What's Your Unique Marketing Personality?

Marketing is simply telling people about your business. With countless ways to tell people about your business these days, there is no one right solution for everyone. Instead, consider your personality and your natural marketing preferences to help you figure out the right way for you.?

Back when I first started my coaching business, I followed a few other coaches that had a massive following and seemed to breezily make a huge name for themselves. On their webinars, I would be just one of a sea of hundreds of faces. Since these coaches looked so successful and happy, I thought this must be how I should show up, too.?

So I moved in the direction of building a personal brand for myself, using my name as my business name, showing up on social media and hosting live zoom calls just like my role models did.?

And, you know what? I hated it.?

It really shouldn't have surprised me at all. That's never really been my jam. I remembered a few things about myself that made this make perfect sense to me...

1. When I got married, we did not have a wedding. Neither of us really enjoyed being the center of attention so we married ourselves in a park with our dog as a witness. We then went to Hawaii for two weeks and celebrated with an intimate party at our home with some close friends and coworkers.?
2. When I have free time, I prefer to spend it with one other person or by myself. I love quiet intimate conversations or spending large amounts of time in solitude surrounded by nature.?
3. I'm not naturally a big user of social media. I probably check my feeds about once a week just to see what my friends are up to. I don't hate social media, I just truly don't think about it very often.?

Okay, so what is my point? Yes, I do have one.

My point is that I will never be a Jenna Kutcher or Amy Porterfield or insert name of leading marketing influencer here _______. And, you know what, that is totally OKAY with me. In fact, that's fantastic news for myself!?

In terms of my business, I realized that my marketing preference is not to be a big-brand, thousands of followers, sellout concert in an amphitheater stadium. My marketing preference is to host a quiet dinner party with folk music playing in the background and my dog playfully slobbering on your shoes.?

Alongside this realization, I had another powerful insight: I don't need thousands of followers. I really only need a handful of clients per month, ideally four or five, where we are a perfect fit for each other. That's roughly 50 clients a year. Only fifty! Not hundreds, not thousands, not even close.?

Acknowledging that I actually want to grow a business that provides high quality work to a small amount of people was a huge relief for me. When I made the decision to transition from life coaching to website design, branding, and messaging, I used this new found self-awareness of my marketing preferences to help shape my business.

I no longer put pressure on myself to post on social media or to build a huge following. Instead, I spend my time connecting with others in person, asking questions about what their challenges are, and really listening. Honestly, I could probably get fifty clients simply from asking friends and family if they know anyone who needs a website, a beautiful newsletter, or a lead magnet.??

However, since we do live in an online world, I'm currently playing with two platforms that seem to fit my marketing personality type. I'm using LinkedIn to reach out to people in a personal and meaningful way. And, I'm posting on Pinterest to take advantage of the fact that Pinterest is more like a search engine for content rather than a traditional social media platform. I am a rare bird who actually enjoys writing, so I write blog posts and email newsletters.?

There are countless ways to grow your business and an almost unlimited amount of shapes your business can take. The beautiful thing about building your own business is that it can be just an extension of you -- your personality, likes, dislikes, schedule, and your weird quirks. So own it!?

Just in case you need it, here's my permission to stop building your business like someone else. Allow your business to feel just like you.?

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