Building an audience is key to the success of your business. You may almost be ready to launch your business but no one knows about your existence, so how to start building an audience? Let’s find out!
hello, I’m your host Kaycinho, I’m a digital alchemist, and this episode, is episode number five of a module dedicated to the creation phase of starting your business, so if you haven’t seen the first four episodes, I invite you to check the module playlist by clicking here.
And by the way, this module is the second module of a course dedicated to take you from the burning desire to become your own boss to actually launching your business. So if you want access to the full course (videos will be added until the course is complete) by clicking here.
Building an audience: Why?
I’ve always been the type of person that was so excited by what I created, that I would just dive head first into the creation phase. Even if it meant not sleeping and then I would just release my work… and guess what?
Nothing happened and I often got discouraged.
See, my approach was wrong because there is a gazillion of social media accounts, websites, services, products and entrepreneurs out there, not to mention entertainment (yes I’m looking at you Netflix!).
So with all of that competition, how do you expect to get your voice out there?
That was even more frustrating when people who saw my work kept telling me things like: “I don’t understand why I had not heard of your work before, I love it”.
I knew why. I hadn’t done things the way I should have.
So I decided to start educating myself on the subject, and this post (and this whole website and Youtube channel actually) is a result of me switching tracks and doing things the way I always should have.
And the same goes for my Facebook Page.
Building an audience: it’s a marathon, not a sprint
Everyone starts at 0 so you’d better get started one day!
I’m not gonna lie to you, Youtube is hard. Way harder than I thought. But I’m enjoying the journey!
See, when we’re so much into the online world, we tend to forget, that behind nicknames, smartphones and computers, are flesh and blood human beings with needs and emotions.
And as human beings, we constantly seek to create relationships, whether in our personal or professional lives, and online interactions are no exception.
So instead of only focusing on delivering the perfect product or service, what we should really be doing, when we have a passion for what we do, is to connect genuinely with our community and give out some true value.
Building an audience: get the good mindset
When I left the corporate world for the freelancing business world, I felt so scared!
As if I was diving into the sea from the top of a cliff, for the first time. And at that time, I was desperately seeking for someone to hold my hand, but there just wasn’t anyone.
Yes there were resources here and there, but it was scattered and most of the time, it was just a collection of common sense advices, which is already good, but nothing that could really give me the big picture.
So I wanna be that person that can help while you’re making the leap of faith to Freelance or Business owner, and while I don’t know everything, what I want to do is to provide value for you by sharing what helped me along my journey.
So why am I telling you all this?
Well, whatever business you plan to get into, you should approach it with the same spirit, asking yourself what you can give to the world before asking yourself what you can get out of it.
We all need to make money, well most of us anyways. And sometimes, we can get lost in the money-seeking-process.
I’m not talking about scammers and con artists and their get-rich-quick schemes, because that’s a completely different story. What I’m talking about is honest entrepreneurs that get lost in the process because they must make money and therefore focus all efforts on just that: making money.
Now there’s nothing wrong with making money, but money without a purpose is like a glass without water (or beer some will say, well, you know what I mean), and I like many others experienced just that.
So I’m thankful for all the good vibes that I get from my readings, audible sessions and favorite Youtubers, because it helps to put things back in perspective.
Building an audience & making a difference
You need to give to receive, and I think that you know you’ve reached another level when you get excited to give, even if you’re not even sure you’re getting anything out of it.
Just think about it : if your work, if your voice, if your vision can change even one person’s life, then you’ve accomplished more than 99% of the population.
I’m not a philosopher, but I truly believe than we’re not on planet earth just to pay bills and taxes, nor even just to purchase stuff and more stuff and … more stuff!
I believe finding one’s life purpose, and actually making it a reality is an essential part of one’s happiness, but the sad thing is that most people never get to experience it, because society teaches us otherwise.
Being an entrepreneur is a challenge, but it can get you closer to fulfilling your life purpose.
So if your new business is centered around something you genuinely enjoy (and I hope that’s the case), then why not make it part of your life purpose and release some real value in the world?
After all, what goes around comes around as they say, and the same is true in business.
Building an audience: what value can YOU give?
So enough for the theory, tell me, what can you give to the world? What value can you bring?
For example, this course, that consist of 5 modules of 6 episodes each, is a lot of work, and a lot of investment both in time and equipment.
But guess what? I’m loving the process, and am so excited by the experience.
Now what can you do, that will help a person live a better life?
- If you’re an actor it could be entertainment that will make people laugh and enlighten their day.
- If you’re a graphic designer it could be an introduction series to Photoshop or Affinity Photo for beginners.
- If you’re a singer, you could give vocal techniques tutorials.
- If you’re a photographer, you could give field tips on how to easily get your exposure right.
- If you’re an accountant, you could provide some free Excel templates
- If you’re a Community Manager, you could show people how to get the best social reach results for a low budget. And it goes on and on and on.
Sky’s the limit really.
So why do many people just overlook that step? Either because they don’t get the big picture yet, or because they’re afraid of the amount of work to put in before they make back their first dollar.
And truth be told, there is indeed a lot of work to put upfront if you want to give yourself a chance to create some real value.
Now it’s not about working hard, it’s all about working smart, but yes, you will need to put a lot of work into it.
But if you’ve been following along this course, you’d know that if you are doing something you love and genuinely enjoy, then you will also enjoy the process.
Building an audience: you are unique
One thing I should also mention is something that I didn’t realize until lately.
When you are good and experienced at something, you take it for granted that everyone sees things as you do.
Sometimes, you don’t even realize that you are good at something until situations put things in perspective.
In my case, I’m so into freelancing, web design and development, branding and communication in general, that I didn’t realize that for some people, all of that is like speaking a very complicated foreign language.
And so, I didn’t realize that I could make a difference with my very own subjective input.
So for example, you might be a beat maker, and for you, crafting a great beat in under an hour is something you are used to, because you’ve been making beats since you were 11, and you are now 35.
This knowledge, and all the little tips and tricks you’ve learned through the years might be pure gold for someone starting out.
And your skills might also be gold for film making studios and advertising agencies, but because you think that what you are doing is normal, you just don’t market yourself enough.
So of course, you could come up with strategies to get your name out there, but simply giving to the world some of your essence, will do a much better job in my opinion, with the added benefit of actually releasing some good in this world.
Building an audience: be genuine
Now the thing is: you should not do that with the sole intent of making your money back.
Otherwise it’s a bit like telling someone a compliment and expecting one in return.
When you genuinely want to tell someone a compliment, you don’t really care if they come back with one. You just want to voice what’s boiling inside.
That’s how you should approach giving value to the World, in the perspective of your business.
At least that’s what I believe, with my very own subjective perspective and if I talk about it, it is because I’ve personally experienced it and it encouraged me to make it a habit.
Building an audience: your turn!
So, I hope that this video gave you some value, and that you’ve understood the essential part of releasing value out there, and if you have stories to share, or if you experience issues in that regard, please let me know in the comments of this post.
Now tell me: what skill do you have and what can you offer to the world? Let me know in the comments!
If you watched the companion video and if you like it, please give it a thumbs up, as it really helps growing the channel and if you know someone that could benefit from it, I’m going to ask you if you’d like to share it now.
Because let’s face it, there are so many things to do in a day that if you don’t do it now you’ll probably forget.
Now if you want to brand, market and grow your business it in the Digital Age make sure you subscribe to my email newsletter so that you never miss your share of digital alchemy and tips, tools, services and case studies that can help you grow your business online.
So, that’s it for this video, I hope to see you around here or on the Youtube channel, and in the meantime, don’t forget to invest in YOUR success
[…] Stop waiting, launch, and start creating value for your potential customers as we’ve seen in our previous episode. […]