Black Friday is Coming...

Have you noticed a change in your email inbox lately? Today I learned I had 221 messages dropped in there in the last two days. How many unread emails do you have RIGHT NOW? If it is more than 25, then it is too many.

Now I will admit that many of those emails are promotional in nature, from retailers, or non-profit organizations trying to get me to spend my hard-earned dollars with them for Holiday gifts. Then there are the usual solicitations for end-of-year charitable donations from my college, my graduate school, my church, and any other non-profits I have given to in the last 5 years. All of these are easily processed, or deleted, depending on my traditions and my generosity.

Even my snail mailbox is stuffed full of offers. Ever notice how the number of mail order catalogues you receive increases DRAMATICALLY after Halloween? There’s a reason for that. Those retailers know you are shopping this season, so they figure that a simple mailer will put their products in front of your desirous eyes, right now…which may then lead to a sale.

As a small business owner, headed into the shopping season, how do you cut through the noise on social media, in your email marketing, and even in your snail mailbox? How do you get?your?name and?your?message in front of?your?Ideal Client when the marketing clamor is so loud and everyone else's promotions are so prolific during this Holiday Season?

The answer: Be Different!

Be different than everyone else, especially your competitors. Deliver all of your wonderful goodness, expertise, customer service, professionalism and punctuality…whatever it is that is your?SUPERPOWER…in a completely different way.

Don’t let your customers go looking for someone like you…let them look for?you,?by making yourself visible. Making yourself unique. Making yourself different.

How do you do that? Well, have a contest; offer a discount; create a subscription service; send a handwritten note; invite a prospect to coffee.?DO ANYTHING?that is different from that humdrum marketing strategy you put in plave year ago and now feel stuck with.

So what is the ONE thing that will always cut through the noise? GO LIVE!

Not just once, but all the time. Heidi Easley, an artist who teaches people who want to create a business teaching painting in a party atmosphere says, “GO LIVE GO LIVE: TWICE A WEEK UNTIL YOU DIE.”

A little extreme? Yes. A huge commitment to consistency and putting your business out there? Yes. A way to set herself apart from everyone else in her industry (and other coaches and art teachers too, by the way)? Yes, yes, a thousand times yes.

What do I do,?exactly, when I go LIVE?

I'm so glad you asked.

1. You can host a question and answer session with a client or a colleague.
2. You can go live with someone in your audience and ask them to share their obstacles and problems...especially if it is common to all of your audience.
3. You can showcase your services and/or products, by sharing a video demo LIVE.
4. You can teach your audience how to do something, again by hosting a LIVE teaching session, or giving some quick tips or time-saving hacks.
5. You can host a LIVE series. This is a little bigger megillah, so think about it before you dive in. The word "series" implies that there is more than one, so if you are up for that type of commitments, by all means, do so.

What exactly do I need, to go LIVE?

Get your smart phone and find a place with lots of light shining on your face. Do not broadcast in front of a window unless you are facing the glass (otherwise the light makes your body into a silhouette and it is hard to see any details in your face).

If you go outdoors, be sure it is a quiet area, and not on a windy day (wind noise is picked up by your in-phone microphone and is then warped as it is amplified, completely drowning out your speaking voice).

Be casual and speak to the camera as if your best friend were holding the phone. I always put a photo of someone I like, above my camera, and talk specifically to them…it helps to keep me engaged, and NOT focused on my face reflected back on the screen.

Go to your social media profile, push that live button, wait a couple of seconds and say your message. It’s like speaking to others, but without their eye contact. It’s like presenting from a stage without the spotlights, the introduction by the moderator, or the cold sweats and vomiting before the actual presentation. It’s like going to a meeting, but it's just YOU!

If you do this for, let’s say 7-10 times (daily, every other day, or once a week for 7 weeks), you will know whether it is something you can continue or not. But give it a fair trial…by sticking to it. It’s going to be hard the first few times. But?LIVE is great, it breaks through the noise and is unexpected from?solo business owners. Speak from the heart, share your gratitude with the people who have boosted your business this year.?That?is more important than any sales pitch.

Being different doesn’t mean that you “change it up” every day…but that you do something that is a little out-of-the-ordinary?for you! But even so, you need to do that THING consistently for it to build momentum.

Think of that school bus driver picking up the kids in your neighborhood. The students know?exactly?where the driver is going to stop and they stand and wait?there. If the driver moved the pick-up spot every single day, the kids wouldn’t know what was going on, or where to stand, and some of them would get left behind.

Be consistent and you will gain traction over time.

MORE tips for Facebook and Instagram LIVE

• Go live with Wi-Fi instead of cellular data for a smoother video.
• For steadier shots, use a tripod or prop your phone up against a wall or a book. If your message is a little long, this will save your arm from going numb.
• Interact with your audience. Encourage them to type in the comments where they are from, who they are, and how they feel about your topic today. Then, respond to comments during your broadcast - sometimes it helps to have someone else on the broadcast (like a VA or even a colleague) to read the comments. Or just pause...say, you are going to read through the comments.
• To get more viewers, post about your LIVE ahead of time. You can create an event post on Facebook, or a "Story" with the countdown sticker on Instagram.

**Super Secret bonus tip: HOW TO PRACTICE GOING LIVE

Make a Facebook group under your profile with you?as the only member.?Keep it private, so no one else can find it. This is your?“LIVE practice group.”?I call mine my “secret testing group.” That way I can go live in my “secret testing group” with no one else seeing my broadcast except for the people in the group (that would be: just me). This is especially important on your first few LIVES to check your lighting, your sound, and the strength of your WIFI signal before you put yourself out there for the universe to see.

I’m kidding, the universe is NOT going to see your LIVE. Although LIVE is good, and consistently showing up when you say you will makes it more impactful, not everyone is going to tune in while you are on camera. So be sure to acknowledge the people who are seeing it on replay…they are your prospects too. Encourage them to comment, using the hashtag #replay. That way everyone gets to participate in the conversation.

If you need any help with your set up, or want to try a practice run with me as your audience, don’t hesitate to ask. I provide a half hour of free coaching to anyone who asks, and you can use it as a dress rehearsal for your LIVE.?Email me by replying to this email.

Ciao,

Diane