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48,000 Followers and No Sales: What Was Really Missing · LET'S MAKE WAVES with Rana AlBasri Mouawad

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: She hired a social media agency and they took her account from 2,000 followers to 48,000 followers.
• 0:08
  SPEAKER_00: But her sales, they did not move, not even a little bit.
• 0:13
  SPEAKER_00: Now, she was telling me this standing in someone else's living room.
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_00: I was at a gathering where I was expecting small talk and canopies and all of that.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: But instead, we got into one of the most honest business conversations that I actually had with someone all year.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_00: And I wanted to share it with you today because if you've ever looked at your social media numbers, your Instagram followers, and they're going up, but your bank account is just staying exactly where it was, and you thought to yourself, what am I doing wrong?
• 0:49
  SPEAKER_00: Then this episode is going to give you the answer.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: By the end of it, you'll understand why visibility doesn't automatically turn into sales and what to look for instead.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: I will also tell you about those 10 or so boutique buyers who said no to me when I had my fashion label and why those particular no's ended up being the best communication training I ever had.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_00: But first, I'll tell you the question that I asked her before I gave her a single tip.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_00: It's the same question that I would ask you if you came to me for advice.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to Let's Make Waves.
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_00: I'm Rena, and if you're new here, this is the show where we talk about reputation, personal brand, and communication for people who have already built something real, they've built a business and they want the world outside their intimate circle to finally notice.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_00: Today's episode is for the business owner who's been doing everything that she was told.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_00: She posts, she shows up, maybe even paid someone to grow her account, her social media account.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_00: The numbers look great on paper.
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_00: But when you sit down at the end of the month and look at what actually came in, something doesn't add up.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: Now you're actually being seen, but you're not being chosen in terms of your business.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: And you're starting to wonder if the problem is you, is it your product, or is it the algorithms of social media?
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_00: Now I promise you, it's probably none of those.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_00: So let's talk about it.
• 2:29
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, let me set the scene here.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_00: A few weeks ago, I was at an event at a friend's house, very nice evening, great people around, lots of conversations happening all at once.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: And a mutual friend introduces me to this to this woman, a businesswoman, and then when she asked me, she said, Rana, you have to meet this person.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_00: She is she has a fashion label, and I told her that you used to have one too.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_00: Now, just for a little more context, in case you're new here and you didn't know this about me, before I went fully into communications consulting, I had my own fashion label.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_00: It's one of the businesses that I created a long time ago, and I started it back in 2010.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_00: And at its peak, my designs were sold in boutiques across eight different markets and in three international online stores.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: So that's the part of my story that she had heard, and that's why she wanted me to talk with this fashion designer.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_00: Um, now I'm based here in Canada, also more context.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_00: She has her label here, and she was very open with me.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_00: She said, you know, um not verbatim, but like she said something like, I don't understand, I'm not really growing, I'm not selling more.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_00: I hired a social media agency and they grew my account.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: So I used to be at 2,000 followers and now I'm about 48,000, and it did nothing to my sale.
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_00: Now, before you think, okay, Rana, this is a fashion episode.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_00: I sell consulting or I'm a coach or I run a clinic, just stay with me here.
• 4:12
  SPEAKER_00: I'm telling you this story because the principles are exactly the same, whatever your business is.
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_00: When you use communication to build your business brand and your personal brand, the rules don't really change much from one industry to another.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_00: The principles don't.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_00: So listen to this conversation, take what's useful for you and for your business, and think about how it can apply for you and for your business.
• 4:38
  SPEAKER_00: So here's what I did.
• 4:40
  SPEAKER_00: Before I gave her any tip, I just listened to everything she was telling me and I started asking more and more questions.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_00: I wanted to really get to the bottom of things.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_00: So I started asking her questions about her business and the details about the business because honestly, you can't give anyone good advice about communication in general if you don't understand the business behind it, especially if they're business owners.
• 5:06
  SPEAKER_00: You can't really nail a good advice without understanding the business.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_00: And the first few questions, they were really simple: like, who is your customer?
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_00: Who are you really designing for?
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_00: And her answer was women.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: It's a women's fashion label.
• 5:25
  SPEAKER_00: And I said, Okay, but that's not really enough.
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_00: And I don't say that to be harsh, I say it because a woman's fashion label describes like thousands of label labels, if not millions of labels around the world.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_00: Like thousands of talented women designers have the same thing, you know.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_00: If that is all that you've got, there's nothing that makes someone stop and say, oh, that label is for me.
• 5:54
  SPEAKER_00: That's that these designs are for me.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_00: Now, I want to be careful here because people hear this and they immediately think, oh, she's telling me to niche down.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_00: That's not exactly what I mean.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_00: It's not about, it's not about shrinking your business into a very tiny corner.
• 6:12
  SPEAKER_00: That's not what I'm doing.
• 6:14
  SPEAKER_00: But it's mainly about finding the layer that kind of differentiates you or identifies you differently from someone else who's doing exactly the same work as you.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_00: So the thing that makes you different from basically every every other women-led label out there.
• 6:35
  SPEAKER_00: So what happened next is that I asked her more and more questions.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, tell me more.
• 6:42
  SPEAKER_00: What is your inspiration process?
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: Is there a specific material or fabric or something like that that you are known for in your designs?
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_00: Or are you designing for a specific moment in a woman's life?
• 6:56
  SPEAKER_00: Could it be like sportswear or occasion wear or weddings only?
• 7:01
  SPEAKER_00: Like, you know, these are the kind of questions that we need to really understand about a business.
• 7:06
  SPEAKER_00: So, yes, she's in the fashion business, but think about it from your perspective as well, from your business.
• 7:12
  SPEAKER_00: Another question I just remembered asking her is that is it the is it for women who work and need something that you know later on go out for dinner?
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_00: Is it for a woman like is it a transitional thing if you're not really you don't want to be really specific about a particular layer, you know, a label?
• 7:32
  SPEAKER_00: And it's like there has there has to be another layer, like there something more specific than just women.
• 7:41
  SPEAKER_00: And my honest feedback to her at the time was what are you telling me is too vague.
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_00: Like I can't really understand what makes you different, what makes your label different, what makes your perspective different.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_00: It's true for you too, whatever your business is, whatever you are selling.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_00: If you're vague about who you're for, everything that comes after that becomes vague.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_00: Your content becomes vague, your brief to your agency, if you decide to use an agency, becomes vague.
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_00: Your pitch to partners, if you want to, you know, bring partners on board becomes vague.
• 8:23
  SPEAKER_00: You can't build clear communication on top of a very blurry, very undistinctive foundation.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_00: It just doesn't hold.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so when we got to the real issue, and then like we were digging deeper and we were chatting, the real issue for was the 48,000 followers and no sales.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_00: And this is what I told her, and I'm going to tell you the same thing.
• 8:51
  SPEAKER_00: Social media is a tool, it's the tool that you use to market yourself or market your business.
• 8:58
  SPEAKER_00: It's just one tool.
• 9:00
  SPEAKER_00: It's a tool that we use for communication to build your brand, whether it's your personal brand or your business brand, but it cannot be a strategy, it is a distribution channel.
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_00: And when we forget that, we start measuring all the wrong things.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_00: Like we start celebrating followers and likes and views while the actual goal, the business goal, is just sitting there, it's getting ignored.
• 9:27
  SPEAKER_00: So it's really important to know as a business owner when you're building your personal brand and when you're building your business brand, what is the actual goal?
• 9:37
  SPEAKER_00: So, as a business owner, your goal is to grow the business, to bring new clients in, to keep the clients that you are that you have coming back again, to grow whether through uh to grow the business, whether it's like a price increase or new capacity or a new product line, whatever the look or the shape of the growth looks like.
• 10:01
  SPEAKER_00: And also most importantly, to communicate you as the founder, as the creator, as the business owner, to communicate your thought leadership, to communicate your value, your differentiators, everything about you as the founder brand, your personal brand, because they all serve the same goal.
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_00: So it is important to look at it this way so you can look at the brand not to live as something separate from the business.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so this is what I told her.
• 10:33
  SPEAKER_00: Your sales strategy and your communication strategy cannot be two separate things.
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_00: They need to work hand in hand, they have to work together.
• 10:44
  SPEAKER_00: And what does that mean in practice?
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_00: It means asking, what is my sales direction right now in this in this term, in this season?
• 10:54
  SPEAKER_00: How am I selling?
• 10:56
  SPEAKER_00: What are the different touch points where my customer or my client meets me?
• 11:02
  SPEAKER_00: And at these touch points, they decide whether to buy from me or buy from someone else.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_00: And then you start asking, how can my communication supports each of those touch points?
• 11:15
  SPEAKER_00: How does my personal brand help to get there?
• 11:19
  SPEAKER_00: How does my business brand help to get there?
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_00: When those two conversations happen separately, the communication conversation and the sales conversation, you get exactly what she got.
• 11:34
  SPEAKER_00: An agency that's doing probably amazing work, but it's working based on one metric: a follower count, a views count, while the on the other hand, the business metric, which is sales, which is new customer leads, all of that, it just doesn't move.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_00: So nobody did anything wrong necessarily, they were just two different um systems working separately and not together.
• 12:03
  SPEAKER_00: So once we connect these two things together, the next question would become very obvious.
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_00: And you can do that exercise yourself.
• 12:13
  SPEAKER_00: Once you ask yourself these questions, the next step is very simple.
• 12:17
  SPEAKER_00: If communication has to help in building your brand, your personal brand, and also to serve and support your business, um, your business goals such as sales, then we need to know exactly who we are selling to.
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_00: Okay?
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_00: This is why the question about who are you selling to is really important.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_00: So it's not from the perspective of niching other, but it's more of the perspective of really understanding our customer or our client.
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_00: Because that's when things get really interesting, and in her case, it turned out that she didn't really have a single audience, if you want.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_00: She actually had two.
• 13:04
  SPEAKER_00: Let me explain that because you might have the same thing in your business.
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_00: So for her, as a fashion designer, she has two different audiences.
• 13:13
  SPEAKER_00: The first audience is the obvious one, it's the direct customer, the woman who actually goes, tries her clothes, the designs or the clothes, and then decides to buy it.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_00: And the second client or customer audience is the ones that she wasn't really thinking about before.
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_00: And these people for her, for her business, are the buyers, the boutique buyers, the people inside the department stores and the boutiques who decide which designer gets space on their racks inside their stores.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_00: And this matters for her sales strategy by really understanding who the customer is and realizing that in her case, she has actually two customers, it really matters for her sales strategy because her market right now, she's based in Canada, so her market right now, if she only sells online, she is basically relying on one channel, which is her online store.
• 14:13
  SPEAKER_00: But if she decides that buyers are also another option for her designs, you know, to place them on racks in different boutiques, and that could be maybe in not just in the city that she's living in, but maybe other towns or cities, they can pick up her design.
• 14:32
  SPEAKER_00: Now her sales strategy is different because there are more places, more people seeing her clothes in person, so therefore more sales.
• 14:41
  SPEAKER_00: You know, there's the distribution thing here, and that is where her sales strategy and her communication strategy actually meet.
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so look into your business.
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_00: So there are certain businesses where, for example, some consultants they have um, you know, in her in their offer suite, they would have offers which is B2B, and then an offer which is B2C.
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_00: So now they have two different customers.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_00: So look into your business and see do you really understand who your customer is?
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_00: Do you really know exactly how do you want your product or your service to reach those customers, the different touch points?
• 15:24
  SPEAKER_00: And just think about is your current knowledge and current assessment on point, or do you need to really look into it?
• 15:34
  SPEAKER_00: Because here's the thing: these two audiences don't think the same when it comes to her.
• 15:41
  SPEAKER_00: So if you look into your business and it's the same thing, the audiences, when there is two different audiences for your business, they usually do not think the same, they don't decide the same way.
• 15:53
  SPEAKER_00: They are their purchase power is different, their purchase decision and the psychology that comes for them to decide when to purchase and uh their purchase psychology is very different.
• 16:06
  SPEAKER_00: And they also don't hang out in the same place, so you can't really talk to them the same way.
• 16:13
  SPEAKER_00: So let me go back to my conversation with her after we kind of crossed that first bridge, which is her audience, the woman who buys from her, and the buyer who is also could be an option for her.
• 16:25
  SPEAKER_00: And I want to start with her with her direct customer.
• 16:30
  SPEAKER_00: Now, in her case, I told her you need to know this woman, your direct buyer, you need to know her inside out.
• 16:39
  SPEAKER_00: Where does she shop?
• 16:41
  SPEAKER_00: If she if she shops online, how does that decision actually happen?
• 16:46
  SPEAKER_00: Does she need to see uh something on Instagram and then go straight to the online store?
• 16:51
  SPEAKER_00: Or does she save it, then think about it, and then come back to it again?
• 16:56
  SPEAKER_00: So she needs to see it multiple times before she takes the decision?
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_00: Is she influenced by who is wearing it or not?
• 17:03
  SPEAKER_00: Like, do you need to think about um having a lot of uh images of other customers or maybe uh influencers or socialize also wearing your designs?
• 17:15
  SPEAKER_00: Does your customer need to see uh the dresses in a certain way photographed on your site or on your social media accounts in a certain way?
• 17:26
  SPEAKER_00: Does the product description need to have certain things?
• 17:30
  SPEAKER_00: Does she care about the fabrics?
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_00: Where is it made?
• 17:33
  SPEAKER_00: How is it made?
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_00: Like, know every single detail about your customer.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_00: And then the conversation has to go beyond the shopping.
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_00: Like in her case, what does the customer's life look like?
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_00: Does she go to fashion shows?
• 17:47
  SPEAKER_00: Does she go to local markets?
• 17:49
  SPEAKER_00: What kind of boutiques does she love?
• 17:52
  SPEAKER_00: Uh what events does she attend?
• 17:54
  SPEAKER_00: Is she a person who goes to uh charity galas or is she more into business networking?
• 18:01
  SPEAKER_00: Is it is she a person who's very socially active?
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_00: So it's like when it's wedding seasons, she's she's an invited to a lot of weddings.
• 18:11
  SPEAKER_00: Like you really need to understand your customer in relation to the designs that you create.
• 18:18
  SPEAKER_00: Because every single one of the answers for those different questions they kind of affect the the way you communicate and the way you showcase whether yourself or your designs in different formats on social media, in print media, and different ways.
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_00: So it kind of tells you what to say and how to say things and how to describe it and how to use the images and what kind of wording and language in your captions.
• 18:47
  SPEAKER_00: And it also tells you what kind of brief, if you decide to work with a social media agency or a social media freelance manager, you know, it will tell you what kind of brief to give them so they are able to help you make content that speaks to your audience, not just content that looks great and it gets a lot of likes and maybe follows, but it doesn't impact the bottom line, you know, and it also gives you information about her so you know what kind of collaboration you can do.
• 19:21
  SPEAKER_00: Like if she's not interested in influencers, influencer marketing will not be part of your communication plan.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_00: But if she's a person who goes to a lot of exhibitions or to markets, then maybe like you need to think of uh trade shows or you need to you need to think of bazaars or whatever it could be suitable for your market and for your customer, and it also helps you um a lot when it comes to your strategy, um, not just from a content perspective, but across the board when you're building your your brand.
• 19:57
  SPEAKER_00: So visually um and and uh words and language-wise and vibes and all of that, it helps everything, and it also helps you when you're physically presenting the product.
• 20:11
  SPEAKER_00: If you are if you have your own boutique, or if you later on decide to also partner with other boutiques and you work with buyers, so that your designs are then featured in those in those stores.
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_00: So this was looking at one audience, but when we look at the other audience, the questions become different.
• 20:34
  SPEAKER_00: So now if we think of the buyers who are the buyers for the boutique stores and the department store, this is where storytelling plays a huge, huge role.
• 20:48
  SPEAKER_00: In her case, she cannot approach every boutique or every department store herself.
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes it's really physically hard because if she is interested in certain boutiques in another town, it starts with communicating online with those people.
• 21:06
  SPEAKER_00: So she needs to find the right number one, the right stores that her client would shop there.
• 21:14
  SPEAKER_00: So, yes, you can have a beautiful wish list and you would wish in one of those international or huge department stores to um to showcase your designs.
• 21:25
  SPEAKER_00: But when you're just starting out, being realistic is important of what types of boutiques does your customer really go to, and when you have that understanding of your audience really well, you will understand where where they will shop.
• 21:40
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so in her case, she needs to do that uh exercise first of all, and then she will start like digging deeper.
• 21:51
  SPEAKER_00: How can she basically affect the decision of the buyer so that they see her as the right label to feature in their boots?
• 22:01
  SPEAKER_00: Some buyers have different signals.
• 22:03
  SPEAKER_00: So some buyers they only car carry high-end pieces.
• 22:08
  SPEAKER_00: So if you're if her her pieces were not high-end with certain features, then there's no point approaching them.
• 22:17
  SPEAKER_00: But there are buyers who support local designers.
• 22:21
  SPEAKER_00: She needs to understand what is important for those buyers and what is the theme of their boutique or if they're store.
• 22:27
  SPEAKER_00: Do they have certain fabrics they they only feature in their boutiques?
• 22:32
  SPEAKER_00: Do they have certain ways of discovering designers?
• 22:35
  SPEAKER_00: Like maybe they only work with designers that they discover in trade shows or in Fashion Week or maybe recommended by other buyers.
• 22:44
  SPEAKER_00: So this is really important to you know for her to really understand the the different types of audience.
• 22:54
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm saying that as an example so that you can also look in your business and think about who exactly are my audience and what is my true understanding of them.
• 23:05
  SPEAKER_00: Because that's that's how it's going to impact your sales strategy, your communication strategy, and everything else across the board.
• 23:15
  SPEAKER_00: And you know, this reminds me of my journey.
• 23:18
  SPEAKER_00: When I first started my label in 2010, I got a lot of no's before I got into my first boutique, and I honestly don't remember the exact number, but I remember it was at least 10, if not more, but at least 10.
• 23:33
  SPEAKER_00: It was a lot, and this is what I did with every single no.
• 23:38
  SPEAKER_00: I would go back to the buyer and I would say, Can you please tell me what exactly was the reason behind the no?
• 23:45
  SPEAKER_00: Was it how I pitched it to you?
• 23:47
  SPEAKER_00: Did I misunderstand your customer?
• 23:50
  SPEAKER_00: Or is it a design issue?
• 23:52
  SPEAKER_00: You just don't carry my genre of designs.
• 23:55
  SPEAKER_00: Is it the material that I use?
• 23:57
  SPEAKER_00: Is it the quality of the of the pieces?
• 24:00
  SPEAKER_00: Like I asked questions, and usually buyers, when you're open with them, they tell you.
• 24:06
  SPEAKER_00: And seriously, they were brutally honest with me, you know.
• 24:11
  SPEAKER_00: They basically tell you exactly what they think with no filter.
• 24:16
  SPEAKER_00: That's what happened with me.
• 24:19
  SPEAKER_00: So some of them, you know, they were very direct, and they just said, I'm sorry, I don't know you.
• 24:24
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know if you are a hobbyist.
• 24:27
  SPEAKER_00: This is something that you know you're doing designs on the on the side, it's a side gig.
• 24:32
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know if you're serious.
• 24:34
  SPEAKER_00: Come back to me after you have at least two, three collections, so I know that you're serious.
• 24:39
  SPEAKER_00: This was a feedback that I got a lot on my first collection when I first started.
• 24:43
  SPEAKER_00: A lot of, you know, a lot of boutique owners, they don't want to deal with new designers, they want to make sure that these people are not hobbyists and then that they're serious, you know.
• 24:52
  SPEAKER_00: And it was it was a very important moment because I realized that some of the no's were not really no's.
• 25:01
  SPEAKER_00: They were not a no to my design.
• 25:04
  SPEAKER_00: They were basically saying no because they didn't trust me yet, they didn't know if I was a serious designer, you know.
• 25:14
  SPEAKER_00: So I basically put every one of those buyers on a list.
• 25:20
  SPEAKER_00: And when I had my second collection, I went back to them and I presented all over again.
• 25:25
  SPEAKER_00: And I said, I know I only have two collections under my belt, but I'm now available in other boutiques.
• 25:33
  SPEAKER_00: Can you please take a look?
• 25:34
  SPEAKER_00: You know, and I it's like I would repeat, rinse, and repeat, rinse and repeat, and they started giving me a chance.
• 25:42
  SPEAKER_00: And this is what started impacting not just my name and my reputation, but also my sales, because I knew with every no what I needed to do, whether I needed to do more communication, whether some boutiques that were on my list they wanted to see other people wearing it, some boutiques they wanted to see if other boutiques took me so you know they feel more confident.
• 26:08
  SPEAKER_00: Every no was a signal for me to move forward and to understand where does building the the fashion label brand and my reputation, my personal brand as a designer, what do I need to do so that I can minimize the risk for them?
• 26:29
  SPEAKER_00: And every no made my communication better.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_00: Truly, every single no made my communication better.
• 26:39
  SPEAKER_00: When Barry would said no, my presentation would get better.
• 26:43
  SPEAKER_00: Um, if someone stopped because they thought my slide deck was not great, I made it better the next time.
• 26:51
  SPEAKER_00: Somebody had feedback on certain fabrics and finish, I made sure that you know I look closer next time.
• 26:58
  SPEAKER_00: Feedback is so important.
• 27:00
  SPEAKER_00: I got feedback on the lack of publicity, I doubled down on publicity between one collection and another.
• 27:08
  SPEAKER_00: Every feedback is a data point, and the same thing goes for any business.
• 27:14
  SPEAKER_00: This is like foundational.
• 27:16
  SPEAKER_00: So if you are getting a lot of no's right now in any business from clients, from partners, from anyone that you're trying to approach, please don't just walk away with the no.
• 27:29
  SPEAKER_00: Start asking questions.
• 27:32
  SPEAKER_00: There is so much in the answers that you get when you're asking why.
• 27:38
  SPEAKER_00: Because that no is the most honest feedback that you will ever get.
• 27:42
  SPEAKER_00: It will tell you exactly what's missing in your communication, what's missing in your product, what's missing in anything, any detail that is important to the person that you're trying to reach.
• 27:55
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so once you really understand your audience, and this is what I told her also, it it basically helps you understand how do they decide, what do they value, where do they spend their time.
• 28:12
  SPEAKER_00: The next layer becomes really clear.
• 28:15
  SPEAKER_00: So, what's the next layer?
• 28:16
  SPEAKER_00: You will know what communication tools to use specifically for you, specifically for your audience and for your business.
• 28:25
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so you it's not like a checklist.
• 28:28
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, I need to do all of this.
• 28:30
  SPEAKER_00: No, some businesses don't need Instagram, they need LinkedIn.
• 28:33
  SPEAKER_00: Some businesses they need more um public speaking than anything else.
• 28:39
  SPEAKER_00: Some businesses they publicity is really important.
• 28:42
  SPEAKER_00: So you will know what tool is good for you and for your business and for your client.
• 28:47
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm saying this because this is why so many business owners get stuck.
• 28:53
  SPEAKER_00: A lot of people think that the only way to build a personal brand, a founder brand, is basically through content.
• 29:01
  SPEAKER_00: It's just content, and it's only content that they post.
• 29:05
  SPEAKER_00: Okay?
• 29:06
  SPEAKER_00: And yes, we cannot deny that content is something that you, as the business owner, control.
• 29:14
  SPEAKER_00: But it's not the only thing that you control.
• 29:17
  SPEAKER_00: You're also able to build your reputation through relationships, through other types of communication.
• 29:24
  SPEAKER_00: So let me walk you through the ones that I talked to her for, you know, the example, the conversation that I was having with the fashion designer.
• 29:33
  SPEAKER_00: This is what I told her that she needs to like really consider in terms of other tools other than social media.
• 29:41
  SPEAKER_00: The first is media and publicity.
• 29:44
  SPEAKER_00: Do your buyers or your customers care about you being featured in the media, in fashion blogs, and maybe legacy media or local media, or maybe trusted bloggers in specific cities and in the place that you're living in.
• 30:01
  SPEAKER_00: Is it important for them that you're on podcast?
• 30:05
  SPEAKER_00: So the question is not should I get press?
• 30:10
  SPEAKER_00: It becomes what kind of media actually matters to the people that I'm trying to reach.
• 30:16
  SPEAKER_00: Because here's the thing: a feature in the right local magazine might do actually more for building the brand than being on a national one that the customer, your customer, doesn't read.
• 30:32
  SPEAKER_00: So it's really important to understand what kind of media, if that is necessary, what kind of media really matters to the people that you're trying to reach?
• 30:43
  SPEAKER_00: The second thing that I told her that I suggested to her are events.
• 30:48
  SPEAKER_00: So if you realize that your customer loves events and that um, you know, basically depending on your budget, what can you create?
• 30:59
  SPEAKER_00: How can you be part of an event, or if you can create your own event?
• 31:05
  SPEAKER_00: So, can you do your own small fashion show maybe?
• 31:09
  SPEAKER_00: Or let's say um it doesn't have to be an event that way, it could be a private showing at a club, for example.
• 31:17
  SPEAKER_00: Or you uh if you design for the working woman, could you, for example, partner with a you know a businesswoman association in your town and do private shows there or a small exhibition to the members there?
• 31:31
  SPEAKER_00: Like really look creatively at the concept of event for her case to look creatively outside just a fashion show because event could be so many different ways, and in this case, if you also know your customer really well, you'll understand if they value private shows, if they value really curated group of people together at having something very private, you know.
• 32:00
  SPEAKER_00: So it's important to think about it in a way that you know I don't need to just shout on my feed on social media, but actually, in addition to social media, it would be great if I can create the space where I am standing in the same room with the women that I'm actually designing for.
• 32:19
  SPEAKER_00: So, in your case, in your business, think of events from a creative concept and see what can be a really good opportunity for you to create where you are in the same room with the with the audience that you're trying to convert into customers.
• 32:36
  SPEAKER_00: Um, the third thing that I also told her for her business were trade shows.
• 32:41
  SPEAKER_00: Now, there are a lot of businesses that benefit from trade shows because when you participate and you invest in being part of a trade show, you know for a fact that your target audience, your target clientele, are specifically coming to the trade show to buy and to see the thing that you are doing and people in your industry doing.
• 33:05
  SPEAKER_00: So it is important for buyers to see designers, for example, at trade shows, at fashion trade shows.
• 33:14
  SPEAKER_00: If that is where the buyers of these boutiques discover new designers, then being in a trade show would be something that she should be considering.
• 33:24
  SPEAKER_00: It's worth the investing, the investment.
• 33:27
  SPEAKER_00: And it's also part of her reputation building because I mean, talking about behind the scenes and the experience and being there at the trade show, that's like great for content as well.
• 33:38
  SPEAKER_00: So this is when you marry the sales strategy and the communication strategy together.
• 33:44
  SPEAKER_00: Um, the fourth option I gave her also to think about was influencer marketing.
• 33:50
  SPEAKER_00: Now, is it valuable for her for her audience to see her designs and on influencers?
• 33:58
  SPEAKER_00: This is a question that she needs to answer.
• 34:01
  SPEAKER_00: Because if the answer is yes, then she needs to start building real relationships with specific influencers in her market or in her city, not just random ones or like you know, these huge influencers that would not collaborate with a new designer and would only deal with specific level of brands.
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_00: So it's very important that she actually listens to her customers and see if influencers is something that impacts their decision, and if so, then it is worth her time to invest to create those kind of relationships.
• 34:39
  SPEAKER_00: And then the last thing that I also suggested to her was partnerships and collaboration, and I think that the you know, partnership or collaboration is something that a lot of people underuse.
• 34:54
  SPEAKER_00: For example, in her case, as a fashion designer, she can collaborate with other designers, they don't have to be for clothes, they could be, for example, um, designers who use leather, so a bag designer or a shoe designer or a hat designer, um, or for example, accessories, because the the customers will overlap, and you're kind of both supporting each other, but you're also borrowing from each other's audience.
• 35:24
  SPEAKER_00: So collaborations help a lot, whether it is an visibility um or it's it's access to a new audience.
• 35:34
  SPEAKER_00: Um, it's also you're kind of building on borrowed trust because if the other designer that you're collaborating with, they are being they are trusted by their audience.
• 35:45
  SPEAKER_00: So by default, you know, seeing their favorite designer collaborate with you, they will trust you too.
• 35:52
  SPEAKER_00: So partnerships and collaborations are a great tool, and it's sadly very much underused, and it's amazing for building and really reinforcing a personal brand.
• 36:03
  SPEAKER_00: And I say all of this because here's why using more than one tool really matters a lot, and you can see it.
• 36:11
  SPEAKER_00: You know, personal brand is not just social media.
• 36:14
  SPEAKER_00: I just I gave her like five examples of other tools.
• 36:18
  SPEAKER_00: It's really, really important because let me tell you this: there was a study by Edelman, one of the biggest communication firms in the world.
• 36:26
  SPEAKER_00: The study was from a 2019 trust barometer report on brands.
• 36:33
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, and in this uh study they basically surveyed 16,000 people in eight different countries, and they found that 8787% of people had very strong trust in a brand's message after seeing it across six different channels.
• 36:56
  SPEAKER_00: So, not after seeing it just once, but after seeing it across six different channels.
• 37:03
  SPEAKER_00: But if they just see it once, let's say on social media, they their the trust is only at 13%.
• 37:11
  SPEAKER_00: So 87% across six different channels, and only 13% if they see it just once.
• 37:18
  SPEAKER_00: So I want you to think about that.
• 37:20
  SPEAKER_00: 13% versus 87.
• 37:22
  SPEAKER_00: It's the same message, but the difference is how many places people met you, saw you, interacted with you, experienced your brand, experienced your communication.
• 37:35
  SPEAKER_00: And the same research also found that 81% of people said that being able to trust a brand was a deal breaker for them.
• 37:46
  SPEAKER_00: And it was a very important factor for them whether to buy or to not.
• 37:51
  SPEAKER_00: So trust is a very important factor for uh the people who are surveyed when it comes to their buying decision.
• 37:59
  SPEAKER_00: So, this is what a healthy communication strategy really looks like.
• 38:03
  SPEAKER_00: We cannot depend just passively on social media and whatever we put out there.
• 38:08
  SPEAKER_00: We have to juggle different tools: media, events, trade shows, influencers, partnerships, collaborations, all of that.
• 38:17
  SPEAKER_00: Because each one is chosen because of what the audience actually values.
• 38:24
  SPEAKER_00: And when they all work together, this is how it kind of makes your personal brand stronger, definitely impacts your business brand, but most importantly, it impacts the bottom line, it impacts your sales goals, and you know, this is what we're all about as women in business.
• 38:44
  SPEAKER_00: Now, I want to end the core of this episode with something that isn't really a communication tool, it's more of a mindset um shift.
• 38:55
  SPEAKER_00: And honestly, I think it's one of the most underrated things for any business owner.
• 39:01
  SPEAKER_00: Who do you surround yourself with?
• 39:04
  SPEAKER_00: Now, I asked her that.
• 39:06
  SPEAKER_00: I asked the fashion designer who was talking to me about this, and I asked her, Do you have a group of other designers around you?
• 39:14
  SPEAKER_00: And they don't have to be fashion designers like you, but jewelry designers, shoe designers, bag designers, people working in the leather goods, whatever it is, other people in the creative side of fashion who are building something just like you.
• 39:29
  SPEAKER_00: And I I want to be clear, this isn't about competition, it's about being around people who get it, people who understand the struggles, the plans, the good days, the bad days, whatever you're building.
• 39:43
  SPEAKER_00: Because when you're surrounded by people who are on the same path as you, things actually start coming to you, and things start appearing to you that you never really found out about them on your own.
• 39:58
  SPEAKER_00: Because when you're in these circles, someone will introduce you to a buyer, someone else will mention you know your name in an event, or they will mention to you that something is happening in the city, and it's a good idea if you know both of you go and attend it.
• 40:13
  SPEAKER_00: Someone will tell you about an exhibition that maybe could be perfect for you.
• 40:18
  SPEAKER_00: And really, this is really important, and I'm sure you heard about it, you know, surrounding yourself by you know ambitious or like-minded people like yourself.
• 40:27
  SPEAKER_00: And the research behind it is really clear.
• 40:30
  SPEAKER_00: Dr.
• 40:30
  SPEAKER_00: Gail Matthews, a psychology professor at the Dominican University of California, they ran a study on goal achievement with professionals from all kinds of fields.
• 40:42
  SPEAKER_00: So they ran it on entrepreneurs, managers, lawyers, artists, different fields.
• 40:48
  SPEAKER_00: And people who only thought about their goals accomplished were only about 43% of them.
• 40:55
  SPEAKER_00: But people who wrote their goals down and shared their commitments with a friend, with a group, with you know, people like that, they sent it to a friend with like weekly progress or they talked about it, they accomplished their goals at 76%.
• 41:12
  SPEAKER_00: So it was a small study.
• 41:15
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not I'm not trying to oversell the idea, but the message makes it so it just makes so much sense to me.
• 41:22
  SPEAKER_00: When the right people are around you watching you grow, holding you accountable, you you grow further, we all do, because our circle, it's it's not a like a nice extra to have, it's like part of the of the way that us ourselves we grow and we mature, and also for our business.
• 41:43
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so let me bring this all together.
• 41:45
  SPEAKER_00: This amazing designer came to me thinking that she had a social media problem, 48,000 followers, no sales.
• 41:54
  SPEAKER_00: She wanted advice on that, but I think what she actually had was a clarity problem, a strategy problem, both of them.
• 42:04
  SPEAKER_00: It was very clear.
• 42:06
  SPEAKER_00: She wasn't specific enough about who she was designing for, her communication and her sales strategy were basically living two separate lives.
• 42:17
  SPEAKER_00: She was talking to one audience, but actually, in reality, she then realized that she has two different audiences, and she was relying heavily and solely on one tool when actually her toolbox has so many other tools available to her.
• 42:36
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're listening to this, and okay, you're not a fashion designer, I really hope that you can see yourself in at least one part of this and you were able to take something out of it.
• 42:48
  SPEAKER_00: Because I see this all the time with the founders and with the experts that I talk to.
• 42:53
  SPEAKER_00: They have great work, real expertise, numbers going up, but at the same time, something in the middle is broken, and they just can't figure it out yet.
• 43:05
  SPEAKER_00: So if that's you, if you're very visible on social media, but it's not turning into clients, and you can't really put your finger on why.
• 43:15
  SPEAKER_00: This is the reason I created Brand Beyond Social.
• 43:19
  SPEAKER_00: It is a masterclass and a self-assessment workbook that walks you through a full diagnosis of your personal brand.
• 43:27
  SPEAKER_00: In just one sitting, you will see where your reputation is working for you and where it is basically costing you the trust and the sales.
• 43:36
  SPEAKER_00: So you stop guessing and you stop throwing more content or whatever at the problem, and you will find exactly what is missing in your personal brand and in your communication.
• 43:50
  SPEAKER_00: I will put the link to brand beyond social in the show notes.
• 43:53
  SPEAKER_00: And before you go, please ask yourself this question, the same question that I asked her.
• 43:59
  SPEAKER_00: Who exactly am I for?
• 44:01
  SPEAKER_00: Who else decides whether I get chosen?
• 44:05
  SPEAKER_00: And where do I spend my time?
• 44:08
  SPEAKER_00: And who do I really trust?
• 44:10
  SPEAKER_00: And who is really in my corner?
• 44:13
  SPEAKER_00: Answer those honestly, and I promise you, you'll see your business differently.
• 44:17
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you so much for listening.
• 44:19
  SPEAKER_00: If this episode made you think of someone, a friend who's maybe posting her heart out and not seeing results, please send it to her.
• 44:27
  SPEAKER_00: I'll see you in the next episode.
• 44:28
  SPEAKER_00: Take care, have a good one.