As more and more companies adopt emergency work-from-home or remote work policies amid the COVID-19 outbreak in the US, it means a big change for many Americans used to going into an office. Whether you’re looking forward to a shorter commute or don’t know what to expect, our Right Side Up consultants have some working-from-home tips and tricks to help you adjust to your new work environment.

Dress the Part

It’s tempting to stay in your PJs or sweats when you work from home, or if you’re going to video conference with colleagues, to dress business casual on top pajama party on bottom. Keeping your routine of getting dressed for work can help you feel like you’re ready to tackle your to do list when you open your laptop.

“Getting dressed really helps me get up and at ’em in the AM. It also creates a boundary between chillin’ and workin’. Doesn’t have to be biz casual, just shorts and a t-shirt. Just not jammies.”

Grant Durando

Making yourself feel ready for work is important, but it’s also important to feel like you have a place to go once you’re dressed so you can get down to business. That said, Krystina Rubino would like to go on the record and say that wearing sweats if you are feeling crummy is one of the most underrated perks of working from home (WFH).

Carve Out Your Remote Workspace

Some of us may have a separate room in your home or apartment that can be made into an office, but if you don’t have a dedicated workspace, you need to carve one out.

“Rather than working throughout your home, designate a workspace, and try to make that the only place you work. It helps to create a stronger boundary between work and life, which can be hard to do when WFH!”

Katie Kearsey

Whether that’s your dining table or a coffee table, make sure you clean it off and keep necessary items within an arm’s reach. This doesn’t include the TV remote! Set up your workspace to make yourself more efficient.

“Test your internet and make sure it’s OK to support video conferencing. If you have friends with Apple devices, you can test this with FaceTime, or create a quick Google Hangout to see how it works out.”

Krystina Rubino

“This might be super simple but I’ve found that having an actual mouse to use and a second screen is totally necessary for my efficiency.”

Lyndsay Rosen

“Get ergonomic wrist/keyboard cushions even if you don’t have carpal tunnel (yet)!”

Krystina Rubino

“Invest in great speakers and headphones for calls. I recommend getting a charging station with multiple USB outlets for your desk/workspace.”

Grant Durando

Making a remote workspace can also mean investing in items and practices that aren’t necessarily related to work, but will help you feel good! If your space feels put together, you’re able to concentrate on the task at hand rather than focus on the pile of dishes in the sink. Do some tidying up and take steps to make your space feel nice.

“I have started treating myself to cheap fresh flowers to put near my computer screen. $7 tulips from the grocery store can do a lot to brighten up a room.”

Krystina Rubino

“Flowers in the workspace. Open your windows when you can. A great pen that you adore and fun color sticky notes.”

Grant Durando

Once you have your space set up, it’s time to make sure you’re setting yourself up for success with a routine.

Set a Routine When Working from Home

If you have a daily routine to get to the office and structure your days, you need to set a new one for working from home. You may be able to start your day a little later than usual, but that doesn’t mean you should let your days go unstructured.

“Designate working hours! When working from home it’s so easy to just work from the time you wake up until the time you go to sleep, or at least be “tethered” to your laptop. It’s really important to have some kind of designation of work day vs. non-work day.”

Lindsay King

Once you decide when work begins, be mindful of how you switch into “work-mode,” so you can separate time meant for relaxing from time meant for hustling through your to-do list.

“On the days I’m at the home office I take a 30-minute walk before starting the day. It’s kind of like my ‘commute’ and helps me switch from home to office mode.”

James Booth

Don’t forget to turn off the computer during the day! It may be tough to get going in the morning, and it may be tempting to keep going if you find a good groove. Set times for breaks throughout your day, especially for lunchtime.

“#1 tip — set a timer to remind yourself to log off and eat lunch.”

Leslie Shumate

Create Boundaries

Working from home can often make you feel like you have to be more visible to your boss and colleagues to seem like you’re putting in the same effort. Trust yourself that you will get your work done, and set boundaries for yourself to respect your time.

“Turning off push notifications to your phone can help with the setting time boundaries.”

Lindsay King

“I have Slack installed on my mobile but have turned off all email and Slack notifications.”

Krystina Rubino

“I started turning Slack off on Friday afternoon and don’t turn it on until Monday. It’s helped especially with clients that have ‘general’ and water cooler’ channels.”

Amy Scanlon

Turning off push notifications will help you preserve your “off” time, since it’s already difficult to turn off when you’ve been home all day. If you’ve set your schedule and your boundaries, honor them and truly turn off at the end of the day.

“If you’re going to work late because you have to, set a time where you’re FOR REAL done — no exceptions.”

Grant Durando

When it’s the weekend, make sure you truly turn off your workbrain so you can enjoy your time with others. Work will still be there on Monday and you don’t want to burn out working from home by being “on” too often.

Connect With Others

Creating boundaries doesn’t mean you have to shut everyone out. Interact with your co-workers on Slack and with video calls. It can be encouraging to spend 5 minutes catching up at the beginning of a video meeting if you’re used to water-cooler chatter.

“Do video calls for meetings so you get some face-to-face-ish interaction. We’re social creatures after all.”

Kate Lin

Encourage others to check in with each other for some human interaction. For some, working from home can get a little lonely, and it’s nice to know that your co-workers are there, even if you can’t see them.

“When logging on in the AM, say hello. Simply to just say hello.”

Leslie Shumate

Don’t forget to connect with your family and friends. If you are a WFH-er that misses the in-office social interaction, take time to purposefully connect with others. It makes a big difference to talk on the phone with someone you love, even if it’s just a brief conversation.

“I take time every day whether at home or at the co-working space to call/message friends and family, so I don’t talk to myself all day.”

James Booth

Log Off — Go Be a Person

During the day, set time aside to log off and go for a walk. Even a short break can help you feel motivated for the next set of tasks. Whether that’s eating your lunch outside, catching some rays on a walk, or running your errands outside of rush hour, getting off your computer can help you feel more motivated when you return.

“When it is sunny outside, go for a walk! Also, don’t eat lunch at your desk otherwise it starts to feel like you’re living at work.”

Trevor Gilbert

“Go for a 10 minute walk before jumping into the next big ‘push’.”

Leslie Shumate

“Take a walk or watch funny videos for a break, and leave your phone in a separate room when possible.”

Nathan Swokowski

Make sure you’re taking time for yourself. This includes taking care of your body. If you’re a person that tends to work through your illness, think twice before bringing your laptop to bed.

Feeling Sick? Actually Rest!

If you’re sick or not feeling well, your boss would hopefully tell you to go home and rest. Tell yourself the same thing if you’re not feeling well while at home. Communicate with your team members if you’re sick and log off. If you don’t rest, you won’t heal. It can feel like you can work through it, since your laptop is so accessible, but don’t risk your illness getting worse because you didn’t properly care for yourself.

“Don’t prolong your illness — take an actual sick day to rest up if you’re sick!”

Katie Kearsey

If we take steps to prioritize our own health, we help protect others in our community. So while you’re working from home, make sure you set yourself up to feel productive, while ensuring you’re prioritizing your health and wellness!

PS — Even though you’re working from home, still remember to be vigilant about washing your hands!

Working From Home Tips From a Team That Does It Everyday was originally published in The Third Way on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

If you listen to podcasts you’re sure to run into a few ad reads for toothbrushes, meal kits, or how to find your next hire. You might skip them with your :30s fast forward button, or you may stick around to hear if the hosts have fun with it. If you’re in the latter category you know that podcast ad reads can be not only compelling, but also extremely entertaining.

If you’re an advertiser, you no doubt want to capture some of this ad magic. Having a host talk about your product in their own words while conveying your value props can get your brand name on the radar of an audience that is listening closely and has the potential to be a new acquisition.

But how do you make an ad read sound natural? How can you get hosts to be enthusiastic about your product? What about an ad read drives sales?

Step 1: No More, No Less

You want to give the host information to work with; however, having too much information on the page can lead to confusion and be detrimental to the flow of the ad. For the ad copy, keep it simple and provide key elements for the host to use:

• Instructions: Want them to read the copy verbatim? Note it. Are they free to ad-lib and go off on tangents? Let them know! Instructions seem simple, but if you want a quality read, you need to set expectations for what you’re looking for.
• Sample introductions: The host may read them verbatim or the example may spark an idea about a story to tie into the read. Having a sample for them helps to set the tone and gives them room to execute a fantastic read if they don’t have an anecdote that relates to your product.
• Key value props and call to action: What does your company do? How is it different? How can it benefit the user? Be sure to include the most necessary and compelling items you want the listener to know. This is especially important since there are no visuals accompanying the ad. And finally, how can the listener buy your product? If there are more important details to learn about the brand that don’t belong in copy, send the host a separate on-boarding document to reference.

Step 2: Tell The Audience What To Do

Not only do you need to provide instructions to the host, you also need to provide instructions to the listener on how to find your product and get their special podcast discount. The more directly they can execute the action the better, so make it clear.

• Provide the path: A clear call-to-action statement should be included in copy. Should listeners go to a specific URL? Will that promo auto-populate to their cart or will they also have to insert the code when they check out? Maybe you don’t want them to use a URL, but want to drive to an app. Make sure they know what to expect and where to go.
• Repeat, repeat, repeat: Once isn’t enough for a call-to-action. Have the host repeat where listeners should go, as well as the offer!

Step 3: Check Your Voice

Part of what makes podcast ads fun to listen to is the host making it their own, whether it’s their particular comedic flair, irreverent humor, or compelling endorsement. You want to let them infuse their own voice and avoid your brand voice coming through too much.

• Take out most brand language: There is a place for brand language (think intense mission statements, brand guidelines), but it’s not in podcast ad copy (especially if the campaign will be measured against performance goals). A host may gawk at terms and explanations that to marketers seem beautifully crafted and indicative of their brand voice. Keeping language simple and to the point allows hosts to speak the way they normally do during the show.
• Don’t try to match their style: If you’re working with a show you’re familiar with, you might know the certain flavor they bring to the reads. Even though you know their tone, don’t try to write what you think they’ll sound like. It may sound disingenuous coming from them, which affects the personal nature that makes podcast ads so special.

Step 4: Listen, Communicate, Iterate

During your campaign, listen to clips of the ad reads, not just to check to see if the spot did indeed run, but more importantly, to evaluate how the host responded to the copy. Listening to reads allows you to fine tune your creative and provides you an opportunity to communicate with the show to give any necessary feedback.

• Communicate feedback: If the host didn’t follow directions or didn’t read the CTA the number of times you indicated, the ideal time to correct it is after the first read. Being vigilant about listening to reads can help course correct if needed and lead to more effective reads in the future.
• Listen to deliveries: Each host is going to have a different take on the copy, but if you notice that all hosts are tripping on a certain phase or confused by the same talking point you may want to change it. A host can also bring up different features or have a turn of phrase that you really like that could also be useful for future copy iterations. Listen to reads to hear how real people talk about your brand and use it to your advantage.
• Update the creative: Don’t let copy get stale. After 3–4 reads, listeners may have heard the same stories and talking points. Switch it out and keep the hosts and the listeners excited about hearing something new.

Podcast advertising can be a powerful tool in your marketing playbook, but the channel has creative peculiarities that need to be minded. With these practices in place, you’ll be setting hosts up to deliver an engaging and effective ad, and most importantly, to have fun with it, because that’s where the magic happens.

If you’re interested in more details about how to craft the perfect podcast creative for your campaign, or how to run a more effective podcast campaign in general, reach out to lindsay@rightsideup.co to learn more about how Right Side Up can partner with you.

How to Write Effective Creative for Podcast Advertising was originally published in The Third Way on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

I’ve worked in marketing or advertising since I was eighteen years old, with most of those years spent in New York City, and most of those years at agencies. After stints as a graphic designer, media buyer, and communications planner, among other positions, I realized that what I loved most about the industry was helping companies set up new media channels and hold them accountable for performance.

When I met Tyler Elliston, the founder of Right Side Up, we talked up a storm with equal excitement about growth marketing, bending digital channels to hit ambitious performance goals, and the potential of offline channels like podcasts and radio that are relatively untapped by many growth marketers. As we discussed the offline marketing ecosystem and my experience in the channels, we realized that the Right Side Up approach could help companies interested in exploring the offline space launch campaigns, whether their budget was $50k or $500k.

Since 2018, the Right Side Up offline growth marketing division has focused largely on podcast advertising, currently with 18 active clients, like Calm, DoorDash, and Stitch Fix. Of the various offline channels, podcast is among the most misunderstood; despite reaching 51% of US A12+ monthly, according to Edison, the ad landscape in podcast is still surprisingly small. The IAB released their third study of podcast ad revenue, and the US market was estimated at $479 million in 2018. Interestingly, they expect the medium to top $1 billion by 2021. Despite brands like Dollar Shave Club and ZipRecruiter deploying podcast advertising for user acquisition for the better part of a decade, it’s a channel that flies under the radar for most growth and brand marketers. It’s small relative to other channels, it’s a bear to measure, it’s a manual buying process, among other challenges. Historically, most of the brands in the channel have worked with the top three to four agencies, and with recent market consolidation, it really boils down to two main agencies in the space, with a bunch of smaller players with varying degrees of effectiveness.

Advertisers can either work with one of the two partners, or a less experienced agency, for media commissions that scale unfavorably for advertisers over time. Or, they can buy in-house, without most of the subject matter expertise because most of the historical performance knowledge of the channel is held at the agencies. We know there’s a third way, and that’s what we’re building here.

One of the big differentiators of Right Side Up is that we believe the best work is done in-house, so we partner with your internal team closely. As consultants, we’re there to help with the big questions, like: Is the investment worth it? Will going to that conference meaningfully enhance our network or enrich our knowledge? What channels should we test next, and how should we do it? We’re also there to help with the more tactical questions, like: How should we onboard the talent? What should our copy say about our brand? How do I organize all this data? In all our engagements, we allow our clients to buy media directly from publishers, networks, and media owners. Full transparency to media plans, data, and our process.

And because every company has different needs at any given time, we’re flexible on our arrangements. Need us for the initial test but have the personnel to keep it running after that? Great! Are you the only person with offline subject-matter expertise and need a phone-a-friend sometimes? Happy to help! Want us to run the campaign soup to nuts until you’re ready to take fully in-house? No problem! Our engagements span everything from full planning and media negotiation/buying services to lighter arrangements where we consult with in-house marketers leading podcast campaigns, to help even the podcast playing field, and get more brands in the marketplace.

And if you decide to take your business in-house, we’ll help with the transition, even when it comes time to interview and train our replacement. Because ultimately, we want to help companies make every resource spent on marketing and media work in the best way possible. Our transition will be smooth, too, because we don’t buy on your behalf, and we don’t take media commission; that’s what I mean when we say clients buy media directly. We negotiate the right placements for the right rates, and hand it off to advertisers to book in-house with best-practice contract terms and conditions. That way the advertiser owns their own rates, and publisher relationships, from the outset. It’s good for not just advertisers, but publishers too; how would you feel if 40% of your business came from one company?

If you run into snags 6 months down the road, because your podcast campaign has hit what you fear may be diminishing returns? We can help, and we know your campaign. We’re happy to drop in and do a one-time audit, to help you expand past your current core, decide what shows to rest, how to optimize your offer, etc. and leave again until you need us.

Because I can’t stress enough, we really do believe the best work is done in-house, working side-by-side with internal teams. And we believe that advertisers should be close to most media inventory; same as Facebook or Google can be easily managed in-house because of their API, there are benefits from working directly with publishers for not only the advertiser, but the publisher or network as well. Our goal is to help brands expand their marketing/customer acquisition efforts to find profitable growth in offline channels.

We also want to be a good player in the podcast ecosystem, in particular, and be good stewards of one of the last remaining mediums on earth with finite inventory and people who actually listen and respond to ads. And along the way, we hope to change the way people think about traditional offline media channels, like how they can be held to high growth performance standards, and where they intersect with popular digital growth tactics like paid social.

If you’re interested in hiring us to help your advertising or customer acquisition efforts, please email me at krystina@rightsideup.co. I can’t wait to talk about your interest in offline channels, or business and current marketing efforts, and see how we can help. And if you’re a marketer that’s interested in more work in offline channels, whether as a full-time employee, contractor, or part-time moonlighter, please don’t hesitate to reach out and tell us how you can help.

Doing Offline Advertising the Third Way was originally published in The Third Way on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

My hardest career experience was 10 years ago as a startup founder. I had raised venture capital, recruited a team, built an MVP, and had paying customers — but I couldn’t get the dang thing to grow. Many tactics worked, but were simply too expensive. I felt like I was throwing spaghetti at the wall to see what would stick. I was equally frustrated by the lack of “experts” who could help me. In retrospect I realize the problem was the product and unit economics, not marketing effort.

Over the next 6 years, I was a marketing director or VP, always focused on customer acquisition, and with the right product, I did make things grow. In these roles, I had tremendous success acquiring customers and learning exactly when and how customer acquisition works best. The answer for each company is nuanced, but some themes emerged:

• Marketing only works if the product works. Advertising is leverage.
• Digital marketing has become highly specialized, requiring specialist to maximize impact.
• In-house talent is usually best. Most — not all — agencies use junior talent to apply rigid playbooks.
• A+ talent is worth paying for. Talking about individuals, whether in-house, freelancer, or agency account manager.
• Growth marketing can unlock massive scale and value, when done well and in the right context.

While these may seem obvious, I was surprised by how many companies and agencies approached performance marketing as a commoditized tool to be applied generically by the lowest cost resource available. The more I spoke with other in-house marketers, the more I realized I wasn’t alone. We imagined — what if there was growth marketing consultancy that was different? That deployed A+ talent to offer tailored strategies and best-in-class execution. That could help companies understand when and how to pull the right levers at the right time. Ultimately, what if there was a growth consultancy that could have helped me when I was a startup founder?

That’s why I started Right Side Up.

Right Side Up is the not-agency, offering you expert strategic guidance and the very best talent. Clients typically get 1–4 Right Side Up marketers, for 10–30 hrs/week each. There’s no playbook or generic templates. Just talented marketers using their expertise to help you grow your business. If it’s a great mutual fit, you can poach our talent. No long term commitments.

Whatever preconceived notions you have about marketing services companies, leave them at the door when considering Right Side Up. We aren’t quite an agency. We aren’t quite a staffing firm. We are a third way — a collection of A+ marketers with vast accumulated experience, passionate about our craft and excited to help you navigate any challenge.

The more talent we work with, the better we can find the right person for your needs. The more clients we work with, the better we understand what will actually move the needle for their business. And in the past 3 years, we’ve worked with a lot of people (over 150) and a lot of disruptive companies (over 100), like, Stitch Fix, DoorDash, Wealthfront and Fitbit.

We’re here to help. If you’ve got a marketing problem to crack or you want to put your skills to use for our clients, email us at inquiry@rightsideup.co.

The Beginning of Right Side Up was originally published in The Third Way on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.