Are you a business owner, Coach, Therapist, Trainer, Entrepreneur, creator of products, or do you know a few?
I posted the video below in my Practitioner Insider Secrets Facebook Group, where I share hints, tips, business software deals, and basically the knowledge and secrets I’ve acquired over the past 30+ years about creating and designing products, running Workshops and events, public speaking, and everything in between.
It was just going to be a post with a one-liner reminding those who attended my annual Mind Body Spirit Energy Fest Workshop or my free 1-Day Membership Group Workshop to share their feedback once they had used the bath salts. I then realised there was much more to be said and explored on the subject, and that I had seen people go out of business partly because of this.
In a Nutshell
In summary if you wanted an overview and context for what I have shared in this Blog:
- Word of mouth is powerful.
- Sharing your experiences of using a product or service helps cut through the social media noise.
- If you’re in business and not advertising savvy or don’t have a massive marketing budget the strategies below can be vital.
- If you buy from a business whose products or services you love, give them a share and shout out today. It really could make all the difference to their bottom line and social reach.
The Power of Sharing
The original post I shared with my Practitioner Group is below:
“After I posted this video I realised there are some poignant and important facets from a Practitioner point of view . . . . .
For those in this group who received the gift of Winniefred T Carneiro‘s wonderful bath salts it would be great if you could give some feedback once you have used them.
It doesn’t have to be a video, I just thought it was a great way to showcase the product, a written post or Blog will be more than good if you are already active on social media and in the habit or sharing things.
And I say written post and Blog rather than private message or email because although it is lovely to receive them (and by all means do that as well), the blunt reason is they do nothing to help build the business, spread the word, or bring in additional sales.
When you write a post it means they get exposure to new people, vs. them being told privately what they most likely already know about their product having put in the time energy and blood sweat and tears to create or produce it in the first place.
If you like a product. Support it. I recently had a product that I LOVED stop producing it because they weren’t getting the traction. Like me, they were inundated with praise behind the scenes, yet very few of their customers were sharing their results, many choosing not to because they wanted to keep it their secret. Ironically the products they coveted are now gone completely and we all have to go back to shopping on the high street and using products where we have no real idea what’s in them.
I used to wonder why they were always so appreciative when I wrote posts, did videos, mentioned and tagged them, randomly shared my results throughout the year, etc., because I imagined everyone must be getting the same or similar results as me and sharing as well.
From a Practitioner and Trainer perspective I’ve stopped running some of my Workshops for that reason; fantastic feedback, yet no word of mouth or social sharing so I kind of became the lone crazy lady shouting from the rooftops about how good they were!
I could keep running them however I would have to get serious about Facebook advertising and therefore probably at least double my prices to cover the cost of that so I just decided to pull them rather than run JOBE (just over break even) which means no one else gets to benefit from them and the people who enjoyed them don’t get to return.
When you flip this conversation over it potentially applies to you and your business. If you’re doing great work and people are only sharing their feedback and results with you or not at all, the same issues can arise unless you already have a massive client base and following.
A quick sentence on your Facebook page is a fabulous start: “Great product. Really relaxing” for example. It could well be that someone who needs to unwind and relax chances upon your post and decides to give them a go because they trust you and your recommendation.
A ‘like’ ‘comment’ and/or share when they post about them is useful as well because it helps to push the post up the newsfeed, remembering to add a few words about why you are sharing.
Happy bath and showertime!!!!”
The Business Ripple Effect
I woke up the next day to this comment on the video thread:
“Wow sounds fabulous. Thank you for sharing.”
I don’t know the person who wrote this comment and I am not connected to them on Facebook, so what I was saying about broadening the circle of influence has already started to happen which is fantastic. They also subsequently got in touch with Winniefred about her product range which is amazing.
Comment Like Share
If you know a (small) business and have experienced their products or services and like what they do maybe give them a ‘like’ ‘share’ or ‘comment’ today. You may not realise it, but your action can contribute to paying the bills and staying in business vs. shutting up shop and not having those services come to light.
You can watch the original video that sparked this discussion below . . . . . Had I known I was going to lead to such a train of thought and consciousness and end up in a Blog I wouldn’t have worn my dressing gown! LOL
For Small Businesses Social Media Can be a Double Edged Sword
I Love social media with a capital L and many of my Private Online Groups wouldn’t exist without it. The power of the Groups is such that we have someone who flies annually from the United States of America to London for the weekend to have lunch and dinner with the virtual members they became friends with in my Groups. Now that is true cyber connection.
Low Barriers to Entry = Lots of Noise
From a business perspective the barriers to entry for social media are very low and free which is great, and it also means there is a lot of traffic and noise. Every swipe presents a new advert. Almost every celebrity video now breaks for an auto play infomercial.
With so much noise and splendidly written sales copy people can find it difficult to choose or know what they will be getting when they spend their money. A personal share and endorsement changes that.
The Marketing Guru that was Philip Kotler
One of my most coveted books during my Business Studies and Marketing Degree and Postgraduate Diploma was Principles of Marketing by Philip Kotler. One of his most quoted phrases was:
Find a need and fill it.
That broke down into the 4 P’s of Marketing as they were called back then and was also heavily into the demographics, much as Facebook advertising is now. The indepth research and statistics and strategies all boil down to getting in front of the right target audience and giving them what they need.
It’s as Old as the Hills
Social Proof is as old as the hills, and it works. Think back to the first radio and TV commercials. They always featured someone talking about how great the product is and how much it has transformed or improved some aspect of their life. It usually also depicted families or people ‘just like you’ playing the scenario out.
The social media version of this video is someone writing a post saying:
Almost everything I called for (as in setting their goals) when I went on the MBS Workshop has manifested … Zero credit card debt … Worked in Saudi … Moved (from London) to Atlanta to be with my children … Get into the Vortex!” Ammana Shaka
It’s a wonderful story, and in fact series of stories, and because they often sound fantastical and unbelievable in terms of how easy it all was following her attendance at my MBS Workshop I interviewed Ammana on one of her visits back to London.
I am now running a Global 1-Day Video Webinar Version of the MBS Workshop if you are not able to make it to the UK and attend the annual December event. To book your place go to: http://mbsenergyfest.eventbrite.com/
Advertising Requires a Budget and Knowhow
Small business owners don’t always have the money for big advertising budgets, and even when they do it can be a money pit if you don’t know what you’re doing. You can very easily boost your posts, something which the FB Ad specialists I know all frown upon, or you can dive into the algorithms, which I would recommend if you have the patience and time and money.
Your simple act of sharing with your social circle the benefits you have gained from using a business product or service is in many respects better than an advert because it taps into the “know like and trust” analogy, and that is both valuable and priceless; a real person sharing their real experience.
About Winniefred and Contact Details
To get in touch with Winniefred and find out more about her incredible bath salts and shower scrub use the details below.
Website: www.wynsworldtherapies.com Email: wynsworld.therapies@gmail.com Scented and unscented Harmony Healing and Custom Blends are available.
As a Healer and Therapist with over 25 years of practice in energetic modalities in healing, counselling therapies, and coaching including Aromatherapy, Aura Somo (Colour Healing) and Vibrational Healing I created these powerful healing vibrational bath salts using energy harmonics, traditional blending with pure grade essential oils, pharmaceutical mineral salts and energy vibrational frequency for the 21st century.
These are extremely powerful vibrational salts and will act on a molecular level with your aura and energy field and as an added bonus the salts can also be left in a room to purify the atmosphere . . . . . You can read more in the documentation that comes with each beautifully packaged packet of vibrational salts which you can see in the above video if you haven’t already watched it.
Thank You and I Would Also Appreciate Your Help
I created this poster thingy below back in the days before the cool software we have now; if you are reading this in real time check out my latest eNewsletter because I just shared a $49 Lifetime Deal for the social media image creation software I currently use.
If you’re not on the list you can sign up for future updates, special offers, free volunteer Session when I’m launching new products here: https://mailchi.mp/tranceformationstm.com/enewsletteradventure
I would also really appreciate your help in building up some Google Reviews. Details are below.
Write a Google Review
If you are a customer or client of mine or have attended my free Teleseminars and Webinars over the years and benefitted from what I do I would really appreciate a Google Review. I’ve just set up a page here: http://bit.ly/googlereviewmarilyn the full page is: http://bit.ly/googlereviewpagetm
I would love to hear your feedback on this topic. If you are reading this on my Blog on social media feel free to leave a comment. If not, you can also use the contact form below.
Contact Information
Marilyn Devonish
The NeuroSuccess Coach
Email: marilyn@tranceformationsTM.com
Website: http://www.tranceformationstm.com
Blog: https://marilyndevonish.com
New Product Launch: The Coaching Cards: http://bit.ly/mdcoachingcards (I am also gifting away decks of my new Money Breakthrough Intuitive Cards which are coming out next month. Details are in my latest eNewsletter)