All Ideas and no Action? How to manage marketing overwhelm online

Have you overwhelmed yourself with too many marketing options?

Let's take a look at reducing that, alongside the stress levels!

Do you find that you are desperately trying to cover all bases yet feeling like it isn't strong enough in any area as a message?

Do you ever find yourself brainstorming like a Ninja, filling notebooks full of ideas, to do, brain dumps galore only to sit and think - what next?

Yes i am not surprised to hear that and this is the truth - we all do this to some extent and don't believe anyone who says they don't!

With the amount of things to navigate in your business it can be very difficult to know what to prioritise. I think there are way too many options especially with online marketing. As ever, the best advice is to master one thing before you move onto the next.

Facebook

This is the main marketing monster isn't it - how do you feel about it? FB seem to be taking over the world and is connected everywhere too - if they don't own it they you have to login via it! I know some people who have private profiles that can't even be found by others now, I think that shows how some people feel as it can be very constant and the one that is the most addictive. FOMO! But really, is there anything that you can think of that you would really have missed out on in life if it wasn't on FB? Keeping it all in proportion is the key.

I like FB, I like the groups and have one, I have a Business page too but you may have noticed that people aren't seeing your posts here as much? Indeed they aren't. It is chaos in there, busy and like a roulette machine! And FB change the algorithms all the time it's is a full time job for marketers to keep up with, let alone people merrily posting away and wondering why it's a tumbleweed effect!

Again, you can;t keep up with it all so make sure that what you do it good and worth it, then share it in other zones, repurpose it later on, email it out and utilise your content well. You can link your IG with your business page too - posting individually everywhere is such a lot of work and a full time job! You can use a scheduler too - there are loads have a hunt but such as www.hootsuite.com or www.meetedgar.com

Instagram

It may not be the thing you most like doing, either. If you are a Facebook fan but your industry feature visually on a platform like IG, then it makes sense for you to be there. These posts need to work for you too, so find out about the hashtags, research what the competition do and find niche hashtags to help your posts be seen. Use the same filter on each post and if you can manage to use a themed grid process, even better. Some of the IG stylings are better than the posts themselves! Have a google on that one there are a few  - this is just one I found-  but I am not recommending, just sharing! https://www.plannthat.com/instagram-feed-themes-2/

Video and Lives

When it comes to video, would you rather do mostly anything than make one? How about going live? Are you quaking?

This is a massive pressure for some and needs a calm and cool approach. If you prefer, you can record a video and upload that and when you build confidence, go live. Remember, show up on video as you would at work or to a client. There is plenty of 'vulnerable' content out there - personally I think it is awful.  Why would you want to show anyone you not at your best? Think about it, this is a professional matter here - your business. Depending what it is, sometimes it is good to show the real you and certainly not to be fake but the MESSAGE is what matters. That will be the message around how you present yourself too. it is no different to real life -it is live and you are always live but some times are better than others right?

You are always SELLING in one way or another - don't forget that, it's a business! So be very mindful of that when you post...

More on how to 'sell' as you and be effective at it in another blog too......

Snoozed!

If I don't feel like going live I don't and I know lots of people who don't ever go live ad still are in business. The online world is quite a landscape so start with what you are comfortable with and don't feel pressures by what you see on there. In fact I would recommend 'snoozing' people in your feed - there is an option for that in the three dots to the right of the heading and name of the person or video. This means you don't have to unfollow or unlike just don't see it all for a while! This works well for me I have plenty on snooze! Mainly because the distraction adds to overwhelm and you find yourself watching endless content of others that isn't relevant to your business.

So be mindful what you watch and remember it's mostly the highlight reels!

This means all the best pics and posts and lives that reveal non of the reality!

That is how it should be too as it is MARKETING so don't forget it. As it is all mixed up in FB you can start to believe the hype as they say. Stay in your own lane and think about what you are putting out there -Is it relevant? Do you need to? What's the point of your post? What is the message in your live? Have you spent half the morning stressing about going live rather than getting on and doing something to generate business!?

VISIBILITY - the buzz word of the year!

Ok so let's think about this. You are your business and you want people to 'see' you and your business. There are numerous ways you can do this - in a way that works for you so you are not left suffering a panic attack every time you want to get a message out there. Clients of mine are always concerned what people will think and so can tend to overthink what they do. This just adds to your own overwhelm so remember that if nothing goes out, they think nothing! What's the worst that can happen? Not a lot really...(Well depends what you put but in general terms!)

Being noticed is a strange concept online. It can feel alien and unnatural yet we are happy in real F2F life - so make sure there is plenty of that too. Effective networking and dedicated conversations - that's for another blog!

Great posts can be created using  www.canva.com  If you haven't discovered this yet, off you go right now and discover! It will take a bit of faff time at first but will be worth it as you can create fabulous visuals here for free, brand them and style them to suit - with 1000's of free images too. I love canva -bet you will too.  I have always created messages that sell and worked with designers but of course if you don't have the creative experience, keep it simple. Message, content, contacts, logo, plus any accredited body or awards.

Always have a call to action in a advert style post. If it is branding, then it's about the message of your business more.

Don't put anything out that you think is not in keeping with your brand though - if it doesn't feel right make sure you get some advice or take another method and have a bit more practise with the new things.

That said, it doesn't need to be perfect either - just don't get too clever if you are not confident with creating.

What else? Ok...... Twitter LinkedIn, Pinterest, more more more!

I won't continue with each one, you get the picture and reading all this in itself is enough to cause considerable overwhelm....!

Tips to avoid overwhelm

1. Know which platform your clients are on and spend more time there - don't be random everywhere
2. Monitor response - if nothing try something else, don't take it personally!
3. Don't spend hours creating content - write down clear points of message and work around them 
4. Do what you are happy with 
5. Don't reinvent your own wheel - be yourself
6. Don't read everyone's content
7. Don't believe everyone's content!
8. Limit your own browsing time daily
9. No comparing! Snooze them!
10. Remember it's not real life - stay in your own lane and keep your focus

If you need to work through your approach to marketing and get more focus on your business and how it performs, book a 1-1 free call with me to see how I could help you. With over 20 years experience in advertising,sales, marketing and publishing I have the experience in this area - and a no-nonsense approach too!

[email protected]

T 07429 136815