Information overload is a real thing! If you’re an online business owner, you know what I’m talking about — all you want is to check out Instagram for FUN and look at Jimmy Fallon’s hilarious posts (they are THE BEST!!), but all you can see on your feed is people teaching you the how-tos: how to make money fast, how to wow your clients, how to create multiple streams of income TODAY… the list goes on.
Hold on a sec…my head is spinning…
While I am all about creating high-quality content and helping people with the knowledge I have, there is a problem with this that we don’t usually talk about, which is how all the how-to posts can sometimes not be the most helpful thing for entrepreneurs who are trying to grow their businesses.
Not only do these posts encourage impractical perfection – the idea that we need to know “enough” before taking action, whether that be directly or indirectly – they also create unrealistic expectations that everything we do needs to look a certain way.
So what is the real reason why you feel stuck in terms of how to market your business effectively?
You don’t know your end goal.
Have you ever felt that no matter how much content you put out there and what market strategies you try, it’s never quite “enough”? More isn’t necessarily better. You’ve probably heard that before. So how do you market your business consistently and with confidence?
Related: How to talk about your business with confidence
You need an end goal. That’s right. Before you begin creating ANY content or posting on social media, you need to know EXACTLY what your end goal is. Remember, your end goal doesn’t always have to be sales or booked clients. It can simply be raising awareness of an issue that you can solve or building real connections. The goal here is to give your marketing effort a purpose – a finish line that gives you some sort of result even if it is just getting DMs from your followers.
When it comes to marketing, the problem is not lack of creativity or better launch strategies. While these things are incredibly valuable, the root of the issue is that we don’t know when to STOP.
It’s funny how we understand how to do this naturally in most areas of our life, but not marketing. Let’s use baking as an example. We all know what the end goal is — a cake! And depending on what kind of cake you want to make, you will gather the right ingredients and follow the instructions to make that happen. You wouldn’t add more baking powder than the recipe calls for – that could be a disaster!
Running a marathon is another great example of something with a clear goal. There is an end. A finish line where people will eventually stop and measure their achievements.
Do you see where I am going with this?
Having an end goal for your marketing efforts gives you purpose that leads to actions and a place to rest. Instead of marketing for the sake of marketing, choose a goal you can realistically achieve and use to evaluate your approach and measure success.
I highly recommend you focus on managing your expectations well. I know how easy it is to look at other industry friends and big names and try to do everything they do, but goals that are not sustainable and realistic can lead to overwhelming burnout. And the next thing you know, you haven’t created any content or talked about your business at all for the last three months. Not fun, right?
Check out how to create content effectively without it taking over your life
Here are three questions to help you set a clear end goal when creating content:
- What’s the main purpose of this piece of content?
- How is this piece of content going to lead people to take action?
- I would be satisfied if I saw results like _________.
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