Let’s talk about stage fright. No, not the kind when you get when you sing karaoke, or when you’re part of the community theatre production of Grease (though we thoroughly support and endorse both of those objectives).
Did you know marketing stage fright is a thing? We’ve all been there. We’ve got an email newsletter to send, or a social post to write…and it’s all written, and you can’t force yourself to push send. You edit round after round of drafts, ask your closest five friends to weigh in, and then you set it aside for the “right moment.” We’ve been there too – as a matter of fact, this post is being written because our writer is suffering from it right now herself! But the truth is: you need to market your business, and that comes from actually showing up in those spaces, even though it is scary.
How do you make it happen so that you’re posting, publishing, and creating consistently? We’ve developed a few tips over the years.
Outsource and disassociate from it.
It’s what we do here at Flamingo, and we’re good at it. But not in the ways you might think. We can see your brand from a higher level. It’s not our heart and soul and passion, so we can view it more objectively and – quite honestly sometimes – with less caring. Our big secret: Alicia almost never writes her own content for this reason.
Can’t think of getting yourself out of the creative role? Send your content to someone you know and trust, whether that’s us or your bestie, and give them permission to hit the big scary publish button!
Batch tasks
We’ve found that writing and creative work entails a completely different type of brain function than the administrative side of scheduling and publishing. By putting those types of tasks together, not only will you be more efficient, but you won’t get as stuck in marketing overthink because you won’t be in the same frame of mind when you’re publishing 10 posts at once!
Understand that you’re only the most important person to you. (And maybe your mom).
We love you and your business so much, but to be honest – we’re not eagerly waiting on our phones waiting for you to publish your next thought. People are busy. No matter how much you struggle with a piece of content, know that only a fraction of the people who interact with your audience are ever going to see it! It varies widely by industry but the average open rate of an email campaign is under 20%. That means for every 200 people you send to, only 40 will actually even open it. Not to mention, an even smaller number of them will actually comprehend, click, or take action. It’s why it’s been said that you have to tell someone something at least 7 times before they actually understand it. The social media algorithm operates the same way. That’s why we encourage the use of ads to help you reach even more of your audience.
Imagine you’re on that big stage again, belting out the big tune. Now envision that only 20% of the auditorium is full. It’s a lot less scary right?
So, because only a few people are going to see it, that means you only have to do a little bit of work, right? Bad news: We’re afraid not. Due to technological reasons, if you want your content to be seen by even that 20% of people you have to keep publishing consistently. But the good news is that your audience is less perceptive than you think. Don’t be afraid to be messy, or publish things that are less than perfect. The more you continue to get yourself out there, the easier it will be, and you’ll be able to reap more of the rewards of your efforts.
Still having fears about hitting the red button? We’d love to help, whether that’s from strategic coaching or taking on some of those tasks for you. Hit the button below to schedule a chat with our team!
Recent Comments