Success in business isn’t always a numbers game. Yes, entrepreneurs are constantly trying to get more people signing up for their webinars and subscribing to their email lists. But contrary to popular belief, you don’t need a massive following on social media to make a lot of money. Even a few hundred people getting your social media posts can lead you to having $10k months.
“My clients tell me all the time that they have so few followers, they’re worried about being taken seriously with an offer,” says Samantha Bove, an international business coach who specializes in working with entrepreneurs in the wellness space. “I tell them that size doesn’t matter. Then I show them what does matter.” Bove, who teaches online entrepreneurs how to run profitable businesses through her ZenBoss Academy, has been able to help her clients 4x their annual revenue and have $20K launches without paid ads or large followings. She offered up her best advice for transforming a small following into big bucks.
How To Turn A Tiny Following A Into $10K Month | Stephanie Burns
Samantha Bove
1. Spend 30 Minutes A Day DM-ing
“Rather than focusing on growing your number of followers, go deep with the followers you already have,” says Bove. “Growth doesn’t equal revenue. Connection does. People are more likely to engage with your content after you have made a personal connection with them via DMs.”
Bove suggests reaching out to your followers via direct message and sending them a welcome note— even if they’re not new to your account. “You could say, ‘Hi! I noticed you’ve been following my account for a while and I just wanted to thank you and officially welcome you to the community!’” suggests Bove. “Then tell them what you’re passionate about, suggest they reach out if they have any questions and comment on something you notice from their profile—like a cute pet or industry experts you both follow.”
You can also strike up a conversation by replying to their Instagram or Facebook stories. “It shows that you’re keeping up to date with what’s going on in their life,” says Bove. “These types of personal connections often lead to sales calls and powerful partnerships.”
2. Establish Yourself As An Authority
When someone’s deciding whether or not to work with you, the last thing you want them wondering is whether or not you’re legitimate. “Make sure people see you as an authority so there’s no question as to whether or not they should invest in you when they’re shopping for solutions to their problems,” says Bove.
To stand out as an authority figure, make sure your social media posts include value adds and client results. With value add posts, you want to give your audience actionable steps they can take to improve their lives or their business immediately. With client result posts, focus on the before and after transformation that your client had while working with you.
“One highly effective testimonial is called a ‘raw testimonial.’ It’s an unpolished review, like a screenshot of a text message or an email, or an unprompted video recording,” says Bove. “They’re more genuine, believable and relatable. When people write up testimonials they’re very polished. When people text you it’s more casual and exciting. It’s people saying ‘Holy Cow! I just signed a 10k client! I’m freaking out!’”
3. Host A Challenge
Five-day challenges are the new one-hour webinar—and they’re ideal for intimate groups. “When you have a small following, running a challenge is one of the most high-touch and high-impact actions you can take to show your audience the transformation they can achieve working with you,” says Bove who has helped her clients sellout their programs. “It’s one thing to post about your strategy. It’s something entirely different to show your audience your strategy at play in a challenge.”
To decide what your challenge should be, pick one pain point that your ideal client has that you can resolve. Maybe you want to help them beat belly bloat, learn how to meditate or boost their body confidence. Then, Bove suggests promoting your challenge for a few weeks to your following and picking the same time every day for five days to show up and host a Zoom call doing a deep dive into the pain point topic. Boost engagement by offering a prize to the “challenge winner,” who is the person who attends all of the live calls and shares their daily wins in the group. Lastly, pitch your offer live on day five after people have had breakthroughs and built momentum.
“I’ve seen conversion rates for challenges as high as 58%,” says Bove. “If you have a $1,000 offer, you would need just 18 people to participate in your challenge. Converting at 58% is 10 people. There’s your $10,000.” With all the DMing and authority-building you’ve been doing, it’ll be easier to get people to show up and buy in.
4. Only Promote One Offer At A Time
“One of the biggest mistakes I see is business owners promoting multiple offers simultaneously,” says Bove. It causes uncertainty among the audience regarding which offer best fits their needs. “Research shows that there can be too much choice,” says Bove. “When there is, consumers are less likely to buy anything at all—and if they do buy, they are less satisfied with their selection.” Keep things simple and commit to one offer for at least 90 days before launching something new, says Bove.
