Since the start of the pandemic, I’ve had the goal of upping my brand visibility. I’d humbly say I have CRUSHED that goal.
Here’s what I did:
- I sat down with marketing strategist and Founder of Noel & Co., Christina Marie Noel, to map out my marketing strategy for the rest of the year.
- I hired Jessica Johnston, PhD to manage my social media channels and keep an eye on my analytics.
- I did a LinkedIn challenge with Wendy Maynard and started posting, connecting, and commenting consistently (i.e., Monday-Friday) on LinkedIn.
- And I started interviewing experts in my network for my Own Your Expertise Interview series via Zoom.
All of this activity and success around raising brand awareness is actually evidence for an important point Laura Fravel, Founder of Laura Fravel Studios and I discussed during that first interview:
“The key to owning your expertise is finding the right support and accountability.”
I may have been able to do some of what I did without the support of the people I mentioned, but I certainly wouldn’t have gotten it done as quickly. In many cases, I didn’t even know where to start.
As a brand strategist, storyteller, and small business owner, Laura is also a huge believer in using masterminds and accountability partners to keep her on track to crush her business goals.
I learned so much chatting with her about her path from documentary story producer to branding expert working with small business owners to increase their digital presence and support them as they “put themselves out there.”
I can relate to Laura’s clients. My own path with my business has been a constant battle to figure out how to put myself out there. When I first started my business, I didn’t know what to call myself or the work I was doing.
I wrote blog posts for clients (work which I continue to do today). I thought I might like to create website content. I enjoyed writing case studies (more work which I still enjoy), email newsletters, and creating other types of marketing content.
But I knew I didn’t want to call myself a copywriter…
Writing quick, snappy headlines, tweets, and clever taglines has never been my cup of tea. So, I labeled myself a content marketer.
Then, after a couple of years, when I stumbled upon the term “ghostwriter,” it really resonated with me. I also knew I wanted to move into writing and editing books.
There was only one problem: content marketing and ghostwriting are very different brands—to bring this winding story back around to Laura’s interview—and I had no idea what I wanted this new brand to look like.
What did I do?
I hired a brand strategist who could pull out my story, my message, and really help me come up with a brand that I’m proud to call mine. Then I worked with the amazing team at Unity Web Agency to design a logo and website that brought my band to life.
This is what Laura does for her clients and I think it’s an INVALUABLE service for small business owners. When it comes to branding, you almost can’t do that work for yourself.
This just goes to show how much we all need the support of experts on our side to steer our half-baked ideas along the path to realizing our visions.
And speaking of support and accountability, Laura does a really amazing challenge to help female entrepreneurs figure out how to “put themselves out there.” Hop on the waitlist if you are ready to join the Dare to Be Seen Challenge and you’ll be notified the next time it happens.
Personally, I can’t wait for another challenge and another chance to crush my business goals.And you can view my interview with Laura in its entirety by following this link: Own Your Expertise Interview with Laura Fravel.