The Shortlist
Welcome to The Shortlist! We are exploring all things AEC marketing and answering listener questions to provide best practices and fresh ideas for marketing strategies to help your firm win the shortlist. New episodes drop each Wednesday. Listen as the team from Middle of Six shares their thoughts on proposals, interviews, websites, social media, marketing planning, business development, and countless other tactics that architecture, engineering, and construction firms rely on to grow their businesses and build strong brands.
Episodes
86 episodes
The Short(er) List: Asking Strategic RFP Questions
Most firms treat RFP questions as a formality—a quick clarification before the real work begins. But what if the questions you ask (and how you ask them) could actually give you the answers you want? In this episode of The Short(er)...
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Season 5
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Episode 85
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16:10
RFP Roast
In the AEC industry, RFPs and RFQs are a fact of life—but that doesn’t mean we can’t vent about the quirks that make RFPs unnecessarily challenging. From overly detailed questions squeezed into tight page limits to unclear addenda, Monday due d...
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Season 5
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Episode 84
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46:41
The Short(er) List: Adobe Share for Review
In this episode, Becky and Melissa spotlight one of the most underrated gems in the proposal world: Adobe Share for Review—the live-PDF reviewing tool that keeps your team organized without derailing your sanity. Between enthusiastic SFR praise...
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Season 5
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Episode 83
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13:35
Business Development for Everyone
Business development (BD) can feel like a job reserved for firm leaders or dedicated rainmakers, but in reality, it touches everyone in the AEC industry. In this conversation, Wendy Simmons sits down with Middle of Six Senior Marketing Strategi...
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Season 5
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Episode 82
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36:19
The Short(er) List: Oops! All AI
For this hilarious episode of The Short(er) List, we let AI take the driver’s seat. We had it write the script, so we figured—why stop there? Here is the episode summary, pasted straight from the robot:Here you go — a fun, friendly, slig...
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Season 5
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Episode 81
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12:31
Getting a Grip on Your Business (or Department) with Traction
What does it take to run a successful business? In this episode of The Shortlist, Wendy Simmons and Melissa Richey unpack one of their most-referenced books: Traction by Gino Wickman.They explore how the Entrepreneurial Operating System ...
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Season 5
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Episode 80
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45:45
The Short(er) List: InDesign Books
In this delightfully chaotic, laugh-filled bonus episode of The Short(er) List, we dive deeper into a hot topic in proposal document creation: InDesign Books. Designers Becky Ellison and Lauren Jane Peterson unpack when and why to use them, sha...
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Season 5
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Episode 79
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20:06
Anniversary Campaigns
Are you ready to celebrate? A well-executed anniversary campaign isn't just about looking back, it's about celebrating your success and reinforcing your relevance in the present. In this episode of The Shortlist, Wendy Simmons, Lauren Jane Pete...
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Season 5
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Episode 78
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36:59
The Short(er) List: Welcome to the Short(er) List!
Welcome to the very first minisode of The Short(er) List, our new spinoff series where Shortlist favorite Becky Ellison takes all the too‑silly, too‑real, too-extra conversations that don’t fit in the regular Shortlist episodes, and se...
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Season 5
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Episode 77
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19:10
InDesign Rumble, Part 2
Season 5 of The Shortlist kicks off with a fan-favorite: InDesign Rumble (Part 2). Wendy Simmons, Becky Ellison, and Lauren Jane Peterson continue their spirited conversation on how AEC marketers actually use Adobe InDesign, workarounds and all...
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Season 5
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Episode 76
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48:33
Five Things to do Before Starting a Website Project
Before you kick off your next website project, take a beat—because there’s a lot you can do ahead of time to make the process smoother, more strategic, and ultimately more successful. To wrap up Season 4 of The Shortlist, Wendy Simmons is joine...
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Season 4
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Episode 75
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34:36
SMPS Life: Making the Most of Your Membership
In this episode of The Shortlist, we’re spotlighting the Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) and all the value it brings to AEC marketers. Host Wendy Simmons is joined by Senior Marketing Strategists Grace Takehara and K...
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Season 4
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Episode 74
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34:15
Planning Ahead for Award Submittals
Award season can sneak up fast, but with the right planning, your next submittal doesn’t have to be a scramble. In this episode of The Shortlist, host Wendy Simmons chats with Julie Flattery and Lauren Jane Peterson, two experienced AEC markete...
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Season 4
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Episode 73
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41:46
Expanding into New Markets
Expanding into a new geographic market can be an exciting growth opportunity—but it’s not without risk. In this episode of The Shortlist, host Wendy Simmons is joined by principal Melissa Richey and associate principal (and first-time ...
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Season 4
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Episode 72
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36:34
Pushing the Boundaries on Pursuits
With selection committees tasked with reviewing eight, nine, or even a dozen proposals at a time, it takes more than polished boilerplate for an AEC firm to stand out. Sometimes the winning move is a bold, experimental, and 100% client-focused ...
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Season 4
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Episode 71
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35:55
Harnessing the Power of LinkedIn
With over 1 billion users worldwide and 67 million company profiles listed, LinkedIn remains an important platform for marketing, recruiting, and brand building. In Episode 70 of The Shortlist, Wendy Simmons is joined by Middle of Sixers Meliss...
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Season 4
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Episode 70
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38:28
Creative and Strategic Storytelling
Storytelling isn’t just for novelists—it’s the secret weapon for AEC marketers too! On this episode of The Shortlist, Wendy Simmons teams up with the creative minds of Becky Ellison and Kyle Davis to talk about crafting stories that grab attent...
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Season 4
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Episode 69
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39:34
Middle of Six Book Review!
We're shaking things up with a special "book review" episode of The Shortlist! This week, Wendy Simmons is joined by Middle of Sixers Susan O'Leary, Lauren Jane Peterson, and Grace Takehara to explore insights from three influential reads that ...
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Season 4
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Episode 68
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31:26
Design Psychology
In AEC marketing, design makes in an impact on so many of our day-to-day marketing initiatives. Proposals, websites, social media, brochures, signage, email signatures, presentations—the list goes on and on. On top of that, each medium and mess...
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Season 4
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Episode 67
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34:12
InDesign Rumble
Adobe InDesign is a must-have tool for AEC marketers, but let’s be honest—many of us honed our proposal design skills on the job, often under a deadline. Even experienced users sometimes wonder: Am I using the best approach? In this...
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Season 4
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Episode 66
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1:00:11
What Comes First, Design or Content?
A frequent debate for AEC Marketers is the classic “chicken or the egg” question: which comes first—design or content? In Episode 65 of The Shortlist, Wendy Simmons is joined by Middle of Six’s Senior Creative Strategist Becky Ellison and Marke...
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Season 4
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Episode 65
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33:13
Proposal Submission Confessions
In Episode 64 of The Shortlist, Wendy Simmons is joined by Middle of Sixers Melissa Richey and Becky Ellison for a candid and comical discussion on proposal submission confessions. Harkening back to Episode 46, Night of the Living D...
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Season 4
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Episode 64
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28:21
Circles Conference Takeaways
As challenging as it may be to break away from your day-to-day responsibilities to attend a conference, there is tremendous value in being immersed in new ideas, best practices, and inspiring work. But we don't have to limit ourselv...
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Season 4
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Episode 63
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32:52
Psychological Safety in AEC Marketing
The importance of psychological safety, particularly in high-pressure industries like architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC), is having a moment—and for good reason! This episode of The Shortlist delves into how stress, especially se...
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Season 4
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Episode 62
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47:03
Strategic Planning Deep Dive
Middle of Six Principals Wendy Simmons, Melissa Richey, and Allison Tivnon kick off Season 4 of The Shortlist by diving into strategic planning methods for AEC firms. We explore how these plans can range from formal retreats to informal, and wh...
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Season 4
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Episode 61
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37:11