Examining Audience Growth & Online Promotion - The Busy Creator Podcast 71

How should a creative professional go about building an audience for an online project or brand? What can we do to connect with likeminded people and potential partners? How can bring a killer app or perfect gift to a hungry audience? 

Like many others on the Internet, I don't have all the answers, but I know a few experts.

In this episode, we hear from Johanna (@GoodVibesJo) and Charles (@TheBrownVegan), the team behind Good Vibes Life, on the hard lessons learned in their first year of online brand-building. We also hear from Ben Kreuger (@BenWKreuger), of Cashflow Podcasting, on popular and proven tactics for audience growth. Finally, Kate Erickson (@KateLErickson) of Entrepreneur on Fire and Kate's Take shares the Top 7 Strategies: How to Grow a Podcast Audience. 

When all's said and done, there are a few genuinely proven routes to take to building an audience, but each takes consistency, energy, and time. Lots of time. Learn what they are in today's conversation.

Show Notes & Links

Johanna is a holistic health coach, yoga instructor, and nurse

Recipes are available 

Long-term strategy pays, some food bloggers have been going for 7+ years

@YogaGirl, a popular yogi who shares her personal life

Johanna & Charles have taken different approaches with social media: free-form and very regimented

"The point of social media is not just to gain followers."

—Johanna Perez-Fox

Tweet This

"75% of the classroom has the same question, but no one is brave enough to ask."

—Charles Penn

Tweet This

"The smallest thing you can do in the world is a single tap on a digital screen."

—Prescott Perez-Fox

Tweet This

Maslow's Hierarchy

Johanna observed a loss in engagement, even in a two-month period

"In order to have an audience of any kind, there has to be a medium of communication."

—Ben Krueger

Tweet This

Pareto Principle aka The 80/20 Rule

Kate's recent blog post on growth

Critical Mass: The point at which your project's marketing isn't reliant on you

The Consistency Formula: Post Consistently + Audience Makes Listening a Habit = Podcast Growth

Facebook or LinkedIn Groups are a good place to find like-minded people, but can be distaction-filled

Derek Halpern's approach to the 80/20 rule: "Create content 20% of the time. Spend the other 80% of the time promoting what you created." 

Gary Vaynerchuk says "you should never schedule a tweet."

 Johanna Perez-Fox on Facebook

 Johanna Perez-Fox on Instagram

 Johanna Perez-Fox on SnapChat

 Johanna Perez-Fox on Periscope

 Charles Penn on Facebook

 Charles Penn on Instagram

 Charles Penn on SnapChat

 Charles Penn on Periscope

 Good Vibes Life on YouTube

 Ben Kreuger on Twitter

 Ben Kreuger (Authority Engine) on Facebook

 Cashflow Podcasting on SoundCloud

 Kate Erickson on Twitter

 Kate Erickson on Instagram

 Entrepreneur on Fire on Facebook

 Entrepreneur on Fire on YouTube

Tools

Skype

Hootsuite

Meet Edgar

Techniques

Publish recipes or other content to build a following over years (decades)

Speak about yourself from a place where you learned something

Get involved with in-person events, even if you're building an online business

Position yourself as a mutual learner with a community of likeminded people

Leverage your time to the most effective tasks

Batch your tasks to save time and energy

Growth Strategy 1: Confirm Uniqueness (format, tone, content)

Growth Strategy 2: Be Social (spread the word; no one else will)

Growth Strategy 3: Be Consistent (always!)

Growth Strategy 4: Create Community (make people feel welcome in comments)

Growth Strategy 5: Do the Rounds (guest blogging and guest appearances)

Growth Strategy 6: Always Listen (continuous improvement)

Growth Strategy 7: Have a Strong Call-to-Action (send folks to the show notes or email)

Go back to your archive and use previously-released content

Choose 3-5 groups to participate in. There are too many to join to be productive.

Habits

Share your personal details as well as your professional happenings

Observe and question the value of a "Like", make sure you're asking for valuable feedback

Continually answer questions to the entire audience, rather than to individuals

Work in 2-3 hour chunks, with breaks in between

Find ways to publish your content in multiple formats and media

Be careful about scheduled posts when a dramatic event occurs in the world

Continually tweak and improve your projects; give 'em time.

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