AL EP 37: Lori Barber – Focus on Your Long-Term Strategy

Show Notes

Lori is Lux214’s first point of contact for clients. You’ll love kicking off your marketing with her because “can’t” isn’t in her vocabulary, plus she has an innate ability to match your goals with strategy. She has worked with big-name brands, including CBS, Daisy Brand, the Dallas Cowboys, On the Border Mexican Cantina, Maggiano’s, Kimball Art Museum, Microsoft, PGA, USAG, Alere, Quidel, SolarWorld, Mr. Chow and Rug Doctor, to name a few. She is recognized as an industry leader, having won many awards and been featured in many publications. Her awards include an Excellence in Interactive Marketing Awards (EIMA), a Webby Award, and the Outstanding Achievement in Website Development Award. She was featured in Rockport Publishing’s 1000 Graphic Elements and has been recognized by the Dallas Business Journal for running top Web design and marketing firms in the Dallas area.

Connect with Lori Barber & Lux214 Media Group here –
Web: https://www.lux214.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lux214Media
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lux214media
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/25000483

Episode Transcript

00:00:04:04 – 00:00:32:14
1
Everybody is adjusting to your agency and transformation coach and founder of Mission Control, creator of Leverage for Growth. And I’m Lucas James, founder of Twist that I am, which scaled from 0 to $200000 a month with my own agency. We are the hosts of Leverage for Growth, podcast Agency, Leverage and episodes. We know that in order to scale your agency successfully, there are multiple shifts that need to happen within the founders mindsets, skill sets and leadership styles.

00:00:32:22 – 00:01:00:06
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We are on a mission to interview marketing and PR agency owners on their journey to six, seven and eight figures and leverage the lessons from their journey to save you time, energy and money in order for you to get your agency to the next level. If you find value in these episodes, watch the case, study video to learn more about leverage for growth and how we successfully scale agencies quickly at Niche in control outcomes Case study at Niche in Control eCommerce last.

00:01:02:03 – 00:01:25:14
1
You are now listening to Leverage for Growth. Hey everybody, This is Jesse Gilmore, founder of Mission Control and creator of Leverage for Growth. Welcome to the Agency Leverage Edition. Today I am here with Lori Barber, co-founder of Lux two one for Media Group, a full service digital marketing agency that offers innovative solutions that increase brand visibility and drive sales.

00:01:25:23 – 00:01:27:06
1
Thanks for coming to our show today, Lori.

00:01:27:22 – 00:01:29:19
2
Thank you so much. I’m excited to be here.

00:01:30:09 – 00:01:34:05
1
Awesome. Can you tell us a little bit about the history and background of your agency?

00:01:35:02 – 00:02:25:01
2
So, Lux, two one for Media Group is really the agency that was born out of a friendship and a crazy, crazy, fun food adventure. So my business partner and I, she actually hired me. I was I was doing a turnaround project for an ad agency in La Hoya and just transitioning back into my Dallas roots full time. And she actually hired me to consult on a project for Kent Rathbone Concepts, the celebrity chef who beat Bobby Flay on Iron Chef, which was the original creator of Abacus Restaurant in Dallas.

00:02:25:01 – 00:03:03:11
2
Jasper’s Blue Plate Kitchen, Keith Kent Rathmann Catering. Anyway, we were working together, growing and building that brand, and the agency or the restaurant group split. There was there was an internal division between the equity partners and the chef, and we literally were going, Oh my goodness, we have got to do something. So we had been talking about starting an agency for years because we were just a really great team and it seems like everything she was great at, I was not and vice versa.

00:03:03:12 – 00:03:31:01
2
So long story short, when we went through that transition with the restaurant group, it only made sense that we start the agency. My background is on the agency side, and her background is more on the restaurant marketing side. So those two kind of get us a foothold and we’ve been doing it for a while and so both of us separately have a really robust network of contacts.

00:03:31:14 – 00:03:49:23
2
So it was it was kind of like the next natural transition and a ton of fun. And at that point it was more of a lifestyle agency to help the clients that we love and do what we enjoy and have an insane amount of flexibility. And the more fun we started having, the more successful our agency became.

00:03:50:10 – 00:04:02:11
1
Mm hmm. That’s awesome. I love how partners there are kind of like the yin yang, like strengths and weaknesses being able fulfill. And it seems like it was kind of, like, meant to happen. Yeah.

00:04:02:21 – 00:04:03:14
2
For sure.

00:04:04:02 – 00:04:20:02
1
Mm hmm. And was there kind of like a big aha moment that you had? Obviously, the environment was kind of shifting. You’re like, I, we really need to that work together. Was there an I have moment or it kind of happened like kind of gradually deciding that an agency was the thing.

00:04:20:15 – 00:04:48:19
2
That’s a great question. It was really twofold. I mean, we we knew on some level that running an agency together made the most sense for our careers. And then when we started strategizing and looking at the numbers and looking at the as the number of accounts we needed to bring in and what service offerings were most lucrative and how we could position the agency not just in the DFW Metroplex, but nationally.

00:04:49:05 – 00:05:17:24
2
Then it really became super, super clear that with the resources that we have together, that an agency just just made sense because of the opportunities in the marketplace. So this was this was seven years ago when the economy was absolutely rocking and the restaurant industry was completely on fire. So, you know, that was really a no no brainer.

00:05:17:24 – 00:05:26:12
2
And I’m glad we were able to get in during that time. And make the most of that at that time.

00:05:27:01 – 00:05:42:21
1
Mm hmm. And the restaurant industry went through quite a few kind of disruptions with COVID and over the last seven years or so. Okay. Yeah. Hey, can you talk a little bit out of that impact, you and your agency? And how did you kind of adjust?

00:05:43:11 – 00:06:18:04
2
Well, that’s a good story. So during the time that the big COVID pandemic press conference happened, I think we all remember exactly what we were doing at that time in our world. Both of our phones started going off like an emergency, like an Amber Alert. Like buzz, buzz, buzz every 10 minutes. And it was a client either calling or texting to say that they were recalling their budget had to stop.

00:06:19:03 – 00:06:48:17
2
Don’t do anymore work. We have to suspend our retainer. And it was like our business went from thriving to losing all the to clients. And we were like, oh, we’re sort of living. We, you know, we were just fine. But during that moment, it was it was shocking to know that the business that we built literally deteriorated within about a 45 minute time frame.

00:06:48:17 – 00:07:15:10
2
So anyway, we both called each other and laughed and and cried. No, we didn’t cry, but we were like, Oh my God, what just happened? And then we decided that the only thing we could possibly do was to help someone. So we called the North Texas Restaurant Association and we said, So we have a lot of time on our hands and what can we do?

00:07:15:10 – 00:07:40:10
2
We also work with private equity firms and, well, one firm in particular, and we said if there’s anything we can do to help your clients, you know, we’re here. And so we called all of our clients back. We said, You’re not canceling, you’re on a scholarship, and we’re going to keep working because that’s not what you do. You know, we’re we’re going to help you retool, take out we’re we’re going to help you get online ordering.

00:07:40:10 – 00:08:06:09
2
We’re going to plan out curbside. And we just rolled up our sleeves, put everyone on a scholarship called the North Texas Restaurant Association, and planned an event that would raise money for our local restaurants. So we did an initiative called Dishing Out Relief, and we called all of our contacts. Basically, Wolfgang Puck came to the table with a chef experience and an autographed chef’s jacket.

00:08:06:18 – 00:08:31:17
2
All of our winemakers gave us wine experiences. We sold package our friends with boats and airplanes, took donated packages, and we just we raised an insane amount of money for dishing out relief that was then redistributed back to the restaurants. And then we kept our clients going and basically just picked right back up where we left. But it was definitely a fun chapter in my career.

00:08:32:19 – 00:08:47:19
1
At I’m so Proud of you. That’s awesome. The only thing I can think about is like in football, like a spin move. Like I’m about to get here. Like, Well, no, but you dodged he dodged it and you figured it out. That’s awesome.

00:08:48:03 – 00:08:50:15
2
Yeah. It was not boring. It was not dull.

00:08:51:01 – 00:08:51:12
1
Yeah.

00:08:51:19 – 00:09:27:04
2
We also teamed up with Texas Country Music Man called Billy Bob’s and we live Stream. We teamed up with Texas music artists and we did a livestream and tip to donate. So all the money went back into the North Texas Restaurant Association. So it was a live auction and it was a a live stream when everyone was at home and video and in online content consumption rates literally were at an all time high.

00:09:27:04 – 00:09:31:14
2
So it was kind of a trifecta of success.

00:09:32:01 – 00:09:57:11
1
MM Awesome. And obviously, over the last seven years, you’ve learned a lot. You’ve had a lot of kind of like pivots that have been made and and probably things that you’ve learned over the last seven years that maybe you wish you would have known in the beginning. So if you’re to give any kind of like tips or advice or kind of advice to somebody that might be one or two steps before you.

00:09:57:18 – 00:10:00:15
1
What would be some of the advice or lessons learned that you’d pass on?

00:10:02:01 – 00:10:40:15
2
That’s a great question. There are so many, you know, on the agency side, I think focusing on a higher level, on long term strategy, you know, if if you’re starting your career, either with an agency or starting an agency, I think it’s so easy to get caught up in to the magic bullet. Like, there’s one marketing channel or there’s one marketing tactic that you tend to do over and over and over again, or getting siloed into one one aspect.

00:10:40:15 – 00:11:19:14
2
You can certainly focus on that. But I think the ability to quickly focus on the business objectives of the client holistically and from a global perspective, being able to do that early in your career and consistently really and truly makes all the difference in the world. And then I think the other piece of advice that just really stands out to me is, is it is for people entering our industry to really know their worth and know the value of a relationship.

00:11:19:15 – 00:11:43:15
2
And and those two things are really hard to do at the same time, because we’re in an industry that most people don’t understand, especially the inner workings. So a lot of clients don’t understand what that really means. And we have a saying it looks to one four media group that if anyone ever says That’s easy, we can do it in a week.

00:11:43:15 – 00:12:19:09
2
It’s the curse of death. Nothing, nothing that we do is easy and nothing that we do. It takes two weeks. So, you know, helping our clients understand, you know, what we really do and and what it really takes to get there, which, you know, usually involves generating revenue almost always and being able to prove that. So, you know, and and really understanding how you work through those relationships with your clients makes a huge difference.

00:12:19:09 – 00:12:41:15
2
And, you know, there are ups and downs and the value of that client is priceless. There are going to be times when you have to lead them and they have to grow when you have to grow together. And that’s one of the things that my business partner and I do really well with our clients is help help them grow and lead them and really be their business partner and helping them reach their goals.

00:12:42:03 – 00:13:04:13
1
Mm hmm. I love the focus on long term and partnerships, because ultimately, when you’re focused on partnerships and being able to align, it’s like long term growth and success. Mm hmm. Awesome. So what are you excited about? What are you working on? You know what excited about achieving in the next day? Maybe 1 to 3 years.

00:13:05:03 – 00:14:02:08
2
I’m so glad you ask, because let me tell you what, we’ve been so busy on investing in the agency. Two big things for us. One, we have invested a crazy amount of money in being able to obtain great data for our clients. So being able to reach their client or their target audience via email, via the phone, via geofencing, and being able to reach our media contacts efficiently and efficiently and at a larger scale, and our influencers that having access to that kind of data so that we can spin up an influencer campaign really quickly so that we can reach our target audience via email super efficiently, and we can get media pitches out to

00:14:03:00 – 00:14:40:19
2
the right media contacts. So that’s one. And the other thing that we’re excited about is our influencer program. And I think influencers have been kind of under untapped resource and an undervalued resource for moving the marketing needle. And we, we just we can’t ignore it anymore. And I think doing influencer collaborations for trade, those trades are going to get smaller and smaller because the influencers do reach and the micro-influencers to do reach a huge, huge audience and they do bring a lot of value, so we’re going to have to start paying them.

00:14:40:20 – 00:15:10:18
2
So anyway, long story short, we’ve perfected how that works for the client and how our program works for for the influencer. Also, because we do appreciate the work that they do for us and the brands that they get behind and and what they bring to the table. So that’s what we’ve been up to. We’ve been buying a bunch of data and working the kinks out of a really robust influencer program that we can roll out to our small and medium and large size clients.

00:15:11:12 – 00:15:13:08
1
Oh, that sounds very exciting.

00:15:13:19 – 00:15:14:17
2
Yeah, it is.

00:15:16:02 – 00:15:21:16
1
Oh, that’s the best way for people to get in touch with you. Or do you have any offers for them that they could take advantage of?

00:15:22:05 – 00:16:11:16
2
Well, we would love to talk to anyone looking to align with an agency like ours. We have a ton of contractor positions available all the time. We’re always looking for great social media account managers, account executives, or always looking for great designers or photographers, team members, people who talent. We love good talent. The other thing that we like to do is to weigh in with clients on their strategy and help them create a marketing plan so we can work your strategy, look at your strategy, have a conversation with you, give you a second opinion, put a second set of eyes on something that you’re going to do with social media, public relations, influencer marketing, email

00:16:11:16 – 00:16:22:20
2
marketing events, marketing events. You know, we would love to, love to help. And you can you can reach us at info at Lux two one for media group dot com.

00:16:23:16 – 00:16:36:08
1
Awesome. And for anybody that’s listening, I’ll put the connection and also links to Lori and Lex to one for media group in the show notes and Lori, it’s been awesome talking with you. Thank you so much for being on the show.

00:16:36:23 – 00:16:38:05
2
Thank you for having me. I enjoyed it.

00:16:40:13 – 00:17:14:23
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Agency owners. If you want to transform your agency to sustain and grow without your direct involvement, where you can stop working in the business and switch to working on the business where you can regain control of your time, delegate effectively, get paid what you’re worth, and have your team run the day to day. Go to niche in control dot com slash case study right now to learn more about leverage for growth, you can book a free strategy session with us to look at your systems, understand what needs to be done in order for you to scale and get a free strategic plan for the next year to live the life of entrepreneurship that you’ve always

00:17:14:23 – 00:17:22:22
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dreamed about. Go to niche in control dot com slash case study now.

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