With 20 years corporate experience for leading brands including Accor, Air New Zealand, Virgin, Velocity and Flight Centre, Kim Skilton has been responsible for creating and executing multi-million dollar brand campaigns and tactical retail campaigns. Kim was awarded Flight Centre’s Global Marketer of the Year and was the Marketing lead on Virgin’s launch of their frequent flyer program, Velocity.

Today, Kim enjoys being a business owner herself as she charts the course for What Matters Marketing where she shares her vast amount of marketing expertise with her clients to ultimately build brand awareness and grow revenue. Working across a variety of industries and business models including e-commerce B2C and more traditional bricks and mortar to high level corporate B2B, Kim has been able to guide her clients to clearly articulate their brand including defining their ideal customer, website optimisation, lead generation, content marketing, social media marketing, promotions, events and strong communication strategies.

And when she’s not growing brands, you can find her indulging in time with her puppy, at the beach and having the occasional glass of a full bodied red, preferably a Shiraz.

 
What made you make the change from corporate to setting up your own business?

I had given 20 years of my adult life contributing to driving the growth of other people’s businesses and whilst the experience and amazing people I met along the way were invaluable, I had come to a point where I felt that I could take my years of experience and apply to businesses where I could really make a fundamental difference to their growth (not just 1 person in a big chain of people).  This coupled with the flexibility to pretty much work from anywhere motivated me to take the plunge.

How has the transition been? Do you have any tips for thinking of doing something similar?

I was a little lost at the start and to be 100% honest I started to doubt myself and what value I could bring to a business.  My bravado and confidence started to evaporate as I asked myself the hard questions however it wasn’t long until I started to truly appreciate the depth and breadth of the knowledge & experience I had gained during my 20 years in the corporate world  – I just needed some prodding (aka – speak with potential clients/business owners about their pain points and voila I had ideas & solutions for them).  The other challenge is believing you should be paid what you deserve for what you do, and establishing what that rate is.   It is a total mind shift in how you look at earning money and I have certainly tried to move away from trading hours for cash and instead will provide clients with a list of deliverables for them and it will cost X to do this.  The third learning for me, was I had to roll up my sleeves and get under the hood – by this I mean, as I was in a senior marketing position for my last few roles, I had a team of people to do the work but when you go out on your own, you do it all… or at least I did.  Instead of getting frustrated & overwhelmed by this,  I looked at it as the perfect opportunity to brush up on my ‘doing’ skills (I had been in strategy & planning in leadership roles and my team did the doing, I continue to learn literally every day especially in the dynamic field of marketing.  I truly believe I am worth more now than ever due to my skill set.  Not only  can I look at the strategic requirements of a business, I also know how to make them happen – which tools & activities are required to deliver the roadmap. It is empowering.

Tell us your top marketing tip?

Network baby!  I have 2 very strong reasons for saying this:

1.        It is the best way to drive leads for your business or it might even be a new contact you meet that can help you with your business in some way (eg accountant, manufacturer, new product supplier, collaboration etc)

2.       You need to leave the house.  I have found that whilst in theory I love the idea of working from home, I do love the energy that comes from being with people.  I still work from home however I have learnt that I need to go out 1 – 2 days a week whether it be to work from a co-work space, attend an event or two, or have client meetings.  I always come home feeling more alive and motivated to excel at what I do & deliver for my clients who entrust me with their babies (businesses).  Also, chances are that you have probably met someone that day that sparks an idea and/or creates a new relationship or opportunity.

How important is marketing to a business and should all businesses have a digital strategy?

No surprises what my answer will be – YES, marketing is important to every business!  If you don’t do any marketing it is like taking a lease on a shop but never opening the door.  And yes, every business needs some level of a digital strategy…. One word people – GOOGLE!  What is our answer to everything… I’ll google it.  If you do not have at least a google business listing you are insane.  The scope of your digital strategy comes down to your business however there are certainly some minimum requirements that you would want to put into action to ensure people can find & interact with you.

And what’s next on the horizon for Kim Skilton?

Through one of my clients, Travel Partners who is a network of independent travel agents, I saw the need for some basic fundamental marketing training so this year I am launching Marketing Mastery for Beginners.  It is an online marketing academy for soloprenuers and small business owners who want to get a solid understanding of marketing principles and practical solutions so they can make better decisions and do marketing that matters! It consists of 10 self-paced modules that will cover everything from branding, to PR, Promotions, social media and more.

Coast or City?

Coast – I love the beach and ocean so always the coast for me.

How do you relax?

Take my puppy for a walk along the beach

What are you reading at the moment?

I am reading well listening to You Are A Badass by Jen Sincero

To find out more about Kim’s business head to:

https://www.whatmattersmarketing.com/

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