How to Play the Long Game – In Just 7 Minutes with Dorie Clark

Resources/Links:

• Wanting to Get Recognized for your Knowledge, Talent, and Excellence? Learn how you can build the career you want and become an expert through the power of recognition: Dorieclark.com/toolkit

Summary

Have you been trying to grow your brand or profile but just end up feeling frustrated with it?

Do you want to know how you can play the long game and become a recognized expert?

Are you ready to find out what are the three components you need to focus on to build the career you want?

Dorie Clark is the author of the Long Game and teaches for Duke University Fuqua School of Business.

In this episode, Dorie talks about how to become a recognized expert that everyone needs through the right platform, better content creation, and expanding your network. She also shares the mistakes you should be avoiding that can stop you from getting the recognition you want and deserve.

Check out these episode highlights:

• 01:33 – Dorie’s ideal client: “So leaving aside the corporate speaking work that I do, my ideal clients for coaching and for my online courses are professional service providers that are looking to grow their brand.”
• 02:07 – Problem Dorie helps solve: “This is a problem that I experienced myself when I started my own business 15 years ago. I became a marketing strategy consultant. And as soon as I stepped into the world of business, I suddenly realize to my heart, “Oh, my God, I think everyone in the world is a marketing strategy consultant.”
• 03:34 – Typical symptoms that clients do before reaching out to Dorie: “What I often see is that for a lot of really smart people who become professional service providers, so often because, you know, been inculcated in us, we tend to believe that another degree or one more training, or one more certification is somehow going to be the answer.”
• 04:45 – Common mistakes that people make before they find Dorie’s solution: “The common mistakes that I see are, first of all, sometimes we get too easily defeated in the process. And that’s something that is really upsetting to me because I want to live in a world where it’s not the loudest voices that win, but it’s the best ideas that win.”
• 06:03 – Dorie’s Valuable Free Action (VFA): “So one of the components that I talked about in my recognized expert framework is content creation. And I feel like this is often the low-hanging fruit. It almost seems self-evident when you say it, but I think somehow, a lot of times, we don’t realize it in our lives.”
• 07:09 – Dorie’s Valuable Free Resource (VFR): Check out Dorie’s Toolkit: Dorieclark.com/toolkit
• 07:46 – Q: I’m going to steal the mantle, Tom, and I’m going to flip it back on you. What is the number one thing that you have done that has helped you in your ascent to being a recognized expert in your fields? A: I’ve figured out a relentless way to generate leads virtually every single week of the year.

Tweetable Takeaways from this Episode:

“If people do not know what your ideas are, you will never be known for your ideas.” -Dorie Clark Share on X

Transcript
(Note, this was transcribed using a transcription software and may not reflect the exact words used in the podcast)

Tom Poland 00:10
Greetings, everyone. Welcome to another edition of Marketing the Invisible. I’m Tom Poland beaming out at you from little Castaways Beach in Queensland, Australia, joined today by the best burnable, Dorie Clark! Dorie, good day. A very warm welcome again from Down Under. Where are you based?

Dorie Clark 00:25
Hey, Tom, so glad to be here! I’m in New York City.

Tom Poland 00:27
New York City, the Big Apple, the city that never sleeps. For those of you who don’t know Dori, she is the possessor of the Guinness Book of Records for the world’s shortest bio. The last person I interviewed had about 350 words, and I think Dory has listed about 18. But for what it’s worth, in addition to that, I made that up, folks! But she is the author of the Long Game and teaches for Duke University Fuqua School of Business. She is- you’ve probably seen her around because she’s been featured in, I don’t know, Forbes, Harvard– you name it, she’s been there! She doesn’t have this in a bio, but she is a sought-after speaker and makes a contribution to business and personal diversity, which, I believe, is going to leave the world a better place. So, Dorie, it’s a real privilege to have you back on the show again. Thanks for accepting our invitation the second time around. Sick, the last interview was five years ago, which leads us, actually, into the title, “How to Play the Long Game” because it has been a long game!

Dorie Clark 01:22
The long game is making friends with Tom Poland and keeping him in your life. That’s what I try to do!

Tom Poland 01:27
You’re welcome back anytime! Let’s kick-off. Our seven minutes starts now. Question number one, who is your ideal client, Dorie?

Dorie Clark 01:33
So, leaving aside the corporate speaking work that I do, my ideal clients for coaching and for my online courses are professional service providers that are looking to grow their brand and raise their profile so that they do not get treated like a commodity in the marketplace.

Tom Poland 01:52
I love this because you walk the talk! You know, I see you around on the internet constantly doing exactly that. So why don’t we carry on that thing? So, question number two, six and a half minutes left, tell us more about that problem that you solve?

Dorie Clark 02:07
Well, this is a problem that I experienced myself when I started my own business 15 years ago. I became a marketing strategy consultant. And as soon as I stepped into the world of business, I suddenly realize to my heart, “Oh, my God, I think everyone in the world is a marketing strategy consultant.” And somehow, I had to differentiate myself. And so, the grueling process of figuring out how to do that, over the course of the past 15 years, led me to really study it carefully and to write books about it. And it inspired me to want to teach other people so that they could get their ideas heard. So, if you are frustrated because you’re always having to do RFPs, and people aren’t coming to you specifically. If you feel like you always have to beg and plead the case, and you see other people getting opportunities for speaking or for books or things like that. And you wonder, “Why am I not getting them?” That was the frustration that I felt, and I want to help people with that.

Tom Poland 03:04
Right. One of the tricky things about that is that you’ve got to figure out what actually works, but also be true to yourself. Right? And-

Dorie Clark 03:11
That’s exactly right!

Tom Poland 03:13
We might explore that a little bit more. We’ve talked a little bit about the problem. And you’ve touched on some of the symptoms, which is you see other people getting booked. And it seems like some of them may not even be quite as much of an expert as you are. What are some of the other typical symptoms that someone who needs your service is going to be experiencing in their life or business? Five minutes left.

Dorie Clark 03:34
What I often see is that for a lot of really smart people who, you know, become professional service providers, so often because, you know, been inculcated in us, we tend to believe that another degree or one more training, or one more certification is somehow going to be the answer. And, unfortunately, more of that thing probably isn’t! It’s not a bad thing to do professional development, it’s a good thing, but it’s not going to get you, clients. It’s not going to get you a claim. It’s not going to build your platform. We have to do something else. And what I came to realize is that there are three key components, as part of my recognized expert framework, that I really believe are crucial. It’s content creation. It’s social proof, so you build your credibility, and it’s building your network. If you can leverage that, that’s how you can make a big difference!

Tom Poland 04:23
Content creation, social proof, leveraging your network. Let’s just touch on- four minutes left, question four. You’ve mentioned one of the common mistakes that people often make in trying to solve this problem of getting noticed and getting generating demand, which is another qualification or another course. What are some of the other common mistakes that people make when trying to get noticed and get booked?

Dorie Clark 04:45
The common mistakes that I see are, first of all, sometimes we get too easily defeated in the process. And that’s something that is really upsetting to me because I want to live in a world where it’s not the loudest voices that win, but it’s the best ideas that win. And so, it pains me when talented professionals, you know, they get turned away or they hit a roadblock or a gatekeeper. And they assume, “Oh, well, I guess I’m not good enough” or “Oh, I guess this isn’t going to work out.” That is not necessarily true! And we have to keep pushing, so I think a common mistake is giving up too soon. I think another common mistake is sometimes rebelling against it and saying, “Well, you know, why should I have to do that? My work should speak for itself.” I mean, maybe on a different planet, not this planet. And another common mistake is assuming you can buy your way out of the situation. So, people say, “Oh, well, you know, I’ll hire a PR firm.” Throwing money at the problem is not the solution, you need a holistic solution. One of them is Tom Poland’s Leadsology. And one of them, hopefully, is the work that I do.

Tom Poland 05:53
Thanks, Dorie! Question number five, two and a half minutes left, a valuable free action. What’s something that someone could do that might start them down the road, not going to solve the whole problem, but it might get them started?

Dorie Clark 06:03
So, one of the components that I talked about in my recognized expert framework is content creation. And I feel like this is often the low-hanging fruit. It almost seems self-evident when you say it, but I think somehow, a lot of times, we don’t realize it in our lives. If people do not know what your ideas are, you will never be known for your ideas. And so, therefore, it becomes essential for you to create content that is shareable because otherwise, the only people that will be able to see what you’re made of are people that you’ve already worked with. That’s a small audience. Or the people they refer you to, that’s a small audience too! When you create content, whether it’s writing articles, giving speeches, or starting a podcast or something like that, it gives you a way for your ideas to travel further than you could. It gives them the potential to reach new people that wouldn’t know about you otherwise, so that they can say, “Oh my gosh, that’s exactly what I need!”

Tom Poland 07:00
Perfect! Thank you for that. 75 seconds left, two questions to go. One valuable free resource. Where can we direct folks to find out more about your solutions?

Dorie Clark 07:09
So, one thing that I hope will be helpful is I’ve created a recognized expert self-assessment. You can get it at Dorieclark.com/toolkit. It’s completely free! And it’s a scored self-assessment to actually help you rate and understand where you are in the process of becoming a recognized expert. And be able to see where you’re strong, where you’re weaker, and it gives you recommendations about where to focus your energy.

Tom Poland 07:33
So, it’s Dorieclark, D-O-R-I-E, Clark, .com/toolkit. Love it! Thank you very much. 30 seconds left, so heaps of time! What’s the one question I should have asked you, but didn’t?

Dorie Clark 07:46
Well, I’m going to steal the mantle, Tom, and I’m going to flip it back on you. And I want to ask you, stealing the time here, what is the number one thing that you have done that has helped you in your ascent to being a recognized expert in your fields?

Tom Poland 08:01
I’ve figured out a relentless way to generate leads virtually every single week of the year. That’s my holy grail! Dorie Clark, is very clever. Thank you so much for your time.

Tom Poland 08:11
Thanks for checking out our Marketing The Invisible podcast. If you like what we’re doing here please head over to iTunes to subscribe, rate us, and leave us a review. It’s very much appreciated. And if you want to generate five fresh leads in just five hours then check out www.fivehourchallenge.com.