examples including the difference between a useful personal story and one that requires 36 mental hoops to connect a crushed Skittle to leadership. They also talk about inappropriate tagging, hashtag overload, fake engagement from your friends, memorable LinkedIn headlines, and why a little personality gives people something human to talk to you about. Who This Episode Is For This episode is for small business owners who know LinkedIn could help them generate leads and referrals but don’t want another full-time marketing job. It’s also useful if you’ve been posting inconsistently, copying whatever the latest LinkedIn expert recommends, or wondering whether all that activity is producing anything besides more activity. Episode page + full transcript: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/podcast/episode-29 Connect With Shawna Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/@ShawnaSuckow Visit: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com Newsletter: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/newsletter Free Small Business Marketing Resources: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/vault Connect With Jennifer Darling Find Jennifer on LinkedIn by searching Jennifer Darling Speaks. LinkedIn profile checklist: ultimateprofilechecklist.com #SmallBusinessMarketing #LinkedInMarketing #LinkedInTips #SmallBusiness #SalesStrategy #LeadGeneration #EntrepreneurMarketing #B2BMarketing If this episode helped make LinkedIn feel slightly less like another ridiculous thing you’re supposed to master, like the video and subscribe to Underestimated. You can also subscribe to Shawna’s Small Business Marketing Non-Snoozeletter and grab the free marketing resources in the Vault at www.thebuyerinsider.com/vault.
Customers can tell when you're listening and when you're simply waiting for your turn to explain. One response builds trust. The other makes them wonder whether calling you was a terrible use of an afternoon. In this episode, Shawna talks with communication strategist, keynote speaker and classically trained pianist Molly Ketcham about building trust through better conversations. Molly shares the C.A.R.A. Code, a four-part framework for curiosity, attunement, resonance and amplification, plus practical ways small business owners can make customers and employees feel genuinely heard. If you're struggling with: 😬 Conversations that feel scripted or transactional 😬 Unhappy customers who want to be heard before they hear your explanation 😬 Knowing what to ask without getting too personal 😬 Listening while your brain is already writing its response 😬 Building trust quickly with customers, employees or vendors You'll learn: 💡 What each step of the CARA Code means 💡 Why curiosity sets the emotional tone for a conversation 💡 How attunement goes beyond hearing someone's words 💡 How to respond so another person feels seen and understood 💡 Why following up on something meaningful builds lasting trust 💡 How meaningful questions differ from personal questions Who This Episode Is For This episode is for small business owners who want customers, employees and vendors to trust them sooner. It's especially useful if conversations have become too scripted, you catch yourself planning your response instead of listening, or you want to ask better questions without wandering into somebody's family history. If this conversation gave you one question worth trying, like the video and subscribe to Underestimated. You'll get more practical help for growing a small business without turning every customer interaction into something approved by a committee of twelve. Connect With Molly 🔗 Website: https://www.mollyketcham.com 🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mollyketcham 🔗 Five Powerful Questions: https://go.mollyketcham.com/curiosity Connect With Shawna 🔗 Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/@ShawnaSuckow 🔗 Visit: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com 🔗 Newsletter: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/newsletter 🔗 Free Small Business Marketing Resources: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/vault Episode page + full transcript: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/podcast/episode-30
Spending more on advertising will not fix a message people can ignore. It simply pays more people to ignore it. Shawna breaks down why so many small business ads disappear into the daily avalanche of marketing messages, then shows you how to make yours relevant, trustworthy and memorable. From print and direct mail to paid social, Google ads and sponsorships, this episode gives you a practical formula for creating ads that speak to one real customer problem and lead people toward one clear next step. If you're struggling with: 😬 Ads that look polished but do not produce results 😬 Messaging that sounds suspiciously like every competitor 😬 Knowing what to include without cramming in everything you do 😬 Paid social campaigns that reach plenty of people but few buyers 😬 Deciding whether print, Google or social advertising is worth the money You'll learn: 💡 Why weak positioning gets more expensive when you amplify it 💡 How to run the cover-your-logo test on any ad 💡 The problem-solution-proof-action formula for a stronger message 💡 Why one ad should communicate one main idea 💡 How real people and real photos build more trust than polished stock imagery 💡 Why a smaller, better-targeted audience can outperform a giant one 💡 When an ad should lead to a problem-specific landing page Shawna shares examples including: 📬 Why most ads in a direct-mail pack become interchangeable 🏠 How to replace 'Hey, homeowners' with a message that actually feels relevant 🔧 Why a real HVAC technician can build more trust than a spotless stock-photo model 🚗 How an auto-repair ad can connect with the fear of being stranded 🏟️ Why a Little League sponsorship banner needs more than a logo and beige tagline ☕ How Google ads differ from interruption advertising on social media Who This Episode Is For This episode is for small business owners who are paying for print, direct mail, paid social, Google ads or sponsorships and wondering why the results feel underwhelming. It is especially useful if your ads are packed with features, generic promises or enough information to require a snack break halfway through. Final Takeaway If this episode made you want to cover the logo on your latest ad, we hope you'll like the video and subscribe to Underestimated. You'll get practical marketing help for growing a small business without setting fire to your budget or becoming a full-time student of somebody else's algorithm. Episode page + full transcript: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/podcast/episode-29.html Episode on GEO referenced in the podcast: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/podcast/episode-14.html Episode on Community and Sponsorships referenced in the podcast: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/podcast/episode-20.html Connect With Shawna 🔗 Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/@ShawnaSuckow 🔗 Visit: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com 🔗 Newsletter: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/newsletter 🔗 Free Small Business Marketing Resources: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/vault
You have the idea. You may even have the plan. Yet you keep waiting for the magical morning when fear disappears, every detail behaves and readiness arrives. That morning is notoriously bad at showing up. Shawna talks with Monica Graves Garcia, speaker, facilitator and founder of Soulbare Wellness, about taking action before confidence arrives. Monica explains why curiosity can be more useful than courage, what comfort costs us and how accepting the messy parts of life can help business owners handle uncertainty without trying to control every step. If you're struggling with: 😬 Waiting until you feel completely prepared 😬 Overthinking a decision until your sock drawer becomes fascinating 😬 Treating failure as proof that you chose wrong 😬 Trying to control every step before taking the first one 😬 Turning wellness into one more thing you have to be good at You'll learn: 💡 Why curiosity can move you forward when courage feels unavailable 💡 What comfort and safety can quietly cost you 💡 How Monica uses playfulness to act before she knows every detail 💡 Why failure is useful information, not a character verdict 💡 The difference between wellness and wholeness 💡 How to care for employees without turning every human benefit into a KPI Who This Episode Is For This episode is for small business owners standing at the edge of a decision they have postponed for far too long. It is especially useful if you keep researching, planning or waiting for certainty because taking one imperfect step feels riskier than staying put. Final Takeaway You do not need a complete map or a fearless personality to move forward. Get curious about what could happen, take the next available step and trust yourself to meet whatever comes after it. Episode page + full transcript: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/podcast/episode-28 Connect With Monica 🔗 Soulbare Wellness: https://soulbare.com 🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/msgraves/ 🔗 Soulbare Wisdom Retreat: https://soulbare.com/wisdom Connect With Shawna 🔗 Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/@ShawnaSuckow 🔗 Visit: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com 🔗 Newsletter: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/newsletter 🔗 Free Small Business Marketing Resources: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/vault Shawna's Vault has free resources for small business owners who want useful help without spending the afternoon opening seventeen tabs. Find it at https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/vault.
Your competitor didn't necessarily win because they were cheaper. They may have felt safer, been easier to find, shown stronger proof, or made the buying process less annoying. Shawna breaks down the reasons customers choose another business, including perceived risk, weak visibility, friction, missing social proof and plain old inertia. She also shares the keynote she lost to a speaker with a Disney background, the questions that get useful answers from lost customers, and the small-business advantages bigger companies can't copy. If you're struggling with: 😬 Losing business without knowing why 😬 Assuming every loss is about price 😬 Competing with companies that look safer or more established 😬 Getting honest feedback from customers who chose someone else 😬 Finding friction in your own buying process You'll learn: 💡 Why a bigger company may feel less risky to a customer 💡 How visibility, social proof & buying friction affect the decision 💡 What to ask after you lose a customer 💡 Why your competitors' low-star reviews are useful research 💡 How guarantees & simpler buying steps can build trust 💡 Which small-business advantages larger companies can't easily copy Who This Episode Is For This episode is for small business owners who know their work is good but still lose customers to larger or more familiar competitors. It's especially useful when price gets blamed by default and nobody has asked the customer what actually happened. Final Takeaway A lost customer isn't just a bruised ego with an invoice attached. Ask what happened, study what competitors do well, remove what makes buying harder, and show customers why choosing a smaller business can feel safer, more personal and much easier. Episode page + full transcript: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/podcast/episode-27 Timestamps 00:00 Introduction 00:14 Why Customers Choose the Competition 00:40 The Keynote Shawna Lost After COVID 02:10 A Lost Sale Is Not Always About Price 02:53 Perception of Risk 03:32 Visibility and Memorability 03:59 Buying Friction 05:19 The Social Proof Gap 07:46 Why the Status Quo Keeps Winning 09:12 What to Ask After You Lose the Business 10:48 Competitor Reviews and Mystery Shopping 12:00 Using a Guarantee to Lower Risk 13:03 Removing Friction From the Buying Process 15:23 What Bigger Competitors Can’t Copy 17:16 Every Lost Customer Is a Focus Group of One 17:59 Resources and Closing Connect With Shawna 🔗 Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/@ShawnaSuckow 🔗 Visit: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com 🔗 Newsletter: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/newsletter 🔗 Free Small Business Marketing Resources: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/vault If this episode helped you spot one reason customers may be choosing somebody else, like the video and subscribe to Underestimated. You'll get more practical help for growing a small business without pretending you have a 47-person marketing department. Shawna's Vault has dozens of free resources for small business owners who would prefer useful answers over another expensive binder. Find it at https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/vault.
Do you keep hearing, "You're too expensive?" Ouch. I know it's tempting to start chopping prices, throwing in freebies, or convincing yourself you need to "be more competitive." I'd rather chew glass. Sometimes your prices really are too high. But if you keep hearing that objection, chances are there's something else going on. In this episode, I walk through the five biggest reasons customers think you're too expensive. We talk about your branding, your messaging, the value customers see (or don't), and the one thing that's become more important than ever: trust. If you're struggling with: ▶️ Hearing "you're too expensive" more than you'd like ▶️ Losing customers to cheaper competitors ▶️ Attracting people who only care about price ▶️ Wondering why customers don't seem to "get" what makes you different ...this episode is for you. You'll learn: Why lowering your prices is usually the last thing I'd do How your branding may be working against you Why your website and messaging set expectations before you ever have a conversation How to figure out whether customers really see your value Why trust has become a small business's unfair advantage Shawna shares examples including: ✅ Secret shopping your competitors ✅ Asking prospects the right follow-up questions ✅ Using focus groups to uncover blind spots ✅ Collecting video testimonials that customers actually believe ✅ Making your website work harder for you Who This Episode Is For Business owners who are tired of competing on price and want customers choosing them because they're the right fit, not the cheapest option. Final Takeaway Not every customer who says you're too expensive is telling you your prices are wrong. Sometimes they're telling you they don't understand your value yet. Those are two very different problems, and only one of them gets fixed with a discount. Episode Page + Full Transcript https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/podcast/episode-25 Timestamps 00:00 Why Customers Think You're Too Expensive 01:08 Maybe It Really Is Your Pricing 03:15 When Your Brand Doesn't Match Your Price 07:10 What Your Messaging Is Really Saying 10:20 Do Customers See Enough Value? 13:45 The Biggest Issue: Trust 18:30 Your Small Business Superpower 22:05 Finding Your Exact Right Customer Connect With Shawna 🌐 https://www.thebuyerinsider.com 📬 https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/newsletter 📚 https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/vault ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@ShawnaSuckow If you haven't wandered through the Vault yet, go take a look. There are free assessments, worksheets, and other goodies in there that might save you a little time, a little money, and maybe a headache or two. #SmallBusinessMarketing #PricingStrategy #CustomerTrust #SmallBusinessOwner #Entrepreneur #BuyerBehavior
Every time I speak at a conference, someone quietly admits they know they should be doing more video, but they hate being on camera. If that's you, this episode is for you. I'm sharing ten practical ways introverts can get comfortable with video without pretending to be louder, funnier, or more outgoing than they really are. We'll talk about why teaching works better than performing, why stories beat sales pitches, why perfection actually hurts trust, and how confidence comes from doing it, not waiting until you feel ready. In this episode, I'm sharing ten practical ways introverts can finally get comfortable creating videos without pretending to be someone they're not. We'll talk about why you don't need to be entertaining, why stories connect better than sales pitches, how to stop obsessing over perfection, and why your customers care a whole lot less about your hair than you think they do. If you've been putting off video because you're waiting until you feel confident, I hope this episode changes your perspective. If you're struggling with... ✅Feeling awkward on camera ✅Overthinking every video you record ✅Thinking you need to be entertaining ✅Waiting until you feel "ready" You'll learn... Why introverts can actually have an advantage on video How to make your customer the hero instead of yourself Why bullet points work better than scripts How to build confidence through repetition Why authenticity creates more trust than perfection Shawna shares examples including... ✅Recording videos while rushing through airports ✅Why some of her least polished videos performed the best ✅How she batches content when her energy is highest ✅Why she'd "rather chew glass" than public speaking...at least when she started Who This Episode Is For Small business owners, consultants, speakers, coaches, and service professionals who know they should be using video but keep putting it off because they don't feel comfortable on camera. Final Takeaway Confidence doesn't arrive before you start. It grows every time you press Record. The sooner you stop trying to perform and start trying to help, the easier video becomes. Episode Page: https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/podcast Timestamps 00:00 Why Video Feels So Hard 01:02 You Don't Have to Entertain 03:00 Tell Stories Instead 05:08 Make Your Customer the Hero 07:23 Record When Your Battery Is Full 09:12 Bullet Points Beat Scripts 11:00 Stop Chasing Perfect 15:08 Batch Your Videos 17:20 Lean Into Your Introvert Strengths 19:18 Stop Trying to Be "On" 21:45 Confidence Comes From Repetition 25:20 The Buyer Insider Vault Connect With Shawna https://www.thebuyerinsider.com https://www.thebuyerinsider.com/vault https://www.youtube.com/@ShawnaSuckow #smallbusiness #videomarketing #introvert #entrepreneur #marketing If you found this episode helpful, please like, subscribe, and share it with another business owner who needs to hear it. 😊😊😊 Don't forget to check out The Vault, Shawna's free resource library for small business owners.