Instagram Stories is a fantastic tool you can use to attract your ideal customers/clients.
But if you’re not familiar with how it works, it can all feel a bit confusing.
In this podcast episode I explain how to use Instagram Stories to make more sales in your business, including what kind of content you should be sharing (and how often) and how to use quizzes/polls and other interaction functions to find people who are interested in your products/services. PLUS how to get your Instagram followers buying from your stories.
Instagram has three main parts.
You can share your content between your grid, Stories and IGTV to get it in front of a wider audience.
Instagram Stories appear in a bar at the top of your feed. When there’s something new to see on an account of someone you follow, you’ll notice their profile photo will have a colourful ring around it.
To view someone’s story, you simply need to tap on their profile photo, and their story will appear full-screen, showing you all of the content they’ve posted in the last 24hrs. The content will play in chronological order from oldest to newest.
Once you’re viewing a story, you can tap to go back and forward or swipe to jump to another person’s story. Unlike regular posts, there are no likes or public comments. Anyone who comments go straight into your DMs (direct messages). This can be a great way to build relationships with prospective customers/clients.
The great thing about Instagram Stories is that your content only lasts for 24 hours. This can be great if you’re nervous about putting yourself out there. But you can save your best content as ‘highlights’ (more on that later).
As with any social media, there is really no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ way to do it, but my account is probably ‘typical’ of what most Instagram users do. The content on my grid is more ‘curated’ than my Instagram Stories and has a consistent aesthetic (i.e. I used the same brand fonts and colours). My Instagram Stories is a bit more ‘rough and ready’ - and often features ‘behind-the-scenes’ content that relates to my life and business.
The clue is in the name: Story. And a story generally needs a beginning, a middle and an end. Or at least some kind of ‘narrative’ you can follow.
One of the most confusing things about Instagram Stories is that you’ll often hear people talking about each individual image/15 second video clips as a ‘story’. So for the purpose of this post, I’m going to refer to them as ‘chapters’ which make up a whole Story.
While there are no hard and fast rules on how long your Instagram Stories, should be, it’s worth remembering that most people are scrolling through. So if your Story is too long and/or doesn’t grab their attention in the first few moments, they’ll scroll past and start looking at someone else’s story. For this reason, I’d generally recommend creating putting together no more than about seven to ten individual ‘chapters’ to make longer Stories). However, with some Stories e.g. if you are talking to camera, you may need to make them a little longer.
Here are my tips for making them engaging.
1.Start with a question that introduces the theme of your Story and invites viewers to get in a conversation with you e.g. ‘Are you thinking of launching a podcast in 2020?’ ‘Have you done all your Christmas shopping yet?’ or ‘Here’s my to-do list for today. What’s the ONE thing you absolutely have to get done today?’
You can use the question, polls or quiz function but keep it really simple. If people have to think too hard, they’ll be far less likely to respond.
So, for example, with my podcasting course How To Get Your Podcast Live in 60 Days, I might start my Story with a poll: ‘are you interested in launching a podcast in 2020?’. Then I might share some information about the course before finishing up with a single call-to-action: ‘Interested in finding out more? DM me for a link to the waitlist.’
This gives me two opportunities to identify the key element that is needed for someone to make a purchase: desire. Then I can simply reach out to them and give them more information. And they’re not going to feel uncomfortable about it - because they expressed their desire to start a podcast and/or their desire to find out more about my course.
Similarly with my 2020 Social Media Diary & Planner, I’ll often start by asking a question e.g. ‘Do you sometimes find it difficult to stick to a content plan?’ Then I’ll share some pictures/video of the diary - along with some text that summarises what’s included. Then I’ll give a single call-to-action e.g. ’DM me for the link to order’.
AsI have over 10k followers on Instagram, you might be wondering why I invite people to DM me, rather than just give them the link. This is because it initiates a conversation. If we’re already chatting in the DMS, it’s much easier for someone to raise a question/objection about the diary - which is far more likely to result in a sale. If I simply send them off to a link, I may never hear from them again.
Another powerful way to sell in your Instagram Stories is to share client/customer testimonials - ideally ones that address your most common objections. For example, if the most common objection you get for signing up for your online course/membership is ‘I can’t afford it’ - share screenshots from clients telling you how much money they’ve made from implementing your strategies.
And do remember that you can use Stories to ‘sell’ anything - and not just your products/services. For example, you can use exactly the same process to get people involved in a conversation about your latest blog/podcast and create the desire for them to listen to it.
Dealing with objections in your Instagram Stories
It’s one thing creating a story about your product service with a call-to-action at the end. But if you really want to boost your sales, you need to create a series of Stories that address your ideal customers/clients objections. For example, one question I kept getting asked about my podcasting course was: ‘how will having a podcast actually help me in my business?’ So I polled my clients to find out how they found me. Most said they found me via my podcast, so I shared the result of that poll in my Stories.
I also asked some fellow podcasters how having a podcast had helped them in their business - and shared screenshots of their responses in my Stories. Their answers - which ranged from ‘it's helped me make more money’ to ‘it's helped me get booked for more speaking gigs’ are a powerful way to tackle that objection.
Even when you are tackling objections, it’s still important to keep your Stories interactive. So when I was tackling that particular objection, I opened my story by asking viewers if they ever wondered what was the point of starting a podcast.
Using highlights to sell on Instagram Stories
Although Stories disappear in 24 hours, you can save them in the highlights section (just about your grid) and continue to make sales. For example, I have a highlight for my 2020 Social Media Diary & Planner, which features dozens of pictures of people using their diary, along with a video of me giving a tour of the diary. People often respond to this highlight and ask me questions e.g. ‘Do you deliver to x country?’ or ‘what’s the delivery time for y?” Because their responses go straight into my DMs, we are straight into a sales conversation.
For this reason, I’d recommend having a highlight section for your key products/services.
Podcast shownotes
Want to start your own podcast? Sign up for my podcasting course.
[343] The three audiences you must build to create a successful online business (podcast)
[348] How to write social media posts that sell (podcast)
[358] 13 ideas for engaging social media posts (podcast)
[362] How to grow your Instagram to 27K- fast (podcast)
[373] How to get more followers on any social media platform (podcast)
[376] Lessons learned from 1 million downloads of my podcast (podcast)
[379] How to grow your Instagram followers by 1K in 30 days (podcast)
[381] How to use awareness days to create engaging content for your business (podcast)
Join the Media Diary Owners Club
Order your 2020 Media Diary here
How to create a high-converting lead magnet course
How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)
Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Have you ever agonised over a social media post, or felt nervous and then deleted it or over-thought your post to the point where you don’t post anything at all? Or maybe you've worried that it was a bit too personal? If you’ve ever struggled with overthinking what you post or worried about being judged for what you post then you need to listen to this episode.
Natalie Lue a recovering people pleaser, perfectionist and over-thinker explains how to bring more of yourself and your personality into your social media content without worrying about it. She explains how to find the essence of 'you' and what makes ‘you-you’. She also explains how we can lose our personality in the content we create by over thinking and worrying too much about 'the rules'.
So if you’d love to have a potential client or customer say to you "Did you just read my mind?" And you want to know how to bring more of yourself AND your personality into your social media content and discover your ‘secret sauce’ then have a listen to this podcast episode.
This episode was recorded live at my content planning masterclass 2020Sorted. I’d love to know what you think…
Resources
Want to start your own podcast? Sign up for my podcasting course.
[049] How to turn your blog into a business with Natalie Lue (podcast)
[161] How to work with bloggers and influencers with Kat Molesworth (podcast)
[343] The three audiences you must build to create a successful online business (podcast)
[348] How to write social media posts that sell (podcast)
[358] 13 ideas for engaging social media posts (podcast)
[362] How to grow your Instagram to 27K- fast (podcast)
[373] How to get more followers on any social media platform (podcast)
[376] Lessons learned from 1 million downloads of my podcast (podcast)
[379] How to grow your Instagram followers by 1K in 30 days (podcast)
[381] How to use awareness days to create engaging content for your business (podcast)
Join the Media Diary Owners Club
Order your 2020 Media Diary here
How to create a high-converting lead magnet course
How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)
Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
If it's a dream or ambition of yours to start a podcast or launch a podcast in 2020 this podcast episode is for you. In this episode, I answer the many questions that I get asked all the time about launching a podcast.
So if you'd love to start a podcast but you're unsure of what equipment you need or how to host it and get it online or even get people to listen to it then this is a must-listen.
In this podcast episode, I share my practical actionable tips including how to choose a topic and why you should choose a niche to reach a larger audience.
Even if you're not planning a podcast and just a regular piece of consistent content then you'll still find this episode useful.
I'd love to know what you think.
Launching a podcast can be a big investment of your time, energy and money. Which is why it’s important to get clear on why you’re doing it. A podcast can be a great way to attract leads and sales for your business. For example, many of my clients start listening to my podcast way before they become a client.
However, you may have other aims - such as connecting with other influencers in your industry or raising your profile so you can land more speaking gigs or a book deal. If you’re clear on why you want to start a podcast, it will be much easier to measure the potential return on investment for your business.
Regardless of the topic, your podcast should solve a problem for your listeners. Solving a problem for people can simply be about entertaining people and/or making them laugh.
But for most business owners, this is generally about providing valuable information/discussion around a specific topic. For example, my podcast 'The Janet Murray Show' provides actionable tips and business/marketing advice - on topics ranging from Instagram marketing to creating a content calendar for your business to how to start a podcast for your business.
As with many things in your business, the more ‘niche’ and/or specific you can be, the better. Spend some time searching through the podcasts Apple and/or other podcasting platforms and you will be amazed what people have podcasts on.
For example:
Once you’ve decided on a topic, it’s time to choose a name for your podcast. I’d suggest picking a title that describes what your podcast is about.
For example, Employment Law Matters, the Smart Passive Income Podcast, the Property Development Podcast.
While it might be tempting to come up with something creative, this will make it easier for new listeners to find you. Ditto for individual episode titles.
There are no hard and fast rules about which is best: solo, interview or a mix of both. It really is down to you. It’s also something you may need to test over time i.e. do your solo shows perform better than your interview shows. For example, I started off with a weekly interview but found my solo shows often performed better, so I gradually started to do fewer interviews and more solo shows.
Again there are no hard and fast rules about how often you should put out your podcast i.e. weekly, daily, monthly. This is really down to you.
If you’re new to podcasting, creating a season of 6-8 episodes can be a much less daunting than launching a weekly or daily show. If your first season does well, you can always create another on a related topic and/or move to a regular show.
Your podcast can be as short or as long as you want. But if you’re new to podcasting, starting with a 15-20 minute show might be easier.
If you listen to podcasts, you’ll probably know that when you find a podcast you like, you often want to binge listen to other episodes. This is why it’s a good idea to launch with more than one episode. But again, this will be dependent on a number of factors e.g. whether you’re launching a weekly or daily show or a season.
Once you’ve decided on the topic, frequency and length of your podcast episode, it’s a good idea to make a content plan, setting out what you’re planning to publish and when with draft titles.
If you’re new to podcasting, it’s best to keep it simple. And, as you don’t know whether you’re going to enjoy podcasting, I wouldn’t recommend investing tons. I would recommend a simple set up. I would recommend a USB microphone like the Blue Snowball or Blue Yeti you can plug straight into your computer and a pop shield. These start at around £65. If you are recording solo shows, you can use Audacity - free software and Zoom/Skype to record interviews.
You will also need to choose a place to host your podcast on the web (most podcast files are too big for websites). You will need to pay for hosting. This can vary depending on how much content you have, but I started off paying around $5 a month. Now it’s around $25. Popular choices include: Buzzsprout, Spreaker, Blubrry and Libsyn.
Find out more about how to host your podcast: The Podcast Host
You can edit your podcast yourself using free software like Audacity or you can outsource. Expect to pay at least £15-20 an hour for podcasting editing, but if you think about the value of a potential lead/enquiry, getting a professional to do this for you can be a much better ROI (return on investment) in the long run. You could also use a podcast maker like Alitu which helps you clean you your audio, add your intro and outro, edit out mistakes, edit and publish your podcast.
Depending on the format of your show, you may also need to source a voiceover artist for the intro/outro and/or copyright-free music. I found my voiceover artist on Fiverr. You might also want to try People Per Hour or Upwork. There are tons of sites you can use to source copyright free music but my favourite is Audiojungle.
Introducing your listeners to interesting guests - people who are experts in a specific topic - can be a great way to add value.
The mistake many new podcasters make is thinking that having ‘big name’ guests is a great way to promote your podcasts. Actually the opposite is often true. Someone who already has a large audience is less likely to have the time or inclination to promote your podcast. A guest with a small but engaged audience may be much more inclined to tell the world about it.
When it comes to inviting guests onto your podcasts, the key thing to remember is that you are asking them to give up their time. So it’s important to demonstrate what might be in it for them e.g. the chance to get in front of your listeners, social media followers, email list. If you have a small audience or you haven’t started your podcast yet, it’s best to be upfront about that but show how you will promote the podcast.
As with anything in your business, it’s all in the preparation. The more you can prepare your guest for the interview - by sending over detailed instructions on how to prepare or join the call PLUS the questions you are likely to ask - the better the interview is likely to go.
It’s generally better to use open questions e.g. ‘can you tell us more about’ or ‘what did it feel like when…?’. This will encourage your guests to talk more freely and make your interview feel like a conversation rather than a question and answer session (which is exactly how it should be).
Preparing a list of questions is a good idea, but don’t stick slavishly to your question list. If you let the conversation flow naturally, your interviews will sound a lot better.
Unfortunately getting your podcast listed on Apple Podcasts (and other podcasting directories like Spotify, Acast, Google Podcasts and Stitcher) is not enough to build an audience for your podcast. You will also need to actively promote your podcasts via social media, your email list, Facebook messenger, Pinterest and any other marketing channels. There are also many things you can do to encourage your guests or listeners to share your podcast (such as creating branded, shareable artwork).
Most people vastly under promote their podcast because they’re worried people will get sick of hearing about it. In reality, most people are far too busy getting on with their lives to notice you’ve already posted multiple times about your podcast - and appreciate the reminder.
Want to start your own podcast? Sign up to my podcast course with The Podcast host - Colin Gray
How to pitch yourself as a podcast guest (blog)
[080] Three must-do tips for pitching yourself as a podcast guest (podcast)
[094] Seven steps to starting your podcast (podcast)
[190] How to pitch yourself as a podcast guest (and why you must do) (podcast)
[253] How to land guest appearances on podcasts with Nicola Holland (podcast)
[263] Why I changed the name of my podcast (podcast)
[331] What it really takes to build an audience with John Lee Dumas (podcast)
[348] How to write social media posts that sell (podcast episode)
[343] The three audiences you must build to create a successful online business (podcast)
[357] How to transform your Facebook page from ghost town to garden party with Bella Vasta (podcast)
[376] Lessons learned from 1 million downloads of my podcast (podcast)
Join the Media Diary Owners Club
Order your 2020 Media Diary here
How to create a high-converting lead magnet course
How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)
Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Want to know how to create content that really sells and how to ask the right questions that lead to sales and follow up with people in a non salesy way?
I interviewed business and marketing experts Andrew Pickering and Peter Gartland - aka Andrew and Pete at my recent live annual content planning masterclass 2020 Sorted. Andrew and Pete have spoken all over the world about content marketing, including Social Media Marketing World, Content Marketing World and the Youpreneur Summit and are ranked as one of the top 100 digital marketers in the world.
It's a great interview where they explain how to understand who your high intent customers or clients (hand raisers) are and how to create handraiser content that gets them to raise their hand. They share their strategies, tactics and tools that they've personally used to make sales in their business.
PLUS why thinking that sales are icky is one of the biggest mistakes you can make in your business. If you'd love to know how to create content to make sales in your business then listen to this episode.
Andrew and Pete’s YouTube channel
[179] How to get more eyes on your content with Andrew & Pete (podcast)
[333] 39 Surprisingly easy ways to get people to open your emails (podcast)
[335] How to create a highly converting lead magnet (podcast)
[339] How to build an audience for an online course or membership (podcast)
[348] How to write social media posts that sell (podcast episode)
[343] The three audiences you must build to create a successful online business (podcast)
[374] How to create a year's worth of content in one morning (podcast)
[380] How to set goals for audience growth in 2020 and why you should (podcast)
How to create a high-converting lead magnet course
How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)
Join the Media Diary Owners Club
Order your 2020 Media Diary here
Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Would you love to know how to use awareness days to create engaging content for your business? In this podcast episode I explain how to use awareness days to create engaging relevant content that fits with your business and goals. If you've ever wondered how National Nothing Day or how to create content about The Golden Globes that can be applied to any business then have a listen as I explain how I would go about using them.
I explain the four types of content that you should be sharing, regularly on your social media accounts and how you can apply these to the awareness days that are relevant to you and your business.
I explain how to create content by asking yourself these two MAIN questions when thinking about how to use an awareness day:
If you’d love to know how to use awareness days to create content that’s relevant to your business in an engaging way that will get people talking back to you (without overdoing the awareness days) then you’ll love this podcast. I also tackle how you can use overly popular awareness days differently and how you can create content by saying what no one else is. PLUS how you can use awareness days to tackle the elephant in the room.
If you’d like to know how I would go about using some of the sillier sounding awareness days by using some lateral thinking and some examples of my own personal relatable stories then have a listen. I'd love to know what you think and do let me know how you'd use some of these awareness days.
*The two MAIN questions to keep in your mind when thinking about how to use an awareness day and listening to this podcast
[333] 39 Surprisingly easy ways to get people to open your emails (podcast)
[335] How to create a highly converting lead magnet (podcast)
[339] How to build an audience for an online course or membership (podcast)
[348] How to write social media posts that sell (podcast episode)
[343] The three audiences you must build to create a successful online business (podcast)
[374] How to create a year's worth of content in one morning (podcast)
[378] How to use hashtags to build your online audience (podcast)
[379] How to grow your Instagram followers by 1K in 30 Days (podcast)
[380] How to set goals for audience growth in 2020 and why you should (podcast)
How to create a high-converting lead magnet course
How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)
Join the Media Diary Owners Club
Order your 2020 Media Diary here
Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Would you love to know how to set realistic social media and online audience growth targets? How much is enough? Or maybe you’re thinking you don’t need to grow your online audience and are happy with how it is?
Maybe if you can get the target number of clients that you need through your current networks or face-to-face networking of people that you already know then chances are you don’t need an online audience.
BUT if you’d like to make online sales and grow those online sales and make money while you sleep then you definitely need an online audience and you need to set goals for the growth of that audience.
In this podcast I explain how to set audience growth targets for 2020 and how to work out how big your audience needs to be to achieve realistic targets. I’ll also explain why you shouldn’t just expect to rock up online, and solely focus on building your business on social media. The metrics you should be looking at in order to assess your growth and surprisingly maybe how engagement and comments are more important than actual follower numbers.
PLUS I’ll also explain my “put out your fire first” strategy and why you need to follow up your hottest leads BEFORE embarking on your audience growth.
So if you’d like to look back at the end of 2020 and know that you’ve doubled your email list or tripled your social media following and hopefully your sales - then you really do need to listen to this podcast episode. I’d love to know what you think…
Janet Murray's Audience calculator
[333] 39 Surprisingly easy ways to get people to open your emails (podcast)
[335] How to create a highly converting lead magnet (podcast)
[339] How to build an audience for an online course or membership (podcast)
[348] How to write social media posts that sell (podcast episode)
[343] The three audiences you must build to create a successful online business (podcast)
[374] How to create a year's worth of content in one morning (podcast)
[378] How to use hashtags to build your online audience (podcast)
[379] How to grow your Instagram followers by 1K in 30 Days (podcast)
How to create a high-converting lead magnet course
How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)
Join the Media Diary Owners Club
Order your 2020 Media Diary here
Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Are you trying to grow your following on Instagram, but things aren't moving as fast as you'd like? Fed up with people telling you to “just post more pictures of yourself” to get more followers? But how do you know if that is actually what your ideal client or customers want to see? Would you love to know what to post on Instagram to REALLY get your clients or customers engaging with you?
If so you’ll love my latest podcast episode in it, where I share three key strategies that I've used to grow my Instagram followers by over a thousand followers in the last 30 days.
I look at three key strategies. What kind of content to share and how I went about making key changes to my Instagram content by creating content that my ideal clients or customers were interested in. I also share how often I’m posting and how to analyse what time you need to post to reach your followers.
I also explain how you can get your content shared so that it can go viral and why you shouldn’t be afraid to be inspired by other people’s content and how to go about sharing other people’s content on your Instagram account to increase your following.
PLUS why you HAVE to experiment to see what type of content your audience likes and why you shouldn't feel a failure if your content flops.
And finally, I talk about hashtags and the strategies you can use to get the Instagram algorithm to show your posts to more people.
So if you're looking to grow your Instagram account, you definitely need to listen to this episode. I’d love to know what you think.
@JanetMurrayuk Instagram
@IamSamBearFoot Instagram
[378] How to use hashtags to build your online audience (podcast)
[362] How to grow your Instagram following to 27K - fast with Chris Taylor (podcast)
[353] How to grow your audience through Instagram Stories with Tyler McCall (podcast)
[348] How to write social media posts that sell (podcast episode)
[343] The three audiences you must build to create a successful online business (podcast episode)
[093] How to use Instagram to promote your business with Sara Tasker (podcast)
When to Post app (iOS)
How to create a high-converting lead magnet course
How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)
Join the Media Diary Owners Club
Preorder your 2020 Media Diary here
Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Mystified about hashtags? No idea where or how you should be using them on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter?
In this episode I demystify hashtags and give an introduction to how you can use hashtags to grow your online audience.
I share my strategy on how I have successfully been building my Instagram followers using specific hashtag strategies and how you can do the same by understanding how the Instagram algorithm shows your posts.
I also explain how you can use hashtags at events and how you can use them to reach journalists on Twitter and get press coverage for your business. PLUS how you can use hashtags on Instagram to find out what content to create for your audience.
Resources
[362] How to grow your Instagram following to 27K - fast with Chris Taylor (podcast)
[ 356 ] How to build your audience on Twitter (and create FOMO) (podcast)
[353] How to grow your audience through Instagram Stories with Tyler McCall (podcast)
[348] How to write social media posts that sell (podcast episode)
[343] The three audiences you must build to create a successful online business (podcast episode)
[309] How to go viral on Twitter with Kerry Jordan (podcast)
[093] How to use Instagram to promote your business with Sara Tasker (podcast)
LinkedIn hashtags Andy Foot
How to create a high-converting lead magnet course
How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)
Join the Media Diary Owners Club
Preorder your 2020 Media Diary here
Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Ever wondered how some people just nail it on social media or their facebook ad just speaks to you? Want to know how to write super engaging copy for your website or social media?
In my latest podcast I interview copywriter Jo Watson who describes herself as an editor and 'writer of stuff'. She explains how to show your personality in your writing and why you need to make people really feel something when you write. Even if they disagree with you.
Jo is well-known on LinkedIn for her slightly sweary 'tell it like it is' approach and her personality is well reflected in her writing. She has a truly distinctive writing voice and explains how to create personality in your writing and how if you produce great content then people won't forget about you (even if you go on holiday for a week!)
Jo also explains how you can show your authority and views even if you don't feel confident enough to actually post on social media. Jo doesn't have a social media strategy - and believes very much in showing up and being present, being yourself and explaining it as you would to a friend at the pub.
Jo also talks about how to go about hiring a copywriter that really is a copywriter (and not just your VA that can do it) and why it's really important to look at the return on investment that it will bring to your business.
I'd love to know what you think. I hope you enjoy the episode.
Podcast shownotes
Connect with Jo on LinkedIn
Jo's website
[275] How to write awesome sales copy - fast with Sarah Cooke (podcast)
[335] How to create a high converting lead magnet (podcast)
[348] How to write social media posts that sell (podcast0
[372] How to build an engaged online audience (podcast)
[375] How to get your first 1k email subscribers (podcast)
How to create a high-converting lead magnet course
How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)
Join the Media Diary Owners Club
Preorder your 2020 Media Diary here
Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Want to know how I've managed to publish a new podcast episode every week for the past four years?
How I have managed to stay consistent, to show up every week, in fact, twice a week to start with and put a podcast episode out there?
This podcast answers your questions and more and is based around real questions that you have asked about my podcast. Even if you're not interested in starting your own podcast then please stay with me because what it's really about, is about showing up and publishing consistent content.
How do you keep showing up every week when maybe you're all out of ideas or you're not feeling well, or you're feeling uninspired or unmotivated, or you've lost a team member suddenly, how do you keep all of that going over a number of years?
This podcast isn't just about creating a podcast it's also about content planning, content creation and solving your audience's problems, it's about mindset. It's about staying consistent and overcoming the challenges and evolving.
So you'll see it's so much more than how you keep a podcast going.
I also share my favourite podcasts too. What do you think? Have you listened to them?
I hope you enjoy the episode as much as I did recording it.
How to pitch yourself as a podcast guest (blog post)
Find out about my new start a podcast programme in 2020
Win in my Big Podcast Giveaway!
[133] How to grow your following on Twitter (podcast)
[161] How to work with bloggers and influencers with Kat Molesworth (podcast)
[227] How to make sales without being spammy with Jess Lorimer (podcast)
[253] How to land guest appearances on podcasts with Nicole Holland (podcast)
[275] How to write awesome sales copy - fast with Sarah Cooke (podcast)
[288] How to get started with vlogging(and how it can help your business (podcast)
[315] How to create a brand statement and why you need to (podcast)
[333] 39 Surprisingly easy ways to increase your email subscribers (podcast)
[335] How to create a high converting lead magnet (podcast)
[339] How to build an audience for an online course or membership (podcast)
[340] How to create a coaching or consultancy package for your business (podcast)
[341] How to use stories to attract your ideal audience (podcast)
[351] How to get corporate clients and why you should with Dylis Guyan (podcast)
[362] How to grow your Instagram following to 27K - fast (podcast)
[372] How to build an engaged online audience (podcast)
[375] How to get your first 1k email subscribers (podcast)
How to create a high-converting lead magnet course
Join the Media Diary Owners Club
Preorder your 2020 Media Diary here
Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart
Buy your ticket for Build Your Audience Live
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Would you love to know how to grow your email subscribers list from zero to 1k? That's what Catherine Gladwyn Author and Virtual Assistant did in just eighteen months.
In my latest podcast she explains why she needed to quickly create an email list and how she grew it from standing start. She shares practical tips and tactics about how she grew her list about what worked and what didn't and how you can grow your email newsletter list.
She explains how understanding your client or customers emotions and pain points can help you when planning what lead magnets and content to create. Plus why it's important to create content for each of your different audiences and why having engaging conversations will keep them on your email list.
Catherine's website Delegate VA
Catherines Book How to be a VA
Connect with Catherine on LinkedIn Facebook
Follow Catherine on YouTube
[333] 39 Surprisingly easy ways to increase your email subscribers (podcast)
[335] How to create a high converting lead magnet (podcast)
[343] The three audiences you must build to create a profitable online business (podcast)
[359] How to create an email newsletter people look forward to opening (podcast)
[360] How to get people to open your emails (podcast)
[372] How to build an engaged online audience (podcast)
[373] How to get more followers on any social media platform (podcast)
[374] How to create a year's worth of content in one morning (podcast)
How to get the most out of your Social Media Diary & Planner (blog)
How to create a high-converting lead magnet course
Join the Media Diary Owners Club
Preorder your 2020 Media Diary here
Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart
Buy your ticket for Build Your Audience Live
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Would you love to know how to plan a year's worth of content for your business in just a few hours?
In this podcast episode, I explain how to create a year long content plan for your business.
I show you how to breaking your planning down into manageable steps: annual, quarterly, monthly, weekly and daily. PLUS how you can use awareness days and key dates to generate content ideas for your business. And how to make time for content planning - all year round.
Set aside some dedicated time to create your content plan. If you can, take yourself away from your usual place of work. Find a cafe you like to work in – a quiet hotel lobby - anywhere where you can focus on this task, uninterrupted. You’ll be much more productive and creative this way.
It can be helpful to approach your content like a videographer. Start with ‘wide shot’ of your business i.e. what’s happening across the year. Then gradually zoom closer, until you’re focusing on quarterly, weekly and daily content.
So let’s start with that ‘wide shot’ of your year. Think about the key things that are happening in your business in each quarter of the year. When will you be launching new products/services? Are you doing any speaking? Will you be attending any industry events? List at least three key things for each quarter.
Next, write down a few key dates/awareness days that are relevant to your business. For example, if you have a pet business, you might want to create some timely content around Crufts dog show in March. If you design clothes or accessories, you could create some content around London Fashion Week in January. And if you run a food business, you might plan some content around National Doughnut day in June.
My 2020 Social Media Diary & Planner has tons to help you get started.
If you struggle with this task because you don’t know what you’ll be doing at each stage of the year, you don’t have a content problem, you have a business problem. Which means you may need to take a few steps back and do some business planning first.
You may also find yourself thinking ‘but what if my plans change during the year?’
Just because you write something down doesn’t mean you have to do it. Things may change in your business during the year and that’s fine. But it’s much less time consuming to tweak a plan you’ve already worked on than to start from scratch. So just apply your best thinking right now.
Once you've created your annual content plan, you can zoom in a little closer and start your quarterly content planning.
I ‘d suggest you create one key piece of content a week, whether it’s a blog/vlog, podcast, Facebook Live or infographic and repurpose it into multiple pieces of content.
This means you only need to come up with a list of 12 ideas for each quarter - ideas that complement the key business activities and dates you’ve already identified in your annual content plan. Simple when you put it like that, right?
If you need some inspiration, make two lists. On the first list, write down the ten most common questions you get asked by your ideal customers/clients. On the second list, write down ten common questions people ask about your product/service.
That’s a list of content ideas right there.
For example, my prospective customers often ask me questions like this about content planning.
There’s six content ideas right there.
They also ask me quite specific questions about the 2020 Social Media Diary & Planner:
There’s another six content ideas - some of which I’ve already turned into blog posts.
If it feels daunting to plan out a whole year’s worth of content in one go, I’d recommend planning one quarter at a time. To make sure this actually happens, block out time in your diary for three further quarterly planning sessions across the year.
With your quarterly plan complete, you can zoom in a little closer and create a weekly content plan for your business.
If you’re creating one key piece of content a week (which is what I recommend), think about how you might repurpose that content to create smaller pieces of content that can be published across the week.
For example, you could record a video, strip out the audio and turn it into a podcast. You could use a resource like rev.com to generate a transcript and turn that into a blog post. Then you could pull out some soundbites from the transcript and turn them into infographics for social media (using a graphic design tool like Canva), audio trailers (using a resource like Headliner)and video trailer (using a tool like Kapwing). If you focus on making that cornerstone piece of content work as hard for you as possible (by repurposing it in different ways), you’ll soon have enough content for every day of the week.
And don’t be afraid to post your content more than once. People are busy and may not see it the first time round (or even the third, fourth or fifth).
Next map out what you’re going to publish on which platform on what day.
I’d suggest doing this a week or two ahead and scheduling a regular - and non-negotiable - time for weekly planning on your diary. That way, you’re far less likely to skip a week.
Don’t be afraid to repeat the same content on different platforms. Not everyone will see what you post. You may just need to tweak it slightly to suit.
[372] How to build an engaged online audience (podcast)
[373] How to get more followers on any social media platform (podcast)
How to create an editorial calendar for your marketing strategy (blog)
Create 52 weeks of content with the 2020 Social Media Diary & Planner (blog)
How to get the most out of your Social Media Diary & Planner (blog)
Join the Media Diary Owners Club
Preorder your 2020 Media Diary here
Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart
Buy your ticket for Build Your Audience Live
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Want to sell more of your products or services online? Getting more of your ideal customers/clients to follow you on social media can help - a lot.
But how do you increase your social media followers? Do you need to use different strategies for different social media platforms e.g. Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram? And how long does it take to grow your following on a particular platform?
That’s exactly what I cover in this podcast episode.
{Click on the player above to listen to the podcast episode and/or read on for a detailed overview. Scroll down to the bottom to read the show notes including all the links mentioned in this episode.}
Think about the people you follow on social media. The people whose posts always seem to pop up in your Facebook or Instagram feed. The accounts you actively check out to see what they've been posting lately.
You don’t follow them because they post boring updates about their products/services. You follow them because they inspire, entertain or even challenge your thinking. In other words, they make you FEEL something.
Now think about your own account. Are you posting compelling content that makes people feel something? Or are you putting out posts so you can tick social media off your to-do list. If you’re posting dull updates about your products/services, whimsical reflections about what you did at the weekend and/or 'must do' tips no one ever comments on, why would anyone want to follow you?
If you’re not getting much engagement on your content - amongst the followers you already have - that’s a sign you need to change something.
After all, if you can’t get the people who already know, like and trust you to comment on your content, why would anyone new want to follow you?
For an example of someone who is publishing excellent social media content that inspires people to follow her, check out copywriter Jo Watson on LinkedIn.
Want to get more engagement on your social media posts? Check out my social media engagement playbook.
If you’re trying to build your following on a particular platform, don’t feel like you have to do what everyone else is doing. In fact, sharing content that challenges the ‘norm’ can be a great way to stand out.
For example, Baggage Reclaim founder Natalie Lue’s following on Instagram only really took off when she stopped worrying about ‘posting pretty pictures’ and starting posting hard-hitting quotes from her blog and podcast. As Instagram is a visual platform, this was a brave move on Natalie’s part - but doing the opposite of what everyone else was doing - and doing it consistently - is what helped her reach her first 10k followers.
What’s the first thing you do when someone new comments on one of your posts - a name you don’t recognise? You go and check out their profile of course. And that’s exactly what other people do when you comment on their content. They just can’t help but check you out.
This is why something as simple as making a list of your ideal customers/clients and committing to spending half an hour a day commenting on their content can be so effective.
Alternatively (or additionally) you can use the Gary Vee $1.80 strategy.
The $1.80 strategy gets its name because you’re giving your two cents on nine posts for 10 hashtags every day. If you add that up, it equals $1.80 per day.
As Chris Taylor explains in how to grow your Instagram following to 27k - fast, hashtags are like the index in the back of a non-fiction book. People search hashtags to find content on the most relevant topics to them - just like they would if they were looking something up in a non-fiction book.
While expert opinion varies, current advice commonly suggests that using up to 30 hashtags on Instagram (which is the maximum), three on LinkedIn, two on Facebook and two on Twitter is the optimum number.
You could even create your own hashtag and awareness day like dog photographer Kerry Jordan did. This helped her go viral on Twitter.
Running joint competitions can be a great way to get more followers. For example, dog photographer Kerry Jordan hosted a joint competition with Quirky Campers founder Lyndsey Berresford and added 1.5.k new email subscribers, along with tons of new social media followers, to her audience.
Creating content for or collaborating with other business owners e.g. guest blogging, podcast interviews, Facebook Lives, Instagram takeoevers can be a great way of getting in front of other peoples’ audiences. This will help you grow your social media following.
Be smart about who you collaborate with though. It’s best to target people with a similar or slightly larger audience than your own - ideally those who have a similar audience to you, but serve them in a different way. That way, there won’t be a conflict of interest.
If you do want to target the big hitters in your niche, think carefully about how you can add value to them. If they’ve already built a large online audience, they probably don’t need to get in front of your audience, so why would they want to collaborate with you? So before you ask, think carefully about what’s in it for them. If your ‘pitch’ is all about you - and what you hope to gain from the collaboration - they’re far less likely to say ‘yes.
Getting press coverage can be a great way to increase your online following. For example, Baggage Reclaim founder Natalie Lue gained 2k followers after she was featured in Cosmopolitan magazine recently.
However, stories like this tend to be the exception rather than the rule. While it’s rare to get thousands of followers from a single magazine article or radio/TV appearance, over time, regular press coverage will help you grow your following.
Find out: how to get press coverage for your business.
Asking bloggers/influencers to promote your products/services can be a great way to grow your following. Ideally they need to have a larger audience than your own. But they don't need to have a massive audience for this to be effective. This can either be done on a paid basis or in exchange for free products/services.
Find out more about working with bloggers/influencers.
Every time you stand up and speak in a room of your ideal customers/clients, you will attract new social media followers. So if you don't mind public speaking, why not give it a go?
Find out how to land more speaking opportunities.
The more places you post the link to your social media profiles, the easier it will be for people to follow you. So make sure they’re on your email signature, website, any landing pages you create...and basically anywhere you show up online.
John Espiran LinkedIn
Jo Watson LinkedIn
Natalie Lue Instagram
Simon Bourne LinkedIn
Cath Janes Facebook
Kate Lister LinkedIn
Neon Marl
Arii
Journo request
Five easy ways to get press coverage (blog)
[161] How to work with bloggers and influencers with Kat Molesworth (podcast)
[309] How to go viral on Twitter with Kerry Jordan (podcast)
[329] What’s working on Facebook right now with Liz Melville (podcast)
[348] How to write social media posts that sell (podcast)
[358] 13 ideas for engaging social media posts (podcast)
[362] How to grow your Instagram to 27K- fast (podcast)
[363] Five ways to bust through an audience growth plateau (podcast)
[369] Why opinionated content works well for your Facebook page (and how to do it well) (podcast)
[370] How sharing personal experiences can boost engagement on your Facebook page (podcast)
[372] How to build an engaged online audience (podcast)
Preorder your 2020 Media Diary here
Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart
Buy your ticket for Build Your Audience Live
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
If you want to sell your products or services online you need to build a following. More social media followers, more website visitors and more email subscribers. So when you do have something to sell you have an 'audience' of people who already know, like and trust you - which means they're far more likely to buy. But building an engaged audience takes time, With that in mind, here's the answers to the most common questions I get on asked on building an online audience.
{Click on the player above to listen to the podcast episode and/or read on for a detailed overview. Scroll down to the bottom to read the show notes including all the links mentioned in this episode.}
Your ‘audience’ is the people who engage with your online content e.g. social media, blog/vlog/podcast, email marketing.
You don’t NEED to have an online audience. You can choose to market your business completely offline if you wish. But if you want to to do business online, you do need an online audience - otherwise who are you going to sell your products/services to?
If you want to sell online, the ideal time to start building your audience is way before your product/service goes on sale. That way, you'll already have built relationships with prospective customers/clients - which means you're far more likely to make sales.
This depends on your sales goals. The average conversion rate for online sales is 1-2%.
Which means for every 100 people on your email list, only a small number will actually buy from you.
If you’re a coach selling 1-2-1 coaching and need 20 clients a year, you may only need a thousand or so on your email list. If you sell lower-priced products or online courses/memberships you’ll almost certainly need to shoot for 10k or beyond. So whatever it is you’re selling…you almost certainly need a much bigger audience than you think.
To find out what size your audience needs to be right now, check out my audience calculator
Some people think your audience is the number of social media followers, readers of your blog or listeners to your podcast. But while you may make the odd sale on social media - or from your blog/podcast/Youtube channel - the majority of sales will happen in your inbox. PLUS it’s almost impossible to reliably predict and track income from sales on social media.
This is why building your email list is the single most important thing you can do in your business. Which means the number of engaged email subscribers you have on your list is the most reliable measure of audience size.
In order to build your email list, you need an audience of people who engage with your content (otherwise how are you going to get people to join your email list?). This is why I recommend starting by building your audience on social media, then moving on to content (e.g.blog, podcast./Youtube) before tackling email marketing. And that’s exactly what I cover in my Build Your Online Audience Programme.
Just ask them. Find 10 of your ideal clients/customers and ask them where they spend time online. Then start sharing some content on that platform and test and tweak accordingly (see the next question).
Just ask them. Find 10 of your ideal clients/customers and ask them what they would like to hear about. But don’t just leave it at that. People sometimes tell you what they think you want to hear. Which means you’ll need to test and tweak different types of content until you figure out what works best (i.e. what gets the most engagement). And do remember that it’s not about numbers of followers/likes. Your best measure of success is comments and conversations.
Bonus tip: Making a list of your most frequently asked questions is an easy way to generate content ideas for your audience. This can be turned into ten blog posts/podcast episodes/Youtube videos and/or social media posts. Also look at your competitors - those who are have a bigger audience than you. What the more you understand about the type of content that captures your ideal clients’ attention, the better placed you’ll be to create your own engaging content.
Ideally yes. Otherwise who are you going to sell to? People often think they can use cold ads. But ask yourself this: when’s the last time you invested in an online course/membership or live event after seeing an ad? While there are always exceptions, most of us need to get to know, like and trust someone before we hand over our hard-earned cash. Which is why it’s generally best to start building your audience organically before you start using advertising. If you have the budget to hire a strategist and/or a testing budget for ads, a Facebook ad campaign can work, but you’ll still need to ‘warm up’ your audience before they’ll buy from you with content.
Find out: how to build an audience for an online course/membership.
While it’s tempting to think you need to be active on every single platform, it’s much better to start with one or two. Once you’ve mastered those, and understand what works, you can replicate your strategy on other platforms. Spread yourself too thin, and could wind up being ineffective on multiple social media platforms (and wasting time and money in the process).
[333] 39 Surprisingly easy ways to increase your email subscribers (podcast)
[334] How to build a large audience without paid advertising with Callie Willows (podcast)
[335] How to create a high-converting lead magnet (podcast)
[337] The tools I am using to build my online audience (podcast)
[339] How to build an audience for an online course or membership (podcast)
[358] 13 Ideas for engaging social media posts (podcast)
[363] Five ways to bust through an audience growth plateau (podcast)
Buy your ticket for Build Your Audience Live
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Want to improve your Facebook page engagement?
Creating a strategy that sets out what you’re going to post, when and where will help a lot.
This doesn’t need to be complicated. You just need to decide on the following
Remember that creating a strategy is just the first step. You’ll need to post consistently. And you’ll need to experiment - tweaking and testing your content to improve your results. You may also wish to start experimenting with other things e.g. best days and times to post your content and tweak accordingly.
Do this one thing
Write down the answers to the following questions (what gets written down gets done).
Personally I would recommend scheduling on Facebook or posting organically rather than using a scheduling tool.
For accountability, share your answers to these three questions in the Facebook group (we have a dedicated thread for this).
Take part in my 7 day Facebook challenge here
Join the Facebook Challenge group
Previous Facebook Challenge Podcasts
[365] Day 1 Why your Facebook page isn’t getting enough engagement (and what to do about it) (podcast)
[366] Day 2 What to post on your Facebook page to get more engagement(podcast)
[367] Day 3 Why 'value' posts are not enough to get engagement on your Facebook page (podcast)
[368] Day 4 How asking questions can help you get you engagement on your Facebook page (podcast)
[369] Day 5 Why opinionated content works well for your Facebook page (and how to do it well) (podcast)
[370] Day 6 How sharing personal experiences can boost engagement on your Facebook page(podcast)
[329] What’s working on Facebook right now with Liz Melville (podcast)
[334] How to build a large audience without paid advertising with Callie Willows (podcast)
[352] How to sell in a Facebook Group without annoying your members (podcast)
[357] How to transform your Facebook group from ghost town to garden party(podcast)
[358] 13 Ideas for engaging social media posts (podcast)
[361] 15 post ideas for your Facebook group (podcast)
Buy your ticket for Build Your Audience Live
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Over the past few days, I’ve shared with you the four types of post that will attract engagement on your Facebook page. These are:
Over the past few days you’ve tackled the first three types of content. Today I want to go a bit deeper on the fourth kind of content and get you to publish an engaging ‘I know how that feels’ post.
However there is an art to getting engagement on this kind of content and in this podcast episode I’ll show you how.
People also love to share their experiences/advice, which is why more vulnerable, personal content works well. This is why posts on my training for the London Marathon (including injuries and setbacks) tend to get more engagement than any of my business posts.
When you share personal content, over time, you build up a narrative and take people on a journey with you - something that can be very powerful.
Remember this does not mean you have to share your deepest, darkest secrets - one of the most popular ‘I know how that feels’ posts I created was round-up of my most embarrassing headshots (we all know how it feels to look at an embarrassing old photo of ourselves).
But people like to do business with people. If you’re willing to share a little of the person behind the business you’ll get much better engagement on your page. And when people feel connected to you through a shared experience - or just being able to relate to your feelings - they’re far more likely to want to be your customer.
Do this one thing
Create a short ‘I know how that feels’ style Facebook post which encourages people to share their thoughts/experiences. Ideally, choose a topic you can people will actually care about and make it easy for people to respond (as shown in the example above).
Many of the engagement strategies I share above (e.g. asking questions, giving a narrow range of choices) can work for this type of post, but if your post is powerful enough, you may not need to use them at all. Experiment and see what works.
Tip:Photographs, video and images are all great for engagement.
Next, chivvy up your Facebook Engagement Tribe and get them commenting on your post. While no one truly knows how the algorithm works, many believe that comments made in the first 15 minutes of posting have the biggest impact (and that’s certainly been my experience) so get to work!
Finally, share your post in the Facebook group to get feedback from myself and others in the group (we have a dedicated thread for each day).
Take part in my 7 day Facebook challenge here
Join the Facebook Challenge group
Previous Facebook Challenge Podcasts
[365] Day 1 Why your Facebook page isn’t getting enough engagement (and what to do about it) (podcast)
[366] Day 2 What to post on your Facebook page to get more engagement(podcast)
[367] Day 3 Why 'value' posts are not enough to get engagement on your Facebook page (podcast)
[368] Day 4 How asking questions can help you get you engagement on your Facebook page (podcast)
[369] Day 5 Why opinionated content works well for your Facebook page (and how to do it well) (podcast)
[329] What’s working on Facebook right now with Liz Melville (podcast)
[334] How to build a large audience without paid advertising with Callie Willows (podcast)
[352] How to sell in a Facebook Group without annoying your members (podcast)
[357] How to transform your Facebook group from ghost town to garden party(podcast)
[358] 13 Ideas for engaging social media posts (podcast)
[361] 15 post ideas for your Facebook group (podcast)
Buy your ticket for Build Your Audience Live
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
People love to share their ideas - particularly on divisive topics. That’s why content that asks people to state their opinions generally works well on your Facebook page.
I generally refer to this as ‘This is what I think’ content.
This is one of four types of content that generate lots of engagement.
However there is an art to getting engagement on this kind of content and in this podcast episode I’ll show you how.
People love to share their opinions, but they’re also busy, so the trick to getting engagement on this kind of content is to make it as easy as possible for people to comment by giving them a narrow set of choices, as in this example where Rosie asked her followers where they stood on using reins with toddlers.. If you can’t see it, click here.
The crucial thing is to pick subjects people actually care about and avoid sitting on the fence. Making a bold statement like ‘Reins for toddlers. Essential or evil?’ commands attention.
Do this one thing
Create a short ‘This is what I think’ style Facebook post which encourages people to share their opinion on something. Choose a topic people will actually care about and make it easy for people to respond (as shown in the example above).
Don’t forget a single call for action.
Next, chivvy up your Facebook Engagement Tribe and get them commenting on your post. While no one truly knows how the algorithm works, many believe that comments made in the first 15 minutes of posting have the biggest impact (and that’s certainly been my experience) so get to work!
Finally, share your post in the Facebook group to get feedback from myself and others in the group (we have a dedicated thread for each day).
Take part in my 7 day Facebook challenge here
Join the Facebook Challenge group
Previous Facebook Challenge Podcasts
[365] Day 1 Why your Facebook page isn’t getting enough engagement (and what to do about it)(podcast)
[366] Day 2 What to post on your Facebook page to get more engagement(podcast)
[367] Day 3 Why 'value' posts are not enough to get engagement on your Facebook page(podcast)
[368] Day 4 How asking questions can help you get you engagement on your Facebook page(podcast)
[329] What’s working on Facebook right now with Liz Melville (podcast)
[334] How to build a large audience without paid advertising with Callie Willows (podcast)
[352] How to sell in a Facebook Group without annoying your members(podcast)
[357] How to transform your Facebook group from ghost town to garden party(podcast)
[358]13 Ideas for engaging social media posts(podcast)
[361] 15 post ideas for your Facebook group(podcast)
Buy your ticket for Build Your Audience Live
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Asking questions can be a great way to get engagement on your Facebook page.
People love to share their ideas, so content that asks people to state their preferences generally works a treat. This can be anything from asking people which version of your new logo they prefer, to whether you should stock the blue or red handbag in your Etsy shop to whether they like to have an iron provided when they stay in a holiday cottage.
I generally refer to this as ‘I know about this’ content.
This is one of four types of content that generate lots of engagement.
However there is an art to getting engagement on this kind of content and in this podcast episode I’ll show you how.
If you want people to respond to ‘I know about this’ posts, you have to give them clear choices
e.g. A, B, C or D, yes/no, agree/disagree - or even ask them to respond with emojis.I generally refer to these as short/two tap answer posts.
Here is an example of a post I shared which attracted 115 comments (can’t see the image, click here). All respondents had to do was state whether they were interested in getting a copy of my social media engagement playbook when it was ready (with a ‘Y’ or ‘N’).
In this example, I asked for feedback on the artwork for an upcoming masterclass (which was available for members to buy) stating a preference of 1, 2, 3 or 4.
Not only do short/two tap answer posts make it super quick for people to engage, they don’t have to think too hard about what to say - which means they’re far more likely to respond.
Occasionally someone warns me that the Facebook/LinkedIn algorithm penalises content like this i.e. content that encourages short/two tap answers. I have no idea if this is true, but I actually think it’s pretty irrelevant. Once someone has responded to you, you can - and should - go back and ask them an additional question/encourage them to give you more information e.g ‘Interesting…why does that one appeal the most (if you don’t mind me asking’).
So it’s easy to turn a short/two tap answer posts into a conversation. And conversations are exactly what you should be aiming for with all your social media content.
I wouldn’t advise you to use short/two tap answer postsall the time -it’s definitely important to vary your content - but they can be a great tool to encourage engagement, particularly when you’re trying to boost the engagement in your page.
Create a short ‘I know about this’ style Facebook post where you share a useful piece of content which encourages people to share their opinion on something.
Next, chivvy up your Facebook Engagement Tribe and get them commenting on your post. While no one truly knows how the algorithm works, many believe that comments made in the first 15 minutes of posting have the biggest impact (and that’s certainly been my experience) so get to work!
Finally, share your post in the Facebook group to get feedback from myself and others in the group (we have a dedicated thread for each day).
Take part in my 7 day Facebook challenge here
Join the Facebook Challenge group
[365] Day 1 Why your Facebook page isn’t getting enough engagement (and what to do about it) (podcast)
[366] Day 2 What to post on your Facebook page to get more engagement (podcast)
[367] Day 3 Why 'value' posts are not enough to get engagement on your Facebook page(podcast)
[329] What’s working on Facebook right now with Liz Melville (podcast)
[334] How to build a large audience without paid advertising with Callie Willows (podcast)
[352] How to sell in a Facebook Group without annoying your members (podcast)
[357] How to transform your Facebook group from ghost town to garden party (podcast)
[358] 13 Ideas for engaging social media posts (podcast)
[361] 15 post ideas for your Facebook group (podcast)
Buy your ticket for Build Your Audience Live
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Creating content that solves a problem for people is a great way to get engagement on your Facebook page.
This can be anything from a vlog on how to pitch yourself as a podcast guest, an important piece of industry news,an amusing cat video (making people laugh is definitely solving a problem).
I generally refer to this as ‘I need to know this’ content.
This is one of four types of content that generate lots of engagement.
However there is an art to getting engagement on this kind of content and in this podcast episode I’ll show you how.
Sharing content that solves your customers’ problems - or just makes their day easier - can be a great way to get engagement on your Facebook page.
But it doesn’t matter how useful your new blog post is or how funny your cat video is, if you don’t create curiosity you’ll be lucky to get a few likes, shares and/or comments.
One really easy way to create curiosity is to ask a question that relates to the content you want to share. So, for example, I published a really podcast episode entitled 15 post ideas for your Facebook group.
Although this is a useful episode, when I just post a link to the episode I don’t get very much engagement. If I ask a question that relates to the subject of the podcast episode, I get far more engagement. I can still share the link to the episodes in the comments.
Other ideas for generating curiosity.
Create a short ‘I need to know this’ style Facebook post where you share a useful piece of content that helps solve a problem for your audience (remember that entertaining people can be solving a problem). Instead of just posting a link, think about how you can create curiosity about your post using some of the strategies I’ve shared above (sure you will also have loads of your own - can’t wait to see them!).
Don’t forget to include a call-to-action
Next, chivvy up your Facebook Engagement Tribe and get them commenting on your post. While no one truly knows how the algorithm works, many believe that comments made in the first 15 minutes of posting have the biggest impact (and that’s certainly been my experience) so get to work!
Finally, share your post in the Facebook group to get feedback from myself and others in the group (we have a dedicated thread for each day).
Take part in my 7 day Facebook challenge here
Join the Facebook Challenge group
Previous Facebook Challenge Podcasts
[365] Day 1 Why your Facebook page isn’t getting enough engagement (and what to do about it)(podcast)
[366] Day 2 What to post on your Facebook page to get more engagement(podcast)
[329] What’s working on Facebook right now with Liz Melville (podcast)
[334] How to build a large audience without paid advertising with Callie Willows (podcast)
[352] How to sell in a Facebook Group without annoying your members(podcast)
[357] How to transform your Facebook group from ghost town to garden party(podcast)
[358]13 Ideas for engaging social media posts(podcast)
[361] 15 post ideas for your Facebook group(podcast)
Buy your ticket for Build Your Audience Live
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
If you’re struggling to get engagement on your Facebook page, you may be confused about what kind of content you should be posting.
In this episode I share four types of Facebook page posts that generate lots of engagement.
Having tested hundreds of different types of content - on both my own account and my clients’ I’ve noticed there are four types of post that generally get more engagement.
You may have spotted already that there’s a common theme: relatability. If you want people to engage with your content, it needs to be relatable - something that either solves a problem for them, they have experience of and/or an opinion on.
Let me break that down for you.
Creating content that solves a problem for people is a great way to get engagement. This can be anything from a vlog on how to pitch yourself as a podcast guest (link to blog post), an important piece of industry news (link to article on Twitter change of terms) to an amusing cat video (link to amusing cat video) (making people laugh is definitely solving a problem). However there is an art to getting engagement on this kind of content, which I’ll share with you tomorrow.
People love to share their ideas, so content that asks people to state their opinions/preferences, generally works a treat. This can be anything from asking people whether you should stock the handbag in blue or read to whether they like to have an iron in a holiday cottage to what they think of new laws that affect your industry.
In the example below, I asked my audience which cover they preferred for my media diary:
N.B. You do need to be specific to get engagement on this kind of content and I’ll show you how to do that on Day 4 of the challenge.
People love to share their opinions - particularly on topics that are divisive. This is why posts like this one on whether you should put toddlers on reins tend to perform better than other posts.
People also love to share their experiences/advice, which is why more vulnerable, personal content works well. This post on picking up an injury during my London Marathon got more engagement than any of my business posts (as did many of my other marathon related posts).
It’s worth remembering that Facebook is, primarily, a ‘friends and family’ platform - which is why personal posts - of the kind you might post on your own Facebook wall - often do better on your Facebook well than business related posts. This is not to say you need to share your deepest, darkest secrets, but people like to do business with people. If you’re willing to share a little of the person behind the business you’ll get much better engagement on your page.
Brainstorm at least five ideas for each type of content.
Be brave and share them in our Facebook group so you can get feedback from myself and other members of the group (we have a dedicated thread for your ideas)
Take part in my 7 day Facebook challenge here
Join the Facebook Challenge group
[365] Day 1 Why your Facebook page isn’t getting enough engagement (and what to do about it)(podcast)
[329] What’s working on Facebook right now with Liz Melville (podcast)
[334] How to build a large audience without paid advertising with Callie Willows (podcast)
[352] How to sell in a Facebook Group without annoying your members(podcast)
[357] How to transform your Facebook group from ghost town to garden party(podcast)
[358]13 Ideas for engaging social media posts(podcast)
[361 15 post ideas for your Facebook group(podcast)
Buy your ticket for Build Your Audience Live
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Are you frustrated by the lack of engagement with your Facebook page?
You’re posting regularly but your reach is poor. Your posts are only attracting a handful of likes and comments - leaving you wondering if it’s worth having a page at all.
If this sounds like you, the first thing you need to know is that it’s nothing to do with the Facebook algorithm and everything to do with the kind of content you’re sharing.
Which means there is a lot you can do to improve your engagement (without spending a penny on advertising).
If this sounds familiar, you’ll love my seven episode podcast series on how to improve your Facebook page engagement.
This episode is part of a seven episode challenge to help you improve your Facebook page engagement. You can read more about the challenge here.
If you’re not getting engagement on your Facebook page, it’s easy to blame the algorithm (i.e. the complicated - and super top secret - mathematical equation Facebook uses to determine how many people your content is shown to).
The truth is, if you’re engagement stinks, it’s nothing to do with the Facebook algorithm and everything to do with the kind of content you’re sharing (plus how you’re sharing it).
The good news is, there is a LOT you can do to improve your Facebook page engagement (without spending a penny on advertising).
But the first thing you need to know is that posting great content is not enough. You also need to ‘train’ the Facebook algorithm to recognise your content as important so it will show it to more people. How do you do that? By getting engagement on your posts in the form of likes and comments.
If you’re currently struggling to attract likes and comments, this might seem like a ‘chicken and egg’ situation. If you not many people are commenting on your content, others are likely to want to comment either.
But the answer is surprisingly simple; instead of sitting back and hoping someone will comment on your content...you need to go out and find people to comment on your content.
Make a list of 15 people you can ask to comment on your content for the duration of the challenge (and beyond if you can). This is your Facebook Engagement Tribe. Ideally these will be your ideal customers, but if this is not possible, just do what you can to get some engagement going on your page. You can even get together with a group of fellow business owners and comment on each others’ posts - that way everyone benefits.
It may take a while for Facebook to catch on that your posts are valuable and start showing them to more people - which is why it’s important to be patient.
Remember, also, that it’s not just about the algorithm. Your Facebook page is your shop window; if people look you up online and see you’re effectively broadcasting to an audience of none, they will assume (rightly or wrongly) your business is not successful. If they see engagement - in the form of likes and comments (even if they do initially come from your best friend!) they’re much more likely to take you seriously.
Take part in my 7 day Facebook challenge here
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Do you ever have clients or customers who seem impossible to please? If you’re a coach or consultant, these typically show up as clients who sign up to work with you…and then don’t do the work. But somehow they try to make it feel like it's all your fault.
If you have a product-based business, these are generally the ones who ask for discounts and refunds - often without justification. These kind of people can be a huge drain on your energy - and your time.
In this episode I share practical strategies for dealing with difficult clients and customers.
Jay Baer Hug your haters
How to get the most out of the Build Your Audience Office Hour
How to get the most out of your Build Your Audience membership
Take part in my 7 day Facebook challenge here
[202] Behind the scenes of my membership community (podcast)
[219] How to get your ideal clients to fall in love with you with Laura Pearman (podcast)
[281] How to find new clients or customers fast (podcast)
[351] How to get corporate clients (and why you should) with Dylis Guyan (blog post)
Lost your mojo with your membership community? Here's how to get it back. (blog post)
How to add captions to your video using Kapwing and Rev.com (blog post)
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
If you’re struggling to grow your audience on social media, the temptation is to keep trying more and more new marketing strategies.
But this can often leave you feeling overwhelmed and overworked. And when you’re spreading yourself too thin - you can end up doing lots of things not very well - which can actually stunt your audience growth.
If this sounds familiar, you’ll love this podcast episode on how to bust through an audience growth plateau.
In it, I show you how doing things differently (rather than doing more) can help you kickstart your audience growth.
If you’re struggling to build your audience on social media, it may be because you’re spreading yourself too thin. Focusing on growing your audience on one social media platform means you can go deep on all the features of that platform - and experiment with different strategies - rather than ‘dabbling’ with three or four.
This doesn’t mean you can’t post on other social media platforms at all; you can always repurpose some of the content from your main platform. But putting 90% of your efforts into one platform will almost certainly help you grow quicker.
For example, the Instagram expert Kat Coroy focuses her social media efforts solely on Instagram - which has allowed her to sell thousands of her online course Instagram Makeover.
The LinkedIn expert Helen Pritchard focuses solely on LinkedIn - allowing her to attract hundreds of students to her LinkedIn Bootcamp.
Love and London (an online resource for visitors to London) has over 100,000 subscribers to its YouTube channel. But while its founder Jess Dante has a presence on most social media platforms, her key focus is on Instagram - freeing her up to create high quality content and serve her existing clients.
When you’re building an online audience, it’s tempting to think it’s all about the numbers. Which means focusing on building funnels and automating everything you can, right?
Wrong.
Numbers are important (the average conversion rate for online sales is just 1-2% which means most people need a much bigger audience than they think). But what you actually need to build is relationships.
So if you’re focusing on building funnels and automation - over having real conversations with your prospective customers/clients - on social media and in your DMs if necessary - your audience growth will almost certainly plateau.
Building your audience is actually about building relationships. And you build this relationship one at a time.
People like to do business with people they like. So if you’re hiding away behind your laptop - or in your studio - you’re missing out on the chance to build relationships with prospective (and existing) customers.
This isn’t about sharing your personal secrets - or airing your dirty laundry in public. It’s about creating connection points when you realise you share common ground with your followers.
For example, fashion illustrator Zoe Georgiou, said she decided to join my Build Your Audience membership programme after she came to one of my meet-ups and found me warm and welcoming (not the ‘hard-nosed businesswoman ‘she’d expected). But what nailed it was when I revealed I also hated tomato ketchup. Finding those areas of commonality and creating those ‘that happened to me too’ moments can be crucial for building your audience.
And as Marsha Shandur points out in our podcast interview on how to use stories to attract your ideal clients, when you’re willing to be vulnerable and admit your life isn’t perfect, that’s when people often feel they can connect with you.
Creating guest content for other peoples’ audiences e.g. guest blog posts, guest teaching sessions and virtual summits can be a great way to grow your audience - by tapping into other peoples’ audiences.
There are pros and cons for each, but for me, by far the best way to do this is through podcast guest interviews.
Being a podcast guest is a great way to get in front of your ideal customers/clients - and build your audience - fast.
It’s much quicker than writing a guest blog post (most podcast interviews last between 30-60 mins) - which means you can potentially do several a week.
It’s also a great way to build new relationships quicker.
There’s something about being in someone’s earbuds that’s much more intimate than the written word. Which means that by the end of a thirty minute interview, people often feel they know, like and trust you enough to visit your website, download your free resources and/or even buy your products/service.
And the best thing is, every time you appear on someone else’s podcast, you’re getting in front of a brand new audience - an audience you haven’t had to build yourself.
So if you set yourself a target to do three interviews a week, you could potentially build your audience by thousands - in a relatively short space of time.
Here’s how to pitch yourself as a podcast guest.
Hosting a live event can be a great way to connect with your prospective customer/clients. There is something really powerful about meeting someone in person. You can create a much better rapport - and do it faster - than you can online.
This doesn’t mean you have to put on a large live event. A small meet up can be just as effective.
And if that really isn’t possible, you can add a personal touch by sending a voicemail or using a tool like Bonjoro.
Building an online audience can be tough and it is perfectly normal to hit a plateau. In fact, this can happen at any stage in your business. But if you can swap your a ‘funnel’ mindset for a ‘feeling’ mindset - using some of the ideas shared in this post - you’ll bust through your audience growth plateau quicker.
Download 50 ways to build your online audience
Kat Coroy online course Instagram Makeover.
Kat Coroy Kat Coroy website
Helen Pritchard LinkedIn Bootcamp
Jess Dante YouTube Love and London
Kate Lister florist Instagram
Julia Day The Independent Girls Collective
Voicemail tool Bonjoro
[190] How to pitch yourself as a podcast guest (and why you need to) (podcast)
[196] How to get more engagement on Instagram with Sara Tasker (podcast)
[253] How to land guest appearances on podcasts with Nicole Holland (podcast)
[341] How to use stories to attract your ideal clients with Marsha Shandur (podcast)
[348] How to write social media posts that sell (podcast)
[353] How to grow your audience through Instagram Stories with Tyler McCall (podcast)
[358] 13 Ideas for engaging social media posts (for when you’re all out of ideas) (podcast)
[362] How to grow your Instagram following to 27K - fast (podcast)
How to add closed captions to your videos using Rev and Kapwing (blog post)
Buy your ticket to my 2020 Content Planning Masterclass #2020Sorted
How to write awesome sales copy
How to create a high converting lead magnet course
Order your special offer 2019 Media Diary
How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
Are you struggling to build your audience on Instagram? You're posting regularly but you're not getting as much engagement as you'd like (or sales). Everything just seems SO slow....
Or maybe you're thinking about using Instagram to promote your business...and would love some tips/tactics on how to make best use of the platform.
If any of that sounds familiar you’ll love this podcast interview with Chris Taylor.
In it, he shares how he's grown his Instagram following from just 500 to 27k since last year.
He's super candid about the tactics he's used and has this rare talent of making it all sound so simple. I tried one of his tactics immediately after the interview and 3x the reach on my next post.
Chris Taylor Instagram
Tools that Chris uses for hashtag research: Social Report, Social Blade, Rite tag
[196] How to get more engagement on Instagram with Sara Tasker (podcast)
[318] How to write compelling email copy (podcast)
[335] How to create a high converting lead magnet (podcast)
[348] How to write social media posts that sell (podcast)
[353] How to grow your audience through Instagram Stories with Tyler McCall (podcast)[358] 13 Ideas for engaging social media posts (for when you’re all out of ideas) (podcast)
How to add closed captions to your videos using Rev and Kapwing (blog post)
Buy your ticket to my 2020 Content Planning Masterclass #2020Sorted
Special offer - How to write awesome sales copy
How to create a high converting lead magnet course
Order your special offer 2019 Media Diary
How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
The post [362] How to grow your Instagram following to 27k - fast appeared first on Janet Murray.
Do you ever feel all out of ideas for your Facebook group?
Or maybe you’re just tired of posting the same old stuff and/or looking for ideas to boost engagement in your group.
This list of go-to posts will you keep you going...even when you’re feeling at your most uninspired.
Got a new product/service to launch? Ask your members to help you decide on the name/title, which logo design you should use and/or which colour you should stock it in.
Ask your members to share their biggest ‘win’ of the week. Great for a Friday morning post.
Invite your members to share something they want to shout about. This could be anything from a new product or service they’re launching to an achievement they are proud of. To avoid people spamming your group with sales pitches, this is best restricted to a specific day/date.
Ask your members to describe their day/week in three emojis.
‘Shout out’ member successes. For best results, shout out several members at a time and tag them into your post.
Invite your members to share one thing they are struggling with right now - something they might feel awkward about sharing outside of the group.
Is there a news story everyone is talking about right now? Ask your members what they think about it. Bonus tip: don’t share a link to an article someone else has written about it - explain it in your own words (or on video).
Invite your members to review your latest blog post, podcast episode, Youtube video - or your latest Facebook Live video in the group - using just three emojis.
Just had a new set of headshots taken for your business? Share your favourites and ask your followers to vote on their winning shot. You can do the same with product photography.
Ask your members to post the name of the town/city where they live (or a photo/video).
Invite your members to share a photo or video of their favourite spot in their home/office.
Give a sneak peek of a new product/service you’re working on.
Shoot a quick ‘how to’ video tutorial showing for your members on a specific topic e.g. how to light their smartphone videos (without any fancy equipment), how to wrap an awkward shaped gift or how to knock up a nativity costume for your child in 30 mins.
Share the outtakes from your latest social media video or podcast recording. Or share the pictures that didn’t make it to your feed (e.g. the cat walking across your Instagram flatlay).
Share a tool/resource you use in your work and get your members to guess what you use it for.
Want more? Head over and download the full 31 ideas here.
Want to go more indepth then head over to my Facebook group engagement Masterclass that you can buy here.
If you are struggling to get engagement on social media then you can buy my social media engagement playbook here.
Record your screen with Loom
Edit photos with Snapseed
How to do an iTunes review
[358] 13 Ideas for engaging social media posts (for when you’re all out of ideas) (podcast)
How to add closed captions to your videos using Rev and Kapwing (blog post)
Buy your ticket to my 2020 Content Planning Masterclass #2020Sorted
How to create a high converting lead magnet course
Order your special offer 2019 Media Diary
How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)
Social Media Video Engagement Playbook
Social Media Engagement Playbook
LinkedIn Content Strategy Playbook
Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn
The post [361] 15 post ideas for your Facebook group appeared first on Janet Murray.