From The Bottom To The Top: Get To The CORE

“My biggest problem with getting my content across is utilizing social media in a meaningful way. I want to use platforms such as facebook and twitter to attract a fanbase to my online profiles which would translate to real life profit. How do I sell my music and art online and bring people to my events so I can sell them merchandise/services?"

Manny G asks the question...

Well Manny, that IS the question ain’t it... Good on ya for asking it, because it means you’re asking the RIGHT questions. Most are not.

So how do we actually use the tools out here...? our blog, our social media presence, the google thingamajiggy, how can all of this STUFF actually fuel and grow our careers...!?

How do you actually make a profit with this?

Well there are many ways to look at this. Many strategies and tactics to pursue. And the BEST way to go about it, is of course the best way FOR YOU.

Given, you know what that is, (which many won’t) OR you find some person who can talk to you and help you discover what that is. (which many cant)

But I digress.

Aside from choosing any one tactic, just about all of which I’ll be teaching you over the course of our journey together; I’ll do my best to sum up what I believe will be the most useful bit of information I can contain in this response, and keep this dish shy of another 3,000+ worder.

First off, the fact is that no one is going to randomly discover you-unless you are REALLY REALLY lucky and all the right things line up for you properly, which is very rare. So that means that you’ve got to GETTING peoples ATTENTION, some how.

Given you have something worth sustaining their attention ON. You just have to over-deliver these days. Mediocre isn’t good enough.

Get To The CORE

So, independent of any channel, on or offline, the first thing I’d say is that you have to remember to always focus on The C.O.R.E.

That’s your job. When in doubt, come back to the C.O.R.E. fundamentals.

They are as follows:

Connect - on stage, on twitter, on Facebook, on the street... You have to CONNECT with an individual. Without it, you don’t have their attention. You’re still just noise.

OVER-deliver - here’s where you have to bring the goods. a presentation, a performance, a freebie gift on your website to get them to sign up for your mailing list. You have to OVER-deliver. Wow them with what you have for them.

Reciprocate - next you need to give THEM a chance to RECIPROCATE. People, for the most part want to build mutually interesting/valuable relationships on some level. If you’ve connected with them, and already overdelivered something valuable to them, then it’s important for you to give them a chance to reciprocate. Maybe it’s just a shout out to their audience, maybe it’s a social share, maybe it’s to purchase something from you.

Experience - and finally, just continue to focus on the experience. I’ll say it again. Just continue to focus on the experience. You are a provider of experiences. Provide a great experience, always seek to improve it, and rinse and repeat steps 1-4.

Bottoms Up Folks.

The second mindset I want you to adopt and implement in everything you are doing, regardless of platform is to stop thinking from the top down.... and start thinking from the BOTTOM UP.

The real secret I think is to approach things as ONE connection at a time.

Make ONE real meaningful connection with one person at a time. Stop trying to attract random people in massive anonymous numbers! And if you are in fact talking to a massive audience, then try to talk to them like they are already a great friend of yours and whom you have much care and respect for. Listen to them. Always try to cultivate and develop the habit of making those authentic and personal connections with people.

Call up a linkedin connection, host a tweetup with your fans, better yet, host of meetup.. Be creative, and get on a google hangout or call a new facebook friend on skype.

Try to build 10 SUPERfans, instead of 1,000 reciprocal twitter followers... INSPIRE and you'll BE inspired with what you find!

Does that help?

That’s been my approach, and it’s not only WORKED, but it has fundamentally changed my attitude toward social media and building an audience online-for the better.

I hope it helps you, and let me know if it does! Or if it doesn’t, let me know why, or ask me whatever questions you have that would help it make better sense and I’ll do my best!

That’s it for today, just want to say that I’m proud to see you making so much progress. Keep at it, and you’ll do great things. ;-)

Be Your Best,

Jamie