326: How to Balance Marketing Tech and Authenticity

In this episode of Imperfect Marketing, host Kendra Corman sits down with Audrey “Tech Diva” Wiggins—an early tech adopter with deep marketing instincts—to talk about how entrepreneurs can use technology without losing the human touch. 

Audrey shares how her love of innovation started long before today’s tools, and how business owners can stay focused, credible, and authentic while navigating constant change. We discuss:

The Tech + Human Balance in Modern Marketing

• Why you should evaluate what you’re already using before chasing the “next shiny thing”
• How to keep the “human factor” front and center through messaging and real customer access
• Why customer service is still a core marketing strategy—inside companies and out

How to Avoid Getting Overwhelmed by Trends

• The “pick 1–2 things and work them hard” approach (then automate as you grow)
• Why choosing platforms you actually enjoy helps you stay consistent and authentic
• When to delegate to tech vs. when it’s time to bring in a VA or support team

A Real Transformation Example

• The “Frankenstein website” problem: patchwork sites that look old, cluttered, and confusing
• Why a modern website isn’t just prettier—it’s functional, cleaner, and improves the customer journey
• The importance of mobile-friendly design (because your clients live on their phones)

Branding Mistakes That Quietly Cost You Business

• Why using Gmail/Yahoo/AOL for a business email hurts credibility—and what to do instead
• How a clean email signature supports your brand without being “chunky” or overwhelming
• The self-promotion gap: why many entrepreneurs hesitate to post their own content (even when their audience is already engaged)

A Hard Marketing Lesson Learned

• How choosing the wrong advertising channel can waste money fast
• Why “liking the salesperson” isn’t a strategy—knowing your market and ROI is
• When advertising does make sense without ROI: “passion investments” that support causes you care about

If you’ve ever felt torn between keeping up with tech and staying authentic—or you’ve been tempted by marketing opportunities that don’t actually match your audience—this episode will give you a sharper, calmer way forward.

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Transcript

Opening And Guest Intro

SPEAKER_01 0:55

Hi, I'm Kendra Corman. If you're a coach, consultant, or marketer, you know marketing is far from a perfect science. And that's why this show is called Imperfect Marketing. Join me and my guests as we explore how to grow your business with marketing tips and, of course, lessons learned along the way. Hello and welcome back to another episode of Imperfect Marketing. I'm your host, Kendra Corman, and today I am very excited that we are joined by Audrey Tech Diva Wiggins, who has crowned herself or has been crowned, I believe, as a tech diva in the world of marketing. Welcome. Thank you so much for joining me today. Kendra is amazing. Thank you for having me. So tell me, what is this tech diva thing about?

SPEAKER_00 1:50

You know, kind of an early adopter and being innovative in my thinking. We're going to go back before microcomputers and talk about the IBM Selectric 2 or 3, like glorious machine. And it was interesting because I worked at the American Heart Association. So there was a lot of fundraising. So I was in the fundraising department of the secretary. And so I had to, you know, keep track of all the data from one of their events. You know, you so you have all these, if you just think about an Excel spreadsheet. So we had all of these different categories and topics. And we didn't have anything like we have today. And in my, in my mind, you know, the way it worked, I came up with a spreadsheet on a typewriter, lines and everything. So you have the creative side, the innovative side, you know, the mother of invention, or you know, necessity is the mother of invention. And but I didn't know and you know, sometimes you just do things because you just do things. You you don't have a, oh, this could be a business or you know, business, or this is something I should patent. You know, nobody thinks like that, you know, except Bill Gates. So he got it instead. But so, you know, so that of course that was a long time ago, but throughout the years, that's just how how things were for me. And I was always interested in whatever that next thing was, not Robert Teddy, you know, how sometimes we talk about the running after shiny objects, but just really whatever um experience I was in, a job and and there was something new. Um we even even some of the other software when they were beginning to use Access to work with General Electric, and the person that really would have needed to use it, they were gonna they were flying us to to San Jose and to Atlanta to go to classes. You know, today that that's not happening. We're on we're on Zoom, right? Or Riverside, whatever the technology is. And I went. And I was, it was, I was I'm just thirsty for for knowledge and learning.

Discovering Marketing And Starting A Business

SPEAKER_01 3:49

I love that. I love learning myself. I do have a little bit of shiny object syndrome. I know you said you don't, but I do because I get uh I always want to try the newest and greatest thing. Um, but I don't consider myself techy, right? Because I'm like, I'm always looking for the things that make things easier um that are not necessarily like hard to use tech. So that's one of my things. Now, how did you get into marketing? So that's your tech side, but what about marketing?

SPEAKER_00 4:21

Yeah, marketing was really, I think, the crown because whatever I was involved in, if it was church, uh some community group or even work, even though that wasn't my title, that was always it's my passion, but it's something that that's innate. That I'm just just I was born with that, with that gift. And if you want to put it like that. But you know, so I actually, you know, going through college and at first I was like generalism, I really wanted to do that. But then when I started undergrad and took an advertising class, it was it was over. It was over then because the the uh the the professor, he had guest speakers, you know, they you know, they were from agencies and different, you know, different parts of the uh the marketing process, whatever you know their expertise was. And I'm like this, you know, listen, I'm soaking all at it. So by the time I um I graduated that um that same year, I started my business. It was it was crazy because I was always in the network marketing or multi-level marketing, people call it different things. So there was always, you always had to sell, you know, and market what you were doing. So there was a lot of different training just because you were part of those, you know, just being part of those organizations too, along the way.

SPEAKER_01 5:31

Yeah, no, there's always just so much to learn. And I every time I learn something new, it just gets me excited about that all the time. That's why working for me, working in an agency style setting where I'm a small agency, right? Where I'm constantly working with different clients and learning about their business and what they do and applying my knowledge, it just energizes me on all of that stuff.

SPEAKER_00 5:56

Yes, yes. I I feel you're right, dear.

SPEAKER_01 5:58

So let's talk about balancing tech and like what's coming out and all the different things that people are using. How do you help entrepreneurs um balance that with staying authentic and building relationships?

Balancing Tools With Human Connection

SPEAKER_00 6:16

First of all, looking at with just look at what you're already using, and before you jump, you know, ship and run over to the to another ship and see see what you know what they're doing, doing over there. Because we can get caught up in um, because I go to a lot of workshops and things and different people using different tools. So I still like to know what's out there. But if I'm, you know, working with you, I want to really, okay, so what is, you know, what is your purpose, what's your market, all but the normal parts of your business um process and your and your thinking. Okay, so what tool, you know, how can we automate or support what you're doing over here, you know, with that? And if you already work with something, maybe it's not working, then let's look out. It's it's something, something new, you know, to keep that balance. But then you're talking about the human factor uh part of it. But to me, the human part is is the messaging that we put into these systems that we're using so that we don't use, you know, lose that and to still always be available in some form or fashion so our customers can, you know, see touch and feel us.

SPEAKER_01 7:21

That part is really important, right? I mean, making sure that we're available. And I think that that is so hard today or nowadays, right? Because there's so many things that make that see touch-feel piece, right? Easy to automate. So what are you telling, telling people where their priorities should be?

SPEAKER_00 7:43

Wow. I guess I'm gonna go back to the messaging, but still, but customer service, and you know, as as we probably both look back over the years and our jobs and business, that's really what got us to where we are, how we served that client. And whether it's our personal one or belong to ABC company, we still have to be there, even if we're doing, you know, some mini trainings where people can see us on the screen or, you know, and getting out and networking is still so important. I can remember, you know, 90s, early 2000s, we were really, we there were events. We were always going to networking events. So you would uh you would run into your clients, would meet new ones, or be prospects. So that that way, so even if you set up an online community, you're you're still there's people can still talk to you and not your your bot, you know, on your website.

SPEAKER_01 8:33

Yes. And I love how you talk about customer service, right? Even for us in the agency world, even when we were at companies, because yes, I would headed marketing departments inside companies, and everybody else was my customer, right? All of the other people in the company were my customer because it was my job to make sure that what they were doing um had the light shined on it, right? And had that the priorities were were made and made clear. And it was important to serve them, not just the outside world and our end customers, right? So I had to look at myself as like an internal resource that way. AI, automation, big data from, you know, that AI made possible, all of the things, right? Um, all of the different social media channels. I could go on and on of all the different things that everybody is talking about. How do you talk to or how do you work with people or what advice would you give to a business owner that gets overwhelmed with all the trends and the tech and all the things?

Priorities: Messaging And Customer Service

SPEAKER_00 9:39

Grab one or two items that really resonate with you and learn it and work it to the hilt. You know, really, you know, put the, what did you say, put the rubber to the road on those? And when you can delegate to technology, do that. And because everything is has sped up. This is, you know, we're beyond the microwave generation, but that microwave really changed, changed things. And it we still ate, we still had to eat, but it just helped us, helped us to get through the table faster. And and we still use it. But it's it's fun though, because even last night, um, I actually cooked everything. It was like, oh, look at look at this, you know, put it on the plate. It was, you know, then I sat there and enjoyed it. So, but um, you know, but but choose, choose those, especially when you talk about the social media, because oh, be where your customers are. Well, technically our customers are everywhere. It's just, you know, but we're you, so you so you just choose, choose two to start with, or or three, whatever you can manage. And then as you grow, you automate that. You still may be creating the content, and you may be using chat to help you create the content. And because I'm a creative person, so always pride in myself of being able for graphities, just being a graphic designer. It's like, I'm not using that, you know. But you can still put your own self into that because you know, your own style, and because people will get to know your style. But um, you know, so do that. And if you so then if you have the opportunity to delegate to a human, so you have a VA or you have a small team, then do that too, because we need to pull ourselves as owners we we we we're hands-on so much, and we have to learn how to let go and trust is really the trusting part. We'll let it go, but we don't trust. So uh definitely that. But yeah, but fuse choose the few things to get started with and and do those well, then automate as you go along.

Beating Overwhelm: Choose And Automate

SPEAKER_01 11:33

I'm always telling people um a couple different things that I want to pick on is yeah, our customers are everywhere, right? Pick what you like and where you're willing to spend your time so you don't get burnt out. Just because everybody thinks you should be on TikTok doesn't mean you should be on TikTok, right? You can just be on LinkedIn or just on YouTube or whatever that is that makes you that that lights you up, that doesn't feel like so much work, is where you're going to be authentic and you're gonna be able to engage and do all the things. I also talk to a lot of people about, and I try to do this myself too, is I look at my memberships. Like right now, I'm trying to decide what I'm gonna renew as it comes up throughout the year in 2026. And the thing is, is what can I afford to renew and leverage? I mean, there was one point I think I was a member of three different chambers. I'm like, I didn't, it was one, thank I only went to meetings or and different things for one of them. And it's like, so what was the point of being a member of the other two? Right? It adds up and it's if you can't leverage it, and I love how you said that about for social media too. If you can't leverage that membership, right, if you think of it that way fully, then don't start adding more things on, right? And I think that that is just a really, really cool insight. So thank you for that. Yeah. Start with one or two things, right? And then build on it, but be yourself for sure. Is there a story of an entrepreneur or a business transforming or transformation that's really stuck with you throughout your years of experience? Wow.

SPEAKER_00 13:22

I think it's one where they had a website for for years, and mine is under construction, so don't judge me. But uh, you know, the cobbler with the shoes, right? You know, myself raggedy, but 100%.

SPEAKER_01 13:35

Do as I say, not as I do.

unknown 13:39

Oh my god.

SPEAKER_00 13:40

But anyway, so her website, um uh when I when I came to her, it must have been built. Oh my oh wow, it was built a long time ago. And you can you can tell the difference with technology, whether the buttons look or the blocks, and you you can tell that it was really old, and you know, adding something over here in the sidebar. You know, you keep adding stuff on just patchwork it, right? Looking like Frankenstein. You know, told her I've been having that conversation, dropping those seeds for a while, and finally, because it's just um that's an investment. Finally, she bit the bullet. And it was, it was amazing. It was amazing. It will, it was like the, I don't know, it's like a Cinderella story. It's just the website was beautiful and it did beautiful things. You know, it wasn't just you know, the front facing looking good, it was functional at the same time. And all the extra, you know, things that just really didn't belong there, you know, were gone. Yeah. So yeah, so that was that that was major.

SPEAKER_01 14:41

Yeah, that's such a strong thing, right? It wasn't a huge change. It was probably something that somebody had built and felt a ton of pride in, right? I have a client, I've been working on them for like four years to get their site mobile friendly, and the vendor they work with will do it for free. They refuse to update it. They just refuse. They're like, but I spent so many nights and weekends doing this. And I'm like, but your clients can't access it on their phone.

SPEAKER_00 15:14

Right.

SPEAKER_01 15:14

Like, that's not good.

SPEAKER_00 15:16

Okay, talking about or speaking about where your clients are, they're on that phone.

unknown 15:20

Right?

Platform Focus And Leveraging Memberships

SPEAKER_01 15:23

Yeah. I I mean, I've got I've got clients of all ages that do everything on their phones, everything on their phones. I rarely see my texts because I live in email and on my desktop, and I love my multiple screens, and I am I own my Gen X identity 100%. Um, and so I don't do as much on my phone as like some of my clients do, even those that are 60 plus. Um, you know, it's not, it's not just a young person's game. And it's like you gotta have a mobile optimized site. The transformation that they're that they could have is just amazing. And I love that you picked a website because you talk about, you know, again, being the tactiva, but also just understanding the customer journey and what they're experiencing when they're going to the site cleans things up, makes it simpler for them. It's all about them, right?

SPEAKER_00 16:21

Right. It's it's a store. Think about how we feel walking into a brick and mortar, and you go into the department, so there's dresses, and all of a sudden, where did this where did this coat come from? This this is a dress, this is a belong there.

SPEAKER_01 16:38

Yeah, it's a very different experience to walk into Nordstrom or Neiman Marcus or Saks Fifth Avenue than it is to walk into Macy's or Marshall's, right? It's a different feeling when everything's, you know, I guess crowding you versus spaced out for you to enjoy and admire and wander. Yeah, right. Oh my gosh. Yes, that is definitely an argument for white space. I love that. So, what are the biggest branding mistakes? I mean, we talked a little bit about transformation and a website, but what are some of those big branding mistakes that you see people make and how do they get around to fix them? I mean, we identified websites as one, right?

SPEAKER_00 17:26

And this is this is kind of related. This is a pet peeve for mine, the Gmails, the AOLs, the Yahoos, the hotmails for your business um email address that, you know, I just write the hammer. Let me can we break the glass on that one. Yeah, that I think that's a major branding mistake. And because people really don't, oh, it's just my email communicating. Yes, you're communicating, but you should be communicating with your brand. And it just, it just, to me, it just, you know, gives you, you know, brings you up to a premium status, a professional status when your email address is matching your URL, your your web address. So doing that, um, that's that to me, that's one of those branding mistakes that that people make. And even putting it into your email signature. So if it wants, you know, add it and all together, it doesn't have to be chunky or, you know, a whole bunch of lines, because sometimes they do get long. But if if you're using even, say, like a digital business card, it can be put into your email signatures. So though those two things, they're related to the um the branded email address and the um, you know, email signature.

Website Transformation And User Experience

SPEAKER_01 18:38

That branded email address is so important. I went on vacation back in 2024. I'm looking at the calendar, right? Um, went to Mexico for Thanksgiving, and I wanted to hire a driver, and I found a resource that could get me um a driver that could take us to certain places we wanted to go to because it was a little bit off the beaten path from where we normally went. And the guy had a Yahoo email address, and I was really nervous paying him by PayPal in this Yahoo email address. Now I did it and I was like, well, it's just a deposit. And I was like, PayPal's got protection. All right, we're gonna give it a try. So thank goodness for PayPal, right? Because PayPal is what saved him because I don't think I would have like wired him money. He had a website that's where I found his information. And he's like, I've been doing this for 20 years, and I'm like, but I don't see any reviews, I don't see any, like, I don't see you having a company. And it made me nervous. Imagine how much business this guy could be doing if he didn't have a Yahoo email address, right? For people that are traveling from the US to Mexico and want to book travel.

SPEAKER_00 19:50

Yeah, I mean, you preach it to the choir on that one because it's it's like, you know, that you look legitimate. It's about being legitimate. Okay. And it's easy.

SPEAKER_01 20:01

It's not hard.

SPEAKER_00 20:02

Yeah, and it's not expensive.

SPEAKER_01 20:04

It's not expensive. I think people um are misled and they think that it's expensive and hard, right? And again, like I said, I'm not techie um by any stretch of my own imagination, but I can do this. So if I could do this, anybody can do it. All right. I love, I love technology. I do, I really do love technology. Um, a lot of people would say that I am techie, but I don't think so because I can break a lot of technology very easily. So that's where I draw the line. Um, so okay, so we've got email addresses. Anything else that you see entrepreneurs making, business owners making in their branding?

SPEAKER_00 20:47

Some people, believe it or not, especially we're talking about social media, are uncomfortable promoting themselves. And they feel like they're bragging or, you know, so I mean, like way from the beginning, I was always in third person. I'm like, we, you know, the company does this, and I'm just just out there. Just like just change the, you know, change the syntax or or whatever. But they're they're afraid it. And then I had the this one lady, she would get the people that would engage in her post, not just with a like or a love or support, they would actually make comments. 200 people, 400 people. And and this is about, you know, topics, you know, other people's information or or sharing. I'm like, put your stuff out there. People love you, they're following you. And it was like, I wish I had that, you know. So don't be um, don't be afraid to promote myself. So okay, we're gonna, we're gonna add that.

SPEAKER_01 21:45

That is such a good tip, and that is so important because we don't promote ourselves well enough. A lot of us, especially on the female side, right? We're worried that it looks like we're bragging or um that we're trying to say that we're better than people. And it's like, no, I just want you to know what I do. Right. And it's hard to remember that. I don't promote myself nearly as much as I should. Um, and that's okay because my schedule's been insane and will be insane for like the next couple of years coming up here. But I'm like, I don't need any more, any more work, and which is a great place to be, right? That's an it's an amazing place to be. But I still have to promote myself because people still need to know what I do so that I do have a funnel that when if not when, if things change, that uh, you know, that I've got um clients that can backfill those positions. And I think that that's just so important to keep in mind. And then even when you're too busy, that's the time to really be promoting yourself. And I need I needed that reminder. So thank you for that. I appreciate it.

SPEAKER_00 22:54

Yeah, people will forget what what we do because that that's happened to me before. And I'm like, well, where did you get your domain name?

Branding Mistakes: Email And Credibility

SPEAKER_01 23:00

I weren't I'm not telling people. I'm like, if you ask my parents what I do, I think my dad might have a fairly good answer. I'm like, I don't think my mom, she she does marketing. Like, I think that's about all she would be able to answer. And that goes for a lot of you know, family members, extended family. Like people in your immediate family don't remember what you do, right? Because it's just not as important and relevant to them as it is to you. And so I think repetition is a big piece of that and really helps us. So, Audrey, this has been amazing. I love all the tips. I love that the transformation was a website. And yes, keeping it up to date, right? Looking at yourself as customer service and figuring out how people can can um touch, feel, and experience you. And again, it doesn't have to be, you know, in a brick and mortar. It can be online trainings and things like that, right? And then avoiding those big branding, yes, get off of the personal email, get a branded email, hugely important, right? And then pick two things at a time and then grow, but make sure that you're leveraging those channels or that technology or that membership to the fullest so that people can start to build a relationship with you, right? And see that authenticity, which I think is so important. Before I let you go though, I do have to ask you the question that I ask all of my guests. And that is that this show is called Imperfect Marketing, because marketing is anything but a perfect science. What has been your biggest marketing lesson learned?

SPEAKER_00 24:42

Oh, choosing my own advertising paths to go down. And sometimes people can't talk us into anything. We let them talk us into something. Oh, I I really resonated. I really like this guy. I'm gonna buy this advertisement through him. This was some years ago, and above the advertising on the shopping carts in the stores. And that was such a waste of money, even though we as business owners, I'm B2B, we do go shopping, but that's that that's not the majority of where it's it's more a consumer. And and that was to me, that was a a big mistake. So really understanding, first of all, knowing your market, I'm sure, you know, we know that, but making sure that you're putting your ad dollars where you can get the but the biggest return on for your product or service that you're promoting.

SPEAKER_01 25:31

Yes, that is so important. And there have been numerous times where I've tried things where I was like, I never would have let a client do this. Why on earth did I do that? Again, going back to the cobblers, kids have no shoes. Um, it's very much, you know, taking the time to figure out what we need to do for our businesses. So I think stepping back and identifying that is huge. I had a guest on feels like yesterday, but I think it was like a couple of years ago. And yeah, they spent over$10,000 with different marketing agencies to help them grow their business. And most of it like brought in nothing. And those are big price tags. So, you know, especially for for small businesses, and I think that it's really important to make sure that we take the time to understand our audience, understand where they're at, and tell ourselves no. Right. Um, when we get when we get hit by an opportunity that just may not be the right fit for what we do, which I think is so important.

Self-Promotion Without The Guilt

SPEAKER_00 26:39

Yeah. And if I can add a sidebar to that, say you may, there may be a favorite charity or some organization, either have, say they're there's still an advertising, a program booklet, or your logo going across a screen at a at a live event, you know, do that because it's it's you know, you're you're compassionate about that organization, impact they're having on the community, whatever it is. But so you don't really do it for return. You do that, you know, as that's a gift to the community. That's your your donation, your investment into, you know, to whatever that impact is that they're going to. So so that doesn't count. That's separate, right? So those will be times we'll advertise um just for, you know, just for compassion. That would be a passion donation, you know, passion investment in advertising.

SPEAKER_01 27:25

Yes, I have a lot of those passion investments. I work with a lot of nonprofits and I love them all. And so, yes, it's definitely about those um, those advertising opportunities that it's just a way to give back to the community and stay connected. So thank you again so much, Audrey, for all your time today and all your great tips. Hopefully, those of you watching or listening learned something today. I know I needed a few of these reminders myself. So do as we say, not necessarily as we do. Make sure that your kids have shoes, right? For the cobblers, kids have no shoes and that you're focused on your marketing in the right way. If you learned something today, it would really help me out if you would rate and subscribe wherever you're listening and watching. Until next time, have a great rest of your day.