Top Marketing Consultant - Mack Collier

Name:Mack Collier
Name of Company: Mack Collier
Website: http://www.mackcollier.com

My name is Mack Collier and I am a social media strategist that helps companies use social media to better connect with their customers. I am also one of the few 'social media consultants' that actually does social media consulting for companies.

By accident. In 2005 I started blogging because at the time I needed a job. After doing so for a few months, my blog started to gain in popularity, and I got a few writing jobs here and there. Then a few of my friends that were already consulting started bringing me in to help them on social media projects, then by the end of 2007 I started getting offers to speak at events. Eventually, it reached the point where I was getting enough work to go full-time as a consultant, and did so in early 2008.

I first started consulting in 2006, pretty much part-time till 2008 when the volume of work requests had increased to the point where I could consult full-time.

I really try to put myself in my client's shoes. For example, a lot of companies are really skeptical when it comes to social media, and many of these concerns are rooted in sound business logic. When I talk to potential clients about social media, I address their concerns head on, and don't try to BS them about why they should use social media. If I don't think that a particular company should use social media, then I tell them that. I would like to think I have a reputation as being 'no nonsense' and a 'straight-shooter' when it comes to what does and does not work in the social media space for companies.

Long. It's not a typical 9-5 day since I work for myself. Usually I am up from 7am-midnight, and normally working on projects for myself or clients off and on throughout the day. It's really like having two jobs, because I am doing client work, but at the same time, I am marketing my own business. But I love it, so it's not really like 'work'.

One thing I've learned over the last 6 months is that I love giving companies on-site social media training. Over the last 3 years I've spoken at countless social media and online marketing conferences. I always saw the same thing: A company would send one person to the event, they would attend as many sessions as possible, taking furious notes the whole time. Then they would leave and go home and present the notepad to the office and try to decipher the hastily scribbled notes to the team. I decided that a much better alternative would be if I could come to the company, and spend a day or two working directly with the team.

When I talk about social media training, I usually mean on-site training done with a company's entire social media team. This is a wonderful learning environment for the team, as I can work directly with them, then as it starts to 'click', they can work with each other to facilitate the learning. And I've found that such an environment is much more beneficial to the company than say hiring a consultant to provide training spread out over several months. Creating a concentrated learning environment in a day or 2 seems to work better.

Challenge:Probably managing misinformation. Many companies have misconceptions about social media, what works and what doesn't. Unfortunately, a lot of that misinformation given to companies by consultants.

Advice for those wanting to be a marketing consultant
Anyone that wants to be a consultant, needs to understand that they are the boss. Some people can thrive in this environment, others focus better if they have someone that tells them what to do.

Tips for those in the marketing industry
Treat other people the way you want to be treated. Stay humble, and grateful. Never forget that you can learn from anyone.