If you’re an entrepreneur, your media is your resume.
Most people apply for a job once; force a smile through their interview; and then let their guard down again. But the second you open a business, you become a public figure. The media you produce–especially your social media–becomes a magnifying glass into your beliefs, personality and character. What you post can help you grow your business. But it can hurt you even more.
Most entrepreneurs don’t gain clients on social media; they LOSE clients on social media.
And here’s the worst part: you can’t just hide. You have to post something. But what? And when? Here’s how to do it; why; when; AND what to stop doing if you care about your brand.
What To Post On Social Media
Members of the Two-Brain Family receive their Social Media Playbook in the Incubator. Or, more accurately, they receive two: one for gym owners in the Founder Phase, and one for gym owners in the Farmer Phase.(Don’t know which phase of entrepreneurship you’re in? Take the test here.)
The playbooks are pretty long, but here are a couple of highlights:
- If you’re in the Founder Phase, tell your story. Your goal is awareness: if you’re the first in a market, simply saying “I’m here, and I care” is enough to get started. Write blog posts and link to them on Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram. That’s where your clients are. Maybe you like SnapChat or another platform; but data shows your ideal clients for a gym are on Facebook. So post there.
- If you’re in the Farmer Phase, tell your clients’ stories. Make them famous. Write about them. Post their pictures and videos. Shine your spotlight on them.
- No matter what, always lead back to your website or straight to an action (like Book a Free Call or Book a Free Consultation). Very, very few people sign up for a paid service straight from social media; and only a tiny fraction of a percent sign up for an in-person service without seeing it in person first. Don’t just post pictures.
When To Post on Social Media
Timing doesn’t matter, really. But consistency does. Whether you’re in the Founder or Farmer Phase, you need to post every single day.
You’ll get tired of yourself before your audience will.
- Start with consistency. Don’t try to launch a YouTube channel, blog and podcast all at the same time. All of those articles you’ve read about shooting a video, extracting the audio for a podcast, transcribing that audio for blog posts, and cutting up the blog posts into Social posts? That sounds great, but you’re probably not going to do it. That’s a full-time job. Publish on one channel every day for 30 days, then think about expanding.
- You don’t need a platform like Hootsuite unless you can consistently post good content–not just social media pics–every single day.
- Timing doesn’t really matter, but if you know when your potential clients are most likely to be online, post then. But this is about 1% as important as posting consistently.
Should You Boost Posts?
Marketing on social media isn’t art; it’s math. It doesn’t matter how well-produced your videos are, or how creative your photos look. If people don’t click your link, it’s not a good link. Let your audience tell you what they like.
When you post a link to a blog post or video on Social Media, and it gets a lot of interaction–not ‘likes’, but shares and comments–then consider boosting it. But ONLY if you’ve already built an audience for targeting (or retargeting). That first audience might just be your Friends list if you’re in Founder phase (because they’re your first clients), but over time, your marketing power really rests on your retargeting audiences. For more, read “How Many Likes Do You Need?” here.
How To Blow Your Thumbs Off: What NOT To Post
Unfortunately, some phony experts now tell people to use the “Tantrum” strategy: It goes like this:
Find the leader in your niche
Attack one small part of their platform relentlessly
Build a free Facebook group for retargeting
Sell your “program” (even if you haven’t actually built anything yet–just take the $$$)
…in other words, throw a tantrum until some grownups buy you some candy. The strategy is very similar to the old “How To Make a Million Dollars Selling Books” scam, in which the buyer pays $100 for a book, and is then told to republish the same book and charge $100 to the next buyer. But the internet makes old scams look new, and because I care about gym owners, I want to warn you:
Attacking people on social media is a horrible idea that will ruin your business.
Your job is to make people feel good–and, if possible, famous.
As everyone becomes more skeptical of what they see online, people are quick to read provocative headlines…but also quick to identify and discard phony “gurus”. And once they’re gone, they’re not coming back.
If you post “Vote G.I. Jane For President!” you’ll immediately tell half of your audience that “I’m not like you”. You’ll cut your potential clients list in half. And then, when you share your views on gun control, you’ll isolate 50% of the remaining list. And you won’t gain back those you’ve already lost: social media has a one-strike rule.
Just like a resume.
As soon as you open a business, you begin applying for a job with every person you meet. It’s a never-ending interview. Will you start a conversation, or throw a tantrum?
