1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:03,439 Speaker 1: A content strategy isn't something like, on Monday, we're going 2 00:00:03,520 --> 00:00:06,160 to entertain them. On Tuesday, we're going to educate them. 3 00:00:06,160 --> 00:00:09,439 On Wednesday, we're gonna put a sales post up. No, 4 00:00:09,519 --> 00:00:13,000 that's not a content strategy. A content strategy starts with 5 00:00:13,359 --> 00:00:16,239 who is your ideal plant, what is going on in 6 00:00:16,280 --> 00:00:18,839 their heads, what do they need to hear from you, 7 00:00:19,039 --> 00:00:22,920 and meeting them where they're at. Welcome to Imperfect Action. 8 00:00:23,199 --> 00:00:26,160 I'm Steph Taylor. For years, I read all the books, 9 00:00:26,280 --> 00:00:29,920 downloaded all the freebies, and did all the courses, But 10 00:00:30,000 --> 00:00:32,880 it wasn't until I started taking imperfect action that my 11 00:00:32,960 --> 00:00:37,320 business had its first million dollar year. Imperfect action is 12 00:00:37,320 --> 00:00:42,159 about doing things before you're ready, prioritizing consistent action over 13 00:00:42,240 --> 00:00:45,640 perfect action, and moving forward even when you're not sure 14 00:00:45,799 --> 00:00:48,960 you're doing it right. On this show, you can expect 15 00:00:48,960 --> 00:00:52,759 mindset advice, actionable marketing tips and strategies to build a 16 00:00:52,799 --> 00:00:56,240 business that brings you more profit, more freedom, and even 17 00:00:56,280 --> 00:01:00,159 more joy. Are you on the list to get my 18 00:01:00,240 --> 00:01:03,280 daily businesses? Every day, I'll send you a bite sized 19 00:01:03,320 --> 00:01:05,680 prompt designed to help you grow your business in a 20 00:01:05,719 --> 00:01:08,879 more intentional way. Sign up at Steph Taylor dot co. 21 00:01:09,159 --> 00:01:15,400 Forward slash DBB or at the link in your show notes. Hey, 22 00:01:15,680 --> 00:01:18,040 welcome back to Imperfect Action this episode eight hundred and 23 00:01:18,040 --> 00:01:23,760 fifty one. Today, I'm talking about the audience growth formula. 24 00:01:23,879 --> 00:01:27,920 I know that standing out online reaching the right people. 25 00:01:28,040 --> 00:01:31,239 I know that can feel really, really hard at the moment. 26 00:01:31,799 --> 00:01:35,239 And in today's episode, I'm going to share the four 27 00:01:35,400 --> 00:01:38,920 parts that I think anyone needs to be on top 28 00:01:39,000 --> 00:01:41,680 of if they want to grow their audience in today's 29 00:01:41,680 --> 00:01:44,719 online world. Now, today's episode is for you if you 30 00:01:44,799 --> 00:01:46,959 are struggling to get your business in front of the 31 00:01:47,040 --> 00:01:50,840 right people online and that that means you're not growing 32 00:01:51,000 --> 00:01:53,480 as quickly as you would like to. It's for you 33 00:01:53,640 --> 00:01:57,000 if you are questioning whether you're attracting the right kinds 34 00:01:57,120 --> 00:02:01,079 of people into your audience, the people who are being 35 00:02:01,319 --> 00:02:04,560 awesome clients who are taking action, who are getting those results. 36 00:02:04,920 --> 00:02:07,400 And it's also for you if you already feel like 37 00:02:07,439 --> 00:02:09,960 you don't have enough hours in the day to do 38 00:02:10,039 --> 00:02:12,719 all of the things that you are supposed to do 39 00:02:13,479 --> 00:02:16,560 and don't have any time to do anything extra. So 40 00:02:17,120 --> 00:02:21,159 today I'm going to start with a little story from 41 00:02:21,240 --> 00:02:26,520 my very very first business. So I love marketing like 42 00:02:26,560 --> 00:02:29,800 I'm a marketer at heart, and before the launch of 43 00:02:29,800 --> 00:02:32,599 my first business, which was a product based business, it 44 00:02:32,639 --> 00:02:35,879 was a subscription box, I spent a lot of time 45 00:02:36,199 --> 00:02:39,879 growing the audience on Instagram because this was, you know, 46 00:02:40,000 --> 00:02:43,560 going back now to twenty sixteen, twenty fifteen, even this 47 00:02:43,919 --> 00:02:48,800 was when Instagram was at its prime for small businesses. 48 00:02:48,840 --> 00:02:50,560 You could reach lots of people. You could grow your 49 00:02:50,560 --> 00:02:55,520 audience on there really easily. And before I launched that product, 50 00:02:56,000 --> 00:02:58,520 I managed to grow the Instagram audience too. I think 51 00:02:58,599 --> 00:03:01,599 over ten thousand people, around ten fifteen thousand people, and 52 00:03:01,680 --> 00:03:04,159 I was so excited about it because I thought, great, 53 00:03:04,199 --> 00:03:07,479 We've got this awesome audience. When I launched, it's gonna 54 00:03:07,520 --> 00:03:11,240 be a hit. People are gonna buy it. But they didn't, 55 00:03:11,919 --> 00:03:14,639 and I was like, oh, well, this is really weird. 56 00:03:14,680 --> 00:03:17,719 We've got, you know, ten thousand people following and like 57 00:03:17,840 --> 00:03:21,759 maybe fifty customers. Why are they not buying? And in 58 00:03:21,800 --> 00:03:23,159 my mind, I was like, okay, cool, let me just 59 00:03:23,240 --> 00:03:25,639 keep growing the audience, Let me just keep adding more people. 60 00:03:25,960 --> 00:03:28,879 So I kept growing it, thinking that that growth would 61 00:03:28,960 --> 00:03:32,319 lead to sales. And at one point we had like 62 00:03:32,360 --> 00:03:36,199 twenty thousand followers and we're making maybe two thousand dollars 63 00:03:36,240 --> 00:03:40,000 a month in revenue before expenses. So this was a 64 00:03:40,000 --> 00:03:43,400 physical product business, so I still had to pay for postation, shipping, 65 00:03:43,479 --> 00:03:45,599 I had to pay for the wholesale products that were 66 00:03:45,639 --> 00:03:49,599 going into the subscription boxes. All of that so was 67 00:03:49,800 --> 00:03:53,719 really turning much of a profit. And I realized now 68 00:03:53,800 --> 00:03:56,039 in hindsight, I'm like, oh, I know those mistakes that 69 00:03:56,080 --> 00:03:58,759 I made, But at the time I couldn't quite figure 70 00:03:58,800 --> 00:04:02,599 out why these people weren't converting and some of the 71 00:04:02,599 --> 00:04:06,479 mistakes that I made. So firstly, I relied purely on 72 00:04:06,800 --> 00:04:11,319 Instagram for this business audience, and when the algorithm started 73 00:04:11,319 --> 00:04:13,439 to change twenty sixteen was one of the first big 74 00:04:13,520 --> 00:04:17,720 changes that people noticed with the algorithm. Suddenly I stopped 75 00:04:17,759 --> 00:04:21,879 reaching as many people with my content. I wasn't thinking 76 00:04:21,879 --> 00:04:24,040 about how I would nurture those people in the audience. 77 00:04:24,079 --> 00:04:25,680 I was just focused on how can I get more 78 00:04:25,720 --> 00:04:28,759 people in. I also didn't really focus on building my 79 00:04:28,839 --> 00:04:32,800 email list, and I was sharing kind of content that 80 00:04:33,160 --> 00:04:36,519 was attracting the wrong people. This is the big takeaway. 81 00:04:36,800 --> 00:04:40,959 So I was sharing awesome recipes for yummy food because 82 00:04:41,000 --> 00:04:44,560 it was a food based subscription box, but the people 83 00:04:44,560 --> 00:04:48,360 who were following for that weren't gonna buy the subscription box. 84 00:04:48,399 --> 00:04:50,879 They were just following for the yummy recipes. And then 85 00:04:50,920 --> 00:04:54,120 I did one mistake that so many people make because 86 00:04:54,120 --> 00:04:57,040 it leads to awesome growth, but those people don't buy, 87 00:04:57,040 --> 00:05:01,000 and that was giveaways I participated in and loop giveaways. 88 00:05:01,040 --> 00:05:03,879 I participated in collaboration giveaways, and they grew the following, 89 00:05:04,600 --> 00:05:07,600 but they weren't right for the product I was selling. 90 00:05:07,639 --> 00:05:11,319 They weren't the right people. They were freebee seekers. And 91 00:05:11,360 --> 00:05:18,399 so I realized, Huh, a big audience doesn't mean big sales. 92 00:05:20,040 --> 00:05:23,000 It's all about growing your audience with the right people. 93 00:05:23,040 --> 00:05:26,560 A small audience of the right people is going to 94 00:05:26,639 --> 00:05:31,120 convert into sales so much more effectively than a large 95 00:05:31,199 --> 00:05:35,279 audience of the wrong people. So then after I closed 96 00:05:35,399 --> 00:05:38,560 that business down, I worked at a startup for a 97 00:05:38,600 --> 00:05:41,560 little while, as you know, the kind of head of marketing. 98 00:05:42,079 --> 00:05:44,120 And while I was doing that, I started my next 99 00:05:44,120 --> 00:05:48,959 business doing marketing consulting. And I knew that I needed 100 00:05:48,959 --> 00:05:52,399 to do something different to all of the other marketers 101 00:05:52,439 --> 00:05:55,360 out there because it was a pretty noisy environment. Even 102 00:05:55,399 --> 00:05:57,759 though that was like twenty seventeen, twenty eighteen, it was 103 00:05:57,879 --> 00:06:01,040 very different. I guess it was still similar in some 104 00:06:01,040 --> 00:06:03,199 ways in that it was super busy, but it was 105 00:06:04,199 --> 00:06:06,759 like even back then it was still noisy. Now it's 106 00:06:06,800 --> 00:06:09,360 even much noisier, but back then it was still pretty noisy. 107 00:06:09,920 --> 00:06:12,279 And so what I started doing was I started creating 108 00:06:12,519 --> 00:06:17,000 really quality content. I started writing long form blog posts. 109 00:06:17,000 --> 00:06:20,199 I'm talking two thousand word blog posts, sharing unique perspectives 110 00:06:20,199 --> 00:06:24,279 that nobody else was talking about. I started doing videos 111 00:06:24,360 --> 00:06:28,600 and sharing videos to Facebook, which back then was a 112 00:06:28,639 --> 00:06:31,839 great strategy. Now probably wouldn't work so much, but nobody 113 00:06:31,839 --> 00:06:34,000 else was really sharing videos at that point in time, 114 00:06:34,560 --> 00:06:36,519 and then I would actively get those in front of 115 00:06:36,560 --> 00:06:38,560 the right people. So I would share those blog posts 116 00:06:38,560 --> 00:06:41,959 and those videos into Facebook groups where the right people 117 00:06:42,040 --> 00:06:45,600 hung out. Now, while that wouldn't work now because of 118 00:06:45,600 --> 00:06:48,199 the way that the algorithm has shifted, there's still one 119 00:06:48,279 --> 00:06:52,240 key takeaway there. You still need to be creating that 120 00:06:52,360 --> 00:06:55,839 content and getting it in front of the right people. 121 00:06:56,000 --> 00:06:59,959 So let me share with you the audience growth formula. 122 00:07:00,079 --> 00:07:03,000 It's still the same formula as it was back in 123 00:07:03,040 --> 00:07:06,680 twenty seventeen, and it probably won't change going forward because 124 00:07:06,720 --> 00:07:09,839 it's not platform specific. It's not reliant on any particular 125 00:07:09,879 --> 00:07:13,000 type of content. But it's more about the strategy that's 126 00:07:13,079 --> 00:07:16,439 underpinning all of it. So the formula is content strategy 127 00:07:16,439 --> 00:07:21,480 plus remarkable content plus visibility plan multiplied by consistency. Let's 128 00:07:21,600 --> 00:07:25,879 break that down. The first part content strategy. So this 129 00:07:26,000 --> 00:07:29,360 starts with knowing who you are talking to and what 130 00:07:29,480 --> 00:07:31,920 kind of content is going to catch their attention, the 131 00:07:31,959 --> 00:07:37,480 attention of the right people. And a content strategy isn't 132 00:07:37,519 --> 00:07:41,000 something like on Monday, we're going to entertain them. On Tuesday, 133 00:07:41,040 --> 00:07:43,800 we're going to educate them. On Wednesday, we're gonna put 134 00:07:43,839 --> 00:07:46,920 a sales post up. No, that's not a content strategy. 135 00:07:47,439 --> 00:07:50,720 A content strategy starts with who is your ideal client, 136 00:07:51,120 --> 00:07:54,000 what is going on in their heads, what do they 137 00:07:54,000 --> 00:07:56,480 need to hear from you, and meeting them where they're at. 138 00:07:56,920 --> 00:07:59,800 It's not about oh, well, my ideal client is a 139 00:08:00,000 --> 00:08:01,800 page twenty five to thirty five and they live in 140 00:08:01,879 --> 00:08:05,480 Sydney and their favorite food is Japanese food. No, that's 141 00:08:05,560 --> 00:08:08,720 not an ideal client. That is a target audience, and 142 00:08:08,879 --> 00:08:12,879 knowing their favorite food doesn't really that doesn't help us 143 00:08:13,160 --> 00:08:16,519 communicate with them and connect with them better unless we 144 00:08:16,560 --> 00:08:20,079 are selling sushi. Right. So then the second part is 145 00:08:20,399 --> 00:08:26,279 remarkable content, creating and consistently sharing that remarkable content. Remarkable 146 00:08:26,279 --> 00:08:30,480 content is not how to content. It's not tips and tricks, 147 00:08:30,519 --> 00:08:33,039 because those things, the how to content, the tips and 148 00:08:33,039 --> 00:08:38,080 tricks chat GPT can replicate those so easily. Instead, it's 149 00:08:38,120 --> 00:08:40,840 the kind of content that makes the right person think, hmm, 150 00:08:41,639 --> 00:08:44,720 that's really interesting. I hadn't thought about it like that. Okay, 151 00:08:44,799 --> 00:08:46,279 it's the kind of content that they're going to go 152 00:08:46,320 --> 00:08:49,360 and then tell somebody else about. And it's usually going 153 00:08:49,399 --> 00:08:53,159 to involve your unique perspectives, your unique experiences, your stories. 154 00:08:54,039 --> 00:09:00,840 That's more remarkable than five tips to grow on Instagram whatever. 155 00:09:01,879 --> 00:09:04,320 Then the next part is the visibility plan. So once 156 00:09:04,360 --> 00:09:07,080 you created that content, you can't sit back and be like, oh, yay, 157 00:09:07,120 --> 00:09:09,240 the algorithm's going to show me to the right people, 158 00:09:09,480 --> 00:09:13,759 because it doesn't anymore. I saw a statistic recently that 159 00:09:14,080 --> 00:09:18,080 Instagram's reach is declining by thirty two percent year on year. 160 00:09:18,200 --> 00:09:20,399 So that means that each year your content is reaching 161 00:09:20,399 --> 00:09:23,519 thirty two percent fewer people organically than it was the 162 00:09:23,600 --> 00:09:27,000 previous year. So you can't sit back and rely on 163 00:09:27,120 --> 00:09:31,759 the algorithm to show your content to the right people. Okay. Instead, 164 00:09:31,840 --> 00:09:35,440 you need to be proactively getting in front of those audiences. 165 00:09:37,320 --> 00:09:41,559 The other reason, of course, is that meta who owns Instagram, 166 00:09:42,159 --> 00:09:44,960 they don't care about your business. They want you to 167 00:09:44,960 --> 00:09:48,759 spend money on ads to promote your business, so they're 168 00:09:48,759 --> 00:09:51,080 not going to show your stuff to the right people 169 00:09:51,679 --> 00:09:54,679 unless you actually pay them. So instead we want to 170 00:09:54,720 --> 00:09:56,720 look at how can we intentionally get in front of 171 00:09:56,720 --> 00:09:59,039 the right people. Back in twenty seventeen, it was me 172 00:09:59,120 --> 00:10:01,799 putting that content to those Facebook groups. Now I am 173 00:10:01,919 --> 00:10:04,639 a guest on podcasts, I speak at events, I teach 174 00:10:04,879 --> 00:10:08,360 to other people's courses and memberships. That is how I'm 175 00:10:08,399 --> 00:10:11,960 intentionally getting in front of the right people. And then 176 00:10:12,080 --> 00:10:14,960 all of this we multiply all of this by consistency. 177 00:10:15,000 --> 00:10:19,159 Consistency is that multiplier. The more consistent you are, the 178 00:10:19,200 --> 00:10:21,759 more you will see results from all of the audience 179 00:10:21,799 --> 00:10:23,919 gross things that you are doing when you put them together. 180 00:10:24,399 --> 00:10:26,519 It's not something you can do just once and then 181 00:10:26,600 --> 00:10:28,639 be like cool, I sent five pitches out to be 182 00:10:28,679 --> 00:10:30,960 a guest on someone's podcast and I'm done. No, it's 183 00:10:31,000 --> 00:10:33,600 something you need to be able to stick to consistently 184 00:10:33,840 --> 00:10:35,720 over time, and it doesn't have to be something that 185 00:10:35,759 --> 00:10:39,159 you do a lot of every week. But it's something 186 00:10:39,159 --> 00:10:42,000 that you can do sustainably over an extended period of time. 187 00:10:42,720 --> 00:10:46,120 And it also means that you're on top of your 188 00:10:46,159 --> 00:10:49,000 content plan and your visibility plan. You have that structure 189 00:10:49,600 --> 00:10:52,200 around what you are sharing and when, who you are 190 00:10:52,200 --> 00:10:56,240 pitching and when, rather than waiting to feel motivated and inspired. 191 00:10:56,279 --> 00:10:59,200 Because I've been podcasting three times a week for the 192 00:10:59,279 --> 00:11:02,279 last like five half years, and if I only showed 193 00:11:02,360 --> 00:11:05,879 up and did an episode when I felt inspired and motivated, 194 00:11:06,919 --> 00:11:10,440 this show would have ended years ago. But instead, because 195 00:11:10,440 --> 00:11:12,480 I have that structure in place, I know the episodes 196 00:11:12,519 --> 00:11:15,159 need to go out every Monday, Wednesday, Friday. I show 197 00:11:15,240 --> 00:11:17,440 up and I record them. The other thing that can 198 00:11:17,480 --> 00:11:23,840 really help with consistency is repurposing your content. Okay, repurposing 199 00:11:23,879 --> 00:11:27,320 that content, so taking that podcast episode and switching your 200 00:11:27,360 --> 00:11:29,559 webcam on while you record it and turning it into 201 00:11:29,759 --> 00:11:32,720 a YouTube video like I'm doing, or turning it into 202 00:11:32,759 --> 00:11:36,559 short form video clips, repurposing all of it. Okay. So 203 00:11:36,840 --> 00:11:39,679 there you have it. The audience growth formula. Content strategy 204 00:11:39,679 --> 00:11:45,039 plus remarkable content plus visibility plan or multiplied by consistency, 205 00:11:45,200 --> 00:11:48,679 that is what grows your audience. Now I teach more 206 00:11:48,720 --> 00:11:51,720 about the audience growth formula in Booster Brand Superfans. So 207 00:11:51,720 --> 00:11:55,120 you can find out more at stephtaylor dot co slash BYBS, 208 00:11:55,519 --> 00:11:57,360 or if you send me a DM on Instagram and 209 00:11:57,440 --> 00:12:00,759 there at stephtaylor dot co, send me BYBS one word 210 00:12:01,080 --> 00:12:03,240 and I will send you the link to find out 211 00:12:03,320 --> 00:12:06,519 more about Booster Brands Superfans, where we deep dive into 212 00:12:06,559 --> 00:12:10,320 each part of that audience growth formula in much more 213 00:12:10,440 --> 00:12:14,120 detail and in a much more actionable way, because I'm 214 00:12:14,159 --> 00:12:17,480 all about implementing and getting results from taking action, not 215 00:12:17,679 --> 00:12:22,120 sitting there learning more, learning all of the things. All right, 216 00:12:22,159 --> 00:12:24,440 that is in for today's episode. If you haven't already 217 00:12:24,519 --> 00:12:27,080 left a quick rating, please take thirty seconds to do that. 218 00:12:27,159 --> 00:12:30,000 In Apple podcasts means a lot to me when you do. 219 00:12:30,519 --> 00:12:33,039 I read every single one of them, and yeah, it 220 00:12:33,080 --> 00:12:34,720 really does mean a lot because a lot of work 221 00:12:34,720 --> 00:12:37,480 goes into creating this show. Thank you so much for listening. 222 00:12:37,559 --> 00:12:38,320 Catch you next time.