Meet Becky.
She was one of my dream clients to work with and the first of many authors that I began working with this year and last. On this episode, we dove into marketing secrets that everyone needs to understand about marketing and what she’s learned since being terrified of marketing a year ago, to now loving and rapidly growing her business.
1. Marketing does not only equal that you need to make money
Making Money should be a result of good marketing, but marketing is getting your content/message to the right people
2. For authors and those building a personal brand, marketing feels icky because everything is intimate and close.
Most people are afraid to do anything to promote themselves in this space because it feels like, “You’re hanging up your underwear to dry as an author and putting a giant neon billboard up beside it that says come to look at my underwear!
That’s a mindset issue. No one, literally no one (or at least they won’t say it to your face and if they do; drop them like its hot) thinks that. In fact, it endears you more.
3. Not everyone will follow or work with you forever. That’s OK!
You’re growing and evolving at the same (or even sometimes faster) rate that your ideal people are. And some people just aren’t in that space or ready to move with you. It means you’re STILL attracting the right people for exactly what you do.
4. The more specific you get, the more exact you find and attract your people.
Don’t be afraid that you’re alienating who you’re talking to. You absolutely are NOT. People want to be seen and heard. You do that by speaking directly to them. It’s where you find the rabid fans like those that attend Comic-Con in full attire, who go to Disney every week, etc.
5. Get to know your audience and perfect-for-you clients SO well that they run your marketing and business plan for you.
Find out what your tribe wants. Find out what they need. Deliver on exactly that to the best of your ability. It makes your people show up for YOU in a big way and gives you everything you need to grow your business and quickly.
6. Surround yourself with people who are a step or two ahead of you.
This will not only push you to expand your business in ways you didn’t know were possible, but also give you the fire to take action and not be stuck in a mindset space where you’re afraid to make big moves.
7. Be willing to be brave and be yourself. Messy and all.
At the heart of everything we do, we are just people who want to hang out with people. We’re just people. Be willing to have the conversations and show who you are every day.
8. Marketing does not have to be the same thing as sales.
Yes, it should make money at some point, but it doesn’t have to equal sales to be successful. When people confuse the two, it puts so much pressure on you, the entrepreneur, to show up, make the hard sales and go for the jugular every time. Marketing is spreading what you do at the right time with the right people.
9. You don’t have to serve one type of person forever.
You also don’t have to take every person from start to finish in the right order and timing. People are going to interact with you at the level they are at. You don’t have to capture and hold onto forever, every person that joins your list or comes into contact. But you do need to know where they are coming from and how to meet them and how to move them IF THEY WANT to the next step of how you work with people.
10. Map out how you work with people and at what stage so you know HOW and WHAT to create. It’s what I call a client scale.
If you’ve been in business for more than a minute, you know that not everyone who comes into contact with you is at the same stage. (See truth above). If you can outline where they are in relation to your sweet spot and what transformation you’re offering, it allows you to weed out the people who are not ready for you yet, latch on and convert the ones who are perfect, and understand how to grow and scale your business with those who are ready to move out of your sweet spot into a new space.
11. Be willing to try out new platforms and take a risk because that’s how you grow.
Becky mentions Patreon. I know people using Quora, Reddit, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram and in-person. Use platforms and social tools that help you and that you want to use. If no one else is using it — don’t be scared. That doesn’t mean it can’t work for you if you’re comfortable there OR intrigued to try.
12. Understand how to master Know, Like & Trust with your audience.
This is how you build a sustainable business, and it piggybacks on some truths above.
Know = Understanding your audience so well that you are nearly reading their minds. Do research. Ask them what they think. Meet up with them. Take notes from clients. Create genuine relationships.
Like = Create content/programs/products that people genuinely are interested in and that work.
Trust = Be consistent. Be genuine. Put out things that are helpful without constantly asking for money in return.
13. Marketing is not formulaic. It’s a creative thing and if someone gives you a magic formula, run!
Marketing is built on principles that work across the board. But how you do it and what works for your business, is going to be unique to your audience and their needs and emotions and it can’t necessarily be put into a script, 1-2-3 plan or whatever else is being peddled on the Internet these days by popular Internet marketers. Too many people feel as if they suck at marketing because the “formula” they’ve been taught just doesn’t work for them. It’s the formula, not you!
14. Treat social platforms as social spaces. Don’t be all weird and spammy.
If you don’t show up as yourself and a real human being that is interested in people and is social, then you’re
15. If you are stuck in your head over details, pick the simplest option and move forward. Let go of the responsibility of having to make the perfect decision every time.
For Becky, she’s stuck on what to name her group coaching program she’s posting on Patreon. What did I recommend:
– Put a poll to her group about what to call it
– Ask for suggestions
– Ask the 12 people interested what they want to call themselves
– Draw a name out of a hat.
– Pick one for a month and see how you like it
16. Strap on your big girl panties and be willing to put yourself out there starting TODAY.
You have big things to do, big missions to accomplish and no one can have their world rocked by you (in the best way possible) if you aren’t getting noticed. If you don’t let people know who you are or where you are, then it’s never going to happen.
Connect with Becky:
www.beckylmccoy.com
BraveTogether Facebook Group
Resiliency Coaching (Patreon Group)
Instagram/Facebook/Twitter: @BeckyLMcCoy
Sucker Punched Podcast
Brave Together Virtual Retreat
About Becky: Becky L McCoy lives on the Connecticut coast with her two precocious and hilarious children. She once enjoyed teaching high school physics and now tells her story of loss, grief, and joyful living on her blog. Having struggled with depression and anxiety and experienced several seasons of grief and struggle, Becky is passionate about creating an online community where people share their stories and encourage one another to choose to live bravely and authentically through disappointment and discouragement.
Other Things We Mentioned:
Mallory’s Free Book Club for Female Entrepreneurs to Feel Good About Being Successful
Should we create a course on how to Market for Creatives? Let Becky and I know where this should fall on the priority list.
