Let's start with a truth that is either going to piss you off or feel like a giant weight off of your shoulders...

It is 1,000 times (maybe more) harder to grow an audience on Instagram than it was 10, 5, even 3 years ago.

In spite of that, many of the people out there teaching social media marketing haven't adapted their stratgies since those times, meaning there are a lot of people (you might be one of them) spending tons of time, energy and maybe money trying to grow in a way that just might not work that well.

And we're not even considering yet whether a platform like Instagram (or Facebook, or Twitter, or TikTok) make sense for your energy, your work flow, or your ideas and business model.

I never want to be someone pushing the idea that there's only one way to successfully grow, market and sell in your business, so here's the nuance moment where I'll say I don't 100% think that Instagram (or the other main social media platforms) is dead. It's true that there is still tremendous opportunity to grow a community on TikTok, and you can do that on other platforms, too.

But I want to throw out some insight and ideas as to why the more mainstream marketing channels of the online business world might not be the best for you, and invite you to consider other ideas instead.

Transparent marketing moment: one of my dear friends and former clients Natalie has created an incredible offer called The Pod Squad, which offers lush support for free-spirited, high integrity entrepreneurs who want to grow their business by speaking on podcasts.​

This email won't just talk about the pros of podcasts, so if you've thought about ditching social media marketing, please keep reading! Just know there's an invite ahead.

So first, a non-exhaustive list of reasons why social media marketing might not be the best fit. Social media marketing might not be for you if....

1. You tend to be low energy and/or have a slow or methodical creation process. Platforms like Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and Twitter have a super fast news cycle, aka the content that goes up usually has a very short lifespan where it is likely to be discovered by new people and even people who follow you. That means you need to create a lot of content fairly regularly to keep being discovered and stay visible to your existing audience, which might lead to burnout, lack of enjoyment, creating content just to create content, and many other things that just feel shitty, which is not how I want your marketing to feel.
2. Your work involves a lot of nuance, layers, and/or in depth explanation to be fully understood. Or maybe you're just a particuarly verbose person who can't write or make a short piece or content to save their lives (hello, it's me.). But if you don't enjoy or excel at the art of quick, bite sized content, a lot of social media platforms are going to feel a bit like you're trying to squeeze into a pair of too-tight jeans after nearly 3 years of wearing leggings and sweat pants. It's useful here to consider how most people are going to engage with your content. If we're talking about Instagram, a lot of people will be looking at it while watching TV, or in line at the grocery store, or waiting for the barista to make their coffee before they move onto the next thing. It's not ideal focused time, and isn't the best space to dive deep into your juiciest, most brilliant ideas and resources. And speaking of how people consume content...
3. You want to get clients or customers sooner rather than later. This one might be controversial, but I'm sticking to it. It takes longer to attract a perfect fit client on Instagram, TikTok or Facebook than it does on some of the platforms we'll dig into below. That's simply because most people on those platforms aren't going there with a specific question, problem or desire in mind when they open the app. The main social media tools can be great places to find education and resources, but most people are going to them with an entertainment, casual consumption kind of lens. Can you attract clients and customers on those platforms? Absoultely! So much of my business growth and continued success has come through Instagram (though I did start growing on IG when it was a bit easier to be discovered). But imagine how much easier it could be to attract people if you were showing up in the places where they were already coming because they're ready to buy a product or service just like yours.

Which leads us to: if not Instagram etc., WTF should I do Chels?

Great question I would love to tell you (reply if you get the reference😉).

I hate the word should and as I said above, I never want to tell you there's one right place to be. But if any of the above points feel true for you, then I'd love for you to consider the idea that podcasts (whether hosting or guesting), blogs, vlogs and Pinterest might be really useful places for you to hangout.

Here's why...

1. Podcasts: even when I'm not actively recording and posting, my podcast has been the #1 driver for people discovering my work and hiring me. Podcasts are an incredible way for you to dive deep into your work and allow people to get a feel for you, your energy and your values. They allow you to create an instant connection with someone, which creates a greater sense of trust and safety that is invaluable in marketing. Podcast platforms also tend to work like a search engine; people go onto Spotify or Apple or Google podcasts and search the podcast page for what they want to know or do, which means instead of attracting passive folks who are scrolling in the coffee line, you're attracing people who truly want what it is you're offering. They also have a hella long life cycle; podcast interviews I've done years ago still bring new people into my world. And Nat's program is truly epic if being a guest on podcasts in a way that actually gets you clients is something you'd like to do.​
2. Pinterest: The pinning platform feels like kind of an unsung hero, but here's the reason I love it: the majority of people who get on Pinterest go there because they're starting a project. They show up to the platform looking for specific resources, inspiration and trainings, and you have the opportunity to put all of your magic into that space for them to discover. Even better? Pinterst is a really easy platform to automate, which essentially means you can set it up once and then do minimal maintenance while watching new people flow into your world every single day. You can also pair Pinterest with any of these platforms to cross promote your work and make marketing even easier and more effective.
3. Vlogging (on YouTube): YouTube is the second most used social media platform around these days (according to Hootsuite's 2022 Digital Trend Report). Meaning you've got a lot of opportunity to connect with new people and build community with videos. And if your work is nuanced, video is such a great way to express the layers and details of your work on a platform that's much better suited for layered content. That's largely because, at its core, YouTube is a search engine. When people go to YouTube, it's often because they're looking for something specifc; a type of workout or meditation, a tutorial, a free training. They're looking for a solution, and you have an opportunity to help them then and there, showing your expertise and giving them a chance to get to know you and your work immediately. Pro tip: if you're podcast guesting, you can share video clips of the recording or turn audio into a video and share to YouTube for additional reach.
4. Blogging: first, a public service announcement... blogging is not dead. Google is still kicking, and search engines are one of the first places people go when they are actually looking for a solution. Just like each of the above marketing platforms, this is a space where we're able to connect with people who are explicitly looking for an answer or solution to something. These folks are so much further along in their buyer's journey (peep this training from Dream On to learn more), and so are much closer to making a purchase than are most folks scrolling through Instagram. You'll need to learn some SEO basics (hit reply if you want a free recommendation) and have a basic website, but you can start blogging and use any other platform to cross-promote your posts in addition to SEO-driven traffic. Pro-tip: blogs are also a great place to post show notes, insights or highlights from any podcast interviews or episodes you've done. ​

Here's the tl;dr: social media isn't required for business. Podcasting is awesome, so are these other platforms, and The Pod Squad can help you loads if you want to ditch social media and keep making money in your business.​

This enrollment for The Pod Squad closes on September 9th.

I hope this lengthy af email feels useful to you, and I'm here if you have any questions.

x

Chelsea