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Have you found that your Facebook ads haven’t shown the expected return? Is there a better way to attract new customers AND keep them returning for more?
Yes, there is! Author, speaker and media entrepreneur Doug Foley is passionate about helping entrepreneurs, and he says that paid media in advertising is one of the last things you should do.
Instead, Doug urges professionals like you to follow his 3-step recipe for success!
Social Media for Success for Professionals Talking Points
[3:40] What Doug Foley tells his clients about Facebook ads and other paid ads:
- He warns small-to-medium businesses from jumping to using ads like Facebook or other social media.
- Businesses must focus on perfecting other parts of the customer journey before scaling with paid advertising.
- Before spending money on advertising, focus on getting return customers and building a fantastic reputation.
[5:42] Businesses must build a community before starting paid advertising
- He offers the example of famous golfer Arnold Palmer, the “OG influencer,” whose followers were called “Arnie’s army.”
- Palmer leveraged his following and his brand to build assets around them.
- Build an outstanding reputation and an audience, then plan for growth before running ads.
[6:47] Create a plan for handling increased business from advertising before scheduling ads.
- Ads fail because the business owner doesn’t have a system to support new customers.
- The business owner must determine if they need more employees to provide the best customer service possible.
- Doug recommends businesses increase their prices and find the threshold of how much people will pay for their goods or services because to run ads and scale a business, that business needs margin.
[7:44] Every business, agency, and doctor’s office has a capacity of how many people they can serve.
- Instead of using ads to increase business, consider ads to make money where the company is now.
- Create and sell a course based on your expertise or do whatever makes sense for your industry.
- The two questions you need to ask about your business are “What do I do to fill my practice?” and “What do I do when my practice is at capacity?”
[8:53] Creating organic content and building an audience will open doors in the future for every entrepreneur.
- Doug remembers one pool company that put out valuable tips on maintaining pools.
- He built an audience and was able to pivot to consulting on content marketing.
- This path opens doors beyond what you initially do and will evolve into other opportunities, like a book or speaking engagements.
[11:42] Doug’s experience with paid ads as a scaling function
- Building an audience has been the single most significant factor for him.
- His agency has always been referral-only, not paying for advertising.
- It’s not the immediate gratification of running an ad and getting leads that will lead to success – it’s the hard work of providing an excellent service that keeps people returning and makes them refer your business to others.
[14:28] Doug’s thoughts on SEO
- The honest recipe to success isn’t perfect SEO; it’s having a partner who can do great organic content and build landing pages that convert.
- He recommends telling your story well, creating helpful content and driving customers to something that converts.
- Often offering a freebie (he uses free teeth whitening as an example) will be more successful at getting customers than the same money spent on advertising.
Once businesses understand their customer journey, it all starts to come together. That said, the tipping point is often a referral from someone they trust. Building deep customer relationships is the key to keeping those customers around and turning them into advocates for your brand.
Connect with Doug Foley:
- http://linkedin.com/in/douglasjfoley
- http://www.facebook.com/douglasjfoley
- https://twitter.com/douglasjfoley
- http://instagram.com/douglasjfoley/
- https://www.ted.com/talks/doug_foley_how_entrepreneurs_inspire_change
- https://go.douglasjfoley.com/
If you’re creating valuable content, as Doug recommends, share it with your audience! Download our guide to increasing sales by leveraging your lead magnet. Click here for 15 Ways To Use Your Lead Magnet to Sell More Services.
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