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[403] How to build your online audience using competitions and giveaways

May 1, 2020 by Janet Murray

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 59:56 — 137.2MB) | Embed

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Would you love to know how you to build your audience using competitions and giveaways?

If you've ever wondered how to run a competition or giveaway and how you can use this to build your audience on social media - then you'll love this podcast episode - with Mark Simpson founder of Boostly and worldwide Facebook group the Hospitality Community.

Mark explains step by step how you can build your online audience by using giveaways and competitions on Facebook and Instagram

Discover how you can use competitions to get people from your Facebook page and onto your email list. He explains how to make your competition post go viral with clever copy and posting tactics. And how to make sure you don't fall foul of Facebook regulations by using the right copy.

Find out how you can use competitions or giveaways to build an audience in any industry and how you can use them to create a buzz when you're launching a new product or service.

Mark shares so much in this podcast episode including his tried and tested 5-day formula for creating and running successful competitions and giveaways on Facebook and Instagram.

Plus he shares the exact copy for Facebook and Instagram competition/giveaway posts so that you don’t have to create it yourself.

I hope you're as excited by this podcast as I am and I'd love to know what you think.

{Click on the player above to listen to the podcast episode and/or read on for a detailed overview. Scroll down to the bottom to read the show notes including all the links mentioned in this episode}

Podcast shownotes

About this podcast episode (4:35)
How Mark’s business evolved and how he started his business (8:02)
Background to Mark and his Facebook group (13:02)
Why competitions help the Facebook algorithm (18:23)
Why building Facebook followers through giveaways works (20:32)
Key things you have to do when running a Facebook competition (21:57)
Why the image is really important in a Facebook competition (22:30)
Why the first few lines of your copy are really important in your competition post (22:56)
Why you must get your giveaway T&C’s right (24:12)
How to be clever with your copy and get people to share your post (24:50)
How to choose a competition prize (and why it doesn’t have to be your product/service) (30:40)
How to think creatively about images (even if you don’t have a beautiful product) (35:30)
Why you must be present on social media after you launch (39:01)
How to get more eyes on your competition posts (and how much you should post) (41:09)
Marks 5-day formula for running a competition and what you should do daily (44:08)
How to get people onto your email list from your competition (47:58)
How to use peoples competition excitement to make a sale (49:23)
Why the competition strategy will work for building your audience (53:20)
How to use a competition/giveaway to launch a product or service (55:24)
How to access the dropbox folder with the competition templates (57:24)

Resources

Connect with Mark on Instagram

Mark's Boostly podcast

Access Marks FREE 5 day competition copy here: boostly.co.uk/janetmurray

Janetmurray.co.uk/podcastfinder

Join my Build Your Online Audience Programme

My Emergency Response Plan

Masterclass - How to generate passive income in your business

Masterclass - How to plan sell and launch an online Webinar or Masterclass for your business

Masterclass - How to turn your in-person services into online offerings

Masterclass - How to launch a playbook for your business

Other podcast episodes

[343] The three audiences you must build to create a successful online business (podcast)
[374] How to create a year's worth of content in one morning (podcast)
[378] How to use hashtags to build your online audience (podcast)
[379] How to grow your Instagram posts by 1K in 30 days (podcast)
[386] The four types of content to create that will help you make more sales in 2020 (podcast)
[390] How to stop overthinking your content (podcast)
[391] How to write better social media captions (podcast)
[392] How to get more engagement on Instagram (podcast)
[398] What sort of content should you create during a global crisis (podcast)
[399] How to build your online audience during a global crisis (podcast)
[400] How to build a large audience for your blog, vlog or podcast (podcast)
[Bonus] How to turn your in person services into online offerings (podcast)
[Bonus] How to generate income fast by creating a power hour for your business (podcast)

How to create an editorial calendar for your business (blog post)

How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)

How to add closed captions to your video using Rev and Kapwing

Join the Media Diary Owners Club

Order your 2020 Media Diary here

Join my Build Your Audience Programme

Join my get your podcast live in 60 days course

How to create a high-converting lead magnet course

Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart

Join my Instagram Academy Course here

Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn

[402] The surprising reason your Instagram account isn't growing (and how to fix it)

April 24, 2020 by Janet Murray

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 40:49 — 93.4MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | RSS

Are you feeling frustrated with your Instagram growth?

In this episode, I share the surprising reason your account isn’t growing (even though you’re posting consistently, using relevant hashtags and/or spending time engaging on other peoples’ accounts). and show you how to fix it.

{Click on the player above to listen to the podcast episode and/or read on for a detailed overview. Scroll down to the bottom to read the show notes including all the links mentioned in this episode}

If you’re struggling to attract new followers to your Instagram content, you may think it’s because you haven’t nailed your strategy. You need to post more often/consistently. You need to find the right time of day to post. You need to find the right hashtags to attract your ideal/clients.

But while honing these strategies can help, there is one fundamental thing you have to be able to do to grow your following. If you can’t do this, you’ll struggle to grow your audience - regardless of any strategies you try.

So what is this magic thing you must be able to do?

You have to be able to connect emotionally with your audience.

Your content needs to make people stop in their feed,

And it needs to make them feel something. For example:

Empathy (because they’ve had a similar experience)
Amusement (because you’ve made them laugh)
Anger/frustration (because they disagree with you)

If you want people to take the time to stop and read your post. If you want people to hit ‘save’ or ‘share’ - or leave you a comment - it has to hit them right in the heart.

It if doesn’t, they’ll just keep on scrolling.

So how do you know your content is hitting the spot? More people will be liking, commenting on and sharing your content for sure. But what will really show your content is hitting the spot is when people leave comments like:

‘This really resonates with me.’

‘I feel like you’re inside my head.’

‘I was just thinking this earlier.'

So how do you create this kind of content? Keep reading and you’ll find out.

1.Study your competitors’ content

Take a look at the account of some key competitors that are getting good engagement and growth on their account.

How are they engaging their audience emotionally?

Natalie Lue - everything we do is about making us feel better. So if we can make our audience feel better about themselves they’ll love us for it.

Lifestyle envy (personal/work) - Hannah Otto, The Annaedit, Brand Stylist

Humour: Alyssa Limperis, Simon Holland, Glitterbeards, Paul Flaart

Empathy: Matt Haig, Jamie Tworkowski (Jamie T), Helen Marie

Reassurance/encouragement: Boss Babe, me

Challenge: polarising content - don’t see so much on Instagram

People need to SEE themselves in your story - even if they haven’t had that exact experience.

2. Look at what’s worked really well for you (and do more of it)

For example, I have a recent post, which has been shared 1, 106 times.

The image says: don’t take criticism from people you wouldn’t take advice from.

The caption is about how I get emails telling me I’m doing my email marketing ‘wrong’ - from people who don’t have an email list and/or have not successfully sold hundreds of thousands pounds worth of product/services using email marketing, as I have. Which is generally why I take their ‘feedback’ with a pinch of salt.

So why did people resonate so strongly with this post?

Because they could see themselves in my story.

Even if you haven’t had the exact experience I describe in the caption, you DO know what it’s like to have some know-it-all who knows nothing about you/your business give you advice you didn’t ask for. And you know how annoying and/or upsetting it can be.

Which means you can connect emotionally with my post.

What have YOU posted that has got an unusual amount of engagement? Take a look at those posts, analyse what worked (just as I've done here) and do more of it.

3. Curate content

My best performing Instagram post to date has:

2,663 likes
5,920 shares
28,933 impressions

PLUS it’s been saved 2,495 times, landed me 912 new followers and 90% of people who saw the post weren’t even following me in the first place.

Pretty mind-blowing, right?

Well here’s the interesting thing. That post wasn't created by me. It was a post I re-shared from someone else's account. In fact, only ONE of my ten best-performing Instagram

posts was actually created by ME (number 10 as it happens). The rest of the posts (including this one) were originally created by other people. I was simply re-sharing them.

In the last six months I’ve added 10k new Instagram followers and content curation (sharing other peoples’ content) has been a big part of my strategy.

The way I see it, there is so much great content out there already - created by people who are more eloquent, funny and/or talented than I could ever be.

So instead of dishing up my rather mediocre content, why not introduce my audience to the best of the best?

That way I can focus on giving them exactly what they need: funny, inspiring, poignant, polarising...whatever it is they need to hear at any given time.

Without having to come up with a single idea myself.

And in doing so, I’m not just growing my own Instagram account. I’m helping to grow other peoples’ too.

Which is a win-win all round, right?

Of course there is an art to content curation (including how to credit those whose content you share). Which is why I’ve devoted a whole section

to it in my new Instagram course, which starts in May. But not only can content curation save you tons of time...it can also help you improve the quality of your content. Which is why I’d love you to give it a try (tip: it doesn’t just work on Instagram)

Podcast shownotes

About my Instagram Success Academy (01:54)
Why you have to hit people emotionally with your content on Instagram (4:08)
Why your Instagram content needs to make people feel something to stop them scrolling (6:11)
Why your Instagram feed needs to look visually appealing (8:55)
Questions to ask yourself about your Instagram feed (9:50)
What your Instagram content needs to make people feel (10:56)
Why engagement is more important than a large following on Instagram (11:55)
When you’ll know that your Instagram posts are hitting the mark (12:20)
How to research the right content by looking at your competitors (13:47)
Why making your audience feel better will make them want to follow you (15:45)
Five ways you can engage your Instagram audience emotionally (16:40)
How to use aspirational lifestyle posts to make people stop and look (16:42)
How to use humour to connect with your audience (19:03)
Examples of how to use empathy to reassure and encourage people (21:54)
How to think about the content from your audience's point of view (24:31)
Why you need to be flexible in your Instagram content (25:27)
Why you might need to be careful with challenging content or content that shames (26:07)
Why people need to be able to see themselves in your content (29:40)
Why you should have a look through your content and see what has done well (30:04)
Why using other people’s content will grow your followers (and save you time) (34:53)
Why your content and emotional connection is at the heart of everything you do (37:09)

Resources

Natalie Lue Instagram

Janetmurray.co.uk/podcastfinder

Join my Build Your Online Audience Programme

My Emergency Response Plan

Masterclass - How to generate passive income in your business

Masterclass - How to plan sell and launch an online Webinar or Masterclass for your business

Masterclass - How to turn your in-person services into online offerings

Masterclass - How to launch a playbook for your business

Other podcast episodes

[343] The three audiences you must build to create a successful online business (podcast)
[362] How to grow your Instagram following to 27K fast (podcast)
[374] How to create a year's worth of content in one morning (podcast)
[378] How to use hashtags to build your online audience (podcast)
[379] How to grow your Instagram posts by 1K in 30 days (podcast)
[386] The four types of content to create that will help you make more sales in 2020 (podcast)
[390] How to stop overthinking your content (podcast)
[391] How to write better social media captions (podcast)
[392] How to get more engagement on Instagram (podcast)
[398] What sort of content should you create during a global crisis (podcast)
[399] How to build your online audience during a global crisis (podcast)
[400] How to build a large audience for your blog, vlog or podcast (podcast)
[Bonus] How to turn your in person services into online offerings (podcast)
[Bonus] How to generate income fast by creating a power hour for your business (podcast)

How to create an editorial calendar for your business (blog post)

How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)

How to add closed captions to your video using Rev and Kapwing

Join the Media Diary Owners Club

Order your 2020 Media Diary here

Join my Build Your Audience Programme

Join my get your podcast live in 60 days course

How to create a high-converting lead magnet course

Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart

Connect with me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn

[394] How to build your audience on IGTV

February 28, 2020 by Janet Murray

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 51:56 — 118.9MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | RSS

Would you love to know how to use IGTV to build your followers on Instagram? Or maybe you’re using IGTV already but you're not sure you're getting the most out of it?

If you’re feeling mystified about IGTV and you’d love to know how it can help build your Instagram audience, then this podcast episode with Instagram specialist Helen Perry is a must-listen. Helen shares tons of practical advice on how to build your audience on IGTV. PLUS how she’s successfully used IGTV to generate leads in her business.

Helen explains how to be fearless when it comes to creating and filming your videos. And why you shouldn’t let perfectionism hold you back (in fact imperfection can help you make a stronger connection with your audience).

And if you’re worried it’s too complicated for you Helen explains how to set up your IGTV channel, how to post to the Instagram grid, the types of content that work well on IGTV and how long your videos should be. Helen explains how to post your IGTV video in your Instagram grid.

PLUS why you don’t need any fancy equipment to create your IGTV videos.

I’d love to know what you think.

{Click on the player above to listen to the podcast episode and/or read on for a detailed overview. Scroll down to the bottom to read the show notes including all the links mentioned in this episode}

Podcast shownotes

About Helen and her background and how she became an Instagram specialist (2:22)
The content you can create for different parts of the Instagram platform (5:55)
How to get IGTV on your account and what to use it for (8:48)
Why IGTV is easier to use and quicker to get started with than YouTube (11:47)
Tools to create IGTV videos and why you should use captions (14:49)
Why you don’t need any fancy kit to make IGTV videos (16:00)
Why your video doesn’t need to be perfect (and why imperfection is good) (18:26)
How creating IGTV video has helped Helen grow her Instagram followers (19:49)
How Helen’s content marketing on IGTV has led to enquiries for work (22:29)
Why you need to be consistent with IGTV and videos don’t need to be long (27:02)
Why you should post a small valuable specific tip on IGTV (29:00)
How to get inspiration for IGTV content if you don't know what to post (30:38)
How to create IGTV content for product-based businesses (32:45)
Where to post IGTV video and what aesthetics you need to consider (38:12)
Optimum posting times for IGTV and why you should share in the first 24 hours (40:33)
How to deal with negative comments on Instagram (43:15)

Resources

Helen's website notaboutthekids
Helen's Instagram @notaboutthekids

Rode Microphone

For editing your IGTV - Inshot
For designing your IGTV video - A design kit

[388] How much content should you give away for free (podcast)

Get my Instagram Engagement Playbook

Other podcast episodes

[343] The three audiences you must build to create a successful online business (podcast)
[348] How to write social media posts that sell (podcast)
[362] How to grow your Instagram following to 27K fast (podcast)
[374] How to create a year's worth of content in one morning (podcast)
[378] How to use hashtags to build your online audience (podcast)
[379] How to grow your Instagram posts by 1K in 30 days (podcast)
[386] The four types of content to create that will help you make more sales in 2020 (podcast)
[390] How to stop overthinking your content (podcast)
[391] How to write better social media captions (podcast)
[392] How to get more engagement on Instagram (podcast)

How to create an editorial calendar for your business (blog post)

How to write social media posts that sell (online masterclass)

How to add closed captions to your video using Rev and Kapwing

Join the Media Diary Owners Club

Order your 2020 Media Diary here

Join my Build Your Audience Programme

Join my get your podcast live in 60 days course

How to create a high-converting lead magnet course

Buy my book Your press release is breaking my heart