Have You Been Ignoring Your Tribe?
If you’re frustrated with social media marketing right now, the answer is probably yes.
I spend my workdays helping large brands develop their social media programs. When I’m not at work, the small business owners I know ask me for advice about their social media marketing efforts.
One thing both parties have in common is social media overwhelm. So much is possible (and quickly evolving) when it comes to utilizing social media for business. Therefore, a lack of focus can be exhausting and paralyzing all at once.
If we really boil it down, both large brands and small businesses are looking to use social media as a selling tool. This could mean literally selling things in the feed. It can also mean garnering enough intrigue and trust for your customers to complete a transaction outside of the feed.
In my experience, it is rare to find big brands and small businesses who are actually good at this. But there’s a different type of business who consistently does social selling well.
They are bloggers, online entrepreneurs… “influencers.”
Their success with social selling isn’t because they are consistently the first to use a new ad unit or because they post more often. Social selling started with their origin story.
Most influencers started their business around a passion, lifestyle or belief system. Their social media posts offered a new opportunity and maybe even rallied around a cause or a common enemy. Their messaging always focused on “why.” Over time, others started showing up and participating too. Eventually, a product was introduced and sales came naturally.
On the contrary, most big brands and small businesses alike have the opposite origin story: they created a product, then they tried to get people to buy it. Their messaging often focused on the “what.” Social selling is MUCH harder for these businesses.
The key differentiator between businesses who do social selling well and those who don’t is that one built a tribe and one didn’t. In business, tribes change everything.
Seth Godin — the Godfather of everything “tribe” in marketing — defines a tribe as a group of people connecting to a leader, to an idea, and to each other. He says a tribe only needs two things: a shared interest and a way to communicate.
Tribe Building means spending more time celebrating your purpose and those who believe in it, and less time pushing product. It means making it easy for your tribe to connect to each other. As a result, selling becomes — dare I say — easy.
Companies run ads. Legendary brands and businesses build a tribe.
Be honest with yourself: have you been ignoring your tribe on social media? If social selling is a struggle for your business, the answer is probably yes.
Here are 5 things your social content needs if you want to build a tribe:
A Compelling “Why”
Your “why” often goes back to why the business was founded. What is the cause you believe in? What is the ideal outcome or dream you are selling? Is there something you’re fighting against? What do you value? Talk about it. And don’t be afraid to be a little polarizing or imperfect. As we’ve witnessed in 2017, having a point of view is contagious.
A great example of a brand who has put their values first in business and in social media is Patagonia. Patagonia’s clear “why” makes it easier for people to justify paying more and talking about the brand more too. Patagonia’s trending Instagram post from this past week is a great example of putting your “why” first and taking a stand on behalf of your tribe.
Generosity
On social media, generosity simply means helping people get what they want. How do you make their life easier? How can you answer their questions? Solve their problems? Give them an identity? Provide direction? Reduce decision fatigue?
One of my favorite influencers is Ramit Sethi. He’s known to say that he gives 98% of his content away for free. He wants his free content to be SO GOOD that people think, “if this is free, how amazing will Ramit’s paid stuff be?” After following Ramit’s free work for years, buying one of his $2,000 courses was a no brainer for me. While this business strategy may seem backwards, Ramit has a multi-million dollar business selling only 2% of his content.
A focus on your people, not your products
In social media, it’s easy to fall into the habit of only focusing on what your next outbound message will be. What if instead, you spent more time celebrating your followers and believers?
Your tribe’s behaviors should inform your social media actions. What is your tribe doing? What hacks are they using that could help everyone else? What did they overcome? Who else do they follow? What can you surprise and delight them with today? A brand who does this really well on social is La Croix. At our core, humans like to be heard and acknowledged!
Anticipation
What’s the opposite of anticipation? Pushing shit your tribe doesn’t want or expect. Instead, offer added value and ensure your tribe knows it’s coming so they can look forward to it.
Tactically, this could come in the form of a regular content series (aka Whine About it Wednesday or weekly Facebook Live coaching sessions) or it can be the way you sell your product. For example, Marie Forleo only offers her signature B-school program once per year. People know it, talk about it, wait for it and their excitement naturally evokes advocacy and sharing among the tribe and beyond.
A Place to Connect
“Leadership is the art of giving people a platform for spreading ideas that work.” -Seth Godin
Giving your tribe a place to hang out is, by far, the most overlooked thing you can do right now if you want to build a tribe. Many people are longing for an identity and others to share it with.
In social, this could mean starting a private Facebook group. In addition to cultivating community, belonging and a shared identity, you also get the benefit of hearing from your most important customers and prospects first. You can test out content and product ideas then get real time feedback. You can also extend special offers and invitations to intimate gatherings to your most important customers.
“For individuals, character is destiny. For organizations, culture is destiny.” Tony Hsieh
Whether you are a solopreneur, small business owner or marketing manager at a big brand, you’ll reach a point where algorithms, new ad units and beautiful creative won’t be enough to sustain your marketing efforts.
If social is core to your marketing strategy, shift your mindset NOW. Focus on your “why,” your cause and your tribe first. Only then will social selling become easy and effective.
Dreaming about undergoing a marketing rehab? Email me your biggest marketing gripes and dreams. I’ll consider including solutions in an upcoming Medium article: hello@nicoleemerick.com.
This story is published in The Startup, Medium’s largest entrepreneurship publication followed by 273,384+ people.
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