#BuildYourTribe Archives - The Social Media Advisor

August 26, 2019
Relationship Marketing

#RelationshipsMatter – How Does Social Proof Build Your Tribe?

When it comes to social media, there are lots of new and exciting terms out there. One relatively new term is social proof. You may not be familiar with the words, but you are familiar with the concept; think product endorsements, establishing authority, and word-of-mouth advertising. When it comes down to it, that’s all social proof is and it can help you build and expand your tribe. In fact, your tribe can also help you build your social proof.

Of course, people turn to you and what you post for a number of different reasons. For some, it’s about your product or services. For others, it’s about getting the opinion of a trusted authority. Also, there are those that it’s just because they like you or are your friend. While that all may sound pretty complicated, it really all boils down to social proof—people sharing information they like because it comes from someone they know and admire.

Marketers have known for a long time that having a good reputation and a strong brand can help you get sales. That’s why they depend heavily on product endorsements and positive customer reviews in advertising. The same is true for social media. When you gain a reputation for credibility and consistency, the people in your network come to trust you. Because they trust you, they trust your content, and they pass that content along to other people. And so it goes. That’s what engagement is, sharing, commenting, and reaching out.

So how can you use social proof to expand your reach and increase the number of people in your circle? There are lots of ways. Testimonials, case studies, personnel profiles, and telling stories can all work to improve your credibility and help people trust you. The same is true for the everyday interactions you have with the people in your social network world. The point is to involve the people you connect with in your everyday social media life. In short, strengthen your relationship with them. In turn, they will get the word out about you and your products and services.

When it comes to social media reach, you can never have too many people in your tribe. When you improve your social proof and cement your credibility, you’ll grow. The trouble is, it’s hard to do it on your own. The Social Media Advisor can help you get off on the right foot with a comprehensive social media analysis. They can help you grow both your tribe and the connections you have with the people who are already involved. Now is a great time to get started!

Be sure to Follow us and Let’s Engage!

Hollie Clere of The Social Media Advisor is a “#BeAwesome” Developer, Social Media, Brand Builder, Content Manager, Trainer and Author in LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Blog, Google+, YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram, and the tools to manage them.

Click here for Social Media Training, Speaking and Strategy Consultations.

January 17, 2017
Brand Storytelling

#AwesomeBranding – Your Personal Brand is Just as Important as Your Corporate Brand

The Social Media Advisor specializes in training and supporting small businesses in their branding, storytelling and social media strategy. A decade ago the concept of corporate branding was still getting traction. However, today, branding is a must for companies of every size. The advances and innovation that new technologies have brought us are extinguishing traditional advertising methods. This is why branding and permission-based marketing methods are the most effective right now. People are tired of being pushy sales methods. That means that every company needs a solid, clear branding strategy so that their target audience truly understands what they are buying.

“Branding is fundamental. Branding is basic. Branding is essential. Building brands builds incredible value for companies and corporations.” Scott Goodson, ForbesContributor

The workforce no longer needs to be convinced that branding is essential. The concept is mainstream enough today that large corporations and entrepreneurs – all of them invest in a branding strategy. A corporate brand focuses on the feeling or impression that their audienceexperiences when they think of your business. A lot of thought is put into a corporate brand and ensuring all the touchpoints that a person interacts with are infused with strategic branding.

What is a personal brand and why is it important?

Your personal brand is a separate entity from your corporate one. However, the idea is the same. When branding your own persona, the concept is to develop or hone the areas of your personality best suited to what you want your audience to think when they walk away from interacting with you.

Today, people do business with other people… not corporations. They want to build a relationship with their customers, contractors and vendors. Building like, know and trust is more than just a social media construct. This is a cornerstone of relationship marketing. This is why personal branding is necessary. What is your audience seeking? Who will they trust and want to do business with? This is not an invitation to build a fake persona because that is not authentic or genuine and it will turn others off right away. However, it is an opportunity to examine your own personality and interweave it with your corporate brandingto come up with a personal brand that benefits you and, in turn, your business.

Here are five suggestions for developing a strong personal brand:

Keep Your Inner Circle Small

1. Be mindful of what you say. We all have bad days. On days when you are feeling off your game, limit your negative communication to those in your inner circle that you trust. Do not just vent to any random person. You never really know who is connected to whom…and who would love to repeat what you say. Plus, a negative judgment could be attached to you and your business that will last long beyond your temporary moment of weakness.

Personal Branding Follows You

Your personal brand will move, and grow, with you. If you have a career change, parts of that personal brand will go with you. People will associate your personal branding with who you are…not just who you work with.

Consistency

Don’t want to confuse people? You have to keep your branding top of mind and consistent. If you are worried this will be difficult to accomplish, be certain that the foundations of your personal branding incorporate your true personality so that just being you – at your best – is enough.

Blending Your Branding

Be sure that your corporate and personal brands blend well together. If they are contrary in any way, this will work against you.

Accept the Way Branding Works

As with any branding, what others think about you (your personal brand) is ultimately not up to you. You cannot control another individual’s impressionsand thoughts. All you can do is build a branding strategy, follow it consistently, and hope for the best.

If you’ve already spent time building your corporate and personal branding, then it is time to roll out that strategy into your social media marketing and other marketing content. Need assistance creating a great story around your brand? This is where we excel. We can build out your online assets to reflect your branding in the best possible light and get you on the right track to creating quality content that is consistent with your messaging.

Be sure to Follow us and Let’s Engage!

Hollie Clere of The Social Media Advisor is a “#BeAwesome” Developer, Social Media, Brand Builder, Content Manager, Trainer and Author in LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Blog, Google+,YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram and the tools to manage them.

Click here for her Social Media Workshops, Classes and Seminars

September 27, 2016
Relationship Marketing

#BuildYourTribe – How to Engage Your Tribe

Jeff Goins once said “Something I’ve learned about building a tribe is that it’s not who you know, it’s who you help.” When you’re ready to engage your tribe, you need to keep in mind that you must connect on an emotional level with them. That connection has to be authentic and sincere.

Here are some fantastic ways to engage with your tribe:

Share a struggle. Highlight the pain point and be vulnerable in a way that makes you uncomfortable. People connect with humanity. Keep your audience in mind during this process and try not to get too personal in areas that will make your tribe members uncomfortable continuing to follow you.
Talk to them in one-on-one conversations. It’s okay to be the tribe leader and send your message down the pipeline, but if you don’t engage with them on a personal level, their loyalties may shift elsewhere.
Help your tribe by offering valuable insights. Appeal to your community, and teach what you know.
Ask them what they’re currently struggling with by asking the question (either through social media or through an anonymous survey): “What is your biggest struggle regarding _____?” You fill in the blank with a general topic that you’re familiar with. Leave the answer open. Don’t give a multiple choice. You may be surprised what your tribe struggles with. When you get the results, start looking for ways to help them overcome those obstacles.
Be yourself. Do the things you love to do. Share the joys of your life with your tribe.
Supportive and positive is the key. If you are constantly negative or passive aggressive in your conversations, your tribe will pull away from you. Every time you find yourself ready to say something negative, try to spin it into something positive. Remember, the only failure in life is the person who doesn’t get back up when they fall. They give in when they should persevere.
Encourage them to share their stories, their successes, their stumbles, and their joys with your community.
Don’t let your tribe get stagnant. Focus on the less vocal members as well and encourage new blood. You don’t want an unofficial hierarchy to form. That can lead to isolation and frustration within your tribe.

Take the time to cultivate your tribe and you’ll find them ready to move on anything you share. Their willingness to go the distance for you depends on your willingness to provide content they enjoy. They need that emotional connection in order for this to work. So make sure you do your part.

Be sure to Follow us and Let’s Engage!

Click here for her Social Media Workshops, Classes and Seminars

September 20, 2016
Relationship Marketing

#BuildYourTribe – Who Are Your Influencers?

Identifying the influencers that impact your tribe is not a complicated task. It requires interaction, paying attention, focusing on what makes them tick, and what piques their interest. These influencers will automatically be gathering the types of clients and customers you want. The largest benefit to this is that they will have their own large tribe of people that might also be interested in what you have to offer. Building a relationship with both your influencers and the individuals that influence your target audience will open up opportunities for growth that you would find both difficult and time consuming to do on your own.

Here are three steps to help you find and engage with your influencers.

You need to understand your community.
This includes your customer base, clients, power partners, followers and brand advocates. Research your target audience. Educate yourself on their demographic, psychographic, and social media preferences. Be prepared to engage based on their wants and needs in the market they’re interested in (make sure you are completely mobile-friendly, for instance). Get to know your customers. This is part of building your tribe. Once you find them, pay attention to what they are following. Who influences them? Where are they finding support and inspiration? What information are they sharing with their own audiences?

Now that you know your tribe and you’ve targeted your audience, you need to where to promote your business, product or service. Your observations should show you where your tribe congregates, so make sure you’re there. Which hashtags are the most popular, what social media shares do they engage in with your posts, etc. are very important. Start building both an online presence and awareness for your signature programs. Before you go courting your influencers, it is vital that you have a handle on your brand and what you bring to the table.

Find your influencers and the people that influence your audience. Follow them. Pay attention to what content they are posting and actively engage with it and make your existence known. This can be a slippery slope since you don’t want to come off as spammy or appear to be poaching from their client base. This works best when you locate an influencer that has a similar audience to you but offers a non-competing product or service. This would be an excellent potential power partner for you and allow you both to refer to one another. Share their content, engage with them, and make your brand stand out. Ask to do a guest post or interview them for your blog/podcast/YouTube channel. This is a nice reciprocal move as you will both gain more online presence and expand your reach.

Keep in mind that any influencer you cold contact will need to benefit from having a business relationship with you. Any influencer is an essential member of your tribe. If you abuse the connection, their influence could swing in the other direction, so keep that in mind.

Follow these three steps and you’ll find your influencers are just waiting for you to connect with them. Be patient, listen, and most of all learn what makes your tribe tick so you can utilize that information to #BeAwesome at what you do and continue to grow your own list and funnel.

Be sure to Follow us and Let’s Engage!

Click here for her Social Media Workshops, Classes and Seminars

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