Who Is The Face Of Your Business?
I love to tell the story of one of my clients who said that the reason she didn’t have any pictures of herself on Instagram was because her face wasn’t part of her brand.
“Why’s that?” I asked.
[crickets]
“Oh my god,” she said, “I just realized I built that into my brand to avoid the fear of being visible.”
Aha! Sound familiar?
Growth Is Uncomfortable
I’ve been meeting with small business owners over the past few weeks as I prepare to launch my Thriving Visibility program for entrepreneurs, solopreneurs and small business owners who have been operating for 1yr+ (running January-March with an additional month add on for April).
Here’s what folks have been saying:
“I’m tired of feeling like the outside me doesn’t represent the inside me.”
“I feel like I’m supposed to somebody else other than myself when I’m talking about my business or making videos.”
“I’m never going to be an Oprah or a Glennon Doyle.”
“When somebody asks me to introduce myself and talk about my business, my voice goes higher, I shake and sweat, my throat goes dry and I can’t remember what I was going to say.”
The truth is, most of us feel this way in the beginning. We’re stepping into a new role as a business owner, we’re worried about what people will think, we don’t want to be like all those people on Instagram Reels dancing and laughing, we don’t want to be the next Marie Forleo… but we don’t know that there’s an in between.
There is a place for you that lives between no camera time and full Oprah status. And, when I put it like that, it’s a pretty big place, right? Full of lots of options? Full of a path that suits you (while also encouraging you to push outside of whatever fears are keeping you hidden).
You Be You.
You don’t have to be anybody other than who you are. (Read that back to yourself.)
And aside from the obvious reasons, here’s another: it’s good for business.
I’ve spent over $12,000+ on coaching since January 2020. Every single choice I’ve made in that regard has been because I followed people (mainly on Instagram, but not exclusively there) who showed up on camera and made me feel:
like they were somebody I could easily relate to (I don’t want to spend money on something where I’m going to feel awkward, or can’t fully be me)
that our values aligned (if I suddenly found out that somebody was anti-feminist halfway through my sessions with them, I would be furious) - values are very important to me (which you likely know if you follow me on Instagram)
that they were offering something of value to me (they talk about the program enough that I get an idea of what I’m in for)
that I would see growth from my investment (personal and financial).
But it’s not just with coaches and service providers. I also spend money on things like jewelry, journals, tarot cards, art, handmade cards, client gifts, clothing etc., and I like to spend money on folks that I think are good people. Period.
So how are your ideal customers gonna find you and spend their money like I do if you don’t show up?
Social Media Is About Building Relationships
I’ve said it in posts, in emails, in workshops that I’ve been asked to deliver: social media is not about selling. That is one-sided, transactional and cold.
Social Media is about interacting with people. Finding out what they like and what they don’t like. Stuff they do. And answering their questions.
It’s about being YOU, not some mask or brand that you feel you need to wear. (People can sniff that out easily, anyhow.)
And if being you is hard, or if you don’t quite know who you are (spoiler alert, this is true for most), a great place to start is with shadow work. Here’s a link to my free guide Me and My Shadow.
And if you’re ready to git goin’, here are some starters (don’t forget to grab my Entrepreneurs, Solopreneurs and Small Business Owners Visibility Worksheet for some ideas!)
Social Media Visibility
Get comfortable being on camera. Record yourself talking about stuff that you LOVE on your phone, and play it back so that you get used to how you look and sound on camera. Grab my free speaking guide if you want some training, tips and tricks for how to be an amazing figurehead.
Ask other business friends or happy clients if they’ll do an Instagram or Facebook Live with you - get them to ask you questions about your business. Test it out during non-peak hours (use your Insights to tell you when most of your followers are online) so you get used to the tech and the format. Plan out certain answers ahead of time and keep your notes close to you - sometimes we freeze when we’re nervous, and that’s ok!
Take my BizViz One Week Visibility Challenge! Get prompts sent right to your inbox, and have support from me through email or Instagram Messaging.
Don’t just post pics of your stuff. Get on Instagram Stories and talk about what’s cool about it. How did you make it? Why do you love it? Be passionate - positivity is infectious.
Reply to comments (unless they’re bots or “Doctors” who are “just here to show my love for the world” who have 6 pics uploaded within the past few hours that show at least one with them and children). Ask questions back. Be careful not to force it - treat it like a conversation, and not a sale.
Never slide into somebody’s DMs and sell them something. Or ask a question that is clearly leading to a sales pitch. “Hey, can I ask you a question?” “Uh, sure person I barely know, g’head…”
Don’t take unfollows personally. You have no idea why somebody stopped following you (they could have left Instagram, you could remind the of the woman their ex left them for, who knows) and honestly, if they stop following you, they were never going to want to build a relationship, so let them gooooooooo. And alternately, remember that it’s not the number of people who follow you, it’s how engaged your community is. Do people talk to you? Ask questions in comments or DM? That’s what you want to cultivate.
Consistently let people know what you offer. Last year, my business coach said to me “I’ve been following you for a while and I can’t remember the last time you posted one of your offers.” I was gobsmacked - of course! Why didn’t I think of that? haha.
Get Posting!
OK now you know why you should post, you’ve done some inner work to build your confidence and help you get past your fear, you have the tools to be excellent, you’re ready to get posting! Grab my Entrepreneurs, Solopreneurs and Small Business Owners Visibility Worksheet to give you a bunch of different ideas!
Stay Tuned
If you’re ready to take your business to a new level, to build relationships, to create truly excellent and polished content, to be ready to speak at business events and conferences, and to simply feel good and not that it’s a drag to show up on video, you’re going to LOVE my new program that begins in January 2022. Thriving Visibility is for entrepreneurs, solopreneurs and small business owners who are ready to be the figurehead for their business. You want to communicate with a lot of confidence and strength, and create content that is dynamic, engaging and that builds relationships with your followers, right? This will be the place for you. If you want to be the first to know when registration opens in November, drop me a line.
——————————
In the meantime, let me know in the comments how you build visibility for your business! What are you good at? Where would you like to see improvement?
——————————
Did you like this blog post? I have so many more! Look below to browse through the recent ones, or just click here to see ‘em all!
