Wise Marketing Secrets Interview Series with Rey Baguio

Rey Baguio is the CEO of Zarangola Media. For a couple of years now, he has been helping out businesses and companies in achieving their business goals.

By utilizing social media, SEO and content management tools and strategies, companies are able to boost up their branding and engagement with their customers.

How did you start out as a marketer?

I didn’t really plan to be a marketer. In fact, I don’t think I can call myself a marketer in a traditional way. But I’ve always been ‘curious’ about how people think and react to certain things.

So when I got introduced to social media as a freelancer, the curiosity grew and the next thing I knew, people are already calling me a marketer.

Looking back, what is your hardest struggle when it came to delivering results?

One of the hardest part in delivering results how your clients would understand what you did and what needs to be done.

It’s crucial to set the right expectation from the start. It’s better to “under promise, then over deliver” than the other way around.

How did you get your first client back then, and what kind of service did you do for them?

I got my first client through UpWork (formerly Odesk). I was writing articles for this client who paid me 50 cents per 500-word article. Looking back, I’m glad I started from the bottom.

What do you find most rewarding about what you do?

What I find rewarding is the trust clients and colleagues give me. I realized that opportunities will just follow if you’ve been genuinely helpful to people.

We have a lot of readers who are bent on becoming freelancers, aside from freelancing how else can someone earn online, and what is your advise?

Some of my colleagues may not agree with me on this, but I believe it’s best to focus on what you do best. Understand how you and your skills can be assets to your future clients.

Just because the so-called “online marketing gurus or experts” became successful, it doesn’t always mean you will be too if all you do is just follow what they say.

Understand your strengths and work on your weaknesses. Build your own success. There’s always someone out there who needs what you can do best.

If you were given the chance to build your career all over again, what would you do differently so that you will achieve your dreams faster?

I often ask myself that too. My answer would always be, I should have focused on how to help more than focusing how much I can earn fast.

Understanding the pains of your clients will open a lot of opportunities where you can offer more help.

How is your typical work day structured?

It’s a struggle, but I try to wake up around 6am. List down at least 3 things on my To-Do list.

Check on my teams. Answer emails. Take care of some tasks for work. Engage with people and groups online.

Think and list down ideas and possible opportunities to collaborate with others. Touch-base with prospects and clients.

Then, as much as possible, do non-work related activities in the evening. That’s about it, I guess.

Can you tell us about a time where you had to put in significant effort up front and then wait a long time for success?

I always find it more gratifying when a prospect doesn’t turn into my client right away. I know, it’s kinda twisted. As Gary Vaynerchuck would put it, give more ‘jabs’ than right hooks.

So in most of my dealings, I would put in more efforts to be of help first before asking people to hire me or get my services. The ‘right hooks’ may or may not always come, but it’s always worth the wait.

You’ve been tasked with redesigning the company’s brand strategy from the ground up. Walk us through your process.

I would get to know the company first. Understand their ‘why’. Get a feel of their existing culture or the culture they want to promote.

Listen to the conversations  within the industry. Find opportunities to join the relevant conversations.

Find opportunities the company and its product or services can be of help to their market. Create a clear and solid plan.

Set up the platform and systems needed in executing the plan. But have some room for improvements. Then the rest would be more on listening, engaging and offering ‘jabs’.

What recently-developed marketing strategy, technique or tool interests you the most right now?

I am amused and interested with video live streaming these days.

What do you do to stay up to date with new marketing techniques?

I engage with people I look up to in the industry. Read and listen to relevant content by others. Attend events and network within the community.

Which one book/blog post would you recommend every Marketer should read?

I’m a fan of these guys so I would recommend listening and reading the works of Gary Vaynerchuck, Jay Baer, Neil Patel, Darren Rose and Seth Godin.

What advice would you share with other Marketer’s who want to become more productive?

I know you have lot’s of ideas popping out and floating inside your mind every time. It can be overwhelming.

The tendency is to try to execute as many as possible. Try to focus on just a few. Eventually, you’ll realize that the rest of your brilliant ideas will just fall into place.