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I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what I actually want LEBtv to become. And maybe more importantly… what I don’t want it to become. The internet keeps pushing everybody toward: outrage arguments opinions reactions division Because that stuff spreads fast. But real life doesn’t actually feel like the internet. Most people I know are just trying to: work raise kids build businesses coach teams create cool things survive busy schedules figure life out That feels way more int

The newest acrossfromme episode was supposed to be about baking. And it was. But somewhere between cupcakes, stories about the Bahamas, wedding cake tastings, and conversations about community, it turned into something bigger. A conversation about why people connect with people first and businesses second. Which might be one of the most important lessons in local marketing right now. The main takeaways: • Small business marketing in Lebanon MO works best when businesses feel

I wrote a blog recently that sparked some really good conversation. And honestly, one comment in particular stuck with me. The basic idea was this: Just because information is public doesn’t mean people actually saw it. And honestly, I think that explains modern social media better than almost anything else right now. You can read that blog here. The main takeaways: • Social media marketing for local businesses and organizations is driven by attention now • Visibility and acc

I think a lot of people are focusing on the wrong thing. The City of Lebanon didn’t spend $75,000 on one logo. They hired a company to help rethink and reposition the city’s brand as a whole. That includes: research focus groups strategy identity messaging branding systems and yes… eventually logos too At the same time, I completely understand why people are frustrated. BOTH sides have valid points. The main takeaways: • The Lebanon Missouri branding project was much bigger t

LEBtv is now just me. And honestly, I think that’s exactly what it needs to be. More focused. More intentional. More aligned with what I actually believe marketing for local businesses should look like. This isn’t about becoming bigger. It’s about becoming clearer. The main takeaways: • LEBtv marketing for local businesses is becoming more strategy-focused • Community attention is more valuable than most businesses realize • Businesses need systems and recognizable presence,

One of the biggest mindset shifts I’ve had over the last few years is realizing this: LEBtv is not supposed to be the hero. The business is. The organization is. The coach is. The property owner is. My job is to guide the marketing and help people pay attention to what already matters. The main takeaways: • StoryBrand marketing for local businesses works best when the business or organization is the hero • Great marketing guides instead of overshadowing • People connect emoti

People usually see the final version. The graphic. The video. The podcast clip. The post. What they usually don’t see is everything underneath it. And honestly, that invisible part is usually the most important part. The main takeaways: • Content marketing for local businesses is deeper than posting • Systems matter more than single pieces of content • Community understanding takes time • Consistency compounds quietly • The visible part usually comes last Content marketing fo

People think Jacket Nation Sports is a sports page. It’s really a live case study in attention, consistency, storytelling, and community. And over time, we realized the system we built around local sports could work for local businesses too. That realization changed everything. The main takeaways: • A content marketing system for local businesses is built through consistency • Community attention compounds over time • Video doesn’t always need to be a huge production • Qualit

The internet gave everybody a microphone. That’s not always a good thing. Attention is easier to get than ever. Trust is harder to earn than ever. And people are getting better at feeling the difference. Good content marketing for local businesses used to mean simply showing up consistently. Now businesses are competing against constant noise, endless content, and shrinking attention spans. The main takeaways: • Attention and value are not the same thing • Content marketing f

What started as a conversation about tattoos turned into a conversation about parenting, reputation, business in lebanon, mo, community, and growing up. That tends to happen on acrossfromme. The best conversations usually stop being about the thing you thought they were about. The main takeaways: • Tattoo culture has changed dramatically • Reputation still matters in a small town • Parenting changes perspective • Community support leaves lasting impact • Authenticity is hard

TLDR: Most business owners don’t struggle with social media because they don’t care. They struggle because it’s hard to stay consistent, know what to post, and make it actually work. Good social media management for businesses isn’t about posting more. It’s about having a system. The main takeaways: • Social media management for businesses is about consistency, not perfection • Most businesses don’t need more ideas, they need a system • Showing up regularly builds trust over

Most businesses have a Google listing. Very few understand how much it actually impacts whether someone chooses them. And almost no one realizes how often they’re losing customers there without knowing it. Google isn’t just a listing. It’s often your first impression. The main takeaways: • Google is where decisions happen • Your listing directly influences whether someone chooses you • Visibility is not random • Small improvements can create real results • Most businesses are

If you’re looking for a small business marketing strategy in Lebanon, MO, the first step usually isn’t doing more. It’s getting clear on what actually matters most right now. I understand why Strategy, Simplified. might sound like an odd service. On the surface, it can feel like paying someone just to talk. But in reality, a lot of businesses don’t need more marketing first. They need clarity before they waste time, money, and energy going the wrong direction. And for local b

At first glance, it looks like a car show. Loud engines, old metal, burnouts, and people having fun. But the more I listened, the clearer it became. The Midway Moonshine Mashup is really about community, generosity, family, and building something bigger than the event itself. That’s usually how the best things grow. This is part of a running journal. Sometimes you sit down expecting to talk about one thing. Cars. Events. Crowds. Entertainment. Then the conversation goes somew

A lot of business owners think they need to be more creative. Usually, they don’t. They need a system that makes content easier to repeat, easier to scale, and easier to stay consistent with. This is part of a running journal. The more people I talk with, the more I notice the same frustration. They know content matters. They know video matters. They know they should probably be posting more. But they keep putting it off. Not because they’re lazy. Because it feels harder than

Not every platform is built for the same reason. Some are built to serve. Some are built to grow the person behind them. That’s why having real local marketing options matters. This is part of a running journal. Sometimes competition isn’t frustrating because it exists. It’s frustrating because it reminds you how differently people can build from the same idea. That thought has been on my mind lately. The main takeaways from this: • Local marketing options give businesses bet

I keep coming back to the same thought. What if some of the best marketing doesn’t look like marketing at all? What if it's caring about people, asking better questions, and documenting stories before they disappear? What if community content works in a small town? That’s where this conversation took me. The main takeaways from the conversation: • Community content marketing builds trust before people need you • Asking better questions can become a business advantage • Authen

In late March, we decided to take our website seriously. On April 5th, the new site went live. A few weeks later, we searched Google and finally saw ourselves show up. This is part of a running journal. Some wins are loud. Some are just a screenshot on a random day that means more than anyone else would understand. This was one of those. The main takeaways from this: • Ranking on Google in Lebanon, MO started with a decision in late March • The website launch on April 5th was

Building our own website taught us more than how to make pages look good. It forced us to learn how Google reads websites, how messaging works, and why clarity matters. Sometimes the best way to help businesses is to go through the confusion yourself first. This is part of a running journal. Some things make more sense once you try to build them yourself. Our website was one of those. The main takeaways from this: • Small business website SEO is more about clarity than tricks

A lot of business owners think everything on Google costs money. That’s not true. The real opportunity is learning how to become the next first result after the ads. This is part of a running journal. Some business problems aren’t really business problems. They’re understanding problems. This feels like one of those. The main takeaways from this: • Google Business Profile ranking is different than paid ads • Sponsored results are only part of the page • The real goal is to be