Once upon a time, Facebook was a small business’ dream. Remember when the small biz owner who had previously shelled out thousands of dollars for a website suddenly thought screw that…I’ll get a FREE online presence on Facebook and cancel everything else. It worked for a bit. In the good ol’ days everyone who “liked” your business Page, saw your posts.

Now, let’s be honest, the social media behemoth can feel like more of a nightmare due to constantly having to worry about algorithms and likes and comments and having your hand-slapped if you post contests or ask your followers to tell their friends about you. Instagram (which is owned by book of the face).

First off, I’m sorry if you are in this situation. Believe me, I’m dealing with it with my clients who all have a social media presence and as their brand managers, I have to do whatever I can to ensure they are still seen and heard, even if that means I am shelling out bucks to “boost” it so people who already liked the page will actually see it. I can try to be engaging and entertaining but that doesn’t mean people are going to like or comment or share because we live in a SCROLL SOCIETY. Yep. It’s NOT YOUR FAULT if people aren’t seeing your stuff if you are doing what you can so that’s why it’s important, nay, imperative, for you to be doing these OTHER THINGS, too.

1. Have a kickass website with a cool blog and make it the home of your biz life NOT social media sites. Yes, this is for your EVERGREEN things but due to also needing search engines to find you, you need to update them on the regular. At minimum, do a monthly blog post and add some new photos and events to keep it updated and relevant.
2. You have a monthly newsletter with rich content and you consistently add new customers to it. No, not every customer will open your email, either, just as not everyone who follows you on social will see your “special” or event but I guarandamntee that you have a better chance if you are doing social + 1 + 2.
3. Add some interesting video to your mix. YouTube isn’t JUST for young uns posting crazy shit they do. It’s a very powerful engine so put your EVERGREEN videos such as your origin story, and your “golden arrows” for your products and services on why and how you do things different/better/special videos there THEN share them on…yep, your awesome website. WordPress has great plug-ins for that.  Easy-peezy. And, yeah, since IG and FB like video, especially live, do that, too.
4. REAL face time. Yes to events and groups and referral networking and loyalty programs. Reward people, make them feel special and they will shop the hell out of you and recommend you to all their friends. THIS IS WHY IS SAY RELATIONSHIPS ARE THE NEW (OLD) MARKETING TACTIC THAT WILL FOREVER BE A WINNER. Belong to groups. Go to the events. Get out there. Even if you are an introvert, I swear it WILL benefit you. The extroverts like me will peel you away from the wall and make you dance with them, which is actually cool if you think about it.
5. Traditional marketing and advertising are not the devils. Oh, yeah, I can see you coming back around now…that because book of the face is limiting your each, things like posters and postcards and promotional items are starting to gain some appeal again. I still advertise in a NEWSPAPER and on RADIO for clients and yeah, video and audio are still POWERFUL TOOLS even if we don’t use them the same way. So you might not be on TV, but you can do video ads on websites or on Spotify or other apps, for example. Same for audio. Another powerful audio tool? PODCASTS. You as a guest. You as the host. You as a co-host. Which lead us to the NUMBER ONE MOST IMPORTANT TIP.
6. People love stories. We remember them. They make us FEEL something. Every brand has a story. Are you telling it? What’s your fireside story? Develop a big one and a small one. Imagine you ARE being interviewed by Oprah. Imagine you ARE invited to speak in front of a crowd to share your from then til now story. CREATE IT. MANIFEST IT. Now, why not go listen to a few of podcast episodes on the best books I recommend for personal and professional growth? My ONE BOW MANY ARROWS podcast is about realizing that we are the hunters in charge of our situation. Not book of the face. And insta-stories on IG are a good way to show people who you are in an authentic way, too.

There is no one “simple” solution to becoming a powerful brand, but there is a journey that begins within with mindset and attitude and awareness and then calls for action, gathering the right arrows in our quiver and taking the ACTION to reach our goals. Doable for sure. I’m doing it myself and I do it for my clients. You can do it, too.

What questions do you have about personal or business branding in 2018? Hit me up.

xoxo, ready, aim grow…

Malena