What Can Wu-Tang Clan Teach Small Biz Owners?

“Cash Rules Everything Around Me”

Last week, Third Act had the chance to speak with Leader’s Perception. We covered some trends in marketing like the rise of AI, how to use your data to spark creativity, storytelling, and more.

For small business owners, in any industry, marketing can be hard! Staying on top of new platforms and consumer trends, making solid strategic decisions based on ever-increasing data points…it’s a lot to think about, and that’s just from a marketing lens. AI-enabled tools can help and have been gaining significant traction. More and more clients Third Act talks to want to know how to better use them too, especially since AI is now being embedded into programs lots of small business owners already use, like Canva for design or Constant Contact for CRM and email marketing.

As the old saying goes, tools are only as good as the person using them. And smart small business owners probably resonate with Wu-Tang Clan’s famous song C.R.E.A.M., since “Cash Rules Everything Around Me” when it comes to investing precious capital and time into marketing efforts.

Here’s a couple observations from the LP interview that might help think about how to set yourself up for success:

Leaders Perception: What’s the most significant shift you’ve observed in the marketing and branding landscape in the last year, and how should businesses adapt to it?

Third Act : The rise of AI. It’s gone from a theoretical tool accessible to a few intrepid early adopters to a daily topic of conversation with clients in a remarkably short time span. For small business owners in particular, AI-enabled tools can play a huge role in leveling the playing field against bigger spending competitors when it comes to areas like lead generation, customer service, digital marketing, competitive research, and more. AI doesn’t necessarily have a role to play in every business right now, but for most companies, completely ignoring AI seems unlikely to be beneficial over the next few years.

LP: In the era of data-driven marketing, how do you balance the need for data and analytics with the creative aspects of marketing and branding?

Third Act : I love data because it can help create a business case for taking a creative risk, which is often essential when securing senior stakeholder alignment for marketing investments. Similarly, having a proper view into how marketing campaigns are performing through solid analytics is great for understanding how to optimize investments and hit company goals, whether that’s increasing conversions on landing pages or increasing engagement with a brand on social media, for example.

However, I’m a firm believer in the power of human creativity and storytelling. Data is just one part of the equation when it comes to crafting compelling campaigns that motivate human audiences to take the action we want them to as marketers. Without humans to bring the story behind data’s importance or relevancy to life, they’re just stats on a screen.

If you need a better strategy in place to harness trends like this for your 2024 growth plans, Third Act can help.