The reality of Your Marketing vs. Your Marketing Blocks

Five times out of ten, I hear female business owners "shoulds" in marketing followed by "but" statements.  

Some of the shoulds I hear are:

1. I should post consistently.
2. I should follow up.
3. I should start a podcast.
4. I should blog more.
5. I should learn more about (Insert social media platform of the week.)
6. I should send out an email regularly.
7. I should do text marketing.
8. I should start a Facebook Group.
9. I should do a website.
10. I should have a marketing strategy. 

And the but's I hear after the shoulds: 

1. First, I'm too busy and forget. 
2. Second, I don't automate because I don't want to seem unauthentic. 
3. Third, I'm not techy and can't afford to hire the help. 
4. Third, I'm not sure what to write about. 
5. I don't know how it works, and I'm unsure what to post. 
6. Fourth, I don't want to send out too many emails and annoy my subscribers. (In reality, I'm afraid they will unsubscribe.)
7. Again, I don't want to upset my subscribers, though, and what would I text?
8. I have one, but it's not what I want, so I wish to starFourth, t over.
9. I'm not techy and don't have the money to have someone do it.
10. I'm too small and don't have enough money to hire someone to implement it. 

And what these female entrepreneurs tell themselves is their current reality and truth. And the last thing I want to take away is someone's truth. But, a long time ago, when I used “should” and then backed it up with a "but,"... I had a friend tell me that everything after "but" is bull💩.

That may seem harsh, and what kind of mindset marketing strategist am I, with the nerve to say something is BS? I'm gentle and understanding and usually realize in my own life when I am saying, "but" I'm using excuses and fear to drive my decisions. I'm using my reality to continue to predict my future instead of trusting the universe to guide me through the fear and excuse. 

So, let's try these reframes:

1. Consistency - Instead of thinking of what you should do, "What can you commit to?" Choose your consistency level, and then ask yourself, if I commit to this, what is my litmus test to see if this is a good use of my time? Or is it better spent elsewhere? If it is, can I pay someone to keep me consistent, or do I let the posting dream go and focus on what does work for me?
2. Automation - No one likes automated LinkedIn spammy messages. Talk about BS! But not every automation has to be spammy. What if the automation was to remind you to send out the authentic email? Or what if you have templated email that you have blanks left in so that you can insert genuine follow-up comments from your last conversation? Automation comes in all shapes and sizes. Choose the one that still feels genuine to you.
3. I'm not techy. - When I was young, I truly believed I could not do the math. I was in special ed for math, and in fifth grade, I had to take a standardized test in math. I thought I would never pass and go to 6th grade because of the math portion. But as I said, I was in special education for math and worked with a math teacher to help me understand it. Guess what? Not only did I pass that standardized test, but I also had a top score and still have the certification to prove it. My point is that I held the belief because I was terrible at math. I never asked myself, if I slowed down and had someone train me, could I understand it? I never realized that by doing that, I was not where I started. So, let's look at the statement - I'm not techy. Are you not techy? Have you not learned how to turn on your computer or write an email? You are reading this online, so you are a bit techier than you think. So, make a list of what you don't understand and Youtube, five-minute how-to's bookmark them, and become "techy." Better yet, look up how to start a podcast. Or join Melissa Gueller's Wit and Wire Podcast course. It's awesome sauce.
4. Creating Content - This is a tried and true method of what to write about. Get a piece of paper and a pen. Write down the last five questions about you, your product or service, and your business. You now have five topics you can write about. Whether you create simple social media posts with questions and answers or longer blog posts or video content, you have your five topics. 
5. Joining yet another social media platform - I have a straightforward rule, If I'm not consistent in the social media platforms I'm on because they don't work, joining another will not solve the core problem. So, before you enter one more, do two things. First, ask yourself which two social media platforms I am on the most. Then ask your clients what two social media platforms they are on the most. If the two match the two you are on, there is no need to be on more social media platforms. If you only have one that you match with your clients, go all in on the one and follow the first topic about consistency.
6. Email Annoyance Reality Check - You will sign up for emails daily. You will one day forget you signed up. You will remember you signed up for them, but pick and choose what you read, or you will only sometimes see one of the seven emails they send a week because you are too busy to stare at your email waiting for their emails. Your clients and potential clients are doing the same thing. Your clients will not see most of your emails as they will be tucked away in a promotions tab, ready to read when they feel like it. So, if you only send one email a quarter or once a month, you are right. You won't. You won't annoy them because they forgot you existed. If you send them weekly or daily and they unsubscribe, celebrate that you have now avoided a client that was not meant for you, and celebrate every other subscriber receiving the email and opening it. Change your focus on those who love you and your content and can't wait to read it. 
7. Text Marketing - As a technical reminder, if you start SMS marketing... you have to ask permission to send your contacts. So, you can't annoy people who say no thank you. Those who say yes, want to hear from you. 
8. Facebook Groups - Starting Facebook Groups is similar to going on yet another social media platform. So, ask your clients how they feel about Facebook Groups and further questions about what they would like to see the group utilized for. And then ask yourself if their answers align with your mission and vision. If the answer is yes, see the first question on consistency again. If you can answer yes on mission and vision and consistency and your clients want it, go for it. Otherwise, focus on what you love to do.
9. Tech and Money - See topic three above about the techy part. As for the money part, I'm a big believer that the universe always says yes. When we tell ourselves we don't have the money. We ask the universe to fulfill our prophecy of not having enough money to hire anyone. So, instead of looking at what you can't afford, break down what you don't want to do and hire for those areas. Go to a site like Fiverr and start with what you can afford. The most important lesson is that when I free up my time with the things that eat up my time, I have more time to make money with the things I do well.
10. Marketing Strategy - Again, this is a belief system. Most companies start small. They grow by beginning to visualize what they want in their company. Marketing plans create the roadmap for attracting those who will become power partners and clients to help a business owner's vision into a reality. In short, you are never too small of a business to have a marketing plan, so don't let your limiting beliefs block you from growing the business your clients intentionally buy from.

I'm creating an e-course on how to write a marketing strategy that fits you, your vision, mission, and company. If you are interested in being the first to have access, contact me to be on the waiting list.