Brandmerry Blog Archives
How to Pivot Your Business Without Losing Momentum
Thinking of pivoting your business or finding yourself at a place where a pivot is necessary for income? Check out the different phases of a pivot to consider and how to identify if a pivot is right for you in this season.
How to Pivot Your Business
Without Losing Momentum
BY MICHELLE KNIGHT
If you prefer to watch a video version of this post, which is highly recommended, you can do so below.
Last week on the blog, I did a special post on Branding and Messaging Your Business During a Crisis, you can check it out here.
And so many community members asked about a very specific part of that post and video, which was all about pivoting your business.
It makes so much sense that this would be a concern right now as we navigate this Global Pandemic (also known as Coronavirus). It’s got so many businesses thinking, “How do we make money during this time?”
But, to be honest, this isn’t something we should just be prepared for as it applies to a pandemic like this, many business owners might need to pivot their offer, messaging or business due to life changes.
Maybe you’re wondering…
...if now is the right time to sell anything.
...how you should be supporting people.
...what to offer since what you typically do is not possible.
...if your offers or services need to change.
...what you should be charging.
And, that’s probably just the tip of the iceberg with questions running through your head.
I highly suggest writing these prompts and questions down to dive into on your own. Carve out 15 minutes a day to answering these questions to gain clarity on your next steps.
PHASE ONE: DETERMINE WHAT STAGE YOU ARE IN
The first step is to figure out what stage you are in because every single business is going to be at a different stage, which is going to mean that your pivot is going to look different.
Nobody's pivot is going to look the same.
Because of this, it can be really easy to get overwhelmed when pivoting because we’ll see other business owners doing something in our niche or similar and we think to ourselves, “I should be doing that! Or should I be doing something different?”
But, we don’t know their story - we might think we know where they are at in their business, but the reality is we probably have no clue.
It’s times like these we need to go inward, worry about our own business, our own progress and our own current stage.
STAGE ONE: YOUR BUSINESS HAS TAKEN A MAJOR HIT
If you’re in this stage, you’re most likely struggling a lot. If you’re a photographer during this particular season of the Coronavirus you’ve had to cancel a lot of your business.
A sign that you are in this stage could be that you’ve taken a major hit financially.
POSSIBILITIES: You can drive more online traffic. You’re going to want to put more time and energy into building an online presence and offering incentives. While you might not be able to physically do your job if you’re a photographer, you could offer gift certificates or coupons if they book now. Think of restaurants around the holidays when they sell a $50 gift card and give you $15 to use on your next visit - same principle.
You might also consider offering something new, I’ve got questions below to support you.
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STAGE TWO: YOUR BUSINESS IS CLOSED
If you’re in this stage, you might have a physical business that is now closed, so your options are to close or move online.
POSSIBILITIES: Move your business online so you can continue to sell. Think about what technology systems you need and how to manage the ins and outs. Every business needs an online presence and you have a chance to build that now. Think of ways to sell gift cards even if it’s not physical products right now. Incorporate incentives as I mentioned above.
Also, this is a great time to build brand awareness and educate your audience on your product so they can purchase at a later date. Use different tools and resources to drive traffic to your new site like Search Engine Optimization and Pinterest.
This might also be a good time to consider a new offer, I’ve got questions below to support you.
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STAGE THREE: YOUR BUSINESS HAS BEEN FORCED TO SHIFT
This stage could look like a lot of different things. Maybe you’ve experienced a hit, but you have money in savings so you don’t have to actively sell right now. It might also mean that what you sell doesn’t feel good and you want to make some adjustments to your offer or how you message it.
The majority of online businesses typically find themselves in this stage.
POSSIBILITIES: If you’re in this stage it’s about heightening your brand awareness. If what you sell or offer is still valid it’s less about what you offer and how you’re offering it. A big shift during this stage might be a pivot or adjustment in your messaging, along with adjusting the price of your offer.
During this brand awareness phase, it’s also important to explore other avenues. For instance, during the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been a drop in people spending their money on marketing. That means ad costs have gone down drastically, so if it’s available to you investing in this aspect now can really pay off in the long run.
SPEAKING OF LONG RUN
When pivoting, or navigating a time of great change, it’s so important to focus on the long game. I hate to be the one to say, but even if you're not making money right now, which is scary, you can set yourself up for massive growth later on.
How can you set yourself up so that you can sell later in the year or next year really, really strong?
Those are the things that we need to consider because that is the reality. So how do we do that? Let's talk about some questions that I want you to think about around pivoting your offer.
PHASE TWO: PIVOTING YOUR OFFER OR SERVICE
Let's say that you have an existing offer that's not working, or you have an existing offer that you want to modify. Here are some questions to consider.
What does your audience need right now?
I’m a big fan of market research because I know it changes the game of how we show up, run our businesses and ultimately make sales. If you show up and you ask your audience in this time where they're needing support, they will most likely tell you.
If you don't have an audience already look at other people's threads in your industry, look at what people are Googling, or look and see what people are asking in Facebook groups or threads.
What are people needing right now?
Let me make this clear, I do not mean everyone. I specifically mean what does your target market need and what would support them in this season of life?
How can you show up and give that to them in a way that is an extension of your brand?
Is this something existing? Or do you need to create something new?
For many of you, you are going to have to create something new. You've probably had ideas for things that you can launch or build in the background, but maybe life was too busy so I'm going to challenge you to look back at those ideas that have maybe been sitting on the back burner, on a post-it note on your desk, and start to think, “Is that something that I could create now?”
FEELING STUCK? A NOTE ABOUT BRAND CONTAINERS
Brand Containers are a concept that I teach to all of my clients on the idea that what you sell cannot be your business and brand. If it is you are probably running into a problem right now.
It’s not about having 75 different offers, it’s about having a brand and having variety, allowing for more flexibility, creation and community building.
When you create a business around a single offer and then want to pivot, it will feel like starting over, but when you create a brand first and foremost it’s much easier.
Imagine 5-7 brand containers of things you love talking about. For my business branding, business coaching and marketing are definitely the main ones, but I also love to talk about travel and could offer a blog or course on how to travel full time.
If you’re interested in learning more about Brand Containers and my branding process, check out youbrandedcourse.com.
The key here is you want to first look for a pivot that is of value to your audience and already connected to your brand as a whole, your Brand Containers can help with this.
When it comes to pivoting the hardest thing you can do is burn it all down in the hopes to build something new. I encourage you to look more for opportunities or gaps in which you can make small adjustments.
Ask yourself: How can I show up, that's going to be a value to my audience and is already connected to my brand as a whole?
Then it will feel more of like a shift or extension than it does a complete starting over from scratch.
Pricing Your Offer
If you don’t feel like you need to create something new, just adjust something existing, it’s time to think about how to shift it.
Is there a new pricing structure?
How can you modify an existing offer to launch something smaller?
Can you take a bigger program or something that you've created and sell it separately as a lower-priced offer?
How can you repurpose some of the things that you've talked about in the past?
Think of how you can get creative with what you have. For instance, if you’re a photographer and can’t photograph clients, you don’t necessarily have to declare you’re no longer a photographer. You might be able to adjust your offer to something along the lines of selling a style guide on how to prepare for brand photoshoots or teaching other photographers how to edit their pics.
TO RECAP
What does your audience need?
What can you support them with?
Is there something that you can create that as an extension of your existing brand, think about your brand containers, rather than starting completely over?
And if you have an existing offer that works, how can you modify it or change the pricing structure?
PHASE THREE: AWARENESS AND EDUCATION
Phase three is what every single business should still remain focused on during a pivot or crisis.
The brands and businesses that continue to persevere are the ones that continue to show up, build trust and community. These are the businesses that will experience sales later.
Pivoting isn’t just about the offer it’s also in your messaging and how you show up.
How can you build brand awareness?
How can you create educational components for your audience?
What does this look like for you?
Get ready for the questions because here they come. Some things to consider are:
Does your content need to shift during this transition?
How is your overall brand messaging, is it in alignment with your new direction
Do you need to adjust the platform you are showing up on and reaching your target audience? Do you have SEO on your website? Are you using Pinterest to drive traffic?
Can you start reaching your new target market with advertisements?
Do you have a sales funnel set up for onboarding new community members and leading them to a sale on evergreen?
When you’re pivoting it can be really easy to not show up, to not build an audience because you feel like you don’t have it all figured out. Take some time to get clear on your pivot offer and audience and keep showing up.
People are waiting for your message, even when you’re “figuring it out” keep showing up and building trust.
MISSION-DRIVEN BUSINESS GOALS
When you’re going through a pivot or transition it might feel like you need to create something RIGHT NOW. You might think, “I’m just going to put this out there!”
I'm going to encourage you to slow down just a minute to ask yourself this overarching brand question…
“What’s the purpose behind your business? Why are you doing this in the first place?”
Because the reality is if you run your business just for money, you will run into problems. It has to be more fulfilling. What do you do, when in one season of life you don’t have the money coming in? What continues to drive you?
Questions to consider.
What is your purpose behind your business?
What is your mission?
How can you create content and offers and all those things that are in alignment with that?
And if you don't know this, it’s time to dive deep into your brand.
CONCLUSION + PLANNING
MAKING PLANS
With the info that you have collected from above, I want you to start mapping out and planning your next steps.
I know in times of uncertainty and change, there is power in knowing what direction you're going.
Think of where you are headed, there’s that purpose, mission and long-term thinking again, so you can start taking small steps every single day. Start mapping out what that looks like, but be open to adjusting.
Think about…
How does your content look with these new plans?
What offers are you going to put out there?
What do you need to create?
How can you start rolling out these changes?
Having a plan is really powerful, even if it needs to change and adjust at least you know which direction you’re headed.
If after you dive into these questions you still feel lost and a little overwhelmed. I always encourage people to get a step-by-step plan. My course You! Branded gives you the pieces to finalize your purpose, mission and so much more to build a strong brand and business upon.
You can learn more about You! Branded and the work we do around niching down, ideal client, messaging, offers and emotional branding at youbrandedcourse.com
- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -
DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES
LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS
MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR
- READ THE LATEST POSTS -
MEET MICHELLE
Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.
I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.
I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.
This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.
How to Message Your Brand in a Time of Crisis
With a degree in Public Relations and a background in crisis management, I’ve carried those skills into my entrepreneur business to continue to show up and communicate with my audience in times of crisis. Read the blog to learn all my tips on selling, branding and messaging during difficult times.
How to Message Your Brand in a Time of Crisis
BY MICHELLE KNIGHT
If you prefer to watch a video version of this post, which is highly recommended, you can do so below.
As I write this blog we are in the middle of the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic in the States.
It’s a difficult time for many small businesses and online entrepreneurs as their business has been impacted. But, more than anything so many owners are feeling lost.
What do we do in a time of crisis?
How do we respond?
How should we show up for our online communities?
Whether you’re reading this blog because you’re asking the same questions right now, or you’re circling back to learn how to be prepared for a potential future crisis, I hope this blog will offer you advice on selling, messaging and branding your business during a time of crisis.
A LITTLE BACKGROUND
I’m an online branding consultant and marketing strategist helping online female entrepreneurs grow their business online. I’ve been running my business for four years, and before that, I spent years in Public Relations and Communications.
I spent time working in crisis communication for nonprofits and took the training in school. Today, I’m pulling that all together to support you in moving forward with your mission and message.
Handling a Crisis as a Personal Brand or Small Business
There is a lot we can learn from large corporations when it comes to crisis communication. Typically large companies and firms have a complete crisis communication plan, so if something happens the company as a whole is prepared and on the same page.
One of the best takeaways from a PR approach is to be active, rather than simply reactive.
When the recent Covid-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic hit a lot of brands started to panic. Understandably so, there really isn’t a rule book for this. But, we can learn three important elements from a crisis communication plan and apply to our small business and personal brand.
#1 BE HUMAN
If you follow me on social media or have read any of my blogs you know that what I teach around branding is centered on human marketing - that should always be the top of your mind.
But, in a crisis it’s very important. Tapping into the fact that our audiences are REAL people, we need to be compassionate and we need to be empathetic.
We need to let people know that we are here to support them. During the Coronavirus, you probably got a surge of emails, from companies and brands.
As soon as this thing happened everyone went into addressing the issue, and that’s a good thing (more on that later), but what so many of those emails were lacking was compassion.
Many of the emails I received felt so dry and as if they had been copied and pasted from a template - it felt like everybody was sending the exact same email.
This is an amazing example of incorporating more story, compassion and empathy to differentiate yourself from others talking about the same thing.
The more you focus on what your audience needs to hear today, the more thankful they will be of your outreach.
I recommend adding more story connecting on a human level and focus on giving, giving, and giving some more. Find a way to say I’m here for you and I understand what you’re going through.
#2 TAKE ACTION - DON’T WAIT
When you're in a crisis, you have to take action. The worst thing that you can do is sit back and do nothing. If you’re being handed bad press, the last thing you want to do is say nothing. If it’s a situation like the Coronavirus it’s important to take action and pivot.
During a time of crisis, it’s important to modify your messaging, make small adjustments to your offers (if needed).
Sitting back and waiting for things to be “normal” will not help you advance your business. You will grow more from gracefully handling a crisis than you will from sitting back and doing nothing.
#3 DON’T IGNORE IT
Along with taking action, it’s also important to not ignore it in your messaging. Ignoring a situation can make your brand irrelevant in a time when your audience needs you to show up.
Don't pretend like it's not happening. It doesn't mean that every single post needs to be about the crisis, but let people know that you understand what’s happening and address the situation.
In times of crisis, it’s the brands that step up, are of service and show up for their communities that make the lasting impact.
How You Need to Show Up During a Crisis: Branding + Messaging
During a crisis, it’s important to focus on the big picture of your brand.
You might not have the best sales at this time, especially if what you’re experiencing is worldwide, but that doesn’t mean it’s over.
Remember, your brand is not the single product or service you offer - it’s the overall experience, mission and values.
During a crisis, it’s important to gain clarity on these pieces so you can continue to move forward.
How can you use this time to grow your audience, build brand awareness and be of service?
Is there a new way that you can show up for your audience and deliver content? During the Coronavirus and quarantine, more and more people were online.
During this particular time creating a podcast, writing blogs or activating Facebook ads are a great way to reach your audience and build brand awareness.
Even if that doesn’t directly relate to sales now it will in the future.
When it comes to a crisis, like the current Coronavirus, it’s so important to serve your audience with your messaging.
Think of different gifts and resources you can provide your audience that again build trust, build community, but also offer support.
People will remember how your brand responded during a crisis - make sure it’s authentic and of service.
YOUR CONTENT
When it comes to the content you create during a crisis it’s important to show up. As we’ve already covered, you’ve got to remember your audience is human.
How can you create content that connects deeply with your audience?
How can you create content that brightens their mood?
How can you create content that tells the story of your brand?
Now more than ever these pieces are so important.
BE OF SERVICE
Your main goal during a crisis, like Coronavirus, should be of service.
If you show up and you are of service to your audience and to people who have no idea who the hell you are, then you will see it will pay off in the long run.
It’s just another reminder that you want your brand and business to be in for the long game.
One of the lessons I shared in my video below, as it relates to the Coronavirus was the idea that there is still time.
It’s hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel during a crisis, but in the current pandemic, it’s important to remember that we still have 75% of the year left.
And most businesses make the majority of their revenue in Q3 and Q4 typically. There is still so much you can do to hit your goals.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Being of service doesn’t mean giving everything away for free or heavily discounting your services. You’re still running a business. There is a way to be of service and give to your community while still making money.
STEP UP
I encourage you to ask yourself the following questions…
How can you step up and serve your ideal client?
What is the mission behind your business?
What is the impact that you want to make with your brand?
How can you do that now when people are looking for that support more than ever?
Remember that being of service proves in the long run, that the sales will come.
#1 CRISIS COMMUNICATION STRATEGY TO AVOID
In my opinion, during a time of crisis fear-based marketing is a no-no.
We know statistically people respond to pain over pleasure when it comes to your messaging. That’s because it’s much easier to say, “I want to avoid x, y and z,” then it is to say, “I want that!”
But, in a time of crisis, some people can go a little too far in addressing the pain. A general rule of thumb is that if you are exploiting a situation or the fears that people are experiencing, it’s not a great branding move.
Remember branding is the long game. It might seem like a great marketing move right now, but in the long run, the chances of it paying off are slim.
In times like this, it’s important to focus on the joy, pleasure, desire and how you’re helping people grow overall.
We’ve talked a lot about showing up for your audience, but when it comes to messaging your business and focusing on the benefit, remember you’re stepping into your role as a leader.
During a crisis is an amazing time for leaders to rise up.
If you don't do anything, you won't rise up.
f you're not showing up, you won't rise up.
If you're trying to go viral or pick up on people's fears or insecurities, you won't rise up.
CONCLUSION
Remember, the top tips for your brand during a time of crisis are:
Increase your brand exposure: Create content, tell stories and show up. If business is slow during a time of crisis, use that time to introduce yourself to others.
Build a warm audience: Along with building brand awareness you can also use a time of crisis to build trust with your audience and move them off of social media into an email list. This growth will support you during the long game.
Be human. Above everything else remember that your audience is human. They deserve and need compassion and empathy, especially if what you’re experiencing is collective. If the crisis is internal to your business, it’s just as important to show up as human and take responsibility.
Get creative and create new solutions. A crisis might require you to pivot your messaging or your offers. Take the challenge and make the change. In times of crisis, great leaders are born.
Be of service. Show up for your audience and give back. Remember, that giving will come back to benefit your business in the long run.
I hope these tips were helpful for you today.
If you’re interested in learning more about building your brand and strong message online, be sure to check out my signature course You! Branded.
Learn more at youbrandedcourse.com
- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -
DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES
LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS
MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR
- READ THE LATEST POSTS -
MEET MICHELLE
Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.
I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.
I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.
This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.
The #1 Content Creation Mistake to Avoid
Content creation is so important as an entrepreneur because it is basically how you get your voice and message out into the world.
So I'm sharing the #1 obstacle that's causing entrepreneurs to prematurely create their content.
If you’d like to watch the full video, you can do that here.
Content creation is so important as an entrepreneur because it is basically how you get your voice and message out into the world.
So today, I want to address the obstacle that I see coming up for entrepreneurs, especially new entrepreneurs, in prematurely creating their content.
New and seasoned entrepreneurs often come to me after starting their business and showing up on social media. They start creating content out of the gate and find themselves feeling overwhelmed, like their message is all over the place, struggling to come up with content ideas or not getting enough engagement.
The truth is there is a misconception around when we should be creating content and what we need to have in place in order to be doing it in a way that brings in the right people and leads to a revenue-generating business.
The truth is so many entrepreneurs are skipping the branding process which is why content works or why it doesn’t work. It’s really not about using cool tricks and trying to beat the algorithm.
It’s not about a specific number of characters or writing your title in a certain way.
It’s about understanding the fundamentals of your brand and building a strong foundation in which every piece of content is created.
CONTENT CREATION MISTAKES AND WHY THEY ARE HAPPENING
Unfortunately so many educators, coaches and consultants are telling people that they’ll figure it out if they keep posting content.
Okay, there's some truth to this in that you find your voice along the way, you start to see what people resonate with and don't resonate with and that tells you what you want to expand on.
But if you think that just posting random content with no clear plan is going to help you decide the pillars of your brand and business, that's backward.
We need to figure out the foundational pieces first so the content that we create, mimics that and is in alignment with that and again, draws in the right people.
Too many entrepreneurs are putting content out there, without a clear brand strategy in place and finding themselves building a community that they hope to sell too. Then when they finally sell...nobody buys.
The reason is you’re attracting people who aren’t in alignment with what you’re ultimately selling.
BRANDING FIRST THEN CONTENT CREATION
Branding at its core is what gives us the foundation so we don't ping pong all over, so that we don’t struggle to come up with ideas and so we don’t struggle to connect our community to our offer.
If you’re experiencing these pieces, let me tell you it’s a branding problem.
SO WHAT IS BRANDING?
To fix it we need to first talk about what branding is. There’s this lie that’s been floating around the internet for too long that your brand is your visual representation, i.e. your logo, fonts and colors.
While the visuals play a role they are only part of the finished product. They are the result of deciding on the experience you want to create.
Branding is an experience we’re creating for our target audience and what they’re taking away from the experience we’re creating.
So branding is so much more than just the color you use in a photo, and finalizing the true brand, the experience will help you decide on those visual components much faster.
It’s something that can’t wait or be done later. All of the pieces you want to create now, your website, content, free offers, promotions, etc...rely heavily on finalizing the core pillars of a brand.
The belief that branding can wait is very harmful to online entrepreneurs.
SO HOW DO WE FIX IT?
Lucky for you, I’m a Personal Branding Consultant and Marketing Strategist so you’re in good hands.
Depending on where you’re at in your business you need to:
Build your brand from the ground up (New and aspiring entrepreneurs)
Find the holes in your branding process and fill them (Seasoned entrepreneurs)
Before I share the 4 steps needed to have a solid brand, you must understand I’m not suggesting you go into hiding for 6 months, figure this out and then start again...NO!
Please don’t do that. So many of my clients do this in as little as a week, with some guidance.
If you’re wanting to fast track that then sign up for my free class on The Build a Better Brand Method here.
The key is to put in the work, yes, sometimes extra, on the backend, so you can start creating better content, growing your community with targeted leads, experiencing more engagement and ultimately making more sales.
As you do the work, you’ll notice a shift in your content creation strategy and results.
4 STEPS TO WRITE BETTER CONTENT + BUILD A BETTER BRAND
These four steps are 4 of the 6 steps in my Build a Better Brand Method. You can learn more about each detail and get the full picture of the branding process and how it plays a role in not only content creation but also increased revenue in my free class.
Watch The Build a Better Brand Masterclass here >>
1. NICHE
FIGURE OUT WHERE YOU FIT IN THIS ENTREPRENEUR SPACE
I don't care what you sell, you have to figure out your specific market. Niching down is one of the best things that you will do for your brand, for your business and as we're talking about for your content.
You need to understand what specific niche you provide your audience.
For instance, if you’re in skincare you won’t grow your business if you offer every skincare product under the sun, but you could focus on skincare for adult acne.
I’m a Branding coach, but I focus on personal branding with an emphasis on storytelling. So I'm not for the woman who isn't ready to be the face of her brand who isn't ready to share stories. That's what I'm about and I've carved out a very specific niche that addresses that issue.
This clarity is going to help you to understand how you're going to show up and communicate with your ideal audience. It's also going to help you get discovered online because people are searching for very specific things.
If you find that your market is full (aka saturated) you’re not alone. And while so many people think this is a bad thing it’s actually working in your favor. If someone is successfully doing it, then there is a need and demand.
Not one person can serve everyone! Find the gap, what they’re not doing, that you can bring to the table. This is your specific niche.
This knowledge around your niche is going to influence how you show up, create content and communicate with the world.
2. IDEAL CUSTOMER OR CLIENT
YES, YOU NEED TO KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE
If you're just starting out, your fear of focusing on one core person is hurting you. Because when you're not clear on specifically who you want to attract, you're creating messaging, content, offers that are trying to attract a bunch of different people and then guess what happens? You're so confusing to your ideal client, that they back out and can’t handle it.
Confusing your audience will result in lost sales.
Please do yourself a favor and take some time, if you haven't already, to do ideal client research. And if you have done it in the past, but it's been a while then give yourself a refresher.
There is so much to the ideal client research, but the top three points to identify are:
What specific person do you want to attract, sell to and work with?
What do they need help with? This is what you want to begin to create content around.
What do they ultimately want or desire? This will help you guide them through the process and help you identify obstacles standing in their way, which can also be addressed in your content.
If you can speak to the pain points of your ideal customer, you can give them solutions, and also speak to their obstacles; I am telling you, you will be the person that they hire.
Another perk of the ideal customer work (hey, that rhymed) is understanding who they are at a core human level. YOU NEED TO KNOW THIS!
Your audience is human and the more that you can understand this and speak to their everyday struggles and desires, not just how they pertain to your product or service, the deeper the connection.
For instance, my audience also loves to hear about time management, productivity, mindset, being a mom and running a business, so I get to create content that fits in all of those pieces and keeps my audience entertained and engaged.
3. MESSAGING AND BRANDING CONSISTENCY
REMEMBER, IF YOU CONFUSE YOUR AUDIENCE THEY WILL MOVE ON.
Having a messaging structure in place will help you to avoid posting one thing on a Monday, something different on Tuesday and completely left field on a Thursday. We want to avoid this off the wall approach (think spaghetti at a wall) and focus on having a clear structure in place.
One of the ways to combat this is with brand containers.
BRAND CONTAINERS
Brand containers piggyback off of the idea that your audience is freaking human. They want to see and hear about more than just your one offer, your products or your photographs, they want to build a know, like and trust factor with your brand overall.
This is why we want to identify the different ways we can support our ideal customer through our content. Like I mentioned above, I might do this with time management, productivity, mindset, being a mom and running a business.
Consistently creating content in these buckets builds you up as a credible resource for your audience, makes a more personal connection and also doesn't overwhelm your audience with sell after sell after sell.
These brand containers are life savers when it comes to creating content.
4. YOUR OFFER
WHERE ARE YOU LEADING YOUR ONLINE COMMUNITY?
This is a really important question that not enough people are asking. It’s one of the reasons I consider your offer or framework one of the foundations of branding.
Again, let’s imagine you’re showing up online. You’re spending time creating content and consistently post. Then after months you decide I’m going to make an offer, but that offer doesn’t connect to the community you’ve built online...your sales won’t be great!
When we have our offer or framework in mind from the start, we can reverse engineer our content to bring in the right people and lead them to the sale in an authentic and genuine way.
Building a targeted community requires building a strong brand.
If you know exactly what you want to teach or sell, amazing! This is where you would start getting clear on what that looks like and how it supports your ideal customer.
But, let’s say you’re not 100% sure yet, that’s ok too. You can build out your framework and then use that to influence your content and eventually your offer.
Ask yourself…
“If I were to create something, what would it look like?”
“How would I want to support my idea client on their journey?”
Just having that awareness in your head will allow you to create content and build a community that will then effortlessly lead to your product.
CONCLUSION
It’s important to remember that this process is part of branding and is necessary when building your business. I often say the brand is the beating heart of your business, without it, you’ve got nothing.
So by clarifying your niche, it will allow you to stand out when other people are talking about the same freakin’ thing.
Knowing your ideal client will not only allow you to create better copy that pulls them in and keeps them engaged but if you struggle with what to create content around, just pay attention to what your ideal client is asking for. It's like the easiest thing in the world. I never run out of content, because I'm listening or I'm asking questions of my audience.
If you're all over the place with your content and messaging, people are going to be very confused with how you can support them. Get clear on your messaging and brand containers, based on what they need the most support with.
And finally gaining clarity on your offer will allow you to create content that attracts the right people, nurture them and warm them up so that they're ready to take action on your offer.
Without these pieces done correctly, you'll struggle and we don’t want that.
That’s why I’ve put together a free guide for you called The Personal Brand Roadmap.
It gives you the full step by step in an easy to consume guide so you can get to work. I’m also sharing the top 3 mistakes I see entrepreneurs making when building their brand that you definitely want to avoid.
Download your free guide below.
P.S. Planning and creating your content doesn't have to be a constant struggle. There is a better way to research, plan, and create your content as an entrepreneur and it's all inside the Content Planning Blueprint!
The Content Planning Blueprint is perfect for online business owners who know the power of content creation but are tired of spending all of their time coming up with ideas, organizing their content, and wondering what will attract their dream clients.
In just a few hours, you'll have 90 days of content planned, a repeatable workflow to save you hours on creating and distributing your content every week, and content topics that will keep performing for your brand for years to come! Get your blueprint now >>
- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -
DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES
LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS
MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR
- READ THE LATEST POSTS -
MEET MICHELLE
Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.
I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.
I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.
This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.
How to Sell Authentically Online (3 Changes to Make Today)
Do you sell products or services online and notice that every time you have to have the “conversation” you feel gross or freeze? No worries, we’ve all been there, however, if you’re not selling you’re not making money so let’s fix this belief!
How to Sell Authentically Online
(3 Changes to Make Today)
BY MICHELLE KNIGHT
I’m really passionate about the topic of selling because I see so many entrepreneurs struggling with the idea of selling their products and their services.
Many of the clients that I work with, especially in those beginning stages, are really worried about sounding sleazy or sounding pushy or being aggressive with their audience in any way. And, and a lot of that really comes from the way that they look at selling.
I’ll give you an example...I call her Susie.
Susie as the girl in the Facebook group who sees that you're also in the Facebook group, maybe her Facebook group maybe not. About one day after joining the group you receive a message that says, “Hey, I'm also in this Facebook group [inserts Facebook group] and I'm just wondering, do you build sales funnels?” She then proceeds to pitch her mini-course she just created or her freebie or her masterclass or whatever.
And of course, you’re like, “Ok, but I don’t know you and you don’t know me!”
It's these types of strategies that people are using that we're on the receiving end of that give us this bad taste in our mouth when it comes to selling or promoting our services.
But at the end of the day, if you want to create a revenue-generating business, a profitable business, you have to sell, right? You have to talk about your products and your services.
So how do we do that? How do we do that in a way that feels authentic to us and that is focused on our community and as a result leads to what I think is a more reputable, a more energetic, a more attractive brand overall.
I promise there is another way to sell online that doesn’t feel gross to you or your audience and increases your conversions and we’re going to dive deep into that today.
YOUR MINDSET AROUND SELLING ONLINE
We all know that strategy is so important when it comes to building a profitable business, but if your head is not in the right space, those strategies don't work.
The biggest block that I see entrepreneurs have when it comes to selling is their view or belief about selling.
The sooner that you change your mindset from selling in terms of pitching and you focus more on the connection, the easier all of this will become.
When you’re focused on connection, over selling, you’re focused on your audience.
When you’re focused on selling, you’re focused on the product or the service. If in your mind you're like, I'm going to sell this person. I'm going to get this person into my program because then I'll hit my number. Or then I'll hit my monthly goal. You're just focused on the product and the service.
But things start to really shift when you decide that you’re going to show up and you’re going to listen to this person tell you their pain, their struggle, their problem, then you’re going to offer up what you have as a solution to that problem and they have a choice to take it or not take it.
When you can switch your mindset in this way, I am telling you it changes everything, not just for your audience, but also for you because the process doesn’t feel inauthentic.
This simple change in your own mindset, your own belief on what selling really is will have a big impact on your conversion rate and the success that you experience from selling your products and your services.
YOUR MARKETING IS THE SALES PROCESS
When you think about online marketing and sales, it’s crazy. We are asking people we’ve never met before to invest in our product or service, often sight unseen. And the reality is there are a lot of people offering the same thing, so not only are you asking them to do this but to also make the decision to choose you.
And that’s really what it’s about...the brand as a whole.
This is where your marketing comes in; more specifically relationships and human marketing.
The selling is happening long before the pitch or sales conversation. All of the branding, content and interactions that are part of your marketing strategy are meant to lead people closer to buying your product or service.
Zig Ziglar says, “If people like you they’ll listen to you, but if they trust you they’ll do business with you!”
The foundation of every sale you make comes from the consumer trusting you over another brand, and that trust happens long before you make an offer, send a link or have a phone call.
IT’S NOT A SALES CALL, BUT A SALES CONVERSATION
Look, I no longer have sales calls - I have sales conversations.
This small shift in my mindset and in my actions changed my conversion rate from not so great, to 90%.
Let’s break this idea down.
When you’re getting ready for a Sales Call, you’re prepping for that call. You’re mapping out how and why they should buy from you, what you need to say in order to close the sale and once again all of your focus is on the service or product.
When you switch to having a conversation you actually listen!
When you frame the conversation to listen more, it is no longer about you and your product, it’s about your audience and your problem.
It’s no longer about what my product offers, but what about my ideal customer specifically needed.
When you’re listening to your ideal customer, it’s important to listen for a few key points (p.s. This counts for email communication as well).
What are they struggling with?
What do they want?
What obstacles are standing in their way?
And because you’ve listened to these three main points, you’re able to frame the offer specifically for them.
If you’ve ever struggled with what to say in a sales conversation, try listening and you’ll discover they will tell you everything you need to know.
5 SALES OBJECTIONS
Zig Ziglar states that there are 5 core sales objections, and I’ve got to admit I believe him 100%.
No need
No money
No hurry
No desire
No trust
Why is this important? Because not only can you address these objections in your relationship marketing leading up to the sale, but you can also use this knowledge to pinpoint where your ideal client is on a sales conversation.
When you have this information you’ll become a better marketer and you guessed it...sales queen!
CONCLUSION
When you look at the info above, you’ll notice it comes down to three core areas; mindset, relationships and sales conversations. It’s important that you identify the area you feel you need to put the most energy in your business to start seeing better results and feel more aligned with the process.
Selling is so important, because without there’s no money! That’s why in my signature group program Roadmap to Freedom, we dedicate an entire phase to the Art of Selling. I know how important it is to not only work on confidence around selling but also how to prepare for sales conversations, how to handle objections and so much more.
To learn more about Roadmap to Freedom visit brandmerry.com/freedom.
P.S. If you want to watch this blog content + learn 3 of my favorite selling strategies be sure to watch the video below.
P.P.S. I’ve got another video on boosting your Confidence While Selling, which you can read and watch here.
- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -
DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES
LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS
MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR
- READ THE LATEST POSTS -
MEET MICHELLE
Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.
I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.
I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.
This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.
3 Marketing Mistakes to Avoid as an Online Entrepreneur
You’re probably making these 3 marketing mistakes right now. If you’re anything like the thousands of entrepreneurs I support there keeping you from growing your community and your profits. Read the blog to find out if you’re making these mistakes and how to fix them.
3 Marketing Mistakes to Avoid as an Online Entrepreneur
BY MICHELLE KNIGHT
In the past four years of running my online business, I’ve worked with thousands of entrepreneurs in marketing their brand and business.
I’ve noticed three core mistakes that online entrepreneurs are making when it comes to marketing their business.
And, full disclosure, I’ve ALSO made these mistakes - you live and you learn right?
Along with everything I create at Brandmerry.com, I want to give you the insights and tools to brand and marketing yourself online. So, let’s start with the top three mistakes.
For additional tips on what I call SMART Marketing and what I believe the 3 pillars of a solid marketing strategy are, be sure to watch the full video below. These tips start at the 19:32 minute mark.
Marketing Mistake #1: Relying on Social Media
The very first marketing mistake is that you are most likely relying only on social media to grow and market your business. As the online mentoring and course industry expands more and more coaches are utilizing social media platforms and unfortunately the message is getting out there that all we need to do is show up on social media to grow a profitable business.
I don’t know about you, but I quickly noticed it’s not quite that easy, right?
While, this strategy might have worked wonders for them and it probably still does cause they have like 100,000 followers or 25,000 followers, for those of you that are just starting out and in the trenches of that first and second year maybe you've realized that you've hit a ceiling and that you can't create more content.
Showing up on social media daily to engage and create content takes a lot of time. When you go about using this strategy only, you’ll start to create less and less content because it starts to get harder to keep it consistent. Then over time you notice you’re going weeks without anything.
I got to a point in my business where I had reached six figures, and although I felt accomplished I also didn’t know how I was going to keep growing. I realized I couldn’t make more than this a year, if I was going to keep getting clients and then still show up on social media every single day.
The reality is by relying on this strategy I was limiting myself and you’re most likely doing the same. It’s not scalable to rely on social media to grow your community and profits.
The other piece is that you don’t own social media. If you're relying on Instagram to promote your business and Instagram doesn't work, how do you promote your business?
If you're relying on Facebook or even your Facebook group to show up and promote your business and for some reason that's not working in the middle of a launch or a sale, what happens?
That’s why it’s so important to have these other avenues in place to consistently build your audience.
**If you’re curious about my favorite strategy which is SEO (Search Engine Optimization) be sure to check out this post here.
You should not be relying on social media to constantly attract new leads and grow your business. Social media is where we go to be social, to build relationships, to nurture the community that's already there.
Marketing Mistake #2: Not Generating Leads
This mistake makes me hurt a little inside, when I see an entrepreneur who has no efficient way to collect leads from prospects on their website, watching a live video or following them on social media.
This is all about list building. The idea is that if someone is taking the time to consume your content, you want to give them a way to join your “inner circle” i.e. your email list.
To kick it off, I highly recommend Convertkit to grow your email list because it has all the tools you need including landing pages, segmenting, forms for your website, tags, funnels and more. You can try it for free with my link here.
The beautiful thing about capturing your ideal customers information is that they are committing to your business. It’s essentially their first investment in you and your brand. Even though you're not getting an exchange of money, somebody is saying, “Okay, I trust you. I like what you're about and want to hear more from you. I want to welcome you into my inbox!”
I don't know about you, but my inbox is a sacred space. This is a big deal!
So to generate consistent leads to your business you want to have advanced marketing strategies in place like, SEO, podcasting, YouTube, blogging and Pinterest where you’re putting out a piece of content and every single day people are finding it and saying yes to joining your list.
Now, here is the kicker!
There needs to be an exchange that happens where you give them a free gift in exchange for their email address. This is the very beginning of the lead generation process.
If you’re new to list building, here is the overview below. If you want to learn more about list building, check out this blog here.
So you start with a free gift. If you’re a service-based business this can be a PDF, video training, audio training, a quiz...there are a ton of different options here.
If you sell a product, this might be a coupon code or a discount on their first item, but it could also be something really cool like a quiz. If I were selling a skincare product, I might create a free quiz that tells people their skin type and recommends the best products. In order to get the results and tips, they would have to give their email address.
That’s the free gift, something of value in exchange for their email address. Then you show up for them regularly in their inbox, providing value and time to time asking for the sale.
3 TIPS TO IMPROVE YOUR FREEBIE (FREE OFFER)
Your freebie needs to be something your audience knows they need. If they are not aware of it, then it’s going to be really hard to market.
It needs to provide value to your audience. If after they consume the content, they walk away with something to implement, having learned something new or being inspired it’s valuable.
Your free gift needs to be a clear pillar of your brand. For instance, a skincare quiz sounds super cool, but I wouldn’t do that as a free gift because it doesn’t directly connect to my brand message or paid services.
Marketing Mistake #3: You’re Blaming the Algorithm
I call this the blame game.
My marketing isn't working because of the algorithm…
My marketing isn’t working because my industry is saturated…
My marketing isn’t working because my ideal client isn’t on [insert platform]...
That is not why your marketing isn’t working, but it's really easy to fall into this rut. It's really easy to fall into this thinking and then stay there.
I can teach you all the strategies in the world, but if you're stuck in a mindset that no one cares or no one sees it or it doesn't matter, then you won't get results.
And that's the truth.
I’ve had those moments in my own business, especially in the beginning. If I was promoting a challenge and there were 5 people who signed up, and in my mind it was nobody cared.
EXCEPT 5 people!
5 people who signed up, who had never heard of me before, who had never bought from me before, who were giving me an opportunity to show up for them.
That’s 5 potential clients.
It’s all in your mindset.
Such a big part of showing up is creating content! If you don't think people will find it, if you don't think people will find value in it, then what are the odds that you’re going to consistently show up?
Your mindset will take over and you’ll feel there is no point...no one sees it
...the algorithm is out to get me.
No, the algorithm is out to challenge you...accept that challenge and become better.
If your marketing isn’t working change your mindset, accept responsibility and find solutions.
We cannot play small games when it comes to building our online brand and our business and this belief will keep you playing small. In order to be successful, we need to think big picture and big picture responsibility, taking responsibility for things, not working and finding solutions.
CONCLUSION
The first part to improving your marketing is understanding the mistakes you’re making and my guess is you’re now super aware of three.
From here, you can create a course of action to fix them so you can continue to grow your online business. If you want to learn more about SMART Marketing and the three pillars of a successful marketing strategy watch the video people (these tips start at the 19:32 mark).
If you’re ready to take action to improve your marketing, grow your audience and grow your profits, then I encourage you to check out Brandmerry Academy and join the waitlist for when the doors open again.
Learn more at brandmerryacademy.com
P.S. If you want to learn more about my repurposing strategy, check out my 3 tips here.
P.P.S. Are we connected on Instagram? No? Well lady what’s happening here we’ve got to fix that. Come hang out with me on my favorite social media platform. Follow for inspiration and send me a DM to know we’re connected.
- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -
DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES
LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS
MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR
- READ THE LATEST POSTS -
MEET MICHELLE
Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.
I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.
I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.
This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.