Somewhere along the way we were told that marketing growth comes from doing more. More platforms, more visibility, more content. Ashley DiBiase joins Holly to make the case that it does not, and to break down her content trifecta, the way social media, blogging, and email marketing can support each other instead of competing for your time.

About Ashley DiBiase

Ashley DiBiase is the founder of Dash of Social®, a content marketing agency she started in September 2016 after several years freelancing in social media strategy. She has been named a 40 Under 40 Honoree by Cape & Plymouth Business Media, recognized as Best Social Media Specialist by Boston Business Women, and has spoken at TEDx. She also founded the Massachusetts Business Network in 2022, a statewide publication offering free to low cost marketing resources through its podcast, blog, and directory. Ashley built what she calls the content trifecta, a way of pairing social media, blogging, and email marketing so they work together instead of competing for the same time and attention.

How to build a marketing strategy that does not rely on social media alone

Ashley started out as a fashion and lifestyle blogger in 2012, writing mostly for her own family, until she taught herself social media marketing to grow her audience and eventually became a micro influencer working with brands. That work showed her how many small businesses were leaving money on the table by ignoring social media entirely, and it led her to launch Dash of Social® in 2016. Almost ten years later, she still describes herself as an integrator, someone who gets close to a client's team and business instead of managing their content from a distance.

The centerpiece of this episode is the content trifecta: social media, blogging, and email marketing, working as a loop instead of three separate jobs. Ashley recommends starting with one piece of long form content, usually a blog post, then breaking it into three to five social posts and featuring it in the next newsletter. She also shares a simple way to never run out of ideas, keeping a running list of the questions clients and customers actually ask, and her go-to tools for repurposing video and audio into shorter clips, Descript and Riverside.

Ashley and Holly also get into partnership marketing, including a low lift way to co-write a blog post by collecting quotes from other experts, and why more founders are stepping in front of the camera to build a personal brand alongside their company's. She closes with rapid fire advice: stop overthinking the caption and just post, and if you could go back, remember that video was going to matter far sooner than it felt like it did.

I always say that using social media only is putting all of your eggs in one basket.

Ashley DiBiase

Key takeaways from this episode

• Ashley DiBiase has run Dash of Social® for almost ten years, since founding it in September 2016.
• The content trifecta pairs social media, blogging, and email marketing so each channel sends people to the next instead of competing for attention.
• One blog post can be broken into three to five social media posts plus a newsletter feature, multiplying the return on the time it took to write it.
• A co-written blog post built from 10 to 12 contributor quotes creates shared reach for everyone involved without adding to your own content load.
• Partnerships only work when both people contribute equally to creating and promoting the shared resource.
• At minimum, every business leader needs a LinkedIn profile to start building a personal brand.

This episode is for you if

• You have been relying on social media alone and want a marketing plan that does not live or die by the algorithm.
• You already create content but feel like you are starting over every time instead of getting more out of what already works.
• You are ready to add your voice and face to your marketing but are not sure where to start.

Partnerships really only work if both people contribute equally.

Ashley DiBiase

Tune in to hear:

• Ashley's definition of a life-first business and why she blocks meetings into just two days a week
• How a fashion and lifestyle blog led her to found Dash of Social® in 2016
• Why relying on social media alone is putting all your eggs in one basket
• What the content trifecta is and how social media, blogging, and email work together
• Where to start when you want one piece of content to reach every channel
• How to turn client questions into a running list of content ideas
• Her go-to tools for repurposing video and audio content
• What partnership marketing looks like and how to find the right partner
• Why more founders are stepping into their personal brand on camera
• Ashley's rapid fire answers on tools, workflow, and the advice she would give her younger self

Episode chapters

• 00:00 Welcome and what a life-first business means to Ashley
• 01:30 Batching meetings into two focused days a week
• 04:30 How a fashion blog led to founding Dash of Social®
• 07:30 Why relying on social media alone limits your reach
• 09:00 The content trifecta explained
• 12:00 Turning client questions into content, and tools for repurposing it
• 15:00 What partnership marketing looks like
• 18:00 Building a personal brand as a founder
• 21:00 Rapid fire: tools, workflow, and advice for her younger self
• 24:00 Where to connect with Ashley

Connect with Ashley:
Instagram:  @dashofsocial
Website: www.dashofsocial.com

🔗 LINKS MENTIONED:

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💡 Download the SEO / GEO Audit Skill → hollymariehaynes.com/seoaudit

🌎 Website → hollymariehaynes.com

📲 Instagram → @thehollymariehaynes

🗨️ Chat with Holly → hollymariehaynes

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Frequently asked questions

Who is Ashley DiBiase?

Ashley DiBiase is the founder of Dash of Social®, a content marketing agency she started in 2016. In this episode she covers the content trifecta, her framework for pairing social media, blogging, and email marketing so they work together. She is also a TEDx speaker and the founder of the Massachusetts Business Network.

What is the content trifecta?

The content trifecta is Ashley DiBiase's approach to pairing social media, blogging, and email marketing so they send people from one channel to the next instead of competing for the same time and attention. Someone might find you on social media, click through to a blog post, then opt into your newsletter from there. Each channel does a different job in moving a cold lead toward becoming a client. It works because it repeats the value of one piece of content across every place your audience already spends time.

How do you repurpose one piece of content across social media, blog, and email?

Ashley recommends starting with the long form piece, usually a blog post, and writing it first. From there, break it into three to five social media posts, since a tip based post alone can usually produce several standalone pieces. Once the blog is live, feature it in your next newsletter so your email list can discover it too. Keeping a running list of the questions your clients and customers actually ask is the easiest way to make sure the original content stays useful in the first place.

Is social media enough for marketing, or do you need other channels too?

Ashley is direct about this: relying on social media alone is putting all of your eggs in one basket. Email marketing does not compete with an algorithm the way social platforms do, and a blog builds long term traffic through search and AI tools reading it directly. She recommends diversifying across at least social media, blogging, and email so one platform change or algorithm shift cannot take out your whole marketing plan.

What makes a good marketing partnership?

A good partnership starts with someone who shares a similar audience but is not a direct competitor, like an attorney, a financial planner, and a real estate agent all serving the same divorce clients. Ashley says it works best with someone you already know and trust, because partnerships only succeed if both people contribute equally to creating and promoting whatever you build together. A simple starting point is a co-written blog post, where you collect quotes from 10 to 12 people you know in exchange for linking to their site and tagging them when you promote it.

How do you start building a personal brand as a business leader?

Ashley says the bare minimum is a LinkedIn profile, since every leader benefits from positioning themselves as a thought leader in their space. From there, some leaders add a personal Substack alongside the company blog, or write a short personal update, sometimes called a CEO corner, at the bottom of the company newsletter. The goal is letting people get to know you as a person in addition to the business, because that is what builds the know, like, and trust that turns a follower into a client.

Curious what is actually standing between you and consistent income in your business? Take the free 2-minute quiz and find out where the gap is. hollymariehaynes.com/quiz 💜