What can you do to reduce your reliance on paid social media in your business?

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Quiz Questions

1.
How large is your mailing list?
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- A.
  0-500 subscribers
- B.
  500-3000 subscribers
- C.
  3001+ subscribers
- D.
  Umm. We don't have a mailing list
2.
Ok, but how engaged are your subscribers?
- A.
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  They love us, our average read rate is 28% or above
- B.
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  We have ups and downs - some emails do better than others
- C.
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  To be honest, our read rate is terrible
- D.
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  What subscribers?
3.
Are you using PR in your business?
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- A.
  Yep, it's proving really successful for us
- B.
  We've had a few pieces of coverage but it's not a big focus for us
- C.
  Never done it but would like to
- D.
  Sorry, but what's PR?
4.
How would you describe your customers?
- A.
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  An engaged group of superfans
- B.
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  We have a couple of customers who love us
- C.
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  Customers tend to come and go but they don't really engage with the brand
5.
Do you regularly ask your customers for feedback?
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- A.
  Yes, our customers have lots of input into what we create, sell or develop
- B.
  We do ask for feedback but I wouldn't say we ask for it regularly
- C.
  I can't remember the last time we asked for feedback
6.
Do you reward your existing customers?
- A.
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  Yep, all the time
- B.
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  We tell them about offers or new products via our mailing list
- C.
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  If I'm honest, we tend to focus our rewards on new customers
- D.
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  We don't do customers rewards at the moment
7.
Aside from paid social media, how are you attracting new customers?
- A.
  We have an extensive strategy in place with lots of different tactics including freebies, events, partnerships, PR
- B.
  We use social media, some PR and word of mouth but we could do with a smarter plan
- C.
  Paid ads are where we've put most of our spend in the last few months so the rest of our pipeline is limited
- D.
  We haven't got much of plan. We try different things, as and when we need them

Quiz Outcomes

1.
Bringing it all together
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It sounds like you need a strategy that helps you get closer to your customer and pulls them into a community. Social media ads are an effective way to discover and reach specific audiences, but they aren't the only means of connecting with your buyer. Take the time to develop a diverse sales funnel complete with newsletters, media coverage, and customer-led content. Things to consider include:1. Promote experiences and freebies – If Meta deems your products explicit, consider using a lead magnet for traffic instead. This could be a downloadable e-book or a webinar with experts. Once you have these customers on your mailing list, you can build a relationship through email.2. What's your story? - PR is often dismissed as being too difficult or too complicated. But education is a huge part of women's health. Long-read press coverage is an opportunity to tell an in-depth brand story. If you have strong customer case studies, use them. This tactic, however, requires patience. It may take weeks or even months to land quality media coverage. But this is a brilliant way to build brand recognition.3. Utilise your superfans - It can be easy to forget how important your existing customers are. They can help spread the word about your brand. Look for ways to engage with your customers through surveys or workshops.And all these tactics aside, we cannot let Meta continue this censorship. It's important to log complaints whether you can. Use every email address or contact form to make it clear how unhappy you are with the platform and its algorithm. When Meta rejects your ads, share them on your social channels so your followers can get behind you. Let's make it clear that the ban is holding back female-led business, and its bias is impacting women's progress. We won't be silenced.Hannah from Wrapp Consulting
2.
Boosting your brilliance
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It sounds like you've already got a strong strategy in place, which pulls in lots of marketing tactics. But it must be frustrating if you have to spend money and energy on rejected social media adverts.Here are a few ideas on how to amplify what you're already doing and reduce the reliance on Meta:1. Promote experiences and freebies – If Meta deems your products explicit, consider using a lead magnet for traffic instead. This could be a downloadable e-book or a webinar with experts. You can use ads to promote these without fear of censorship and, in turn, you're building your mailing list.2. What's your story? - Talking about your product or service is a great way to get media coverage, but your results might start to dwindle without something new. Think about pitching your business from different angles; can you tell your founder's story, an innovative new tool or method you're using to create your product, or perhaps you have a strong opinion on something topical in the news?3. Building your community - It can be easy to forget your existing customers' importance. They help spread the word about your brand. Could you ask your 'superfans' for exclusive input on NPD? Or could you run online or IRL events that bring your customers together?And all these tactics aside, we cannot let Meta continue this censorship. It's important to log complaints whether you can. Use every email address or contact form to make it clear how unhappy you are with the platform and its algorithm. When Meta rejects your ads, share them on your social channels so your followers can get behind you. Let's tell them that the ban holds back female-led business and its bias impacts women's progress. We won't be silenced.Hannah from Wrapp Consulting
3.
Maximise your community
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Well, it sounds like you're already a force to reckoned with, but there are still plenty of ways to reduce your reliance on paid social media. Here are a few ideas on how to amplify what you're already doing:1. Building your community - You already have an army of superfans behind you but is there more you could be doing to keep them engaged. Could you ask your 'superfans' for exclusive input on NPD? Or could you run online or IRL events that bring your customers together? 2. Partnerships that matter - You know your customer inside out, which means you also know what they love doing when they are not using your product or service. Have you considered a partnership with brands outside your field? Look at your customers' lifestyle, how they shop, their motivations in life, what problems they are facing - and then work with brands who complement this.3. Act like a brand, not a platform - Regardless of whether you sell a physical product, service, or subscription, you should talk to your customers as a vibe rather than an entity. Sorry, what do I mean by that? Your marketing could include in-person events, you could sell digital courses, and you could have merchandise even if you're not an e-commerce business. Get customers to love all that you represent and all that you sell. Yep, I've gone a little woo there! And all these tactics aside, we cannot let Meta continue this censorship. It's important to log complaints whether you can. Use every email address or contact form to make it clear how unhappy you are with the platform and its algorithm. When Meta rejects your ads, share them on your social channels so your followers can get behind you. Let's make it clear that the ban is holding back female-led business, and its bias is impacting women's progress. We won't be silenced.Hannah from Wrapp Consulting