5 Tips to Increase Your Website Conversions

5 Tips to Increase Your Website Conversions

BY MICHELLE KNIGHT

The truth is websites are completely underrated. There has been a movement in the past couple of years from mentors and coaches saying that websites aren’t necessary when building a business.

I call BS on that one and here is why.

From a personal standpoint, I attract over 10,000 visitors to my website every month using Google and Pinterest.

In 2019 every private coaching client I signed (a minimum $5,000 investment) came from a simple Google search.

Today, I’m making sales every week from people who find me on Google and Pinterest. 

Without my website, none of that would be possible.

However, I get it! When I started my business I had zero traffic and therefore started to believe the lie that a website was pointless.

I’m glad I didn’t fall for that though and instead dedicated my time to not only driving more organic traffic to my website but also optimizing my website for conversions.

If you’re looking for ways to increase traffic to your website, check out this post here.

So, now that we understand how freaking cool websites are, let’s talk about how to optimize them. But, before we dive into these conversions let’s make sure we’re both on the same page.

I’m not promoting you spending the next 6 months trying to build your website, or playing with your website. This is not the answer. 

What you want to do is build your brand foundations, you can learn more about that in my Build a Better Brand Masterclass, and then create a simple website to start driving traffic to. You can always improve your website as more and more people find it.

So read through this post and if you don’t have a website bookmark it and start with my Build a Better Brand Masterclass and if you have a website then let’s get to work.

Website Conversion Tip #1

GRAB THEIR ATTENTION IMMEDIATELY

The average person will make a decision if your website is right for them in 15 seconds. Yes, that is the average time someone will spend on your website, so grabbing their attention and the first impression is crucial.

I look at this like the subject line of an email you want your audience to open or the photo on Instagram that you want your audience to see so they read your post.

This same approach applies to your website. My secret sauce for this is Emotional Branding.

I’ve been teaching the idea of Emotional Branding for years and it’s one of the most powerful pieces you can have in your branding, but more importantly in any situation where you want your audience to stop what they're doing and take action, or in this case explore your website.

Let’s assume for a moment we are talking about your homepage, since this is where most people from Google will land. The easiest way to see how your website is performing is to explore it yourself. 

Head to your website, as a viewer, and write down that you see. What do the images say to you, what is the first language you see, are you excited, stressed, happy, comforted, etc when you first get there? You can also ask two or three of your friends or family to tell you what they see and feel when landing on your site as well.

When you get this information ask yourself, “Is this on-brand for me? Is this correct based on the limited time they spent on my website?”

You’ll start to notice that the more emotionally-charged your images and words are the more likely people will be to stick around. 

Pictures of people work really well in this scenario, strong language or a mission at the top and pointing out the problem your audience is facing are great ways to get started.

Website Conversion Tip #2

CLEARLY STATE THE PURPOSE OF YOUR BRAND

Speaking of the first 15 seconds and the top of your website, the second thing you want to clearly state is the purpose of your brand. This will drastically help you improve website conversions because it gives people the opportunity to say, “Yes, this person is for me or no, I’m not feeling it!”

Despite what people say you actually want the wrong people for your brand to peace out. Why would you want someone who isn’t in alignment with your brand, not your ideal client and likely never going to buy from you hanging out? You don’t.

Having this clear brand statement at the top allows you to state what you do, who you serve, what problem they are facing and how your service or product helps them solve that problem.

For instance, my website says, “As a personal branding consultant, I teach female entrepreneurs who struggle with building a revenue-generating business, how to brand and market their mission and message online to make more money and impact.”

Right away you know what I do, who I serve, what they struggle with and what I help them accomplish. This is important because as a branding consultant I don’t do the physical branding work for you. So when people land on my website I want to make that clear that I’m not a designer. If they know right away there isn’t confusion or false expectations on how I can support them.

Website Conversion Tip #3

HAVE A CLEAR CALL TO ACTION

If someone is on your website, what do you want them to do? It’s a really important question that we don’t often think about. 

Typically there are two options:

Option 1 - Buy your product or service
Option 2 - Join your email list (the inner circle)

This last option is important because if you don’t have this call to action you might miss out on a potential sale. 

Let’s say I visit your website and I love it but I’m not in the market for your services. Of course, that doesn’t mean I’ll never be in need of your services, but if I have no way to stay in contact with you or learn more about you the odds of me remembering you are slim.

This is why we should always, I repeat always, have an email opt-in. You can learn more about building an email list here.

I prefer to have one core lead magnet that someone can receive in exchange for their email address. When you have one clear call to action it’s easier for people to say yes or no. For instance, my Personal Brand Roadmap is my only call to action on my home page and since making that change we’ve seen an increase in lead magnet conversions of over 60%.

The same is important for your blog as well, always have a lead magnet available on every single one of your blog posts so if someone finds you on Pinterest they can join your inner circle.

Website Conversion Tip #4

TELL A GREAT STORY

This is my specialty and the core foundation of my business. Storytelling is so important, but so many people reserve it for social media and email marketing and completely miss the mark on their website.

Up until this point we’ve talked a lot about your homepage, but there is another important page on your website that gets the majority of your traffic and that’s your ‘About Me’ page.

Your ‘About Me’ page is typically the second most viewed page on your website and rightfully so, people want to know what you’re about, they want to know your story. This is essential because what they are ultimately saying is, “Can I trust this person?”

Your ‘About Me’ page should, in fact, be about you. I know there is a lot of misinformation about what to include on this page and people often say it should only be about your audience, but I disagree.

If I’m going to your ‘About Me’ page then I want to learn about you. If you don’t tell me about you then I’m going to lose interest. So your page should include a clear brand story, as well as more information about you, what led you to where you are today, why you do what you do and who you serve.

By following this framework you’re more likely to convert readers and visitors into community members and paying clients. I know from experience that people have signed up for my programs because of what they read on my ‘About Me’ page.

For your page to perform and increase conversions you have to know your story. This is one of the core pillars of my program You! Branded, in fact, it’s the first module.

You! Branded helps women identify the different chapters of their book, aka ‘About Me’ page. It’s about introducing people to you, sharing your journey and building authority and trust and finally bringing it home to share how you can support them.

There is a fine art in writing your story while also keeping your audience engaged and inviting them in. I’ve got an entire blog on writing your ‘About Me’ page which you can check out here.

Website Conversion Tip #5

SEND A COHESIVE MESSAGE

And finally, let’s talk about a cohesive message for your website. This is where your branding work really gets to shine, and no I don’t mean your logo. 

What I mean by your branding work is how consistent are your images, your brand emotions and your overall messaging? Break this consistency and you’ll break the trust of your website viewer.

If I land on your homepage and discover you are a Relationship Coach for women healing from a toxic relationship and I’m intrigued. So then, I hop over to your blog and your blogs are about building your email list, there is a disconnect and now I’m confused and the trust is broken.

You want to make sure that everything you’re sharing on your website follows the theme of your brand and speaks to a very specific person. One of the pieces to a strong brand is messaging and I believe in building core brand messages for your brand as a whole so you can share those messages everywhere, including your website and always be on-brand.

If your message on your homepage is different from your message on your About Me and your blog it’s going to be hard for me to understand what exactly you do and how you can help me. 

An example would be that you don’t do any core messaging work and you start building your website. You sit down and write your homepage. Then the next day you write your story. Then an individual sales page. If you piece these together they don’t flow and feel like three separate standalone pages.

The reason we want things to flow is that we don’t just want to keep people engaged for 15 seconds as we talked about in tip one, but we also want to keep them on your website for an extended period of time. 

Those visitors are more likely to convert.


CONCLUSION

I know that if you implement these five tips on your website and my top tips for increasing traffic you’re going to find that your website can be a valuable part of your business.

As I mentioned in the beginning and throughout this blog so much of your messaging, story, visuals, etc come from your branding work. If you want to dive deeper into building your personal brand, I have a free Personal Brand Roadmap that you can download here.

P.S. If you want to learn more about the importance of storytelling because I know it’s such a hot topic, and rightfully so, I’ve got a blog post on The Art of Storytelling in Business here.

WATCH THE TIPS AND MORE HERE.

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- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -

DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

START HERE ↠

LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS

START HERE ↠

MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR

START HERE ↠

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- READ THE LATEST POSTS -

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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.

4 Steps to Create Consistent Content for Your Business

If you’d like to watch the full video, you can do that here.

Content creation, you either love it or hate. I freaking love it and over the past four years of running my online business, I’ve shown up every single week with content for my audience.

I have over 200 blogs on my website, I’ve emailed my list at least once a week and the number of videos I’ve created is crazy. I do it because I love it, but I’ve also found a way to do it without spending all my time on it.

And content has gotten a bad wrap, people are talking about how you don’t need it, but in this blog, I’m going to share why it’s important and how to consistently show up for your audience without feeling stressed and overwhelmed with the process. 

3 LEVELS OF CONTENT CREATION

There are three levels your audience passes through, that you need to be aware of when creating content.

LEVEL ONE IS AWARENESS.
It’s the level in which people learn about you, your brand and maybe your service for the first time. Suddenly you’re on their radar and their awareness is heightened.

LEVEL TWO IS ATTRACTION.
After someone has an awareness of your brand, we then move our attention to attracting them to our inner circle/ or tribe. The goal here is to get people to sign up for your email list. Attracting them with a signature piece of content or, as I prefer, a lead magnet where they have to join your list to get it.

LEVEL THREE IS CONNECTION.
At this phase, we are putting the emphasis on nurturing your growing audience. The goal is to show up for them, connect with them and ultimately lead them to the sale.

Now, of course, someone could see your brand and go straight to the sale.

Somebody could join your list and go straight to the sale, but the majority of the people (think 90% need a little more nurturing and trust building).

Each of the levels shared above relies on content.

You can't really bring people to your brand, make them aware of your brand and what you have to offer if you're not showing up.

You can’t attract the right people and get them ready to join your email list if you’re not creating the quality content they want.

And, we can't really connect with people and build that relationship if we're not showing up and connecting with them consistently. 

So everything that we do as an online entrepreneur is really centered around content.

CONSISTENT CONTENT DOESN’T MEAN POSTING DAILY

When I talk about consistent content people’s immediate reaction is that I’m asking them to post every day, when the truth is far from that.

I actually hate this strategy and don’t use it in my business. I teach a very, very different method inside of Brandmerry Academy that relies on the art of repurposing.

But, what I want to drive home is the element of consistency. Consistency doesn’t mean daily, it means being consistent in your scheduling.

If you decide that you want to show up twice a week, consistently show up twice a week

If you decide you want to show three, four, whatever it is times a week, consistently do that. 

One of the worst things you can do is break your consistency, yet so many entrepreneurs fall off the wagon once or twice and then stop. Rather than hoping back on, it becomes this whole thing of, “Do I hop back on? How do I get back into it? Where do I start again?”

We put too much pressure on ourselves that if something happens, and we don't show up, or you know, we don't write a blog that week that we have to start over from the beginning and that is so not the case. 

That’s why so much of consistently showing up online and sharing content is reliant on our mindset. 

The tips below will only work if you understand that life will happen, you might fall off the schedule a few times, but the best thing you can do is get back up and work on your content creation habits.

Remember the more that you show up, the more consistent you are, the more your audience hears from you. 

The less you show up, the less consistent you are, the less your audience hears from you.

It’s not science.

Ok, on to the 4 Tips to Create Consistent Content in Your Business.

1. STAY INSPIRED TO CREATE CONTENT

You have to stay inspired and motivated. The key to being excited about creating content is to always look for ways to be inspired.

Let me give you an example. 

I know that if I need to create content, my butt goes outside.

If I know that I need to create content, let’s say I want to brainstorm and map out 90 days of topics I head to Starbucks.

I know the type of environments and resources that get me inspired and motivated. What are yours?

We have to put ourselves in places that inspire us if we ever hope to be inspired.

If you're sitting In bed, on your laptop, you're probably not feeling very inspired. 

So not only do we need to put ourselves in situations where we're feeling inspired, but we also have to get excited about what it is we are doing.

So much of getting excited ties back to the purpose of your business. 

Why are you doing this? 
Why should you show up and create content?
Who is it for?

If you haven't figured out the real purpose and mission behind your business, today would be a great day to write that down.

When I tap into my purpose of empowering women to own their story and show up and share that with the world through their brand that keeps me motivated. So, even if I am tired or don’t feel 100% in it, I root myself in my purpose and excitement hits.

The core part of consistently thinking of content topics, consistently showing up and delivering that content and consistently engaging comes from being inspired and being motivated. 

2. LOOK AROUND FOR CONTENT IDEAS

When we start thinking about creating content we sit down with a notepad, in a quiet room and write our ideas.

I'm telling you, I've had the best content ideas in the shower, or walking through the grocery store, listening to podcasts, or scrolling on Instagram, which is not in a dark room with a notepad.

I’m using the everyday moments around me to think of ideas. For instance, when I hop on Instagram I won’t just do it to waste some time, but I’ll set the intention to see if anything inspires me outside of my industry.

Then I use that inspiration to create a piece of content.

This is why I’m a big fan of using Trello or Google Docs as a way to organize a content idea bank because as I’m going about my day, with the intention to look for ideas, I can pause and add my idea to my Trello board and then go back about my day.

What I’m doing is I’m creating a resource of content ideas every single day, rather than sitting down to “try and write” and feeling incredibly lost and stuck.

The biggest mistake I see entrepreneurs make is feeling like it's 100% up to them to come up with topics for their content.

Look around you.
Get inspired.
Don’t be afraid to Google topics and see what comes up.
Search on Pinterest for a topic and see what comes to your mind.
Look in a Facebook Group and search for topics to see what people ask.

Shift the way you go about getting ideas away from sitting down and brainstorming, to setting the intention to always look for ideas.

3. MAKE CONTENT CREATION A PRIORITY

Your content creation and your business in general, shouldn't just fit in where it fits in your schedule. Make it a priority and move the other things to fit around it.

You will get results if you’re carving out a dedicated chunk of time at least once a week to create your content if you’re not then you're doing yourself a disservice.

You don’t need to create every single day, many of my clients have one designated content creation/ writing day a week. And if you do it, for let’s say two weeks, and still don’t find you’re able to create the amount of content you want in that time frame then cut back on the content or master your repurposing workflow.

Do what you can in that time frame and then as your business grows, as you hire more team members, as you get faster and faster writing content and blog posts, then you can start to create more and show up on more platforms.

So many people fall off because they're trying to do way too much when it comes to content creation, they can't keep up with it. 

I am a big fan of bulk scheduling. I bulk create and write my content on Monday’s.

I don't do calls on Mondays and pretty much my entire day is carved out to create my content.

I use this time to write my notes for my weekly live stream, Mondays With Michelle, schedule my social media posts and choose the graphics.

4. CHOOSE YOUR CONTENT PLATFORMS WISELY

When you’re starting your online business you’re thinking, “Ok, I’m going to create a website and hope someone comes to it and then I’ll show up on social media. I’ll create a Facebook group or I'll join some Facebook groups, and I'll show up on Instagram.”

Sound familiar? I know it was exactly what I did in the beginning.

This is why so many entrepreneurs get overwhelmed because in order for your stuff to really get seen on those platforms you need to consistently post, which means daily on Facebook and Instagram.

I used to do this and found myself overwhelmed with the amount of content I needed to create, so I don’t do it anymore and that's because social media is no longer my top tier platform.

Remember back to the beginning where we talked about Awareness, Attraction and Connection? Another way to look at this is through Cold, Warm and Hot Leads.

The majority of people in the Awareness phase are a cold lead, so you’re creating content that pulls them into your brand, if this is social media you’re going to feel like you’re constantly climbing a steep hill.

In my business, I pull in cold leads through my blog, which I optimize for Google and share on Pinterest. Another alternative is Youtube and podcasting. The reason these platforms work so well is because they are Search Engines; your audience is going to them with specific questions and looking for answers, this is not the same for social media.

In addition, your content lives longer on these platforms than say a post on social media, which might last 24 hours if you’re lucky.

If you're not already considering things like optimizing your website for SEO, and you aren't blogging, and you are not using Pinterest or you’re not using YouTube (if you like videos), really consider switching up where you are showing up, it will make a huge difference and will allow you to consistently show up with less content.

Again, if you want more of a deep dive in how to repurpose your weekly video or blog post, check out this blog.

CONCLUSION

Consistently showing up in your brand is important, but it doesn’t mean you have to post daily. Consistently showing up is about having smart marketing in place with systems and workflows that allow you to create content in a shorter amount of time and optimize your content so it lasts longer.

Brandmerry Academy is where I teach my clients how to improve their marketing without relying on social media. To learn more and join the waitlist visit brandmerryacademy.com

If these tips were helpful let me know over on Instagram. I’m hanging out at @michelleknightco.

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 >>

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- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -

DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

START HERE ↠

LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS

START HERE ↠

MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR

START HERE ↠

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- READ THE LATEST POSTS -

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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.

7 Steps to Repurpose Your Weekly Content and Work Less

If you’d like to watch the full video, you can do that here.

When I started my business I had no other choice but to be efficient with my time.

I started my business while working at a 9 to 5, raising a new baby (my first by the way), commuting, taking care of my home and launching this business.

Despite having no idea what I was doing, which definitely took time, I also had a bunch of other things to do.

No team.
Just me.
Content to create.

That’s when I fell in love with repurposing and over the past 4 years, I’ve freaking mastered it!

Today, I’m excited to share with you what repurposing looks like in my 6-figure business and how you can apply a similar workflow to your own business.

Why Should Online Entrepreneurs Repurpose Their Content

As an online entrepreneur, you should be focused on 4 tasks daily.

1. Growing your email list

2. Nurturing your email list

3. Making a sale

4. Serving your existing clients and customers

I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but the majority of your time goes to creating some form of content. What if you could streamline your entire content creation process with the art of repurposing and save yourself so much time every single week?

Are you intrigued yet?

Let’s pretend you spend…
1 hour writing an email every week
30 minutes to write a single social media post with photo
1 hour to write a blog post
30 minutes to record a Facebook live or record a video

This means you’re spending 3 hours minimum, for many of you this might be a hell of a lot more, to create 4 pieces of content for the week.

If this is your current strategy, spending a few hours every day writing content then you need repurposing more than you know.

The idea of repurposing is that you create one core piece of content and then break it down into multiple pieces to support the larger piece, show up and spread your message.

This means the time you’re spending to create a piece of content isn’t in vain...that one hour you spend to write a blog becomes 7 days’ worth of content or possibly more.

Repurposing provides you with 3 incredible benefits:

1. Saves you time every single week and day

2. Extends the life of your content. I don’t know about you, but if I’m spending an hour writing a piece of content I want to make sure it lasts more and an hour on social media.

3. Reaches your audience. Remember the rule of 7 in marketing? Well, your audience is most likely NOT seeing your single piece of content, so why not create a few more pieces to make sure they actually see your hard work in action.
   
   

There are so many different ways to repurpose your content, but today I want to share with you the exact method we use inside of my business and give you a simple workflow to set yourself up for success.

I’ve got some bonus videos below if you prefer to watch.

The Repurpose Strategy of a Multi 6-Figure Entrepreneur

I’ve always been a fan of repurposing content because, in the beginning, I didn’t really have a choice. I was working a 9 to 5, building my business and had a newborn baby strapped to my back, on my hip, on my boob...you get the picture.

I needed a way to maximize my time and my content in order to grow my business from the ground up.

In the beginning, I started simple. I would write a blog and send it to my list and then I’d share it on social media, but I was still writing more emails every week and scheduling social media felt exhausting.

If we’re being honest social media hasn’t always been my favorite way to attract new leads, I much prefer SEO, Pinterest and video for that and teach this inside of my membership Brandmerry Academy.

But, year after year I would fine-tune my process. I’d remove things that weren’t yielding results and I’d amplify the stuff that was.

In 2020, I was determined to create a workflow that would once again allow me to show up live for my audience, post on IGTV, show up on social media, improve my SEO and attract quality leads through Pinterest.

It’s been 4+ months of this strategy and I’m SO IN LOVE. 

Seriously, content is so flipping easy now, and I know that at the bare minimum I’m showing up and delivering quality content for my audience every single week.

Want a look inside of my workflow?

Here is my 2020 Content Workflow featuring my dear friend repurposing.

Step 1: Determine a topic for my weekly show Mondays With Michelle

Step 2: Email my community on Monday about my live stream topic and how to watch

Step 3: Write my script for the live video

Step 4: Share the live video on social media (Facebook and Instagram)

Step 5: Deliver the live video

**This all usually happens on Monday, the topics are outlined about 3 months in advance**

Step 6: Take the script or transcript (either works depending on your preference) and format it for a blog, this includes SEO research.

Step 7: Turn the video content into a blog (hint: this blog started the exact same way)

Step 8: Pull quotes and information from the script to create graphics (typically 2-3)

Step 9: Schedule the graphics for Facebook and Instagram

Step 10: Publish the blog post and share on Pinterest

Step 11: Turn the video (sometimes broken down into multiple pieces) into a video for IGTV

Step 12: Share on IGTV

Repeat every freaking week!

It looks a little something like this.

This might look like a lot, but the majority of these steps are just formatting and scheduling, which I now have a freaking amazing team to support me, but I did it myself for years.

The idea here is that I really only need to show up once to create the content, which I do on live video, and I’m set for the entire week!

7 Steps to Repurpose Your Blog, Video and Social Media Content

I don’t want you to mimic my workflow unless it works for you and the vision of your brand, but I do want to give you 7 steps to follow to create your own workflow. Follow these steps and you’ll find content creation becomes a freaking breeze.

I teach this entire strategy, plus how to utilize advanced marketing platforms inside my program Brandmerry Academy.

Step 1: DETERMINE YOUR PLATFORMS
You can’t design this unless you know exactly where you want to be showing up. As you saw from my example above I’m showing up on:

• Facebook and Instagram Live

• Facebook and Instagram Stories

• Facebook and Instagram Feed

• IGTV

• My blog

• Pinterest

• and Email

You can expand on this or shorten it down even further depending on your needs.

Step 2: DECIDE ON YOUR LONG-FORM CONTENT
Here is where so many entrepreneurs get it wrong! You want to make your life easier and start with the longest piece of content first. That will most likely be your blog or a video.

I highly recommend you have a blog for your website in order to improve your SEO and to give you the tools to grow on Pinterest, my favorite platform to be on (seriously, we’ve got 1 million viewers on there are you one of them?)

Once you’ve decided on your long-form content you can map out your 30-day calendar for that piece. Inside, the Academy we focus on 90 days, but you have to start somewhere, right?

Step 3: DESIGN YOUR WORKFLOW
For this step, I suggest using Trello or Asana. I use Asana to easily assign deadlines and tasks to my team and I like it because we can see where each other is in the process.

Set up a sample card in Asana with your workflow. List out every step and use this as a template moving forward. You can just duplicate the task every week for new content.

Remember, the goal here is to list out where you’ll be posting the content and every task you have. See my sample below.

**The first 3 steps only need to be done once!

Step 4: MAP OUT AT LEAST 30 DAYS OF CONTENT
For my business, this is my weekly video on Monday. I have a spreadsheet inside of Google Sheets that list out my schedule and topic for each episode.

This allows me to see the big picture of my content and I can start brainstorming my ideas far in advance.

**You’ll repeat this step every 30 days

Step 5: CREATE YOUR LONG-FORM PIECE OF CONTENT
Either sit down and write your blog post, record your video or record your podcast. Get this final piece 100% complete before moving on, it’s going to save you a lot of time. Remember, everything in your workflow stems from this single piece of content.

Step 6: BREAK DOWN YOUR CONTENT
Here’s the fun part. 

Now go through your long-form content and pull out the pieces you need. Create your graphics (use a template in Canva to make this easy), write your emails, draft your social media posts, etc.

If you’re repurposing a video, I love VEED.io.

Whatever you need to write, do that now! You basically want to have everything ready to post without actually posting it.

Step 7: SCHEDULE IT
You know I love a good scheduling tool. If you’re repurposing and not taking the time to schedule it what are you even doing? It takes like 30 minutes once everything is ready to go and will save you hours in the long run!

Use a tool like Later to schedule your Instagram and Facebook posts.
Use Tailwind to schedule your Pinterest images.
You can even schedule your blog post in your web provider.
Upload your IGTV and save it as a draft (watch the video below for my secret on this).
Schedule your email for delivery.
Schedule your podcasts in LIbsyn.
Schedule your videos for Youtube.

EVERYTHING can be scheduled in advance, and if you take this chunk of time at the beginning of the week or even month to do it, you’ll find you’ve got more time every single week.

CONCLUSION

If you implement even just 3 of these steps you’re going to start to streamline your content which will save you so much time.

I can’t stress that enough. Remember you started this business to live a life of freedom and make an impact, you can’t do that if you’re spending hours every single day creating content.

Marketing is necessary to grow your business, but it doesn’t have to be overwhelming. I believe in a simplified and minimalist approach to marketing that works to consistently grow your brand and business. Learn more at BrandmerryAcademy.com

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 >>

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- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -

DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

START HERE ↠

LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS

START HERE ↠

MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR

START HERE ↠

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- READ THE LATEST POSTS -

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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 Art of Storytelling in Business to Build Trust and Make Sales

The Art of Storytelling in Business to Build Trust and Make Sales

BY MICHELLE KNIGHT

Every single day I am messaged or approached by someone who is concerned with their Brand Story.

And while understanding and framing your Brand Story in the best way IS important, it's not the only story you should be sharing online...

…and, dare I say, it's not even the one that's going to build the most trust or lead to the most sales.

It's the everyday stories you share on video, via email and on social media that make the biggest connection with your audience.

These stories make your content 22x more likely to be remembered and I don’t know about you, but I spend a lot of time and energy crafting content for my audience so I’d like for it to be remembered!

However, so many entrepreneurs struggle to figure out what stories to share, understand the core pieces of a great story and how to effectively write for social media.

And that’s because…

1. It doesn’t come naturally to many of us, myself included in the beginning.

2. So many people make storytelling so freaking complex when it doesn’t have to be.

But, I've spent the last 4 years studying, testing and getting results from sharing stories on social media.

In fact, everything I write in my business is centered around story and I’ve built a multi 6-figure business by sharing stories online #nojoke

So, let's just say I know a thing or two around this whole storytelling on social media thing.

What’s important to understand is:

• The importance of story in branding and how to use it to break free from the algorithm and social media chains currently keeping your brand from its full potential.

• What makes a GREAT story online and why it’s not really about you!

• How to start integrating storytelling into your content to build a deeper connection and trust with your audience.

And lucky for you, this blog is going to cover just that.

I’ve also got a video training below if video is more your thing!

MY JOURNEY WITH STORYTELLING IN BUSINESS

A little backstory on me. I started my business with just an idea, seriously I wanted to help women design their website and brand. I spent months building that business until I wasn’t seeing results.

So I did an exercise, I looked at my story and my past to try and determine what I could build a business around that lit me up and made an impact. I had determined that not only was I not making money because my messaging and marketing was off, but because I didn’t actually want to do the things I was trying to sell.

I went deep into my story, performed my niching down exercise I shared last week and came out with the idea that I wanted to help women experience more time, financial and location freedom, but how?

I decided that I could do that by helping them build profitable brands, so I started showing up and sharing more of my own journey, my own experiences and sharing so much more of my story.

My community began to grow and I almost instantly started signing clients. I kept going and tapped more and more into my story to scale my business to multiple 6-figures.

Yes, my brand is the center of how I’ve created a successful business, but even further down it’s been the power of story.

Every single day I’m incorporating storytelling into everything I do and now I’m going to share with you how to do it too!

WHY STORYTELLING IS SO IMPORTANT AS AN ONLINE BUSINESS AND BRAND

I like to use the Ice Cream Sundae analogy when talking about your brand and storytelling.

Imagine for a second that your brand and story are the ice cream. The ice cream alone is delicious and something you can enjoy just as it is or you can enhance it to make it even better.

Now, let’s imagine the marketing, funnels, ads, social media platforms, etc are chocolate syrup, nuts and whipped cream. Mix those together and have them stand alone; it’s kind of just a mushy, nutty sweetness. Definitely not as good as it is with ice cream.

The point is your brand and story can stand alone and make you money. The marketing strategies can not. You need to have the entire package for those to even work.

You need the whole package.

WHY STORYTELLING WORKS IN ONLINE MARKETING

 
When you add storytelling to your messaging and content it is 22x more likely to be remembered

Not to mention it helps in the decision-making process. A report from Harvard University found that 90% of purchasing decisions are made subconsciously and based on emotional connection. Emotional connection comes from trust and storytelling.

So you’re also more likely to convert your clients into a sale by using storytelling.

AND not to mention the average time someone spends on a website is 8-15 seconds. Yet, this is where all the information about your business is. So, how do you keep them captivated for longer? Storytelling and strong personal messaging.

That’s because storytelling makes your brand:

1. Captivating - pulls in your ideal customer

2. Memorable - at the front of their mind, even as they scroll

3. Trustworthy - builds an emotional connection to you and your brand

WHAT MAKES A STORY GREAT ON SOCIAL MEDIA (or anywhere)

The key to great storytelling isn’t you.

Sorry to burst your bubble, but great storytelling is about your audience.

This is a hard switch because when we first start tapping into our story for our business it often looks like our Brand Story and About Me Page.

And those pieces are important, but so many entrepreneurs stop there. 
They might be the only two ways a business owner incorporates story.

But, if someone decides to go further they tend to carry this framework over into our marketing is only going to hurt us.

And, that’s because what makes a great story memorable and captivating is that the person (your audience) can see themselves or relate to your story.

The key takeaway from all of this should be that great storytelling isn’t not about you, it’s about your audience.

THE 3 PHASES OF STORYTELLING IN BUSINESS

Phase 1: The Beginning

This is your niche, brand story and the overall direction for your business.

Remember, when I said I couldn’t determine what I wanted to do, until I tapped into my story? This is how we use storytelling in the beginning. We dive deep into our own personal journey to determine a great deal of our brand foundation.

Phase 2: Showing Up

This is when you start sharing your own experiences and story, as it relates to your niche and audience (more audience focus here) to showcase your expertise.

You’re building your momentum online and starting to incorporate story into your content (it no longer just lives on your website).

Phase 3: Messaging and Marketing

This is my favorite stage and the one you’ll hang out in for the majority of your business.

At this stage you’re getting to know your audience more and more and artfully framing stories around their need and desire. 

Phase 1 and Phase 2 should last no more than 30 days, it’s the business creation/foundation stage and something I walk you through in my program You! Branded youbrandedcourse.com, then you move into studying your audience and writing stories for them.

This is where sales really start to amp up.

3 THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND WHEN SHARING STORY ONLINE

1. Know you and your stories

You need to feel good about the stories you are sharing online. Not every single story needs to be shared, even if it’s great for your audience. If you don’t feel good about sharing it you won’t want to share.

2. It’s not about you

Stop guessing when it comes to what types of stories your audience will appreciate and resonate with. Do the work, and by work I mean Market Research.

3. Incorporate Emotionally Charged language

Part of storytelling is incorporating emotion, that’s why it works so well after all. You can do this by tapping into the pain and pleasure of your ideal customer in your copy.

HOW TO FIND YOUR STORIES TO SHARE ON SOCIAL MEDIA AND BEYOND

The first thing I want you to remember is a story for your business is not a period in time, it’s a moment in time.

What does this mean? 

It means that when you’re choosing stories to share online to build trust and make sales, you’ll have much more luck and feel less overwhelmed when you’re focusing on a very specific moment.

For instance, I wouldn’t share a story on the birth of my son, I would share a story on how the birth of my son forced me to embrace vulnerability.

This is specific!

The second thing to keep in mind is that storytelling can, but doesn’t always have to be the entire piece of content. In fact, sometimes you will want to use a small sliver of story just to connect, but then go into teaching or selling your product or service.

Even a single line can be a great story.

EXAMPLE #1:
When I was sitting in a hotel conference room and heard the presenter share that story made content 22x more memorable, I knew I was on to something. I had spent 4 years sharing story to build a successful 6-figure business and knew I needed to teach other women to do the same.

Story part: A moment when I heard something, the stat I heard, how long I’d been in business, the success of my business and my ideal client and mission.

EXAMPLE #2:
Do you struggle to feel confident on social media?Does it feel as if the algorithm is always out to get you?You take so much time to create content, only to schedule it and watch it fall flat?

Today I want to share…

Story part: Highly relatable pain points my audience has expressed, painting a picture of what they are going through.

So not only should stories be very specific moments in time, but they can also be very short and used to enhance the content you’re creating.

Watch the video below for 6 types of stories to get you started. 

CONCLUSION

If you’re running an online business you need to make storytelling your top priority.Not only is it going to enhance the return on the content you’re creating, but it’s also going to help you increase sales and build your personal brand.

If you’re interested in building a personal brand, deeply rooted in storytelling then I’ve got a free gift for you.

Grab the Personal Roadmap below.

DOWNLOAD THE FREE GUIDE

P.S. I know I didn’t talk about your Brand Story above, but it’s still a fun way to start. Read this blog on How to Identify Your Brand Story.

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.

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- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -

DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

START HERE ↠

LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS

START HERE ↠

MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR

START HERE ↠

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- 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 Build an Email List

How to Build an Email List

BY MICHELLE KNIGHT

What if I told you that you could spend $1 and make $38...what would be your reaction?

Yeah me too! Well, the good news is that specific number is on average what email marketing generates. Yes, for every $1 spent you have the potential to make $38 in return. That’s a 3,800% ROI.

I don’t know about you, but sign me up.

Email marketing has been a love of mine for years now, ever since I realized that in order to make money in my business I needed people to sell too.

And, while I love showing up on social media to build trust and community there has always been something about relying on an outside platform that makes me nervous.

We’ve all had the days where Facebook or Instagram isn’t working, imagine if your entire business relied on your audience on social media...no thank you.

Over the years, I’ve used a very simple strategy to grow my online community via my email list using a lead magnet and email funnel.

Today, I’m breaking it down for you step by step and addressing some of the top mistakes I see entrepreneurs making when they are trying to grow their profitable list.

As always, if you prefer to watch or listen just scroll down to access the video recording.

WHY EMAIL MARKETING IS IMPORTANT

When we’re asking for someone to follow us on social media we’re not asking a lot. 

Think about the number of people you currently follow, do you really have a deep interest in each and every one of them? Probably not.

That’s because it’s super easy to just hit the follow or like button.

However, email marketing requires a small level of commitment. In order to be added to someone’s list, you’ve got to provide your email address.

Well, that my friends is basically gold. You’re asking someone to trust you enough to send them periodic emails. Ultimately, this low-level commitment is the first step in becoming a paying client.

Your new subscriber is saying, “Yes, this is valuable to me. I'd love to learn more from you!” or something similar to that.

Email marketing is not only an amazing way to build an online community but to also pull in targeted leads to your paying offers.

6 MUST-HAVES TO GROW YOUR EMAIL LIST

#1 FREE GIFT OR LEAD MAGNET

While you might be thinking a general newsletter will bring in the most people because it’s broad, that’s the opposite of what we want our email list to be. Remember, the idea is that these new community members, over time, will invest in your product or service. Because of this, we want to bring in the right people.

Offering a free gift not only gives your audience some incentive to provide their email address but allows you to market and draw in the right people for your offers.

Create a lead magnet that is easy to consume, but of high value and is very specific to eliminating a struggle or addressing a need of your target market.

#2 OPT-IN OR LANDING PAGE

You might notice a theme in this post about being specific, but there is no more important time than a landing page to be as specific as possible. You want this page, the page that is collecting their email address and name, to tell them exactly what they will get when opting in.

I always encourage my clients to pretend like they are selling their free gifts. What would you need to say in order for someone to buy it?

Keep your landing page simple and to the point. Remember, the main goal for this page is to convert them into a new subscriber.

**On average you want a 30% or higher conversion for a cold audience (think Facebook or Pinterest ads, someone who doesn’t know you or your brand yet) and 50% or higher for a warm audience (someone who is already familiar with you and your brand).

#3 THANK YOU PAGE

After someone opts into your free gift, we want to use this opportunity wisely. You’ve got their attention, what are you going to do with it?

I’ll tell you what! You want to use this opportunity to share the next steps, grow other marketing channels or sell something as an upsell. All of these strategies work; it just depends on your end goal.

If you’re just starting out I suggest sharing something like this, 

“Thank you for subscribing. Your free gift is on it’s way to your inbox. While you wait, be sure to connect with me on Instagram where I’m sharing daily inspiration and tips for building you…”

#4 WELCOME EMAIL (DELIVER THE LEAD MAGNET)

This initial email should be simple. The main goal here is to deliver the lead magnet and welcome your new subscriber into your community. Remember, they just want the free gift right now so give the people what they want.

Here’s an example of a welcome email I send for my free Personal Brand Roadmap.

Hey there, {{ subscriber.first_name }}!

Michelle Knight of Brandmerry popping into your inbox to deliver your free "Personal Brand Roadmap!"

I'm so excited to get this piece of content in your hands so you can start building a better brand.

Click the link below to confirm your subscription and download your roadmap!

BUTTON: Download Your Roadmap

You're going to love it.

Chat really soon!

Michelle Knight (MK)
Founder and Creator of You! Branded

#5 WELCOME SEQUENCE

Your welcome sequence is an opportunity to build trust with your community from the start. It’s your chance to make them feel safe, important and well, welcome. Not to mention you have a chance to introduce yourself and your expertise early on.

So often entrepreneurs wait to build a funnel because they don’t have a course or passive offer to sell, but I encourage every single entrepreneur to have a welcome sequence that shares their story and sets up their brand in order to later sell to their prospective clients.

After all, the idea is that these people don’t know you so why not use this opportunity to build trust!

#6 TRAFFIC

We’ll talk a bit more about promotion later on, but one of the most important aspects of list building is actually talking about your free gift regularly. 

Taking tiny steps to share the landing page link in your bio on Instagram, on your Facebook page and adding a pop up or announcement bar on your website can help you passively promote your free gift.

3 MISTAKES YOU’RE PROBABLY MAKING TRYING TO BUILD YOUR EMAIL LIST

MISTAKE #1: NOT ATTRACTING THE RIGHT PEOPLE

The biggest mistake I see is that people don’t create a free gift or lead magnet to pull in the right people. They spend time and energy building an email list and then launch something and no one buys. 

The disconnect is that while they are building their list they are more focused on the numbers as opposed to the type of person who is joining. 

I would rather you have 100 targeted leads on your email list than 5,000 random people.

Understanding who your audience is and what they need most from you at this moment is key to attracting the right people.

So first you need to identify who that target client is, if you don’t know this yet then you’ll want to check out my program You! Branded and join the waitlist.


MISTAKE #2: NO CLEAR BENEFIT FOR YOUR AUDIENCE

I want you to think of your free gift as something you are selling. Think of an email address equivalent to $1,000. Would you just add a title and a box to buy and expect people to do so?

Probably not.

If someone doesn’t know what your gift will provide them then they will piece out and move on to the next distracting thing on the internet. The stronger the benefit to your audience and the more specific language the better.

On your landing page and in your marketing share at least three points on how your gift will support them. 

I do this with my landing pages and pretty much every single ask I’m making to my audience, including my weekly live stream called Mondays With Michelle.

Here’s an example of how I promoted a recent live stream about this topic.

Example:

• The mistakes you’re making when trying to grow your online following and ultimately an email list of prospective buyers
  

• What is needed to effortlessly create a lead magnet to grow your community (most people miss at least one step)!
  

• The #1 thing you absolutely don’t want to skip when building your email list IF you plan to sell later (which I’m guessing you do).
  

I can’t expect you to stop what you’re doing and just watch, I’ve gotta tell you WHY you should watch. 

You need to do the same with your lead magnet.


MISTAKE #3: NOT ACTIVELY PROMOTING

There are so many ways to promote your freebie, but you have to do it. 

I can’t tell you how many times I have someone come to me and say, “Michelle, I don’t think my lead magnet works. I need a new one.”

So, I ask, “Well how many people have landed on the landing page? How many have opted in?”

It’s usually an answer like 10-50.

I’m sorry, but that is not enough. If not enough people are landing on your landing page it’s most likely that you aren’t sharing it enough or your messaging and marketing are off.

You have to actively be promoting your new gift in the world. I strongly suggest sharing it actively at least 2-3 times a week.

Inside my program Roadmap to Freedom, I talk about passive vs. active promotion.

Passive promotion as I mentioned above, is something you can set up once and forget about it. That looks like, a pop up on your website, a banner image on your Facebook or your link in your Instagram bio.

Active promotion is where you are actively sharing your lead magnet.

Some ways to both passively and actively promote your free gift are:

• Through strong SEO on your website to an opt-in

• Pinterest traffic to your blog with opt-in forms

• Facebook or Pinterest ads

• Posting on IG at least twice a week: IG Stories, IGTV, IG Live, Feed

• Posting on FB at least twice a week: Live video, Feed, FB Groups, Stories

• Youtube video with a call to action

• Podcast guest or on your own

DON’T MISS THIS STEP WHEN BUILDING YOUR EMAIL LIST

This could possibly be the most important thing you read today about lead generation.

Your lead magnet should tie to your offer. 

If you want a list that buys from you, then you need to reverse engineer. This is why in both of my programs You! Branded and Roadmap to Freedom, we focus on mapping out the offer first, or at the very least your framework.

When you start with your offer in mind, then you can identify what someone would need from you to take action on your offer OR what they need now to determine if your offer is right for them.

Remember we want to build a community of potential clients, so by reverse engineering, you’re taking the very first step in bringing in targeted leads.

Know where your subscriber is going before you start bringing them in.


CONCLUSION

Email list building is necessary when building any type of business, but especially an online brand. 

However, some of the fundamental pieces of a brand are necessary to make it a success. That’s why inside my program You! Branded, I walk you through the key pieces like understanding your target market, crafting messages that focus on the benefit and designing your offer.

If you’re struggling to understand your brand, then I encourage you to check out You! Branded and everything we’ve included to support you in your journey to building an online community of true fans and a stand out brand.

Learn more at youbrandedcourse.com

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- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -

DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

START HERE ↠

LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS

START HERE ↠

MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR

START HERE ↠

---

- 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.