You’re Not Stuck! This is A Temporary State

That’s right. This is temporary. There IS a solution. You only have to be willing to evolve beyond the moment and allow space and breath for the evolution to embrace its natural course…..

Sounds a bit esoteric, doesn’t it? Well, the fact is, most our business success begins in spirit. The spirit I speak of is that which motivated you in the first place to start your business. You went into it with your WHOLE HEART. You poured your soul, your passion and your vision into it. And then, somewhere along the way, something stopped working and you found yourself stuck….

I bet I know what it was.

When your business is thriving, and you’re making connections, and networking, and people everywhere you meet are genuinely interested in what you have to offer….and (let’s be honest, now!) when the money is rolling IN….. you are on top of the world! But when things aren’t going so well, you start losing motivation. You can’t find inspiration anywhere. You feel as if you’ve detached from your inner spirit, and find yourself slumped into a state of restriction, confinement, delusion. You begin wondering, “Is it even all worth it?”

Well, I’m here to tell you IT IS. That same spirit that got your business off the ground is STILL THERE. It’s still accessible, and it’s still functioning. You’ve just been making some POOR CHOICES. You’re not “stuck” because you lack desire or inspiration. You’re stuck because WHAT YOU’VE BEEN DOING ISN’T WORKING. And it’s only when you realize that those poor choices are not working, that’s when the greatest opportunities present themselves…

Congratulations! You’re just taken the first step to breaking out of your cocoon.

Being stuck may be mental. But the shell that is keeping you confined is REAL. So while you are working on improving your mental/psychological, spiritual and emotional state – finding your inspiration, tapping your spiritual passion and drawing on new motivations – you also need to take REAL STEPS to break through that shell. It’s not enough to think positively – you need to ACT positively. You can rah-rah-rah, sis-boom-bah all you want. But if you continue to engage in the same ineffective strategies that created this shell in the first place, you will NEVER break out of it.

Another fave quote of mine: “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results.” My old buddy, Albert Einstein, coined this one. Take it to heart:

If it isn’t working, STOP DOING IT. Things don’t change on their own; you have a role to play in this. A positive attitude is a wonderful motivator, but it won’t get you unstuck – only a DIFFERENT STRATEGY can do that. Making conscious decisions is only half the battle. ACTING on them will set you free.

Make no mistake about it: Simply putting together a Facebook business page is NOT going to solve your sales problem. There’s a RIGHT way (effective) and a WRONG way (not effective) to engage with your Facebook audience. If you are not engaging the right way, you’re wasting your time and will find yourself frustrated and disappointed. I hope the information below helps to clear up some of the mystery when it comes to Facebook marketing.

All the credit goes to Maya and Chad for sharing this information – I take no claim there! Most of you know, I am NOT a social media marketer. I refer to experts in that field, people who are more knowledgable than I am about this area. But since I work (almost) exclusively with small business – and let’s be honest, social marketing is a COMPLETE MYSTERY to most small business owners, especially those that are trying to do it on their own! – I thought I’d share with you what I took away from the episode. Keep in mind, this is just a snippet!

Ready? Let’s rock:

(oh, reminder – this information is strictly relevant to your Facebook BUSINESS page, not your personal FB page – we are talking marketing, after all

Facebook Fun Facts:

1. What is Edgerank? Edgerank is to Facebook what Page Rank is to Google. So if you’re marketing on Facebook, this is something you will want to monitor.
   
2. The average Facebook post only reaches 16% of your fans. This is why SHARES are more important than comments, and COMMENTS are more important than LIKES. You can have zillions of “Likes” but only those who are already engaging with you on your Facebook business page will see them. The idea is to get people to SHARE your status updates so as to create a viral campaign and earn more followers.
3. While Twitter followers will engage with you based on only 140 characters per update, your Facebook fans are more interested in lengthier posts (280 characters is good medium – so twice as long as what you can post on Twitter.). This is the reason that using a cross-platform-distribution app (such as Tweetdeck) will result in a lower reach on Facebook. So, go ahead and post the 140-character update on Twitter as you normally would. But be willing to expand on that same post when updating your Facebook page. And add a PHOTO! Speaking of which….
4. Updates that include photos have the highest reach across Facebook fans. Instead of a plain post, pair your update with a BIG BOLD PHOTO! Photos are most popular on Facebook, second are status updates, third is video and lastly links (demonstrated by the graphic above). In fact, PHOTOS ARE  7 TIMES MORE ENGAGING THAN STATUS UPDATES! So if you are only posting status updates or videos, you are not maximizing your Facebook marketing efforts.
5. If you are posting cute and adorable photos – such as that of your dog or your newborn – make sure the images are relevant to your brand. Cute works, but only if it pertains. If it doesn’t pertain, keep it off your business page and use your personal page for those types of photos. (This was not covered in the webinar, but I have added this part for you to consider: Same goes for religious and political affiliations – unless you are IN the business of religion or politics, keep those controversial topics off your Facebook business page.)
6. Ask a simple question. You can’t start a conversation by a statement. You need to OPEN the door! A good example that the folks from Wildfire used was Oprah Winfrey’s Facebook page, where she asked her audience “What are your New Year’s Resolutions?” The question should be so simple that the person reading it will know the answer immediately. If they have to take time to think about it, you’ve lost them.
7. Tap into trending topics and relevant events. What’s current? How does it apply to your business? Tie in a trending or relevant topic to your status updates. For example, January 20th is National Cheese Lover’s Day. If you are in the business of catering, a good question to ask your Facebook fans on January 20th might be “What is your favorite cheese?” It’s easy, simple to answer and amplifies ENGAGEMENT (my favorite is Brie, by the way!).
8. Use a CALL TO ACTION regularly. A “call to action” is the simple instruction that tells your reader WHAT TO DO. Don’t assume people will know that you want them to visit your web site or sign up for your newsletter. You’ve got to tell than WHAT YOU WANT THEM TO DO….RIGHT NOW! “Click now to reserve your seat today!” is a good example of a simple and effective call-to-action.

I hope you find value in these “take-aways.” Keep in mind however, these tips only brush the surface of an effective social media marketing campaign – it’s just the tippy-top of a tremendous iceberg! So if you would like more information on social marketing – or a even a copy of the webinar episode – I highly encourage you to contact the brilliant souls at Wildfire Interactive, Inc. at http://www.wildfireapp.com/contact. I like them! Not only do these people REALLY know their social stuff…..they’ve got a great looking brand!

Warning: I’ve taken a Dr. Laura, Seth Godin and Dr. Phil approach to this post. Be prepared! This is TOUGH LOVE TALK for your business:

I am challenging you to challenge your own beliefs, RIGHT NOW:

• Is your web site about YOU? Or is about YOUR CUSTOMER?
• Is your logo about YOU? Or is about YOUR CUSTOMER?
• Are your colors about YOU? Or are they about YOUR CUSTOMER?
• Is your copy and communications about YOU? Or is about YOUR CUSTOMER?
• Are your marketing messages about YOU? Or are they about YOUR CUSTOMER?

You know the answers. In case it’s foggy, let me break it down for you in a way that even a child can understand:

• If you designed your web site with the images that YOU think are cute or cool, your web site is NOT about your customer.
• If you selected or designed a logo that was pretty, but does not convey your core value message, your logo is NOT about your customer.
• If you picked a pretty pastel pink for your brochure or web site’s design, because it looks so adorable in your baby’s room, your colors are NOT about your customer.
• If your copy and communications say a lot about you, and what you subscribe to, and how long you’ve been in business, and what your methods are….. your copy is NOT about your customer.
• If your marketing messages do not address your customers’ pain points, tell them HOW you are going to solve their problem, and clearly outline WHY you are the ONLY SOLUTION to their stresses, your marketing messages are NOT about your customer.

The bottom line:

If your business was designed in a way that YOU were preferential to (I call this the “subjective approach”), but you did not stop to think what your customer’s personality/needs/worries/fears are all about (the opposite of subjective is OBJECTIVE!), you are NOT penetrating your customer’s attention. And your customer is what keeps you in business. They put food on your table, a roof over your head and clothing on your kids’ backs. You’d better start talking TO THEM.

Or, you can just take the easy way out and just close your business. You see, it’s like this:

Some people subscribe to the philosophy that ‘a winner never quits.’ Well, I say horse-poop to that. A winner knows WHEN to quit. A winner recognizes when something isn’t working and adjusts, or shifts. Albert Einstein said it best, ‘The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.’

Having said this, if you are struggling with growing your business, I’d bet it’s got a lot to do with the above. I can help you, but only if you reach out to me. I promise, I won’t judge or yell . I’ll just fix it so your business can blossom and grow the way you intend it to.