What actually is marketing… and why do so many business owners leave it until last?

In this episode of the Built By Her Podcast, Georgie sits down with Laura Vout, founder of Laura About Marketing, to talk about what marketing really means, why it matters so much for small businesses, and how to know when it’s time to stop trying to do it all yourself.

Laura shares her journey from a corporate marketing career into running her own business, after redundancy gave her the push to finally back herself. From managing marketing in large companies to now helping smaller businesses connect the dots between social media, email, websites, strategy and growth, this conversation is packed with honest insight and practical advice.

Together, Georgie and Laura chat about the difference between brand and marketing, how social media has changed the way businesses need to show up, why authenticity matters more than ever in the age of AI, and what small business owners should actually focus on when they’re feeling overwhelmed by marketing.

In this episode, we talk about:

✨ What marketing actually means beyond just social media
✨ The difference between brand and marketing
✨ Why marketing is often underestimated until business slows down
✨ How social media has changed the way brands connect with people
✨ AI, authenticity, and why real content still matters
✨ SEO vs AEO and how people are now searching differently
✨ How often you should really update your website
✨ Whether blogs still matter in 2026
✨ Why doing your own content is harder than it looks
✨ The reality of leaving corporate and starting your own business
✨ Pricing your services and communicating your value
✨ How to know which marketing activity is actually worth your time
✨ When it’s time to outsource your marketing

This episode is a brilliant listen for any business owner who feels like they should be doing more marketing, but isn’t sure where to start, what actually works, or whether they’re spending time on the right things.

Guest: Laura Vout
Instagram: @laura.vout
TikTok: @laura.vout

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🎙️ Hosted by Georgina McDonald founder of G R Design Studio

🌐 Website: https://www.grdesignstudio.co.uk/
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/g_r_designstudio

🎧 Produced by Richard Lannen at Nozzle Media
🌐 https://nozzle.media
📸 https://www.instagram.com/nozzlemedia

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