Focus on the Message, Not the Platform
I find myself saying this refrain a lot lately - to myself and to clients - “focus on the message, not the platform.” It can be really easy to be overwhelmed by all the platforms. “How do you keep up with them all?” is a common client question. The answer is: you don’t.
As I’ve said before on this blog, you don’t have to be on every social media platform just because it exists. And I would amend that statement to read “every marketing platform” instead because there are way more tools beyond the social media world. Pick a few platforms that you like or where you know your potential and current clients/customers are and do those really well. You can find some tips for doing that in this blog post. I do, however, recommend at least having email in your marketing mix and here are five reasons why.
But once you do narrow down your platforms… what do you share there? New clients (and friends who pick my brain about these kinds of things) often come to me stressed out, saying things like “I haven’t posted on Instagram in two weeks. I know I should be posting daily but every time I think about what to post, I draw a blank then get even more anxious about it.”
Here’s the solution: focus on the message, not the platform. Focus on what, exactly, you want to share and why and how you can add value to the lives of your current or potential customers and clients rather than trying to keep up some frankly insane Instagram quota that you will probably never hit unless you hire someone to do specifically that and only that.
What “message” should you focus on? Think through these questions to come up with content ideas:
What can you teach your clients/customers? Think about common questions you get that relate to your services or products and answer the question with a video, carousel post, blog post, email… whatever allows you to best answer that FAQ or thing you want to teach. Another good thing to keep in mind is that your customers don’t know as much as you do about your product/service. That sounds obvious, but it really isn’t! That’s why they come to you as the expert! If you don’t feel like you have a lot of FAQs, try to put yourself in your client’s mindset and think of questions they might have or things they might want to know before purchasing from you and create content around that.
Have you gotten a great review/testimonial lately? Share it! Show the product or service with a visual if you can, then include the review alongside it. Here are two examples of how I do this regularly on Instagram with my skincare brand, florapothecarie: Example 1, Example 2.
Share what you’re passionate about. Remember you’re a small business, and people who support small businesses (aka YOU) are people who like to buy from people, not big, faceless corporations. So be the face of your business - or, if you’re shy about showing up - at least be the heart of your business. What’s something you’re passionate about? Gardening? Volunteering at an animal shelter? Coloring in a coloring book because it helps you manage your anxiety? I encourage you to share snippets from your life and personality as much as you’re comfortable to let your dream clients and customers find you and learn more about you.
Your offerings, duh! Okay, sorry if the “duh” was harsh. But we forget we have to actually tell people how to buy from us! Remind your audience what your products or services are and how they can buy from you. Don’t do this every day because that would be annoying (although, let’s also remember our audience doesn’t see everything we post anyway, especially on social media), but often enough - at least a few times each month.
Need more help figuring out what to share on which marketing channels? Check out my Marketing Clarity Mini eCourse, which is just $77.77 - less than a 1-hour consulting call with me! Or, if you’re interested in getting more personalized 1-on-1 help, fill out this form to request a free 30-minute Discovery Session with me and let’s see if we’d make a good team!
