Does this sound familiar?
“I don’t post on social media because my audience is so small and no one will be interested”.
Just like everything in life we need to learn new things and grow. You look at the gurus who build a following in three days saying if they can do it so can you but they never mention all the trial and error they had to go through until they got to that point where things became easier. In this blog, we are going to explain that by starting to practice with a small audience you will have the opportunity to learn by trial and error with very little negative impact on your business. Remember to be better than your competitor you only need to do one thing better than them. Have a look at the list below and pick two or three things to start practising now. Imagine what the impact will be in a year's time.
1. Post a picture of yourself
Posting photos of yourself when it comes to business is not as a bad idea as you think it might be. People really do like to see who they are doing business with. Attitudes have changed since COVID first came to change our lives. Practice taking and posting photos of yourself to build your confidence not only in yourself but in your business so get posting your pics. Use gentle filters if you want to start off but remember to be yourself. You will be surprised by the response.
2. Try doing lives videos regularly
Doing a live stream can be very daunting and intimidating especially if you are not used to doing them. Practice really does make perfect and so get practising! If your audience is relatively small then you are unlikely to get lots of comments; this is not a bad thing. Start small! All the best actors start with small audiences to showcase their work. If it works for them then it could work for you too. This means you can mistake without too much drama and you can learn what gets good feedback and what is not so popular. Remember: Practice makes perfect!
3. Use different platforms
Using live streaming on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn can give you instant feedback as to where your ideal customer is and what time they are online. This gives you instant feedback from real people and it’s free.
4. Start your blog
Ever thought of writing a blog as part of your business plan? If not then you may be missing a trick. It doesn’t matter if you do not have a large following, it is all about the practice. Have I mentioned practice before? Making blog writing part of your weekly routine could again help grow your business and following. It will also help you to explain your products and services better. Don't try to do too much. Start with bi-monthly or monthly blogs to help you build confidence and create content for your website and social media.
5. Who am I?
We previously mentioned in section 1 that people love to know whom they are dealing with; yes, people like to be nosey and are curious. Writing about ‘you’ on your business page can help give the customer an insight into who you are. Remember people buy people. Give them some basic information along with interesting facts about you and your business that they can relate to. Giving this type of information will help to attract the right kind of people to your business.
6. Be authentic
Create personal social media posts – I know, I mean why would you? You see, the point of being on social media is to be social and to connect with people for friendship and business, so why not try sharing personal posts on your business page? You are human after all and it’s better to be real. Being authentic could help open doors. Remember don’t do it every day only occasional posts about you and your life, goals, ambitions and what drives you can really give people an insight into who you are. Practice and this will help you deal with any insecurities you may have about doing it.
7. Be social
Comment on other social media pages – It is all well and good being on social media but you need to be seen to be active. This shows that you actually care and take an interest in what you do. It shows you are wanting to connect with people and are active on your page. It will show you are wanting to promote your business and also want to engage with other like-minded business people and clients.
8. Email marketing
Send regular emails to your email list. Sending emails to your client list is a good idea but ensure the emails have substance and are not just spam/junk emails. People get fed up with junk mail that has no real information so they end up deleting them or even worst blocking you. Practising the content will get you used to what to send and how regular to send them. Doing this will help you find out what works best for your business.
9. Post on stories
Post regular Instagram and Facebook stories. Stories are at the top and people tend to scroll through them first. Come up with a plan for your stories, create your artwork and start posting. Some scheduling tools can now post automatically to stores making them less time-consuming. Try it out while your audience is still small is a great way of learning and making mistakes so that when your audience has grown you will be an absolute pro at it.
10. Practice, practice, practice
Try selling on your pages. Want to perfect that sales pitch? Then try it in front of a small audience. Sound familiar? All the way through this blog we have suggested to practice, practice and that really is what you should do. Gain experience, confidence, and knowledge with the small following you have now. Get them used to the fact you are going to be selling to them from time to time. It can be intimidating selling to people but it will be worth it in the end and like everything we have mentioned, it will become second nature. Good luck and get practising!
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