Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

In this episode, Dr. Barbara Hales and Marten Carlson discuss:
• The journey to becoming a lead mattress reviewer and sleep expert.
• The importance of trust in mattress reviews and how video marketing enhances credibility.
• The role of consistency and multiple media platforms, like YouTube and TikTok, in building a successful brand presence.

Key Takeaways:
• “Consistency is key, especially when it comes to building trust with your audience.” – Marten Carlson
• Video marketing is crucial for businesses to promote trust and showcase product performance effectively.
• Using diverse platforms helps businesses stay visible and top of mind for consumers, even as search algorithms change.

Connect with Marten Carlson:
• Website: Mattress Clarity
• YouTube: Mattress Clarity YouTube Channel
• TikTok: @MartenCarlson
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/martencarlson/

 

Connect with Barbara Hales:

 

Twitter:   @DrBarbaraHales

Facebook:   facebook.com/theMedicalStrategist

Business website: www.TheMedicalStrategist.com

Show website:   www.MarketingTipsForDoctors.com

Email:   Barbara@TheMedicalStrategist.com

Books:

YouTube: TheMedicalStrategist

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/barbarahales

 

TRANSCRIPTION

 

The Journey to Becoming a Sleep Reviewer and Expert

Dr. Barbara Hales: “Welcome to another episode of Marketing Tips for Doctors. Today’s episode is a little different, because we have Marten Carlson, the lead reviewer at Mattress Clarity, a mattress site dedicated to promoting sleep health and helping consumers find the right sleep products. He has been reviewing mattresses for over six years and has personally slept on over 300 mattresses. As you well know, sleep is crucial to efficacy in work, so let’s welcome Marten Carlson!”
Marten Carlson: “Great to be here. Thanks for having me, Barbara.”

Dr. Barbara Hales: “Marten, how did you get into being a sleep reviewer and sleep expert?”
Marten Carlson: “It’s a really interesting story. I had a friend who was working with Mattress Clarity, and they needed testers and writers. My background is in screenwriting and filmmaking, but also just in writing. So, I started on the copywriting side, and then I just started testing more and more. When COVID hit, I became the lead reviewer. COVID was a huge time for people buying online mattresses, and I got very busy. I became a certified sleep science coach, and I really fell in love with the whole mattress space. It’s the most interesting job I’ve ever had, for sure.”

Dr. Barbara Hales: “Do you do copywriting other than dealing with mattresses?”
Marten Carlson: “Not at the moment. I’m still doing screenwriting outside of work, but now most of my work is focused on video. We have a YouTube channel for Mattress Clarity, where we do reviews and roundups. Going into 2025, we’ll have videos like ‘Best Mattress,’ ‘Best Mattress for Side Sleepers,’ and other top mattress categories.”

 

Objective and Subjective Mattress Testing

Dr. Barbara Hales: “What are the objective and subjective tests that you perform on mattresses?”
Marten Carlson: “The subjective side is really about sleeping on the mattresses, right? It involves spending a lot of time in different positions. The main thing I look for is sleeping position, because that’s one of the main things people want to consider when buying a mattress. For example, back sleeping—am I getting a good balance of comfort and support? Side sleeping—am I getting good pressure relief on my shoulders and hips? And for stomach sleeping—am I getting good support under my hips, where a lot of people can get back pain from sinking into the bed. Another big test is motion transfer, which is important if you sleep with a partner who moves around at night. We test it with two people: I lie on one side, and someone moves around on the other side, and we check if the movement disturbs my side of the bed.

For objective tests, we use a temperature gun to measure how much heat a mattress traps over time. A lot of people, including myself, sleep hot, so we want to see how the mattress affects body temperature. We also use a pressure map to measure pressure relief, particularly for side sleepers. If there’s a lot of red on the map, it means there’s too much pressure on those areas. Additionally, we measure edge support, which is when you’re sitting or lying near the edge of the mattress, and we also use the classic wine test to check motion transfer.”

 

Building Trust Through Video Marketing

Dr. Barbara Hales: “What we’re going to take away from this today is not just the mattress itself, but the fact that your company has a wide variety of analytics which you constantly review to ensure success and focus on what matters when promoting your product. Yes, and in addition to that, we’re highlighting that businesses are most successful when they focus on video marketing.”

Marten Carlson: “Yes, exactly. One of the biggest factors is trust. A lot of mattress review sites just regurgitate information from the brand’s website without testing it themselves. For us, we test all different types of brands, so when I say I’ve personally slept on this mattress, that builds trust. Plus, I’m a bigger guy—6’7”—so people know my experience is valid for someone with my body type. We also have other testers on the team who are smaller and have different experiences, which helps show that our reviews are more comprehensive.”

 

The Power of Consistency in Business Promotion

Dr. Barbara Hales: “After you put out new videos, how often do you see a bump in sales?”
Marten Carlson: “Pretty quickly. Danny, our head of video, keeps a close eye on search results. We always aim to rank at the top for key mattress-related terms. Consistency is key; we shoot sometimes five videos a week, not just reviews, but also sleep health content and more fun stuff like ‘How to Sleep in a Haunted House.’ It’s about keeping the audience engaged with fresh content.”

Dr. Barbara Hales: “And the key here is always optimizing for keywords, so that when someone searches for mattresses, they find you.”
Marten Carlson: “Exactly. It’s all about consistency. The challenge with video marketing is having the right team to manage it—editing, shooting, scripting, acting. For me, I write the scripts because I’m doing the testing, and I’m also on camera. Our video team helps keep everything on track. The goal is to make sure when people search for ‘best mattress’ or ‘Mattress Clarity,’ we’re the first thing they find. That’s how you build that trust.”

 

Multi-Platform Engagement for Brand Success

Dr. Barbara Hales: “That segues right into YouTube, which is the main platform you’re using for videos?”
Marten Carlson: “Yes, YouTube is number one. We’ve done some TikTok work too, but I’m also working on a personal brand-building side. TikTok is more of a question mark for now, with legal issues, but YouTube is where we see great success. It’s the platform to get information out there, especially when it comes to sleep and mattresses. We embed videos in articles on our site, so people who come from YouTube can easily find more information on our website. It’s an echo effect—people start on YouTube and end up on the written page.”

 

Tips for Effective Business Promotion

Dr. Barbara Hales: “Can you share two tips for promoting or marketing your business?”
Marten Carlson: “First, consistency. You need to build trust by putting out enough content to become a reliable source. Second, explore other media channels. Besides YouTube, TikTok, and even podcasts are great ways to talk about your business and reach new audiences. Google’s algorithm can be tricky, so diversifying your marketing channels is key to staying visible.”