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How to Start Building Your Brand on Social Media

I know how it feels to feel overwhelmed and flustered and frustrated. That like, I don't know about you, but me as a professional photographer will look through my phone and there have been times where I'm scrolling through and I'm like, I got nothing. I've have nothing. I have nothing to post today. I know how frustrating that can be, and I also know the frustration of when Instagram first came out I was like, I can post anything on Instagram. And then it was I can post anything, it's like where do I begin? So when I started honing in my focus, and saying, hey Jasmine, work in these parameters and let's see what happens from there. I think it's just been such a game changer for a lot of business owners, and we're gonna get into what that looks like right now building out your categories in this video. Next question becomes how do I start building my brand on social media? So before we actually get into the logistics of how you start building it, we have to know what a brand is. A bran...

d is not your website, it is not your social media, it is not your news letter list, it is not your business card. A brand is an experience. This is what somebody feels or thinks, or has heard about your business. It is emotional. Somebody had once described a brand as what somebody says about you when you leave the room. How are you making your customers feel? What are the things people are saying when they unbox what you had sent them? How do they feel when they get their first Amazon sale? Like, how are they telling their friends that you have to order these blankets, you have to hire her for marketing advice. That's the brand. So what are we doing on social media to facilitate these experiences without us being one on one? 'Cause I know that I can facilitate an experience with somebody on social media and have never have met them. I know that you guys are too, but I think that all of us can do it better. So, what I want you guys to do, is now that we know a brand is an experience, and now that we know what your customers are, and know how we want to show up, and now that we know the gap in the market, what we want to do is we want to list the type of photos you want to share on behalf of your business. We're gonna get really specific. We're gonna call them categories. Because have you ever gone to Instagram? Have you ever gone to Facebook and you're like, uhhh, I can post anything. God I can post anything. Where do I start? Everyday. Everyday. That struggle is real. It is. Okay, so when we create categories, you know, this is only what I'm posting, it's going to narrow it. It's going to give you a vision. So, categories are things that are connected to part of your business. But they are not of your business. I know that you guys, in your sleep, every day and twice on Sunday can sell your blankets and towels. That's not a good Instagram account. Yeah. That's QVC on Instagram. Yes. K, and you know that, you're not gonna do that. So when we go into categories, these are things that we can talk about our business, we talk of our business but not the thing that we sell. So for example, I follow a motivational speaker on Instagram and she talks about shoes. She doesn't make shoes, she doesn't sell shoes. But shoes are one of her categories. Why? She buys an expensive pair before she walks on stage. And the night before or a couple days before she'll do Instagram stories, or she'll do an Instagram post. Got a new pair of Louboutins. Got a new pair of Jimmy's. She says that the shoes empower her to walk on to a stage and share her message and then she goes into her message. So what is this about? She's not saying hire me. She's not saying buy a ticket. She's saying these shoes. And now people, when she's speaking on stage will take a picture of her shoes when she's speaking, tag her on Instagram. Is she selling shoes? No. Is she selling her business? Yes. But she's creating conversation engagement. That explains that that's where my disconnect was. Like donuts, I love donuts. So like that. But I can't include it because it's not connected like it's not my brand and I don't (mumbles) with donuts. Find a way to connect it. You can find a way. No that like totally helps. Yeah for sure that's good. We know that quotes do well. Follow an author, she posts a mix of posts that are her quotes, and other quotes. And when she posts her posts, other people post them in preparation of her book launch. Photographers. Photographers are really good at posting pictures of other kids. Right? There are photographers who do something really well when they share like a chronology of their own children. So they're not selling their services when they're talking about their kids, but what are they doing? Showcasing the images of their children that they've captured. So we're talking about their business we're not selling their business. Talking about your business, not selling your business. So a few examples of my categories, these are things I can get into. These are few topics we're gonna break this down in a second to categories and topics. So, I talk about the books that I read quite often, and I have hashtag on Instagram, JSTARREADS. I don't write books, I don't make books, I don't sell books But what do I want to do? I want to put things out that will attract the type of person I want to work with. The type of person I want to work with. Educated, continuing education, takes time to read, self betterment, self education. I am putting out what I ultimately want to get back. One of my things that I like to talk about is food and drink on Instagram. Because it does well is a thing that connects all of humanity. But when it's able to style, it's visually appealing and I talk about the decision that I make for healthy purposes. I talk about the decisions that I make like my splurges. Why? We all have splurges, we're creating connection. I do not sell croissants. Yeah Although I could eat plenty of gluten free ones. I talk about my husband. Often. Not because I think he's cute or fun or oh, we're so romantic. Not at all. My husband is my business partner. And this is when I could talk about my husband, I'm talking about my business without selling my business. So when he responds on my behalf via email, when we go to business conferences, when we have business meetings, I could talk about him without having to say, hey guys this is a thing we did for our business. It's like this is how we walked into the room together and this is what he said. It's a story, it's engaging, it's highly personable, but highly effective when it comes to talking about the business without having to sell the business. So, now what we love to do and recommend, is to create seven to nine categories. Now we went from, we could post anything on Instagram well we could post anything on Instagram and Facebook if it aligns with our seven to nine categories. Why seven to nine? As you scroll through Instagram, Those nine? Those nine. Those nine. But if you're like Jasmine I have twelve. Okay, it's fine. It's fine. But hey I like to create parameters for the next thirty days so that we dial it in. Yeah Okay now, if you're feeling stuck with, okay what are meeting my categories, like okay what about our categories where do we go from here? Got your back. Okay good, I was like don't leave us hanging. (laughter) Okay good, please, this ain't my first rodeo. Okay, what am I comfortable sharing? Some people are not comfortable talking about their kids. And that's okay. Some people are not comfortable talking about their spouses, that's okay. How do we determine what is too much? How do we determine what's right for us? I refer to this as the "man on the airplane" rule. What I share on social media, would be the same if I sat next to a man and he wanted to talk to me. Would I talk about my mom's battle with cancer? Yeah I would. Would I talk about that I am happily married, that I have a dog, yeah! Would I talk about other things with a stranger? Maybe not, that doesn't go on Instagram. So, number one things to come up in my categories, is what am I comfortable sharing? Number two what am I selling? I absolutely know without a shadow of a doubt, you know what you're selling. But I mean this from a literal and I mean it from an emotional perspective. So literally you sell blankets and towels. What you're selling from an emotional perspective. Comfort, gratitude, feeling special, motherhood, personalization, that's all personal emotions. Like we know that when moms are buying a blanket from you, they're not buying a blanket. They're buying something else. They're buying a memory. If I was a baker and I sold wedding cakes, I'm not selling just a cake, I'm selling family heirlooms, memories, celebration, experience. When people are buying or investing what are you selling? Like marketing strategies. You're not selling a marketing strategy. You're selling belief, you're selling overcoming doubt. You're selling the possibility of achieving in an impossible situation. When we could speak to what we are selling from an emotional perspective, we are literally a needle in a haystack. So let's go back to this example of being a baker. If one of my categories was the things that I bake, a literal thing that I am selling, brownies. I literally sell brownies. Categories, things that I could be talking about, or topics are holiday decorating brownies, my grandmother's brownie recipe, photos of me showing up at the bakery at 4 in the morning. This is what I do because I love it. Like these is part of the categories, this is some of the topics. What I am selling from an emotional perspective would be, what does the brownie mean to the child or person eating it? And if I am subconsciously watching for opportunities to speak to the emotional component on social. So let's just say Johnny and his mom, right a little boy and his mom walk into my bakery in the middle of the day, when kids are normally in school, and he comes up to the counter and he orders a brownie. And I put it on a piece of wax paper and he wobbles on over to a table and then I ask his mom, can I take a picture with him eating it? And she says yes. I go out from behind the counter. And Johnny is taking the brownie, and he's putting it into his mouth and I snap a picture on my phone, and the caption then becomes, I woke up at four a.m. this morning to make the brownies. But what I know that I'm doing is I'm not selling a piece of sugary confection. I'm selling a piece of joy. Johnny and his mom came into the bakery for a date just the two of them. Couldn't be happier to do what I love. That would take me like five weeks. (laughter) Don't worry we're going to get a solution to that. I'm going to walk you through how to That sounded good, I want a brownie now. Okay so, haha, exactly so, did I say come into my bakery? No Did I say buy my brownies? Did I say that this is my grandma's recipe? No! It was just honing in on an emotion. So a few members of Social Curator, this is like a foundation. The business that I run is Social Curator. This is a social media marketing membership. A few of our members, we have to go into this all the time what are you selling? As a brain and gut health coach, I provide simple health hack to mamas for clean energy, happy bellies and increased productivity. What I'm selling is a vibrant and productive life which moms can instill in their children's daily habits. She is a brain and gut coach health. If she said she is a brain and gut coach health, well good there are thousands of people like you. But what are you selling? A vibrant life into their children's daily habits. That's what she speaks to. KJ, as a PR pro, I help entrepreneurs receive recognition their dreams and brands deserve. But what is she really selling? Confidence, connections, and an easy to follow path to becoming a household name. Yeah, how many people say oh I'm in PR. And you're like yeah okay, I get public relations but like what do you do? And PR is a tough one. PR is a tough one. She says I'm selling confidence. That's awesome. I'm selling an easy to follow path, to becoming a household name. Galicia. I'm a high school senior photographer, I sell more confidence, I sell self worth, I sell empowerment to be a better version of who you already are. Senior portrait experience isn't just about the images themselves. They're way more than that. Because I position my business to show value, it's the very reason I have over two hundred girls to be part of my Street Team every year. There are literally hundreds, hundreds of senior portrait photographers in Arizona where she is. And she has a wait list for her business. Because she's not selling senior photography. She's selling self worth. When she speaks about that in her captions, she's selling to an emotion. The third question to ask yourself as we determined in the categories is who am I trying to attract? Well the good news, we already worked through that. So now we know, what am I comfortable sharing? What am I literally and emotionally selling? And who am I trying to attract? So if we go back to the example that I used like if I was selling brownies, like I'm a baker and I'm selling brownies. If I'm trying to appeal to the PTA mom who wakes up at five a.m. and dresses her twin daughters and puts little bows, I know the kind of content I should be creating for her. If I'm in Seattle and I'm a baker selling brownies, you know, well special brownies. The content that I am creating for that demographic is so different than the PTA mom, right? Yeah. Selling the same thing. But what are we selling from an emotional perspective and who are we selling it to? Because when we answer all three of these questions, we will have clear answers on, who are we going to be able to create content for? We are going to have a clear path for intention and purpose. This my friends is how you stick out. This is your like, oh I get my vision, I know who I'm selling to, I know why I'm selling it, I'm gonna speak to the emotion about the thing that I am selling. So if you got to this point and you're like okay I got it how do I get there faster? I believe that Social Curator is a great way to put training wheels on a very fast car. So what we decided to do is we're going to streamline seven categories for you. If you have come up with two, three, four categories on your own. Great! But follow these seven categories so you can expedite how fast you are creating content. Social Curator is to save you time. That's it. Save you time, save you stress. That's the most important thing. (laughter) That's right! That's what I'm saying. So seven categories as a base. I'm going to walk you through these seven categories. Behind the scene tutorials. These categories have been specifically selected for what preforms, statistically, better on social media. Behind the scenes tutorial, number one. Two. About me. Three. My why. Why are you doing this? This is the thing that separates you from all your competitors. The benefits for your followers. You're going to be showcasing your product or service. Personal insights. Lastly, inspiration and encouragement. Now inspiration and encouragement, ya'll know works so well on your account. Those quotes, that funny meme with the marker. People felt like, God, mommying is so hard but at least I don't have the kid that scribbled all over my car with the Sharpie, right? So it's like we know that, that works well. We know statistically that the photos you guys posted, of yourselves do the best. We also know that behind the scenes of you guys doing what you do, do the best. These all have proven on your accounts. And Caitlyn if you have put photos out they would still be the same. So we know this works. We know these categories work. Now, now that we have categories, seven categories. Now we can create topics. Underneath all of these, this is where we can talk about certain things. So inspirational quotes, we can have some from Scary Mom, we can have some from Highway Three. We can have some from moms who have written to you and just set a testimonial. Yeah. Right? But that's okay. Because we are going to start interspersing with the strategy, inspiration, motivation, like I was having the worst day and I wrapped my baby blanket and she fell right asleep. There you go. That's the stuff that's we're gonna be fitting on. Okay so, let's get into a few granular examples. Right? So now we have categories, now we start streamlining brainstorming topics. I have brainstormed a little bit for you. Okay. So Highway Three behind the scenes ideas. Packaging, warehouse life, what your design studio, I know you guys are building that, I didn't even know that till just this. Even to just show the behind the scenes of where you guys are right now. And you're like no Jasmine, we're in like a two hundred square foot bedroom. Got printers stuff. Living room. Got papers everywhere. That's kind of sort of beautiful to some people. Now I'm not saying show a hot mess all the time, it's like, it's okay to say, do a before and after for the studio. Where are you guys now, when the studio launches. Do a little swipe feature so it doesn't mess up the grid. Working mom balance. Before you guys got on a plane you guys said packing six bags before we have to go to a baseball tournament. We barely fit in the car. And then we left at three a.m. And we left our husbands and kids. And do you know that, that hustle, and that story, that dedication, the tears, the stress, the drama, the joy, the excitement. Nobody saw any of it. (laughter) That's going to change. Behind the scenes. Introduction to your team as it grows. We've been wanting to do that. Great. So at least we know we're going in the right direction. Yeah. You guys should take pictures of them. Hey listen, if they don't exist online, nobody knows. Caitlyn some behind the scene list ideas. Consulting. I don't care if you have to call your mamma's friend, your cousins, your youth group. I don't care. Set up a photo shoot. To have consultations. Promise Tangeman, one of the people your highly inspired by shared an entire behind the scenes of her photo shoot, she had her friends come in to make it look like she was doing designs sessions with them. So she had visual collateral to showcase what she does. Okay. Great. I would love for you to spotlight Amazon vendors. People who are in this space and you're like, dude you're killing it, they don't have to be your client. You just have to use them as examples. So like they're (mumbles) to me. Whatever you think. Whatever your think your dream customer wants to see Okay. And you're gonna test. You're just gonna test. And here's the crazy thing. I can't tell you how many times business owners have highlighted other people in their field to bring attention to their account, and unknowingly the person who they highlighted was like, you know I was really thinking about, I really needed to get organized in this capacity. Could you help me? So by you shedding light on them, you're coming on to their radar, they could be hiring you. Okay. As a result. Or a friend. (mumbles) That's how social works. One hundred percent. Tutorials. I want to see way more education on your account. Okay. I'm talking about stuff that you think is so silly, and stuff that you're like, who want to know this? You would be so surprised. So how to organize listings, how to write a product description, or how to write a description about your business that exists on amazon. Like, you're going to know the terminology I'm just throwing out ideas and stuff like that. Yeah, no. Okay cool. One more category. Your why. I believe just by looking at your accounts, why do you do this? You kids, your sister, other working moms, your dad, your customers, for small business owners. These are topics, what's wrong? Said that at the beginning like why and then I'm searching around (mumbles) I don't know. (laughter) It's true. It's true. And I feel like you rob the universe of Shelby. Oh my God! (laughter) And I'm not emotional. (laughter) But now, people, like this, something inside you, we don't let people know online. You let people know that you're doing this for your kids, that your doing this for your dad who checks your stats. (laughter) Before you every morning. Yeah. Let people know that. That is so beautiful. Laura, can I get some tissues. (laughter) we're talking about their why. Instagram is making them cry. Showcase that. And we're not cryers. I know you're not. Yeah, and my husband is going to be like shocked by that. (laughter) So, so, so, this clearly struck a nerve, because you know it's true and you need to show it off. We need to do a lot more of that. Cool. (mumbles) market. Your why. From what my perspective is. And please feel free to add your son, husband, business partner, struggling business owners, those who are lost, for the doubters, and for the believers. You serve two markets, and that's okay. Yeah. Because, everybody at one point is a doubter, and everybody at another point is a believer. You speak to them both. That's your why. So, homework is we are going to be using Social Curator categories to create a short list of topics. So we already kind of went through two of the seven. Did a little bit of homework there, you guys will finish that. The thing that I want to hone in. The one thing that you take away from this is that categories help create brand extension and continuity. If you're looking at your feed and you're like why are people not here, omigod this is a hot mess, I don't know what I'm doing. (laughter) Oh wait, now I know my categories. Every seven to nine. They're going to see. Oh your why, your about me. Little topics. That's how we create continuity. That's how we get people.