With this year just beginning, everyone is either looking to start an online business or optimize their current one. If this sounds like you, book a free consultation to discover how we can create an effective business strategy together.
This can feel like no easy feet as business growth takes time. However, there are ways to do so…
- Your to-do list doesn’t get longer
- You’re able to go to bed at a reasonable time (no more all nighters)
- No longer have to skip out on family functions
Your time is valuable & we hope this collection of tips on how to grow in an effective & efficient way. Let’s dive in!
How to Grow Your Business Online
When it comes to growing a business, there are so many things “you should be doing.” You’re wearing all the hats in your business, and you can easily become confused about where your time should go. Below, we are going to strategies to grow your business in an effective & efficient way.
Establishing Your Business Goals
This may seem obvious. However, we can’t tell you how many times we see business owners jump right in with no clear plan for success. Having a goal in mind is what will help you to keep going (even when you want to give up) while also making it 10x easier to prioritize your days.
What we recommend doing is establishing a big, bodacious goal that you want to achieve. This could be hitting a revenue amount, number of clients you work with, launching a new service, and so on. We like to think of it as a big dream we want to bring into reality.
With this goal in mind, you can now establish what your business needs are by turning that big goal into a SMART goal. This will break your goal down into the following sections:
- Specific
- Measurable
- Achievable
- Relevant
- Time-Bound
When it comes to running an online business, this is the first step to take towards your success.
Understanding Your Target Audience
One of the quickest ways to stall your growth is trying to talk to everyone instead of one person. There have been so many times we reach someone’s post & think, “How are they in our heads?!” The reason they are able to do that is because they know their target audience like the back of their hand.
The place to focus on is the following:
- What are their fears?
- How is it showing up in their day-to-day life (i.e. pain points)?
- What transformative do they desire?
By getting clear on these 3 aspects, you are able to create content that calls to the people you want to serve. As you get more transactions with your content marketing, you can then begin to learn more about their demographics. We also dive into the importance of client journey mapping here.
Utilizing Social Media Effectively
This type of marketing seems pretty obvious, especially when you want to grow your business. However, social media marketing isn’t about being on all the platforms 24/7. Going into this year, people are looking for authenticity, community, and genuine support. If we were to encompass this not one phrase, it would be “value over volume.”
By being clear on who your target audience is, you are able to create better content that solves their pain points. By showing up as you are on a consistent basis, you are able to build trust faster. People want to support & invest in people they trust in.
When it comes to being more effective with social media content, it is to do the following:
- Pick one short form (Instagram and Facebook, for example) & long form (YouTube and Blogging, for example) to focus on. Once you are consistent on those platforms, you can branch on to repurposing your content to other social media platforms.
- Set up a content calendar that can include the days you brainstorm, produce, edit, and schedule.
- Utilize social media marketing tools like Later Media or Planoly to leverage automatic scheduling.
- Update your social media account bio to be reflective of the transformative you can provide to your target audience.
- We like starting ours with either “We help…” or “Helping…”.
Each of these tips will help you be more effective on social media without having to be on the platforms all the time.
Incorporating Paid Media to Increase Your Reach
A lot of people (ourselves included) believe organic marketing is #1. However, when it comes to growing (especially if you want to do it quickly), paid ads are the way to go. Paid ads like Facebook ads or Google Ads are powerful tools to amplify your business’s online presence and reach a wider audience of potential customers or clients.
Before diving into the ads, you need to be clear on the type of ads, your budget, and the purpose behind them. When you don’t have these clear answers, that is where money can be wasted. Beginning with organic marketing is a great place to start so you better understand your audience on social media, the type of content they like, and the offers you want to lead them to.
Focusing on SEO to Boost Visibility Organically
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is an organic way to grow your audience, especially if you have a blog or want a blog. Even though SEO can feel like a massive headache, it is a foundational piece to your business. Plus, platforms like TikTok & YouTube are utilizing SEO more & more. The more keyword-rich content you put out, the easier it is for your audience to find you.
A simple place to begin is to optimize your website and content with relevant keywords, ensure mobile-friendliness, and improve page loading speeds. A great way to see tangible data on your website specifically is to use tools like Google Analytics.
As you create more content, ensure they are rich with keywords your audience is searching for. Some tools to use are answerthepublic.com or ChatGPT.
Maximizing Email Marketing
If you don’t have an email list yet, this needs to be a goal for you this year. Your email list is an asset that cannot be taken from you. The only data that can be is if you delete your account or people unsubscribe. Everyone that you can on social media networks can disappear because that data belongs to them, not you.
In the online world, your email subscriber list is a group of leads you get to nurture & convert over time.
The place to begin is:
- Find an email marketing software you like. We prefer GoHighLevel or Convert Kit.
- These platforms often give you the ability to do free email marketing, whether it be a free trial or an account.
- Developing a free email opt-in so you are able to gather names & emails.
- This is a transaction between you & your audience!
- Develop a nurturing email marketing campaign to incorporate your audience into your community.
There is so much more you can do here, but this is where we recommend everyone begin! You can learn more about building an effective strategy here!
Collaborating With Similar Industry Leaders
An effective way to grow an online business is to collaborate with those in a similar industry to you. This can look like podcast interviews, blog interviews, live streams, social media lives, and so on. It is a way for you to get in front of a new online audience (especially if ads are a later problem for you).
However, there are ethical and unethical ways of doing these collaborations. You want to build genuine relationships with people online, especially from a networking perspective.
These are the steps we recommend taking:
- Look for people in a similar industry as you. For example, if you are a social media manager, you could be content with a graphic designer.
- Start engaging with their content, such as liking, comments, etc. You don’t want to outright ask for a collab, especially if they have no idea who you are.
- Focus on building a genuine connection with the industry leader you want to collaborate with rather than seeing it as a transaction.
- Stay on top of your social media presence because that is your portfolio for not only clients but networking opportunities, too.
This is an online marketing tool to always have in your back pocket!
Using Automation for Admin Tasks
The best way to learn how to grow is by understanding what needs your attention & what doesn’t. Many believe they need contractors or employees to automate tasks in their business. This could not be further from the truth. Using a tool like Zapier is easy to automate daily tasks without spending a ton of money.
Some simple automation can be:
- Automated email responders
- Social media scheduling software
- Customer relationship management systems
These are easy ways to get more time in your day so you can focus on bigger-picture tasks. However, before you start automating everything, it is important to get clear on the things you love doing vs what you hate doing. This will make sure your business becomes a well-piled magazine over time.
Final Thoughts
It can feel overwhelming to grow your business while also still having time in your day to enjoy all that you have accomplished. That is why you started your business in the first place! By incorporating these tips to grow, you can begin to embody the mentality of “achieving more while doing less.”
P.S. If this blog was too long to read, here is the gist:
- Set crystal clear business goals.
- Know your target audience’s fears, pains, & goals.
- Utilize social media effectively.
- Build or optimize your email marketing list.
- Consider using paid ads
- Incorporate SEO for organic growth
- Think about how you can collaborate with industry leaders
- Start automating admin tasks you hate
- Book a free consultation if you want us to do all of the above!
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