Story of #SocialMediaPie on Pi Day Ep78

My mom and the Michigan State Fair is a memory baked into my heart, and it's one of the moments that transformed pie from a mere dessert into a slice of my personal brand. 

On Pi Day, join me as I recount the journey from baking with love to branding with purpose, and how pie isn't just a sweet treat but a cornerstone of my professional identity. 

We'll explore the creation of #socialmediapie and the evolution that led to my LinkedIn strategy book, "Social Media Pie: How to Enjoy a Bigger Slice of LinkedIn," infusing the essence of pie into every my business, and gain inspiration for YOUR business through the process. 

As we celebrate the delicious dualities of pie and branding, we'll also shine a spotlight on the clever marketing collaborations that Pi Day stirs up in the Metro Detroit area. A slice of pie at Achatz bakery and a complementary coffee from Biggby Coffee aren't just treats for your palate but a masterclass in synergistic promotions. 

This episode is a fusion of nostalgia, strategy, and entrepreneurial spirit that's sure to inspire – whether you're a pie aficionado, a branding enthusiast, or just in search of a sweet slice of inspiration.

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My name is Brenda Meller. I'm a LinkedIn coach, consultant, speaker, and author. My company is Meller Marketing and I help business professionals get a bigger slice of the LinkedIn pie.

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Transcript

Speaker 1: 1:01

Today is Pi Day. Yep, that's right, it's March 14th, 2024 as I'm recording this, but Pi Day is an amazing event that happens every year. Now, I say amazing because I am a huge fan of Pi and Pi is part of my personal brand. Hey, my friend, in this episode of today's podcast, I wanna talk to you a bit about my love of Pi and how you might start to think about creating something that is non-related to your business and building it into your personal brand. I wanna start by talking a bit about the backstory behind me and my love of Pi. It actually started back when I was younger.

Speaker 1: 1:40

When I was growing up, my mom used to bake for the Michigan State Fair for those of you who've been in the area for a while, you know what I'm talking about and every year she would submit pre-made cookies that we'd also would participate in some live competitions. And one year I think it was in high school, maybe middle school or high school at the time there was a mother-daughter pie baking contest, and I remember this distinctly. She wore a black jacket and white pants and I wore a white jacket and black pants. We were quite a coordinating and we did some type of an apple pie that we baked together for the contest. We didn't win that day, but that was one of my very cherished memories, not only because I love the Michigan State Fair growing up, but because I had a chance to bake with my mom and she has sense pants away from cancer, and it's a nice way to pay in honor and tribute and keep her memory alive. By the way, ladies, always get your PAPS mirror and your annual exams.

Speaker 1: 2:31

Now, over the years, I realized that I was something that I really did enjoy as a dessert. I do like cookies and, don't get me wrong, I love brownies, especially the ones with nuts inside them, but I don't like cake as much. It feels to me a bit too sugary. Sometimes in the frosting it's like sugar sugar. It's just not something that I particularly enjoy. But put a slice of pie in front of me and I will eat that. My friends.

Speaker 1: 2:54

And a few years back, when I was just getting my business started, I had the opportunity to change up the presentation and I was doing social media strategies for small businesses and I decided to do a pie-themed presentation and used a hashtag that I created that day called hashtag social media pie, and it kind of took off. People were taking pictures and they were posting them. I actually brought a pie to give away that day. I went to one of the local bakeries and bought a pie and gave it away, and the person who won it was like they were winning the lottery. So it kind of just started that day. It was really when it was starting to be born. Fast forward, a few years later, I finally met my goal of publishing a book, and it was a LinkedIn strategy book and it is called social media pie how to enjoy a bigger slice of LinkedIn. And then, from that day forward, gosh pie just became a part of my personal brand.

Speaker 1: 3:45

Now, if you also love pie, you know that there are several holidays throughout the year that commemorate pie in general. There's actually a national pie day in January I think it's January 20th and in March, which is today March 14th 3.14, the mathematical number for pie. A lot of local organizations are celebrating pie, and even here in Metro Detroit, our local Akitz pie bakery is celebrating pie day today, and they've been doing promotions leading up to this for weeks and months. You walk into the store today and you can get a slice of pie for $3.14. And after I did that today. I went a few doors down to Bigby Coffee and I thought this was brilliant. Bigby Coffee had a sign. I didn't see it until after I ordered my coffee and the person said okay, you're on set. And I said, well, how much do I owe? And she said there's no charge because we're doing a promotion today If you buy pie from Akitz and come into Bigby, we'll give you a free small coffee. And I said that's brilliant. I love to see marketing collaborations like that. So I'm now starting to see more businesses embracing this concept of pie if pie is related to their business.

Speaker 1: 4:53

Now, for me, now that you know I love pie, you will start to miss my humor, my memes, five references and TVs and movies and books, and you'll think of me. And when you do, I want you to send me a note. I always love when I receive notes and messages from my connections, my clients and my community, sharing how it makes us. It's kind of like we're enjoying that fight together, if you will, and what I think really makes this unique is we're making a human to human connection with one another. That's not related to business and you've all heard that expression and that people do business with individuals that they know, like and trust. I also think value is an important part of that equation, but that trust element is something that we can build up through personal relationships and even through things like a love of pie.

Speaker 1: 5:39

Now, pie is my thing.

Speaker 1: 5:41

I know there's the bacon people out there, there's the coffee people, there's craft brews and there's Harley Davidson fans.

Speaker 1: 5:48

There's other categories of things out there, but I want to challenge you to think about what's an item that you really do enjoy, that you love, that's been a part of your life, that you would consider a part of your personal brand, and maybe start including that in some of your LinkedIn posts and other social media posts. Maybe, if you've got a podcast, talk about that in an episode of your podcast as well, and do let me know the results that you're seeing from that approach. Now, as we wrap up today, whether it is pie day or if you're listening to this in the future, I want to encourage you to please send me messages and gifts and comics and things like that. If you ever see clever things about pie, please send them to me. I take a little collection of these things and sometimes I'll share these pie related things in presentations as well. With that said, have a happy pie day if you do celebrate, and we'll look forward to seeing you on a future episode. Thanks for listening.