How to Build A Business on Social Media

I love sharing what I do with others, and today I’d like to go through some common questions I get about how to build a business on social media. It’s a passion of mine, and I want to help as many people as possible! I started my business over ten years ago. My husband also retired from his corporate job, and we both work full time from home. I have a lot of experience with many ups and downs, so I have a lot of opinions on the matter. You’re going to get the full transparency version of what I really think about a lot of things! You might feel the feels, get emotional, and dream a little bit bigger today.

Without further ado, let’s jump right in!

If I have an idea for a business, how do I actually get started?

If you can progress by a millimeter today on one goal that you have, it will transform your life. Just do one small thing, like buying the domain name for your website. You will feel so good about it!

How do you overcome fear and gain more confidence in front of the camera?

The best way to do this is to flip your psyche. Think about what it is that you’re scared of (what if there are no views, what if people will judge me, etc.). Then, think about what would happen if you kept holding yourself back. In three months, what would that mean to the growth of your business? What about the income? What would that mean in six months? In nine months? You would probably not be moving forward.

Let me blow your mind a little bit more… flip your mindset to, what will your life look like a year from now? How have I affected my future? How many less places in the world am I going to see? Who are the people that I’ll never meet? Don’t get me wrong, it’s hard, especially at first. I always think about these questions in times where I feel scared or like giving up. It’s crazy to think and super emotional. If you can’t do it for you, do it for the people you love most. Once you start, you’ll gain a little momentum. It will get easier the more you do it, and become a snowball effect of gaining confidence. You just have to start; it’s the only way. You’ve got this!

Are there any books you would recommend to help along the way?

When you’re looking for a book, you’re in a certain season of learning. Figure out what season you’re in, and what you want to expand on. What do you want to develop in terms of a skill? Don’t just buy a book because the cover or title looks or sounds fancy.

A few books that helped me are:

Unleash the Power Within by Tony Robbins (confidence)

Push by Chalene Johnson (goal setting)

The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy (huge eye opener for me)

The Magic by Rhonda Byrne (gratitude)

Start by Jon Acuff (confidence & self belief)

Honorable mention: You Can, You Will by Joel Osteen (achieving success)

How did you learn what to do on YouTube and Instagram when you first started?

What I did was look at a lot of people whose content I liked and tried to figure out what they were doing. I tried to be inspired by them without duplicating what they did, because I never wanted to become a watered down version of them. The best person you’re ever going to learn from on social media is yourself. The more you can post, the more you’re going to find yourself, what works, and what your audience wants to see. Your audience will speak to you through likes, comments, etc. and it will naturally grow. You can’t control how many likes/followers/etc. you get, but you can control how much content you put out. You have to be patient and consistent.

Even though there are so many social media personalities, how do you stand out from the rest?

There is something that makes you special. The only way you’re going to figure it out is when you start posting. Put out a lot of content, and there will be something that people will be drawn to. Like I mentioned, your audience will always tell you what they want to hear. There are things that you geek out about and maybe you’re hiding it. Let that out and share it! It will shine through that you truly love it. I used to do fitness videos that didn’t really juice me. Then, I decided to try doing a Disney video and a decorating video, and people freaked out! That’s how I found my niche.

Adding authenticity, speaking from the heart, and adding some form of value are also super important. As a society, we love the idea of the veil being pulled back and seeing what’s going on inside. If you think you don’t have anything to share, think again! If there is something that you love or brings you joy, share it. That doesn’t just mean products, it can be things like meditating, your routine, a workout you love, etc. That’s how you create a planet of people who understand you. If you’re concerned about someone not getting you, that’s okay. They’re not your people and shouldn’t be following you anyway.

How do you come up with content for multiple platforms?

Work smarter, not harder! I run my business through what I like to call my “Content Machine.” I have one main cog of my “machine,” and for me, that’s YouTube. This main cog feeds all of the other cogs. In filming a video, I have content for a bunch of other platforms without ever having to create it. What I do is work it backwards, in a sense. First, I film the video. Then, I’ll take a still of the video or take a cover photo, and that can be a post on Instagram. I may take a couple of snippets of the video that will be an Instagram story. I’ll take some verbiage from the video that could be a blog post, etc. This is how I schedule it all out without overwhelming myself. If you overschedule or overplan, you’ll end up paralyzing yourself in doing that thing.

How long did it take before you were able to really start seeing an income on YouTube?

It is such a misconception that YouTubers make all this money. YouTube is very up and down; one month I can make X amount of money, and the next month, I can make none. It’s very volatile. Many YouTubers have brand endorsements, and that’s how they make a majority of their money. Whatever business you want to start, my best piece of advice would be to get informed. Something I used to do is look at women who were sponsored by fitness companies, because that’s what I wanted to do. I did my research and realized they actually don’t get paid that much, but they get a lot of free leggings. I started to see things differently the more research I did and the more I was exposed to it.

YouTubers can also make money through ads. However, many amazing YouTubers often don’t turn on monetization because it’s not their primary goal. As a YouTuber, having an amazing audience and delivering great content should be your number one priority. Income should be a goal, but it needs to be deeper than making X amount of money. If your business or what you’re doing on social media is all about dollars, people are going to have a tough time connecting with you. You’ve got to find some passion and link that to some level of growth for yourself. Why do you want it? What would that income provide for you and your loved ones? What memories would it create in your life?

In your opinion, what are the things that make the biggest difference?

1. Consistency is everything. Do it every single day and don’t stop no matter what. Every time you stop, it’s that much harder to get started again.

2. Longevity. Sticking with it over a long enough period of time, that’s how you win. The people who don’t give up are the ones that make it happen.

3. Belief, not just in what you do, the product you represent, or the service you provide, but in yourself. There’s nothing different from you than the illusion of what you think someone else is doing. You might think someone else is so perfect, but the reality is that they’re not! They started exactly where you are. Stop discounting yourself, believe in yourself and know that you’ve got it.

If you’re thinking about starting a business, I hope this helped answer some questions you might have had and gave you the nudge you needed to get started. Now, go buy your domain and get to work!

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