What is “conversion” anyway? On today's episode, I've got some really important but simple ways to help you maximize the conversion of your marketing efforts. We all want more leads, more clients and ultimately, more sales. If you're not confident in what “conversion” even means, this episode is for you.

As mentioned on today's episode…
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Jessi Cabanin  00:04

Hey girl, hey, are you ready for some real talk? If you are a female entrepreneur who has ever felt like a total failure, or maybe even a frequent flyer of imposter syndrome, this podcast is for you. I'm your host, Jessi. I'm millennial business owner, boy mom and creative genius helping women bring their business dreams to life. After 10 years of building numerous creative brands from the ground up, I'm ready to get real about what actually goes on behind the scenes of building your very own empire failure opened a brand new mindset for me. And I really want that for you too, because honestly, I am just so over society's definition of what it means to live a successful life. So together, we are going to create and navigate a version of success that works for you. Together, we can redefine fabulous.

Jessi Cabanin  00:53

Hey, babe, happy Friday. I hope wherever you are, this sun is shining. I for one am so excited about this transition into spring. I feel like the breath of fresh air is exactly what I need right now as I'm closing out Q1 and about to chase some pretty big goals in Q2. So today's episode is all about marketing, and what is it? Why do we need it? And how can we rock it as efficiently as possible, because I know you're just like me, and time is not something that we have a lot of. Okay, so I've got some simple, but really important tips and tricks that will help you maximize your marketing efforts into actual clients actual leads actual sales. So without further ado, let's dive in.

Jessi Cabanin  01:39

Alright, so today we are going to talk all about marketing, we're going to talk about what it is I'm going to tell you why we need it. And I'm going to show you how to use your time wisely. And you know, in today's age, with all of social media and all of the different platforms, it's really hard to know when and where you need to be spending your time. And if you are like me, which I know you are, we don't have a lot of time, we need to be efficient with the use of our time. And so today we are going to talk about all kinds of ways to maximize the efforts that you are putting into your marketing.

Jessi Cabanin  02:15

Okay, so let's first talk about the word conversion. What is conversion specifically in the marketing industry, okay, conversion is the point at which a recipient of the marketing message performs a desired action. Okay, so in simple terms, because sometimes I just like to hear it straight.

Jessi Cabanin  02:34

In simple terms, conversion is the act of your customer taking action.

Jessi Cabanin  02:40

So what that means is, you are putting something out there, and the viewer, the customer, whatever, they are taking action by moving forward. Now I know you're out there, you know, you're just sitting there, you're like, I can't, I just can't there are too many forms of marketing. There's too many styles, there's too many platforms, it's impossible for me to start or focus or really do anything, you know, I feel your girlfriend that is my life on a daily basis. Okay? But marketing is a very, very important tool to your business, especially to your growth.

Jessi Cabanin  03:11

So the number one topic we're going to talk about today is knowing your audience, knowing your audience, take some legwork, I will not lie, okay, but it is an integral part of successful marketing. Okay, let's talk about what that means. How old are they? What is their occupation? Where do they hang out? How do they absorb information? Okay, these are some questions you want to start asking yourself about the audience that you're trying to reach. So fun fact, developing content is 1000 times easier when you've narrowed down who it is that you're talking to. Okay, you could be talking to everybody and no one's getting the message because it's not specific enough. So when you know your audience, you can really dive deeper into the problems that you're trying to solve for them. So as an example, you know, as a photographer, I don't want to just post that I am a lifestyle photographer because I am not looking to book lifestyle engagement sessions, lifestyle, family sessions, etc. I am looking for a very specific person. Okay, so for me for right now, as a photographer, I am a branding photographer. So I am specifically looking for women in business in the Chicagoland area. Okay, so now that I have narrowed down who I'm trying to reach, it's a lot easier for me to develop content based on what I know that person needs. So I hope that makes sense. Moving on.

Jessi Cabanin  04:35

Number two is social proof.

Jessi Cabanin  04:38

No one wants to pay to be the first person to test out your product or service.

Jessi Cabanin  04:43

Okay, I know we use friends and family for things like this. But no one wants to be that first person. Think about think about you like in your own terms. Like when do you actually want to be the first person Okay, so one big thing that we do in today's age, especially when we're shopping on Amazon really shopping for anything online is we are looking at reviews, testimonials, rapes, we want to see what other people think I'm also really guilty of actually going on YouTube. And like searching for unboxing videos, because I don't just want to read about what someone thought about it, I want to be able to see that person, I want to be able to see the product in their hand as they're reviewing it. I want to see their body language, I want to see how truthful they're being. Okay, so, in reality reviews and testimonials and raves online, in written format is only going to take us so far, because there's a trust factor involved. Okay, there are lots of scammers, lots of spammers, all sorts of things, that you really have to take a lot of things into account, when you're reading reviews. However, that does not mean that you can just not have them. So there's a couple of ways that you can do that within your social media platforms or your website, you can actually take people's reviews and put them onto your website, maybe you want to add a little picture next to it, I like to do that I think it adds an extra layer of trust factor into it, and it kind of just makes that review seem a little bit more legit instead of spam. Another way that you can do that is you can actually have a reviews link on your website that takes them right to a Google page. Okay, so if you are on Google business, and that is where you gather your reviews, what a great place to link it to so people can see them on there. Another way that you can do that is in your social media, on your stories in your posts. But like I said, I would highly suggest adding an image or the project or something that went along with the review, just to fully make sense out of it.

Jessi Cabanin  06:45

But just the number one thing to remember is that reviews, they build a subconscious trust in, they put the consumer more at ease when they're in that decision making process.

Jessi Cabanin  06:56

And as we all know, when we are in a decision making process, we need a lot of data to help us make that decision. Unless you're like me, which I just kind of jump into a lot of decisions. That's just kind of how I am. But I also regret that many, many times. So social proof, reviews, testimonials rates, however you want or can get them they are very important.

Jessi Cabanin  07:18

Alright, moving on to number three is a lead magnet. So a lead magnet is also known as an opt in or a freebie. Basically what it is, is, you know, you see those pop ups a lot on websites, and yes, sometimes that can be really annoying, but sometimes they are also the juice, okay, like they are amazing. And you're like oh my god, I would have never seen this.

Jessi Cabanin  07:40

Okay, so the whole point of a lead magnet is to grab email addresses in exchange for a deal or a free piece of content. This is very, very, very important because this is a way for you to take control over your followers.

Jessi Cabanin  07:57

So if you have listened to any podcast episodes previously, or you are already a part of my empowerment group, you hear me say this all the time, you do not own your social following. If Instagram decided tomorrow that they were going to go bankrupt, or they just decided they didn't like you, and they were going to block you, you have absolutely no way of contacting your followers. Okay, so this is why I also preach that the number of followers you have on social media is not that important in the scheme of things because they are not yours, you do not own them. So social media should always be a way to bring people from your social media account to your website, where you then have a lead magnet to pull them in. Because once you pull them in, and you give them something in exchange for their email address, you now own them as a follower, you are able to reach them directly through their email address. So some examples of lead magnets include coupon codes, or maybe a free sample of something. They include maybe a downloadable checklist or a PDF document of like an educational resource, or maybe it's even a giveaway or a drawing. There is a lot of ways that you can utilize the lead magnet, put your mind outside of the box, like think of something super creative because the more creative I think the more conversion that you get from it, okay, so just do not forget, your social followers are not yours, okay? So always, always, always utilize your social media as a vehicle. I joked about this in a training call a couple weeks ago, but utilize social media as your Uber, okay, you want to Uber, your clients, your customers, your viewers, you want to Uber them over to your website, because then you have control and that's where your lead magnets come in.

Jessi Cabanin  09:51

Alright, moving on. Number four is learn to repurpose your content. Repurposing is essentially the art of taking one asset and reusing it across multiple platforms of places to repurpose just as an idea builder here, all of your social accounts, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Twitter, okay, your blog, your website, courses or trainings that you might be building your podcasts, your keynotes,

Jessi Cabanin  10:19

there's no reason to reinvent the wheel, every day of the week, focus on diversifying how your offer can be absorbed.

Jessi Cabanin  10:27

So every time that you decide you're going to build something new, you have this great idea, that's great to think first about how it can be absorbed in like a lot of different ways. Because the reality of the situation is that people who you are talking to, they all absorb content very differently. So if you post one thing on Instagram, and you expect everybody to see it, and everybody to absorb it, and everybody to take action on it, you're going to be really sad when you see that, like almost no one does, okay, you need to do it in multiple places, and you need to do it multiple times the average person, it takes them seven times to see something before they will actually take action on it. Okay, so keep that in mind. Because just because you put something out there, and nothing happened doesn't mean that the idea or the offer was bad. It just means that the time and the place was not correct for the for the people who were seeing it, okay, so do not be afraid to put the same things out there. As a great example, this very podcast episode was a course, a free training class that I did in my women empowerment group. And I am now repurposing it into a podcast because I know that I will reach different people, I, hey, if you're out there, and you're in that group, and you already were through this class, Hey, man, thanks for listening. Again, my point is that everybody's gonna absorb information differently. So maybe 10 people showed up to that class when there's 60 people in the group. But that wasn't because the offer was bad, or the idea was bad. It was that only 10 people were in the right place at the right time for that to work, maybe 10 More people are going to be in the right place at the right time to listen to this podcast to get this information instead of wanting to go back into the group and watch it again later. So just keep in mind that repurposing is going to efficiently use your time across multiple platforms.

Jessi Cabanin  12:12

Okay. All right, moving on. Number five is social scheduling. Okay, this is a huge, huge, huge one. And I am super excited to talk about this one, because I recently actually switched over after years and years and years on the same platform, I'm actually switching over and I'm really excited to share it with you. Okay, social scheduling is essentially taking control of your strategy by seeing what's there and what's missing. So you want to utilize your time the best you can, right? So the top reasons to schedule your content instead of like everyday waking up and being like, oh my, what am I going to post today? Or you're going to bed and you suddenly realize, oh, shit, I didn't post anything today. And then you're scrambling to post something. That mindset sucks. I know. You know, it sucks. I know. I know. It sucks. So the top reasons to schedule utilize batch content planning, okay, as a multi passionate myself, I have to jump into a lot of different mindsets, I have to wear a lot of different hats. And so when I sometimes it takes me some time to get into there, okay? Like when I'm doing accounting, which I you guys all know, I hate numbers. I hate accounting. But when there are things that I have to do in the accounting world, it takes me a good 10 to 20 minutes to even like get my you know, like get the wheels turning in the right mindset. So why would I want to spend another 20 minutes transferring over into another Mindset? Just to come back into that? No, guys, you need to start batch content planning. Okay, so for me, if I am scheduling my social media, I am thinking okay, photography, what are the latest shoots that I want to feature? The word art inspiration things I post? What are they? And what do they look like a new websites, new branding, all these things, I need to be able to be in the right mindset. And then it sort of just flows and then all of a sudden, I have a month or two of content already ready to go. Another reason to schedule is that you have access from your phone on the go when you're utilizing one of these apps. Okay, so I could be at home with my son one day and be watching a movie and all of a sudden I have this idea, I can go right into the scheduler and put it in there. As I mentioned before, eliminating the anxiety of last minute creation, like I hate nothing more than all of a sudden being like, oh my god, I totally forgot to do this. And then all of a sudden, like having to come up with something now. You also want to free time and room for your life to get in the way.

Jessi Cabanin  14:34

So when you are able to start getting yourself to schedule, either a week in advance, maybe two weeks in advance, maybe a month in advance, okay? Now you're in eliminating the anxiety of something coming up in your life that's going to stop you from posting on your social media. Life happens guys, especially if you are a mom, life happens.

Jessi Cabanin  14:53

Um, you also want to visually control the look and flow of your feet. Okay, you want it to look somewhat consistent so that when they're scrolling through the posts, they can tell that like, they can kind of get a good feel for your vibe. And what you do. The last most important reason is because it builds consistency, when you can start posting content, maybe at the same time, maybe the same day, the week, whatever it is, you build consistency, and all of a sudden, your viewer knows to expect something from you, when they know what to expect, they're more likely to engage, they're more likely to move forward with whatever call to action you are giving them. So I used to use later there is nothing wrong with later. Let me start by saying that I used it for years, I loved it. For years, a new one came about shiny little gem, and I tried it out, there's a free trial version of it. Um, if you are looking for a schedule, I highly suggest it, I will drop a link in the show notes for you so that you have easy access. But the new one is called Plann. Okay, his plan with two ends is phenomenal. I won't go too far into detail about it. But the ability to be able to see your entire feed, it gives you the ability to sort of plan your content without actually having the content yet. So when I talk about consistency, I use the rule of nine a lot like I don't like my son's picture to be in the feed like more than once on like a screen fold. So I utilize the rule of nine in a lot of my scheduling so that it comes up consistently in the posts. Okay, so being able to visualize that and know which content I need to develop is very, very helpful for me. You can post your reels you can post your stories, you can choose all the times that you want to schedule, they will also provide you with a best times to post Okay, the analytics of this backend are insane. There is just so much to it, there is hashtag strategy, they give you content prompts, it is amazing. So be sure to check out the link in the show notes and take your free trial today.

Jessi Cabanin  17:01

Okay, we're almost there, guys. But number six is build a strong call to action.  A call to action can also be heard as a CTA, a CTA is a prompt for an immediate response or something to encourage an immediate sale.

Jessi Cabanin  17:17

having a strong call to action is very important because you are essentially telling the person what you want them to do.

Jessi Cabanin  17:23

Okay, so here are some textual examples to give you an idea and how to maximize that. Okay, so by now and get 50% off. Okay, so you added a number in there, which gives a very specific value. How about find your dream car with us? That sounds a lot better than just find your car with us, right? The word dream as an adjective has completely transformed that call to action into something that people will be more than likely to connect with influence their FOMO influence, their fear of missing out, okay, so today only get your free T shirt and not just get your free T shirt it is today only. Okay, last way is play up your unique selling position. Okay, so, order a handmade soap. Now, not just order a soap. Now, this is a handmade soap, okay, so you are utilizing this specific things that you do to build a stronger Call to Action visually, when you're doing this on your website. You want your buttons to be clear and concise. Okay, so instead of just a button that says click here, you want that button to say something like, yes, I want my Free Download Now. So when they click that button, they know what they're getting. They're not just clicking here because you told them to they know exactly what they're getting when they click so the best part is more than half of these things that I just discussed with you. They will run your business on its own without needing to be hemas handheld 24/7 testimonials, lead magnets strong call to actions in social scheduling are all free for you to use. Okay, free is free. Utilize free.

Jessi Cabanin  19:02

Alright, so I have one last Bonus tip for you. Okay, make it fun.

Jessi Cabanin  19:06

When it feels less like work creativity hits the pedal to the metal you guys okay, when I'm having fun. I mean, the creativity is like off the walls.

Jessi Cabanin  19:15

If you have ever done a photo shoot with me, you know exactly what I'm talking about. I go just like balls to the wall with my excitement. It's a little bit crazy, but alright, so here are some ideas to make it fun creating the hang of vision board in your workspace. Okay. Make sure that you are looking at something every day that reminds you of why you're doing what you're doing and what you're striving for. Celebrate even when the smallest victories arise, celebrate the shit out of them. Don't be afraid to share your dreams and your experiences with others. As humans, we really just want to be connected to one another in some way, shape or form. So please go share your dreams with someone it also will help keep you accountable. Okay, two things not to do. Do not pretend to be someone you're not just to fit in okay? And also do not speak in a language you think is better interpreted speak the way you would speak to someone in person because you will come across some way more realistic, less robotic and authentic. People want authentic people buy authentic and people keep coming back to authentic. Keep in mind that your audience more likely craves connection than perfection. So stop wasting all your time trying to perfect every little thing. So to recap, we are planning more and working less Okay, so you want to know your audience, promote reviews, create lead magnets, repurpose your content, start scheduling, use a strong call to action and have fun.

Jessi Cabanin  20:49

All right, babe. I hope you really enjoy today's conversation. I am super curious to know what your biggest takeaway was from today. So go ahead and share this episode on social media. Be sure to tag me at this way to fabulous and let me know what you connected with. What did you learn from this episode and what action item are you going to take today?

Until next time babe, keep pushing, keep dreaming, and let's keep on redefining fabulous. Chat soon guys.