Being a small business owner often means competing with huge companies. People choose to do business with us, even though it can be more expensive, because they receive a more caring and personal service. What makes our small businesses great is us, and that’s something that should come across in our marketing.
I’ve had a chat with Sarah, of Sarah White Branding & Photography, to get her thoughts on the subject.
” We are the most unique element of our business. Our approach, our personality, our values, our experience, our passion, our story and everything that has led us to where we are now – these are all of the reasons we are so good at what we do and different from anyone else who might be doing similar. These are the things that help us stand out, and it’s this that will help our potential customers decide whether or not they want to work with us.” – Sarah
Being the face of your brand is a challenge
I’m not going to pretend that it’s easy, and it’s certainly not something I’m good at doing for myself. If you look at my own Social Media accounts, there’s very little about me, my story, or even my work. It’s something I’m working to improve.
That being said, I often say that my ideal client is passionate small business owners. When my clients talk to me about their business, they don’t think about trying to sell me anything, and they end up talking with such passion. That passion is what I use as inspiration for their posts.
“Often people worry about what our oldest friends, family members and neighbours will think, but they aren’t the people we are trying to help. The other biggest challenge, I think, is that we need to know ourselves really well if we are going to communicate our uniqueness to others. That can feel pretty uncomfortable. We have to stop and think about what makes us who we are. We have to look at ourselves and listen to the sound of our voice. Most of us spend much of our lives avoiding doing any of that, but it’s so empowering when we do start to understand ourselves better and learn to appreciate the amazing person that we are!” – Sarah
The business benefits are huge
From a Social Media point of view, people will really start to engage with you more as they get to know and trust you. Having more people engage with you will allow your posts to reach more people.
Being the face of your brand isn’t only about trust though. Did you know that 65% of people will pay more to buy from a brand that shares their values?
“I spent years hiding away and believing that showing my photography work would be enough to persuade people to book with me. But people need to know who they are buying from and who they will be working with. When I realised that I needed to let people get to know me and that I could just be myself, that was the turning point for my struggling business. Being open and honest about who I am, why I do what I do and what makes me the right person to help the people I love to support, attracts the right people to me and gives them the reassurance that they need that working with me is going to be an enjoyable and positive experience. I also feel more fulfilled than ever because I am being true to myself and really helping people in a way that makes me feel amazing.” – Sarah
Do it your own way
Social Media has so many rules, and so many constant changes. What worked a few months ago might not work today. What worked for someone else might not work for you. However, I believe that one of the most important rules of Social Media is to do it your own way. You don’t have to talk about the various awareness days if they don’t feel right to you. You don’t have to show your face if it doesn’t feel right to you. If you’re transparent about those decisions, that could also help your followers get to know you a little better.
“Choose two or three areas of focus and do them well. Consider how much of your true personality is coming across on your favourite social media platform, or your blog, or when you introduce yourself at networking. Start to think about how you can inject more about you – ideally through video and images, but also by telling your story and sharing your values and motivations.” – Sarah
Get started today
I’ve got a little challenge for you. I’d love to know what inspires you to do what you do, what motivates you on a daily basis. Create a post in whichever format feels right to you – it can be words only, a photo, a video, or even a live! If you do it, please tag me so I don’t miss it.
“The best advice I can give anyone is to take things one step at a time. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by all of the advice that we get, telling us that we should be doing everything at once. There are lots of ways to be visible, and some will be right for you, while others aren’t. Social media is just one of the methods, and while it is extremely useful, you can also be visible in other ways, for example, through networking, email marketing, blog writing, your website, and so on. Take some time to think about what you really want to achieve and why you do what you do. When we understand how important our plans are and the difference we want to make, it encourages us to push ourselves to do the things that scare us.” – Sarah
My Featured Guest
Sarah is a branding expert and photographer. She helps business owners to confidently tell their stories and to connect with their potential customers.
I mentioned earlier that being the face of my brand is something I’m working on improving. That’s why I’ve signed up to her 5-day online ‘Be the Face of Your Brand’ event from the 24th to the 28th of April. The goal is to explore the worries that you have about visibility, to understand what makes you unique, and to grow in confidence when communicating your passion with the world.
She will be setting a task/challenge every day – are you up for it? Sign up here.
If you want to hear more from Sarah, join her private Facebook Group!
If you’d like to be a Featured Guest on this blog, please send me a message. I’m looking for people who have experiences or thoughts on various Social Media related topics.
